“The tech wanted to know where we would attach the wire.”
She threw her hands up in the air and let out an exasperated growl. “I told you—I wear a costume! I don’t strip. There’s plenty of room to put a wire.”
“What exactly does this costume look like? I feel like I should see it on you ahead of time so I can tell the tech the best way to wire you up.”
Cyndi couldn’t tell if Jason’s interest was purely tactical or something else. “It kind of looks like one of those bodysuits the gymnasts wore in the Olympics. Only covered in sequins.”
“Sequins?”
“With matching stiletto heels.”
Jason shook his head, disbelief in his blue eyes. “We really need to have a long talk.”
“We can talk any time you want. I have nothing to hide.”
Dark shadows passed over Jason’s expression, but he didn’t say anything.
“I am glad I get to help bring justice to Jade and Lola.”
“Don’t forget our deal though. When this is over, you are going to quit that job, right?”
“If it’s really that important to you, then yes, I will retire my stilettos when this is over.”
“It is that important to me.”
“Then consider it done, because I love you.”
“I love you, but I’m having a real hard time trusting you right now.”
“I haven’t done anything to harm our marriage. No one ever touched me, and I’ve never touched any of them.”
“Just because no one touched you doesn’t mean they haven’t…you know.” Jason actually flushed a deep crimson as he turned away from her.
Nothing was going to get accomplished by beating a dead horse. Jason had to be ready to understand, and he wasn’t there yet.
“Come on, let’s get Harper and go outside,” Cyndi said.
Jason nodded. “Yeah, okay. It’s a beautiful day to teach her to play baseball.”
“Girls play softball, J.J.”
“Soft girls play softball, but Harper is tough!”
“You are something else, Jason Mills.” Cyndi smiled.
“I’ve been called a lot worse.”
Chapter Seventeen
Cyndi: Good evening, ladies. It’s three in the morning, do you know where your husbands are?
Angela: Sleeping.
Diana: Writing a long report about a domestic dispute over who ate whose lunch meat.
Jessy: Not really sure. He isn’t answering his texts.
Cyndi: I hate that, Jessy. Your mind becomes your own worst enemy.
Jessy: I am sure he is fine. I have way too much time on my hands since I got laid off. I live vicariously through him, and he is probably sick of me texting every hour! LOL
Diana: Where’s Jason?
Cyndi: Snoring away in the den. He has been working the mids lately, gets home about two or so, and wakes me up every single time.
Angela: You two speaking?
Cyndi: Things have been rough around here the last couple of days. This isn’t the first night Jason has slept in the den.
Angela: Now that he knows you have been lying about your job…I wasn’t sure how he would act, but I didn’t think he would be that angry.
Diana: Holy crap! Jason knows?
Jessy: When did he find out?
Cyndi: Didn’t you all get my message? I had to tell him. Did you see the news the other day about that body they found down at the ocean front?
Jessy: The one under the pier?
Cyndi: Yes. Her name was Lola. She was from Hawaii. Her husband died overseas on deployment, and she worked at Sugar Shakers with me.
Diana: Wow, and no, I didn’t get a message.
Cyndi: I know. Since Jade is still missing, I couldn’t ignore Lola’s death. What if they are related? I had to tell Jason I knew her so at least they could identify her body. I couldn’t stand the thought of Lola being a Jane Doe in the morgue. Once I said I knew her, I had to explain myself.
Jessy: Was Jason okay with it?
Cyndi: Hell no.
Jessy: So…how did he react?
Cyndi: He was pissed at me for lying. We have hardly spoken in two days, and like I just said, he is now sleeping in the den.
Diana: Wow.
Cyndi: I know.
Angela: Tell them the good part, Cyn.
Cyndi: Well, I don’t know if it’s the good part, but I am now employed by the Virginia Beach Police Department as a confidential informant.
Diana: What are you going to do for them?
Cyndi: When I have my shift on Friday, I have to wear a wire, ask a bunch of questions, and see if anyone knows anything about Lola.
Jessy: And…Jason’s okay with that?
Cyndi: He arranged it. Of course, he’s going to be undercover as well.
Diana: AS A DANCER?
Cyndi: LOL no! But I do wish I’d thought of that!
Jessy: Then what’s he doing?
Cyndi: He will pretend to be a regular patron of the club.
Diana: So he has to watch you dance and see other men get all hot and bothered by you?
Cyndi: Yes, he has to watch me dance, but I don’t think the guys get all hot and bothered.
Jessy: Hmpf. You can be so naïve, Cyn. I can’t believe Jason agreed to that.
Cyndi: Me either, to be honest, but we start on Friday night.
Diana: What happens if you don’t get any useful information?
Cyndi: I guess we do it again next week. I don’t know for sure.
Jessy: I still can’t believe Jason is okay with you doing this.
Cyndi: He did make me promise to adhere to one caveat—when I am done working undercover, I have to quit the job.
