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Mickey opened his mouth to speak, but Harry the bulldog cut in then.
“Five thousand,” were his calm words. “For two hours.”
Both Mickey and I turned to gape at him.
“I’m sorry?” was my gasp. “What did you say?”
This was a huge amount of money, even for an experienced dancer. Mickey was even more mercenary.
“Is this on top of the two thousand that you’re paying the Flamingo?” he asked in a whiny voice. “Or is our fee included in that?”
What? The Flamingo was gonna make two thousand off of me just from this? My mouth dropped open and I turned accusing eyes to Mickey, but he didn’t even notice.
“So what is it?” the small man pressed. “Two thousand total or four thousand total?”
Fortunately, the man wasn’t perturbed, responding in a polite tone.
“The two thousand for Ms. Evanescence is in addition to the two thousand we’ll be forwarding the Flamingo. In fact, I have it all here,” he said, pulling out two bulging envelopes. “If you’re ready, ma’am, I’m happy to escort you to the location.”
Mickey’s eyes almost popped out of their sockets.
“Oh sure, I’m sure this is all fine,” he said, waving his arm airily. “Isn’t this fine Pearl? Come on, it’s almost seven. Your date is about to start!” he exclaimed, greed in those beady eyes.
And slowly, I took a deep breath before looking at Harry.
“I want you to know I’m a law-abiding citizen,” were my slow words. “Whatever your boss thinks is gonna happen, probably isn’t going to happen. And there are no refunds, no matter what.”
Harry nodded respectfully.
“Of course, ma’am,” he said. “We absolutely recognize that, and value your input. We understand that, and I can assure you that my boss has much more at stake than you.”
I squinted at him. What did those words mean? But with a slow nod of my head, I agreed.
“Okay,” was my curt reply. “I’ll do it then.”
And damn if Mickey didn’t bounce out of his chair and do a little jig then.
“Perfect!” he squealed, grabbing one of the envelopes. “You’ll have a great time Pearl. See you when you’re back!”
And slowly, I followed Harry out of the office with the two thousand dollars burning a hole in my purse. Because nothing good could come out of this, right? I was literally going to parts unknown with a strange man who wasn’t even the man I was supposed to meet. Instead, I was going for a rendezvous with his boss, who could be a gang member, a movie star, or more likely, just some married guy who didn’t want his wife to know. That made me sad, the energy draining from my limbs. But again, there was no choice. If I wanted to survive, I had to go on this date or be fired. So with a heavy heart, I got into the black SUV waiting at the curb and sped off to destination unknown.
