Work Text:
“Seriously, you guys? That’s your only reaction? To laugh at me in my time of need?” Nancy sputtered helplessly as Bess and George laughed hysterically. After the events of the previous night and earlier that day, she had called an emergency dinner summit at their favorite neighborhood bar, a tiny, dark dive of a place that served killer burgers and salty, crispy fries.
“No, that’s not our only reaction. It’s also no fucking way, Nan. No way did you hook up with your new coworker!” George howled.
“I know!” Nancy shouted in desperation. “I mean, of all of the guys in Chicago, that’s the one I have to screw in my one moment of rebellion? What the fuck?!”
“Look, it’s not that bad,” Bess tried to soothe her. “I mean, he said he won’t tell anyone and that he would keep work and his personal life separate, right? So, I’m sure it’ll be fine – after a month or two, you’ll forget all about it and just treat him like any other coworker.”
“Unless,” George said, her eyes gleaming,” he was so incredible in the sack that you can’t forget it.”
“Oh my God, was he?” Bess demanded, literally bouncing up and down in the worn and cracked faux-leather booth. “He was hot as hell - please tell me he was a good lay.”
Nancy hesitated, debating whether to tell them the truth or try to downplay what had happened between her and Ned. She finally gave in. “He was… spectacular. Seriously – you know I’ve had my share, but this guy? Fucking amazing. Gorgeous and an incredible fuck.”
Bess and George began howling in delight. “And what about the…you know?” Bess smirked, holding apart her thumb and index finger.
Nancy leaned in, a teasing smile on her lips. “Huge.”
“Oh, shit!” George laughed. “Like, what are we talking here? This?” She held up the medium-sized salt shaker that was sitting on the table. “Or, this?” She grabbed the bottle of ketchup and waved it.
“Ketchup,” Nancy told them sweetly, sitting back against the booth. “Girls, I measured, and it was seven and a quarter inches. And thick as hell. And believe me – he knew how to use it.”
Both of her friends’ mouths dropped open at that.
“Forget your job, Nan – you need to get this guy back into bed, like, now.” Bess commanded, taking a sip of her Coors Light.
“Bess, I can’t!” she wailed. “I like my job and I don’t want to fuck it up by…fucking my colleague!” she finished, grabbing her bottle of Budweiser.
“Yeah, we’ll see,” George grinned.
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Nancy demanded.
“Bess, ten bucks she winds up on her back, legs up and open, in his apartment again within a week.”
Nancy leaned over and smacked George on the arm. “Fayne, don’t make me kick your ass. Nothing is going to happen. I mean it.”
Bess swiveled her head back and forth between them. “Five days, and you’re on, cousin.” They shook hands across the table as Nancy snarled at them.
Bess went to grab for one of Nancy’s fries, but Nancy smacked her hand away. “I come here asking for sympathy and this is what you guys do? Thanks a lot, friends.”
“Oh, don’t be mad, Drew,” George told her. “Come on, it’s funny. You know it is – this shit would only happen to you.”
“It’s true,” Nancy sighed dramatically. “It’s like God is punishing me for being a slut. It’s not fair – I volunteer at a soup kitchen, I work hard and don’t steal, I pay my bills on time, I like my parents - I’m a good person, damn it!”
Bess patted her hand before sneaking one of the fries from her basket. “You’re not a slut – you’re single and free and just wanted a good time. It’s not a crime, Nan.”
“But I’m not going to let it happen again,” Nancy said, gesturing with a fry in her hand. “Give each other those cute little smirks all day long, but I am not going to have sex with that man again. End of discussion. What I’m more worried about right now is actually having to work with him – is he going to try to impede on my turf, steal my stories, what?”
“Wait, I thought you told us that your boss Sid swore that you and this guy would work on different stuff?” George asked, finishing her beer and signaling to their waitress for another.
Nancy rolled her eyes. “He did, but how’s he gonna prevent that from happening, huh? What if Nickerson decides to get ambitious and starts stealing my contacts right from underneath my nose? Then he gets a big story and gets all of the praise and attention, and where does that leave me?”
“You think he’d do something like that?” Bess dunked another fry from Nancy’s basket into the pool of ketchup on her plate.
“I have no idea, Bess. I only met him less than 24 hours ago! Here’s what I know about him.” Nancy began ticking items off on her fingers. “He’s thirty, originally from Phoenix. Great body, huge cock. Makes a damn good peanut butter sandwich. Has a crazy sexual history like I do. Oh, and he learned how to please a woman when he was a lifeguard in college and a cougar made it her personal mission to give him one-on-one sex ed classes. And all of that experience apparently paid off, because he was the best fuck I’ve ever had.”
