Maria was shaking her head. She couldn’t fall for the fantasy they were creating—no matter how much she wanted it to be true. And it was best to lay it out so these women understood the situation.
“Whether or not he finds me attractive isn’t a concern for me.” Not really. “That’s not that important. We just have to pretend.”
The women shared a look and then looked at her. “From what Dee said last night, there was no pretending on Rome’s end.”
Before she could respond to that, Dee said, “Turn around.”
Maria did as ordered and then cursed herself again. She let the little woman order her around like she was some kind of dress up doll.
Without permission, May tugged at the bodice of the dress, pulling the neckline further down. “Oh, yeah, that’s the perfect cut on the top. Your boobs look great with the push-up.”
Embarrassment had her cheeks turning red again. The longer she knew them, the worse they seemed to get. It had only been a couple of hours. What would they be like after she had known them for a whole week? Did all women talk like this? She wasn’t really sure. Her mother died when she was twelve, and she had very few female friends. Men didn’t talk this way about clothes. And they definitely couldn’t make as many comments about her boobs as May Chambers had or the agent would be slapped with a sexual harassment filing.
Dee sighed. “May, you’re being a little…well, May.”
May looked at Dee then back at Maria. “Oh, sorry. I didn’t mean to overwhelm you.”
Dee laughed. “May does that a lot. But I have to say, that dress is exactly what you need.”
Maria frowned and glanced at the image of her backside. “Are you sure? I’ve never been someone who wore such loud colors.”
“Red isn’t loud, it’s colorful,” May said as if what she said made sense.
“Don’t most people wear black?” she asked. “The two clubs I went to in DC seemed to be filled with black leather.”
Dee nodded. “This will help you stand out a little more, which is exactly what you’re wanting to do. Besides, that color makes your skin look like porcelain.”
“If you two say so, I’ll go with it.”
“Now, we need to do something with all that hair of yours,” Dee said.
She was eyeing Maria’s bun as if it was offensive. Maria really didn’t want to do anything with her hair, so she decided to change the subject.
“Don’t I need jewelry?”
“No, with a dress like that, you don’t want them to look at anything but you,” May said. “I think we need a mallassada break. And we can talk about hair.”
The thought of girl talk usually sent her running in the other direction, but this, she knew, would help her. She needed to attract the killer, and she needed their help. She’d have to trust them and Rome to get this bastard. And, if it meant decking herself out like a sex toy waiting to be played with, she would do it.
· · · · ·
Rome got to the club about ten that night. After his embarrassment with the guys, he’d called Maria, and they had set up their sting. Not that he had much to say about the plans. He’d talked to Maria a few times that day, but he had yet to see her. He couldn’t explain the churning in his gut. It wasn’t the usual adrenaline rush he got from police work. There had been a time that he loved to do undercover. And there was a part of him that still did. But this was different. This involved a women who tangled him up like none other.
He noticed a few of the regulars, talked to a few people as he walked through the crowd. It had to look casual, as if he were here for a typical night at Rough ‘n Ready. When he reached the bar, Dee was smiling at him. “Good evening, Detective Carino.”
He couldn’t help but return the smile. Dee Ross was a tough woman, but she had a softer side to her that always appealed to him. Not sexually, but more like a little sister. She actually reminded him of his younger sister, so that was probably why. All hardass, but that soft core made her a heck of a woman.
“Busy for a Tuesday,” he commented.
She nodded as she fixed his drink. Non-alcoholic, not because of work, but because of the policy of the club. Micah had always had control on the drinking, but after a few problems, he and Evan had decided to cut out any alcohol for anyone who was going into the rooms in the back. Playing at Rough ‘n Ready was done alcohol free. Without a black wristband, you couldn’t get into the rooms. Rome’s wristband felt like a lead weight as he glanced around the area looking for Callahan.
“Yeah. I’m a little surprised. I figured we would lose a few people to the club we opened on the North Shore, but it seemed to increase our membership here.”