She saw the judgment in his eyes as he looked at her. "Don't start," she snarled. The liquid burned her throat all the way down and she hissed as she slammed the empty shot glass back down on the bar with vigor. "I don't need your suggestions and I sure as hell don't need that look."

Nick nodded. "Point taken. But as your friendly bartender, might I suggest you slow down a bit."

"You can suggest anything you want," Phyllis huffed, "But I'm gonna ignore you. Now, are you gonna get me another or do I need to take my business elsewhere?"

He sighed as he reached for the bottle and filled the glass again. His hand was quicker than her already slowed reflexes as he grabbed covered the top of it quickly. "Your keys first," he grinned.

"Ugh, fine," she growled. She reached for her purse on the bar, feeling her body sway a bit as she moved. Her hand gripped the bartop to keep from toppling off the stool. "I'm good," she said quickly, before Nick had a chance to ask. The keys landed on the bar in front of him as she straightened back up. "My drink?"

"Here you go," he muttered.

"Thank you." She took a small sip of the drink, the familiar burn spreading throughout her body as Nick turned his attention to another lonely patron on the other side of the room. She didn't blame him. It wasn't his responsibility to keep her spirits up and it was an impossible job anyway. As much as she wanted to pretend it didn't get to her. As much as she wanted to pretend that he was a bastard that she was better off without, she couldn't deny the fact that she missed him.

She woke up alone in the morning. She went to bed alone at night. She came home after work to an empty apartment. It was an awful lot of alone.

"We said we'd do this another time."

The deep voice startled her and she turned to look to her left. "Jordan," she breathed, "What are you doing here?"

"Same thing you're doing here I imagine." He smiled as his eyes roved over her body. He'd spent the better part of the last few days cursing himself for having been so stupid. Phyllis had never even shown a passing interest in him and yet it hadn't even struck him as strange that she'd invited him back to her apartment so quickly.

In truth, he might never have connected it had he not seen Hillary sitting with her earlier today. The two seemed positively chipper as they toasted each other with mimosas – And suddenly, it all made sense. He couldn't get back at Hillary yet, but he could make sure her minions understood exactly who they were messing with.

Jordan turned towards her, flashing his most disarming grin. "It's not a good idea for a beautiful woman to drink alone in a bar."

He was trouble and she knew it. She knew what Hillary had told her. She knew what her own intuition said, but she also knew how pathetic she felt sitting at this bar alone. It was nice to have someone pay attention to her. It was nice to be chased again…even if she didn't really want to be caught – at least not by him. "Well," she sighed, flashing her own smile in return, "I guess it's a good thing I'm not alone anymore."

"Billy." Hillary placed her hands flat on the top of the bar as she caught her breath. "Thank God I found you."

"Me?" He smiled as he turned towards her. "I'd be flattered but…"

"Oh, shut up. I don't have time for your ridiculous banter right now," she spat, "Do you know where Phyllis is? I've been trying to call her for almost an hour and I can't get her to pick up her cell."

The mere mention of her name was like a slap in his face and he felt his entire body slump. "No," he sighed. "She hasn't returned any of my calls in days and she won't let me in the apartment. I haven't seen her since the other night when she stood by and let me get arrested." He paused, expecting something, a smart remark, some sympathy maybe but, when he received nothing but silence, he let his eyes raise to meet hers. The expression of concern was evident and he felt his heart quicken. "What's the matter?" A sick, sinking feeling spread over him. "Hillary," he repeated, "Why are you looking for Phyllis? Is she alright?"

"I hope so," she breathed. "I really hope so."

"Talk." Billy pulled the bar stool away from him and motion for her to sit down. "Hillary, please…just tell me."

She hesitated for a moment. Phyllis was her friend and she knew how difficult things were with Billy at the moment. She also knew Jordan was unpredictable. If he'd con widows, he certainly wasn't concerned with hurting Phyllis. "I…"

"Hillary. Look, I know Phyllis has probably told you about what's been going on with us and I'd imagine you have your own opinion of the things I've done and what I deserve, but I also know that you're not a saint, so please….If you couldn't just put all of that aside right now. All I care about is Phyllis and if something's wrong, if you're worried…." He waited, hoping his plea was heartfelt enough to break through the obvious reservations.

"It's about Jordan," she sighed. "She told me you walked in on the two of them the other night."

"Yeah. I did. I didn't know the two of them were a thing and I didn't exactly handle the knowledge all that well. I don't think Phyllis appreciated my reac…"

"She's not….I mean, Phyllis was doing me a favor. I needed to get into Jordan's room to look for something and I asked her to distract Jordan for me. That's why she was with him. That's why he was in her apartment." She watched as relief spread over his face.

"So she wasn't…She isn't?" He smiled.

"Wait," she breathed. "I got the information I needed and it was worse than I thought. Jordan is really bad news and he knows that I was in his room. He also knows I had help."

Realization hit as his mouth grew dry. "You think he knows it was Phyllis?"

"I don't know," Hillary said quietly. "I know he's not here…in his room tonight and I know I can't get Phyllis to answer the phone. I'm not usually the type to jump to the worst possible conclusions, but…."

"But you're worried." Billy could feel his heart pounding as he tried to keep his mind from spinning out of control, "And you know more about this guy than I do, so if you think he's capable of…"

"Jordan doesn't care about anyone but himself and if he thinks Phyllis is a threat to what he's trying to do…"

Billy stood up. "I'll find her," he said. "And I'll call you as soon as I do. You call me if you hear from Jordan, okay?"

Hillary nodded as she watched him rush from the Athletic Club. She gestured to the bartender to bring her a drink. Tonight, she could certainly use one.