Played: Chapter Nine - Jackie

With Mike in charge, the weekend meant shopping, shopping, and more shopping. Bathing suits and their matching cover-ups, sexy bra and panty sets, and the aforementioned sexy nightgowns were on the agenda. He made me model each item for him and Jake. After the third store, I stopped being body conscious. After the fifth, I got over the majority of my price tag shock.

Whenever I was tempted to back out, the picture of my niece lying in a dumpster filled with trash changed my mind. He and Jake made all of the purchasing decisions. The problem was getting them to agree. By the end of the shopping trip, I began to understand what it felt like to be a rich man’s plaything.

We ate lunch on the run but when four o’clock drew near, I insisted we return to Mike’s condo for dinner. Who knew shopping could be so tiring? After cleaning up, I headed straight into the kitchen to cook. Mike turned on the television and watched another ball game. Jake joined me in the kitchen.

“I thought women loved to shop. You didn’t appear to be having fun,” he said.

“I like shopping as much as any other woman,” I said, looking into the fridge and freezer for something to cook. The groceries I’d purchased had only been for last night. Mike had the ingredients for spaghetti, and I wanted something simple but quick. I took the meat out of the freezer and put it inside of the microwave to defrost.

“But?” Jake said.

Did I dare admit what had bothered me?

“Jackie?” he said, pushing for a response.

“You two spent a lot of money. Don’t get me wrong. They were sexy and beautiful, but I think the clothing was way overpriced,” I said, giving him what I hoped was a believable reason for my disquiet. What did I care how much they’d spent? It wasn’t coming out of my paycheck, although Mike did assure me I could keep the clothing afterwards.

He shrugged. “The client’s picking up the tab. It goes on the expense account. I get the feeling that isn’t the real reason you didn’t have fun. Did modeling everything bother you?”

I used the excuse of pulling out the rest of the ingredients to keep from looking at him. Modeling thong bikinis in front of the bosses had been bad enough, but many of the lingerie items we’d purchased had been lacy or sheer, leaving little to the imagination. Good thing I had a positive body image. “Initially, but I got past the awkwardness fairly easy.”

Jake caught me by the waist as I walked past him on the way to the island. He took the items out of my hand and set them on the countertop. “So what was the problem? You didn’t smile once.”

Sighing, I admitted, “I overheard a few of the salesclerks making comments about me. Though I shouldn’t have let it, what they said got under my skin.”

He frowned. “Comments like what? I didn’t hear anything.”

Angling my head to the side, I gave him a knowing look. “Two, obviously wealthy, white guys purchasing sexy lingerie for a black woman? What do you think was said?”

His eyes narrowed and a pulse pounded at his temple. “Which stores? I’ll handle it.”

I placed my palms flat on his chest. “I appreciate the offer, but it isn’t necessary. You and Mike are good-looking guys. I can recognize jealousy when I hear it. In hindsight, since they thought I was your whore, I should have rubbed their faces in it.”

His body went dangerously still. “Someone called you a whore?”

Eyes widening in alarm, I backpedaled quickly. “Ah, not exactly. Oh, look, the meat’s ready,” I said as the microwave chimed.

He tightened his arm, keeping me in place when I made to move toward it. “What term, exactly, was used?”

Stiffening my backbone, I said, “No, we’re not doing this. I tell you what was said, you demand to know who and where, and then you start World War III over something that doesn’t deserve time or consideration. Let it go.”

Staring directly into my eyes, he bellowed, “Mike!”

“What are you doing?” I demanded in a low voice.

“Yes?” Mike said from the living room.

“One of the salesclerks in a store we were in called Jackie our whore,” Jake said.

“What!” Mike came storming into the kitchen.

I glared a Jake. “I can’t believe you did that.”

“Which store? Which clerk?” Mike demanded.

“She won’t tell me,” Jake said.

“Well, that’s just bullshit. We dropped a shit ton of money in those stores today. No one talks about our secretary like that and gets away with it. Who was it, Jackie?” Mike said, coming to stand next to Jake.

Now I had two men glaring down at me. Great! Just wonderful. Crossing my arms stubbornly over my chest, I resisted their attempts to stare me down. “As I said, it’s not important. Let it go.”

Mike sputtered, “You’re really not going to tell us?”

“I’m really not,” I said, shaking my head. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to cook dinner.”

Jake’s expression suddenly went bland. He released me and stepped back. “All right. If that’s the way you want it.”

Nodding emphatically, I said, “Yes, it is.”

“You’re just going to let her—” Mike stopped speaking when Jake caught his eye. “Oh.”

I didn’t know what the look meant and didn’t ask. Retreating to the microwave, I took my own advice and pushed today from my mind. No way would I tell my bosses that in addition to being treated like trash that’d walked in off the street, I’d been followed unobtrusively by security the entire time we’d been in each store. One of the customers had spoken a racial slur under her breath. It was rare that I was confronted with blatant racism, but as a black woman living in America, unfortunately, it happened.

Jake grabbed Mike by the arm and hauled him out of the kitchen. As I browned the ground beef and diced onions, I watched them. They’d retreated to the living room and spoke in low tones. From the amount of gesturing Mike was doing, the conversation was intense. They must have come to some sort of agreement because both men suddenly smiled. Those smiles boded evil for someone.

“I don’t even want to know,” I muttered to myself.

The rest of the night progressed pretty much as the first one had. We ate dinner and cleaned the kitchen. Then we watched a movie on Netflix before going to bed. Jake and I shared one half of the mattress while Mike hogged the rest. Minutes after Jake curled around me, I knocked out.

*****

Sunday morning, the guys went through their physical training routine, but this time they went out after the sun rose.

“Don’t cook. We’re going out for breakfast,” Jake said.

“All right.” Due to extreme tiredness and our early morning start yesterday, I’d slept extremely well last night. I got up after they left and went through my morning routine.

An hour later, the guys returned to the condo. After they showered and dressed, we headed to a nearby IHOP where we stuffed ourselves full of buttermilk pancakes, breakfast meats, and scrambled eggs. I was glad not to be trying on body-baring clothing today, considering the way my stomach pooched. When Jake drove us back to the same high-end shopping center we’d visited yesterday, I asked, “Why are we here? Didn’t we do enough shopping yesterday?”

“Not quite,” Jake said.

They escorted me straight into an expensive jewelry store. I glanced at Mike, my eyes asking questions.

“Wedding rings,” he reminded me.

Part of our cover, I remembered. We needed simple, high quality gold wedding bands as befitted our status. However, Jake marched me over to the counter containing diamond engagement rings. Very large, very expensive diamond engagement rings.

The salesman hurried over with an ingratiating smile. “How can I help you today?”

“I need an engagement ring for my fiancée,” Jake said.