Angela: But you love that gig.
Cyndi: Yes, I do, but I can live without it. I love Jason and Harper, and working there has put my daughter in danger. Remember the man and the necklace?
Diana: How do you always get all the excitement, Cyndi? Some days I would gladly swap my life for yours…or at least my husband…
Jessy: I think we all wish we had husbands like Cyndi’s! LOL I’m signing off, ladies. Have a good night!
Cyndi: It’s exhausting to have to worry about sex all the time, you know.
Angela: Such problems, Cyndi…
Cyndi: Here’s a thought…have any of you thought about being the ones to initiate intimacy?
Diana: You sound like a magazine column in a chick magazine.
Cyndi: Maybe there is something to be said for those magazines, girls. This is the twenty-first century, you know. Take the proverbial bull by the horns and go after what you want.
Angela: What makes you think our husbands will respond?
Cyndi: They are men. Men like sex. They just sometimes lose sight of how much they want it when life gets in the way. They lose the fantasy when reality overwhelms. Why do you think places like Sugar Shakers exist? For men trying to get the fantasy back.
Diana: So, you are saying I should get a slinky costume and build a pole in the living room to give my husband a fantasy? That’s just not realistic, Cyndi.
Cyndi: I don’t think you need such drastic measures, Di. Just let your man know you still find him attractive. A look, a touch, a stolen kiss…Jason and I make an effort to show we want each other. We aren’t just naturally turned on all the time. Well, I’m not anyway—can’t speak for my husband.
Diana: I just don’t know where we would find the time.
Cyndi: It only takes a minute to lay a passionate kiss on him. No red-blooded American man would turn that down. You know what? I dare you both to make a pass at your husband when he least expects it.
Angela: Oh, please.
Cyndi: I’m serious! Marriages take work. Romance takes work. You have to put in a little to get a little…LOL
Diana: You know, I think I’ll take your dare, Cyn. I don’t think it will make a difference, but I’m willing to give it a try.
Angela: Well if Di is going to do it, then
so am I.
Cyndi: Yay! There are rules though.
Angela: Rules?
Cyndi: You can’t make a pass in bed or in the shower.
Diana: Why?
Cyndi: Those are typical sex places. You need to be original! Come on, Di, what do you tell those guys on the phone every Saturday night?
Diana: He won’t believe me when I tell him how big and hard he is. We both know the truth. Without that little blue pill…nothing…LOL
Angela: TMI, Diana! Keep that sort of stuff to yourself! We got our own problems over here…I wish Jess was here to take the dare.
Cyndi: We can fill her in later. Then you have a double challenge, Diana, turn him on without pharmaceuticals!
Diana: Mission impossible! LOL
Angela: So what’s the wager?
Cyndi: No wager, just a dare. Report back when you have success.
Angela: No wager? I want to get something out of this!
Cyndi: If all goes well you will…
Diana: We need a deadline.
Angela: Saturday night. Sex night for most couples.
Cyndi: I told you nothing typical. Get creative.
Diana: Creative…who has time for that anymore? LOL Okay, fine, nothing typical.
Angela: Maybe I will do something when he gets home from work—hide in the closet naked or something!
Cyndi: It’s a little cliché, but at least you are thinking outside the box now!
Diana: Well don’t expect any crazy sex stories, not all of us work in a night club and go undercover as a stripper.
Cyndi: I don’t take my damn clothes off! Why doesn’t anyone understand that?
Angela: LOL! Relax, Cyndi! We are just jealous…you are a hot momma. People would pay me to put my clothes back on!
Cyndi: Angie, you are stunning!
Angela: From the chest up, I do okay. Most people don’t make it past the supple breasts to notice my gigantic ass.
Cyndi: For crying out loud, is that what you want to teach your daughters? To hate themselves? To be sexy, you have to think sexy!
Diana: I actually agree with Cyndi on that one. You are beautiful, you just need to believe it yourself.
Cyndi: Where do you buy your underwear, Angela?
Angela: I don’t know. The discount store, I guess.
Cyndi: Stop. Go to a lingerie store and buy the pretty, silky stuff. Discount underwear gets you discount loving. You don’t deserve discount anything. You will feel so much better about yourself, your husband won’t help but notice. Not to mention how much more he will enjoy unwrapping the package…
Angela: I am nearly forty years old, why do I need fancy panties? I’m not trying to hook up at a bar.
Cyndi: Trust me on this. It will make a world of difference in the way you feel. Promise me you will buy one nice matching set of bra and panties and wear them when you execute the dare.
Diana: I buy my cotton underwear in bulk! I am fairly certain my hubby wouldn’t even notice if I wore something nice. His idea of foreplay is telling me to get naked.
Cyndi: Trust me, he will notice. If I’ve learned anything dancing, it’s that men are very visual. They get turned on by seeing what they think is sexy or forbidden. Why do you think they started hiding dirty magazines under their mattresses when they were teenagers?
