She:“I see. And why are you telling me that?”
He:“Uh-oh. Am I being inappropriate?”
She:“You tell me. Tell me what you’re thinking right now.”
He:“I’m not sure that’s wise.”
She:“Why not?”
He:“I might get my face slapped.”
A pause.
She:“You think I’d slap you in the face.”
He:“Or maybe my wife would, if she heard me.”
Well done. A test. He’s cautious. He dips his toe in and gives her openings but allows himself an easy retreat.
She:“Well, then, I guess it’s a good thing your wife’s not here tonight.”
—
Seventy-five minutes later. Quicker than I expected. The sound is better inside the hotel room than in the ballroom, far less noise and interference. His moaning is annoying but helpful.
He:“You are just... full of surprises.”
She:“Do you like that?”
He:“I like that... I like that a lot.”
She:“Does your wife do this for you, Paul?”
He:“My wife? Give me a break. She just lies there like a sack of potatoes. I have to check her for a pulse.”
They laugh.
—
Melanie comes down the stairs over an hour later, past midnight, wearing her dress from the night, a small jacket over her shoulders. I know Mel from our days in the “entertainment” business, which she has yet to leave, though she’s going to school for a degree in sociology. I hope she completes it and gets out of this business. You can tell yourself whatever you need to tell yourself to get through the nights, but you can’t survive this work for very long.
I hand her an envelope. She opens it and counts the money. “This is more than we discussed,” she says. “This is too much.”
“Consider it a bonus. You got some good stuff in there.”
“Yeah, well, he doesn’t like his wife, does he?”
She unpins the crystal brooch from her dress and hands it to me. “Pretty sure we captured the whole thing on here,” she says. “If you use it, you’ll black out my face?”
“Of course, Mel. And I don’t think it will ever come to that, anyway.”
I give her a hug and we say our goodbyes. “Get that degree,” I say to her. “Promise.”
“I promise. I’m about two semesters away.” She looks around and leans in to whisper in my ear. “So what did this guy do, anyway, to piss you off?”
44
Christian