An Affair With My Boss (3 page)

4

              The next day was Saturday and I didn’t have to go to work at the casino.  All the same, I put on my cocktail uniform and waited around for my ride.

             
When a knock did come at the door I opened it to find Tom standing on my doorstep, dressed in all black and wearing a ski hat loose on the top of his crown.  He was sweating, bags under his eyes, and he shouldered his way inside.  I noticed a black SUV waiting in front of my house, a driver behind the wheel, watching me.  I recognized the man as Tom’s buddy from his job at the car dealership.

             
“Where the hell have you been?” I asked him by the door.

             
“I’m sorry, Alice,” he said, taking my hand.  His eyes were only on mine.  “I’ve been laying low, preparing for a job.  I couldn’t let myself be seen around you, or else you’d be in danger.”

             
“What job?”

             
“I’m getting that fucker back tonight,” he said with a mouth full of snarling teeth.  “For what he did to me and you.  I’m gonna break up his poker game tonight.  He should be careful how he advertises his own private games, because I found out with just a little research.  Found out about his wife too, and her role in the whole thing.  Fucking sick.  He should have known the word would get out about it.  Huge players are gonna be there.  All that cash.  It’s ours, baby.”

             
“Wait, what’re you talking about? Break it up?”

             
“Don’t worry about that.” He leaned forward and kissed my forehead.  “We need to leave town tonight.  I need you to come with me.” When I didn’t answer, he continued.  “I need you to be ready when I knock on your door later tonight.  Can you do that? Suitcases…everything.  Then we’ll start over and live like royalty in another place.  Wait, what’re you wearing?”

             
With his hands on my shoulders, he held me out at arm’s length and screened me up and down.  My breath stalled in my throat.  I was certain that he had recognized the cocktail uniform from the Salvador.  So easily, my dirty secret was revealed, and I could do nothing to argue my case.

             
“I don’t know what’s gotten into you, but I like the new wardrobe.” Tom’s face broke out with a quickly spreading grin.

             
I learned to breathe again and managed to laugh.

             
“Do you understand, Alice?” he asked, serious again.  “Will you be here tonight? Will you be ready to leave no matter what happens? Do you trust me?”

             
I managed to nod and he kissed me on the lips this time, his hands on my hips, just like John liked to do.

             
“I love you, baby,” he said, and then he was out the door, leaving me to shake in the entranceway.  I hugged my arms over my breasts and shivered in the wind as the door slammed shut.

             
Torn between the two men in my life, I didn’t know who better deserved the clear hand of justice that was about to bang us all into shape, Tom or John? Did John deserve to have all his money stolen from his poker game, an amount that barely constituted as pocket money for him? Or did Tom deserve whatever might be coming to
him
? Another beating? Perhaps death? How far would John go? I wondered if it would be so bad to follow Tom into the unknown adventure of life on the road, but could I live, always looking over my shoulder for John Krasner?

             
An hour later another knock came at the door and I abandoned my pacing of the floor to open it.  There was no one there, and I had just enough time to watch a car pull away from my driveway and speed off.  Another car sat in my driveway and I walked outside in my clicking heels to discover a silver BMW parked neatly in the porch light.  It was impeccable, the next year’s model with tinted windows and a cardboard sign taped to the windshield with the words: “It’s Yours…John.”

             
I had to catch myself on the car door, where I found the keys dangling in the lock.  I dropped into the driver’s seat and fumbled excitedly to insert the keys into the ignition.  The GPS touch screen flickered into life, a single destination saved to it.  It was titled:
Krasner’s Court.

             
I opened the directions to John’s house and followed the route with my finger.  It was far away, that much I could tell.  It was located a few miles down Park Street and through a bit of the suburban backwoods.  The end of the line was in some part of the town I was not familiar with.  It
seemed
to be a residence.

             
Without over-thinking it, I put the car into drive with the express purpose of a joyride.  I turned off onto the main road, but decided I might as well follow the blinking icon on the GPS screen.  It led me to a smaller neighborhood, tucked away behind a large church and cemetery.  Once I thought it was safe enough, I tested the eight-cylinder engine, just to see what it could do.  In a matter of seconds I was slicing around tight bends at forty miles per hour, as if I was on the track of a rollercoaster ride.  I whooped happily, my worries for the night temporarily forgotten. 

I
watched as sad stop signs flitted past and parked cars happened surprisingly close, so close in fact, that one of my side-view mirrors completely vanished.  I cursed and braked fast.  I quickly scavenged the street and found the dead piece of plastic in a person’s lawn, the mirror significantly cracked.  I didn’t bother to check the other car, but
did
check the Beamer’s paint job.  It looked fine in the streetlight, but there was no ignoring the missing side mirror.  I tossed it into the backseat and sped away.

             
I found myself on a dark street with fences lining my left and right sides.  There were houses behind those fences, all painfully quiet and dark.  The loneliness was starting to get to me.  All I wanted to do was go back to my house and crawl into bed.  I wanted to turn around, but my destination was close. 

             
The red dot on the screen pulsated with a quickening pace.  There were very few houses on this next street, but they made up for their numbers with impressive size.  I was in a wealthy neighborhood, one with marble fountains gracing the front lawns and sports cars in driveways.  Once the GPS started to beep and flash, I triggered my turn signal and pulled to the curb.