Angela: All right, fine. I’m pretty sure he likes black lace. I’ll see what I can find.
Cyndi: You won’t regret it.
Diana: Well, if I have to hit the mall tomorrow, then I better call it a night. I’ll check back in with you ladies in a couple of days. Maybe Friday night after Cyndi’s first undercover gig?
Angela: All right, I’ll be here. I’ll send Jessy a message and tell her about the dare. Night, ladies.
Cyndi: Night! Oh and girls? Have fun. Sex isn’t just about procreating anymore.
Diana: Good night, Cyndi.
After shutting down her computer, Cyndi slid into bed and sunk into a deep slumber full of dreams of Charlie’s Angels type scenes where she, Cyndi Mills, caught the bad guy.
She still had the dare on her mind Friday night as she stood on a stool in her red, sequined bustier and let some young electronics technician from the police department fasten the appropriate hardware to her body so that it wouldn’t be seen. He was so young she almost felt dirty having him touching her, afraid she was breaking some kind of child molestation law. So consumed in her own thoughts, she almost didn’t hear Jason enter the room.
“You ready for this, Cyn?” He was still sleeping in the den, but his cold shoulder had been warming slightly in the last day or so. She hoped Jason could successfully put their problems aside for the evening. They had a job to do.
“You bet I am.” Actually, she was more than ready. Determined was a better description. Jade and Lola were going to get justice, and she would be a part of it. Even better, she would get to see her husband in action on the job. She used to take ride-alongs with him, but it had been a long time since the last one, and nothing excited her more than seeing Jason do the job he was born to do. The past couple of days had been a whirlwind of briefing the chief, filling out paperwork, and meeting with the tech guys for the wire instructions. There was even a strategy meeting where the team of cops and tech people filled her in on what to do and how to do it. She was ready to get the party started.
“This is not a game, you know,” her all-too-serious husband cautioned her. “Someone in that club could be very dangerous. I want you to watch your step.”
“I will, J.J., but it is still the most excitement I have had since Harper was born. It hasn’t been easy giving up a career I loved to stay home. I wouldn’t change it, don’t get me wrong, but I miss having that other life. That little bit of something that was all mine.”
“I suppose I can understand that. But what I don’t get is why you didn’t talk to me about it.”
“I don’t know, I guess I felt guilty. A lot of women would love to be in my position, but don’t have the choices I have. I felt like I should appreciate it more or I was a bad mother.”
“You are a great mother, Cyndi. Wanting to do something for yourself doesn’t make you a bad one. Putting yourself in dangerous situations does, though.”
“I’m sorry, is there something else you want to say to me?” Cyndi frowned.
“What sort of example are you to our daughter when you are dancing around like some kind of harlot every Friday night?” Jason questioned.
“I had no idea you felt that way about me.”
“You know what I mean, Cyndi.”
“Nope, I don’t think I do.” She crossed her arms over her chest and glared at him.
“Every time you step foot in that club, you are risking our family.”
“That’s not fair.”
“So you see absolutely nothing wrong with what you have been doing?” her husband asked angrily.
“Dancing for lonely, middle-aged men isn’t dangerous.”
“Lonely, horny old men can be dangerous.” He held his arms out to include the various people prepping her for the night. “Look what it got you into.”
“Seriously, J.J.…”
“J.J.?” one of the various tech officers milling around quipped. “What does the other J stand for, Mills?”
“Never mind, Thomson,” Jason snapped at the younger officer.
Thomson walked away chuckling as Cyndi continued. “As I was saying, Jason, what are the chances that I would choose the one club to work in where girls disappear and wind up dead?”
“In your case, Cyndi? About one hundred percent! I love you, but you have always been a magnet for trouble!”
“Why do you have such an issue with this?”
“Because you are my wife!”
“Lucky for Jade and Lola, trouble found the wife of a successful, well-trained investigator. We will get the dude.”
“What if we don’t?” Jason demanded.
“Then we will do this every Friday night until he shows
up and tries something.”
“That could take several weeks. I am barely going to make it through tonight. I can’t watch you do this again.”
“It could, but I don’t think it will. He has gone to a lot of trouble to get my attention.” Cyndi attempted a sweet smile, but Jason was having none of it.
“That’s what worries me most. We have no idea why. He could try to snatch you next.”
The truth finally came out. Jason’s fear that he couldn’t protect her from all the evils of the world. She reached out and touched his arm.
“Won’t happen. I have the hottest, bravest bodyguard ever.”
The kid snorted as he finished applying her wire. “You two are pretty crazy for old folks.”
“Who you calling old?” Jason growled.
“I’m just saying…” the young man backpedaled quickly. “It’s pretty obvious you two are hot for each other. I can’t think of the last time my dad even kissed my mom goodbye, let alone looked at her the way you are ogling your sexy wife here.”
Undercover in Six Inch Stilettos Page 14