The cousins both laughed at that. “That’s kind of a lot of information for less than 24 hours, don’t you think?” George teased.
“Plus, didn’t you say that he seemed like a nice guy?” Bess asked.
“Yeah, but…That could just be a trap.”
“Like how?” George had a puzzled expression on her face.
“To make it seem like he’s not a threat,” Nancy explained, trying not to sound exasperated. “So I’ll trust him…Meanwhile, he could be planning to encroach upon my territory and my assignments. All he’d need is one amazing story, and then Sid would kiss his ass and give him all of the plum stories. And where would that leave me? Screwed, that’s where.” She answered her own question.
“Honey, you’ve already been screwed by this guy - literally,” George smirked. “Stop being so fucking paranoid. Maybe he’s legit and really intends to stay in his own lane.”
“Yeah, we’ll see.” Nancy was still skeptical.
--
Two days later…
“Hey, Drew – just the person I was looking for,” Ned beamed as she stepped into the elevator.
Nancy tried not to wince. She hadn’t deliberately been trying to avoid him – at least, that’s what she told herself – but it somehow seemed easier if she kept her distance. She had thought she’d be in the clear today, since he spent most of the morning out doing some research on the story Sid had assigned him the other day. Nancy had been out doing her own investigation and had decided to bring her lunch back to her desk so she could do some research online.
“What’s up, Nickerson?” she asked, trying to sound casual.
“I need to pick your brain on a few things for the story I’m working on – have a few minutes?”
Nancy automatically felt her back go up. “I’m kind of in the middle of something,” she replied, trying to sound vague. See, here it comes, she thought to herself.
“It should just take a few minutes,” he persisted. “I swear.”
They got off of the elevator and Ned followed her to her desk, much to her chagrin. She set the paper bag holding her lunch onto her desk and tossed her tote bag onto the floor underneath it.
“Nickerson, I’m kind of busy,” she told him, hoping he’d get the hint and walk away.
“Just two minutes,” he said, sounding apologetic.
Nancy rolled her eyes and made a big show of clearing off the extra chair next to her desk. “Fine, two minutes.”
She tried to ignore the sexy grin he rewarded her with as he plopped down in the chair. “Great – thanks. Do you know anyone at the Double D Billiards Parlor?”
Nancy sat in her desk chair and turned to face him. “Why?”
“Because the cold case story I’m working on involves the murder of a young mother from Skokie two years ago. Pretty, blonde, sweet – everyone loved her. She was a stay-at home-mom while her husband was an assistant rabbi at a medium-sized congregation nearby. The cops never shook the feeling that her husband was her killer, but they could never prove it.”
She remembered the case – it had gotten a ton of media attention before it became just another murder case that faded from the public’s conscience. “Bailey Stern, right? Her husband was named Robert, or Bob, or Rob?”
“That’s the one – good memory, Drew. Rabbi Rob Stern and his wife Bailey. Meanwhile, Bailey’s family, Rob’s family, and all of their friends still swear up and down that he was squeaky-clean innocent. Not a whiff of scandal or trouble in their marriage or with his reputation. He was supposedly a devoted family man who adored his wife and kids, a man who went out into the community to volunteer and feed the hungry when he wasn’t serving his congregation.
“But, I did a little digging and it seems that he visited the Double D once a week for a few months before the murder.”
“Well, however tacky the name of the place is, that doesn’t sound like a crime,” Nancy replied, trying not to let her interest in Ned’s story show.
“Right, but Mr. Innocent may not have been alone during that visit. From what I’ve been able to uncover, it seems that he was meeting a woman who was definitely not his wife.”
“And this is just coming up now?”
“Someone just left an anonymous tip with the cops a few weeks ago – they did it by mailing in a picture of the woman, and the envelope included a slip of paper with the name of the billiards hall on it. The police are investigating, but you know how some people are unwilling to talk to anyone in a uniform, especially in places like that.
“I was able to get a copy of the picture by flirting with a cute secretary at the precinct where it was sent – cheap, I know, but it worked.” He flashed a sheepish grin. “So, I went by the Double D yesterday afternoon, thinking that I might have better luck. Didn’t work, though - the guys who were behind the bar or were setting up the tables wouldn’t talk to me. So, that’s why I came looking for you.”