             
I checked the GPS and picked out the correct house, just across the street from me.  It was quite beautiful.  It had three floors and a line of miniature lamps leading up to the massive double doors.  To my surprise, all the windows were black and empty, except for the downstairs.  Now that I was there, I decided I could leave.  There was nothing to attach me to John
or
Tom.  I could start over, take the car and drive to a new state.

Then a
light suddenly blew up in one of the upstairs windows.  I looked up with baited breath.  A woman’s torso eased into the window frame, bare breasted, and reflecting angelic yellow light from the interior of the room.  She was gorgeous, peering out into the night for a long moment before resting her eyes on the car.  I realized that my headlights were still on and I fumbled to tear out the keys.  Now the girl was clearly interested, leaning out the window with her scarlet hair billowing like a yawning flag.  She looked to be around my same age, late twenties at the most.

             
Once the keys were liberated from the ignition, I dared to look back at the house.  The girl was still there, and motioned for me to get out of the car, but I did not budge.  The girl smiled and continued to wave her hands in the air.  I finally stepped out and tried my best to return the smile.  She yelled something down at me, and I sauntered closer to hear.

             
“What’s that?” I called.

             
“Don’t wait outside.  Come in!” she repeated.  The woman ducked her head back into the room.

             
I swallowed hard and forced my feet to follow the stone walkway, up to the front doors.

             
I managed to knock on the front door and it opened at once.  A tall man in a nice suit and white gloves filled the doorway.  He leaned forward at a crooked angle to inspect my face.  Then he withdrew and the red haired girl was standing there in the dim darkness, her fine porcelain skin standing out like a mirror for the moonlight.  Though she wore no clothing, she made no attempt to cover herself.  Again she motioned for me to come closer.  I hesitated, half expecting the tall man to reappear.

             
“Come in,” the woman called.  There was something about her smile and the way she remained so still and comfortable in the cold night air.

             
I returned the woman’s smile, careful to keep my eyes elevated as I was led inside.  A parlor door stood closed to our right, and judging by the hooting laughter and voices from beyond, I knew that was the location of the private poker game. 

Though it was dark, the naked woman knew right w
here to go.  She took my hand and pulled me up onto a wide staircase.  Right when my eyes were beginning to adjust, a light came on in the ceiling.  I found myself inside an extravagant room with a ridiculously large bed and an assortment of plastic plants hanging off the walls and fanning out of ceramic pots, which sat in awkward places around the room.  One of the plants was situated in the middle of the floor, right at the foot of the bed, and another sat on a rocking chair as if it were just another guest.  There were no other pieces of furniture in the room.  A lot of it remained empty, which only made it seem that much more spacious and overbearing.  A lone painting hung on the opposite wall, depicting a red fox stretching its legs atop a fence.  There were no televisions or lamps or desks; only the large bed and all those fake plants.

             
“This is…quite a room,” I said.  I finally circled around to face the woman.  I was able to get a better look at her in the light, and once more, my eyes were caught wandering up and down the length of her body.  The woman played absently with her long hair.

             
“It’s alright I guess.  It’s only here to keep the bed,” the woman said. 

“What’s so special about it?”
I asked.

“It’s only the most comfortable bed you’ve ever seen.”

              She pushed me back into the covers and all the muscles in my body reduced themselves to putty.

             
“What’d I tell you?” the woman said with a laugh.

             
I stared up at the ceiling, faintly groaning inside my throat.

“I’m Grace,” the woman said, extending a hand to shake
.  “I’m John’s wife.  I’ve heard so much about you, Alice.”

             
“What?” I choked on my exclamation.

             
“You won’t be needing that,” Grace said, pulling on the hem of my skirt.  “This is a birthday suit engagement only.”

             
I stared doubtfully down at my clothing.

             
“John
did
tell you what you’d be doing, right?” When I didn’t answer, Grace cursed to herself, shaking her head.  “That man.  I will say that it’s very easy to remove yourself from the moment if you’re uncomfortable.  I have plenty of blow if you’re interested, but those are good men down there, who happen to have a lot of money.  Just say the word and they’ll treat you with respect, but don’t expect to walk out of there without giving them something for their time and yours.  Just see where the night takes you.”

             
“I can’t believe this.” I was visibly shaking and Grace put a naked arm around me.

             
“Trust me,” Grace whispered in my ear, her lips just nuzzling against my cheek.  “It’s better with more women.”

             
I looked her in the eyes.  “You said something about blow?”

             
Grace smiled.

5

              The parlor doors swung open from the outside and a cloud of cigar smoke quickly enveloped us.  At once the men began to whoop and cheer with Grace and my presence, and my eyes had a chance to focus.

             
Four men sat around a poker table of green felt, all smoking cigars, and all their eyes ogling my naked body, just prickling with gooseflesh from the cool air of the parlor.

             
John was dressed in an open collared shirt, his slacks unbuttoned and unzipped.  He gave me a quick wink.

             
“How do you like the car?” he pressed me with a smile.

             
My head was banging like a gong from the four lines of coke Grace had kept pushing under my nose.  The room swam with bright ethereal streaks of light, the men’s laughter and catcalls shredding against my eardrums.

             
I was able to form the words between my lips.  “I love it.  Thank you.”