She raised an eyebrow. “Why me, Nickerson?”
“Because I get why they wouldn’t talk to me, but if it were a hot redhead asking the questions…?” Ned gave her an easy grin.
Nancy pretended to be offended. “So, you want to pimp me out?”
“Um, I wouldn’t exactly put it that way. I’d say that I needed your ace investigative skills. And your hot body.”
She folded her arms under her breasts, until she realized that it pushed up her cleavage. When she caught his eyes drop down to her chest, she hastily put her arms back down to her sides. “A, that’s offensive. And, b – you just expect me to drop what I’m doing and help you with your story after a little flattery? So you can get the scoop, break the big, high-profile case, and get a front-page story? Step one in your quest to step over me? Do you think I just started this job yesterday, Nickerson?” Nancy turned back to her desk, disgusted.
Ned looked surprised. “You think that’s what I’m doing, Drew? “
“Aren’t you?” she asked, clicking on the keys to unlock her laptop screen, still not looking at him.
“Of course not. Look, I’ve read your stories and I’ve talked to people, and I think you’re an incredible reporter. You clearly know how to investigate and do research, and I just wanted your help because I knew that you could get the guys at the club to tell you stuff that they’d never tell me.
“Oh, and by the way? I had every intention of sharing the credit for the story with our boss and in the byline. I’m sorry if I pissed you off, though. Let me let you get back to your story.” He rose from his chair and started to walk away.
Shit, she thought ruefully. This is what this job has done to you – made you a cynical bitch. “Nickerson!” she called after him. “Get back here.”
He turned, a wary look on his face. “Seriously, get back here.” She nodded towards her visitor’s chair.
Ned walked back to her desk and sat down again. “What’s up, Drew? Feel the need to accuse me of more backstabbing?”
She had the grace to flush. “Look, I’m sorry, but I’ve had some bad experiences. A lot of guys think that they can dick me over to get ahead, just because I’m a woman.”
“That sucks,” he said sympathetically. “But that wasn’t my angle, Drew – I swear. I just wanted your help.”
“Okay, fine,” Nancy sighed. “When did you want to go to the club?”
Ned’s face lit up at that. “How about tonight? Say, 10:00? That way, there’ll likely be a new shift working, so they won’t recognize me.”
She nodded. “Okay. So, how did you want to play this?”
He thought for a moment. “How about I let you work your magic while I happen to sit close by at the bar so I can hear? Then if it gets weird or if there’s something I want to ask, I can jump in – in other words, we’ll pretend we don’t know each other to start with. Sound good?”
Nancy nodded again. “Sure. But you’ll need to fill me in on what you found out so far so I know what questions I need to ask. Unless you think that I’ll take the information and steal the story out from underneath your nose?” she asked sweetly.
He chuckled. “Nope. I trust you, you trust me – deal?” He held out his hand and Nancy shook it, her palm tingling from the contact with his skin.
Ned lingered for a moment longer than was necessary before pulling back his hand. “So, let’s meet back at my desk in, say, an hour? Then I can give you all of the details.”
--
At 9:30 that evening, Nancy pulled up in front of Ned’s apartment building. He had initially offered to drive, but she had turned him down – this way, she had control over when she could leave.
She saw him waiting outside in front of the door, and his face lit up with recognition as she slowed the car to a stop.
“Hey, Drew – this is some sweet Mustang,” he told her upon opening the passenger’s side door and getting inside.
“Told you,” she replied lightly as she drove away.
“Thanks again for agreeing to come with me.”
“Sure,” she shrugged casually. “It’ll just mean that you’ll owe me later.”
He chuckled in the darkness of the car’s exterior. “Okay, I can live with that. Hey, just in case – you know how to play billiards?”
Nancy shook her head. “Pool, yes; billiards, no.”
“Well, I can teach you, in case we have to use that as a cover in the place.”
“Where’d you learn to play?” she asked, surprised.
“My frat house had both pool and billiards tables.”
“Ah, so you’re well-rounded.”
He laughed. “Well, that offer to teach you still stands.”
Nancy didn’t answer, trying to ignore the images in her head of Ned coming up behind her, his hips tight against hers as she bent over a billiards table.
--
Thirty minutes later, Nancy parked on a side street around the corner from the Double D, praying that her car would be there when they returned.
Once she got out, Ned let his eyes roam all over her body and gave an appreciative whistle.
“Fuck, that’s perfect, Nancy - you look smoking hot. With an outfit like that, the guys’ll be falling all over themselves to talk to you.”
Nancy made a dismissive gesture with her hand, though she was secretly pleased by his words. Thanks to the push-up bra she was wearing underneath it, the tight, low-cut black shirt showed off impressive cleavage, while the short denim skirt revealed her long, shapely legs. A pair of spike-heeled shoes, some dramatic mascara and eyeliner, and large silver hoop earrings all helped to give the vibe of a young woman who was looking for a good time. She hoped it would be enough to get the information they needed for the story.
The information Ned needs , she reminded herself. This isn’t your story – you’re just doing him a favor.
He led the way to the billiards parlor before stopping a few feet away from the door. “I think you should go in first – we’re not supposed to know each other, remember?”
“Good point,” she told him. “I’ll go to the bar and order a drink and see if I can get anywhere. You come in and sit near me in about 5 minutes, okay?
Ned nodded. “Good luck. And, look – if it gets too dangerous or some asshole steps out of line, then just forget it and leave, okay?”
Nancy gave him her best glare. “I know how to take care of myself, Nickerson. I’m not some weak little girl.”
“I never said you were,” he replied mildly. “I just didn’t want you to think that I was cool with you putting yourself into danger just for my story.”
“Please,” she snapped, rolling her eyes. “I’ve done a lot more dangerous shit for a story than going into a rough bar dressed like a floozy, believe me.”
“A floozy?” he smirked.
“Are you to going to mock me, or are you going to let me do what I’m here for?”
He nodded his head towards the entrance. “Go ahead, Drew. Knock it out of the park.”
Nancy walked inside and let her eyes adjust to the darkness before heading over to the bar. She could feel the stares of virtually every man in the place as they crossed over her chest, legs, and ass, and it made her skin crawl. Plastering an overly-friendly smile onto her face, she strode up to the bar, leaning over it so that the bartender could get a good look at her pushed-up breasts.
“Hey, Jack and Coke, please?” she asked flirtatiously.
The heavyset, bearded middle-aged bartender gave her a lecherous grin, and let his eyes linger on the creamy tops of her breasts far longer than it was polite to do so. He was sweating, and Nancy had to do everything in her power not to let the revulsion show on her face.
“What’s a sexy little girl like you doing here?” he asked in a gravelly voice.
“Looking for a good time,” she replied breezily. “And hoping that you can maybe help me with something.”
“Oh, I can definitely help you with anything you need, sweetheart.” The men sitting around her at the bar all chortled. “And I’m sure that you can help me with something, too, if you know what I mean.”
Nancy smiled prettily as the bartender handed her the glass, and let his hand accidentally on purpose caress her forearm. It took all of her strength not to jerk her arm back to haul off and punch him.
“So, what’s your name, anyway?” she asked flirtatiously.
“Jim. What’s yours, sweetheart?”
Nancy leaned in further, putting her arms on both sides of her breasts so that her cleavage would stick out even more pronouncedly. “Jessica,” she told him, provocatively sipping at the straw in her glass. Where the fuck is Ned? she wondered.
“I should have known – Jessicas are always hot. Jessica Alba, Jessica Simpson, Jessica Biel…”
She giggled. “Why, thanks, Jim! So, how long have you worked here?”
“’Bout five years or so. I look too young to be working here that long, right?” He gave her what he probably thought was a sexy grin, and she tried not to roll her eyes.
“Definitely,” she lied, flashing him a smile. “So, I’ll bet that you notice all kinds of stuff as the bartender, right? I mean, you noticed me, right?” Seriously, Nickerson, where the hell are you?
“Well, it’d be kind of hard to miss someone as hot as you, sexy Jessica.”
She dimpled. “But you seem really perceptive. Like you wouldn’t miss a trick.”
Jim puffed up his chest with pride. “I have a good eye, sure.”
Just as Nancy was about to give up on him, Ned came up to the bar and selected a stool two down from hers. He somehow managed to distract Jim’s eye from Nancy’s chest and ordered a beer.
Nancy could feel Ned’s glance on her and it spurred her on to continue her questioning. She tried not to think about how good he looked in his faded jeans, metal-toed black boots, black t-shirt and black leather jacket.
“So, Jim,” she cooed, deliberately stroking her fingers up and down her straw. “If you saw a hot girl come in here, do you think you’d recognize her, even after a few years? Especially if she had been with a guy who was kind of…well, not as good-looking as yourself? And do you think you think you’d know if she came in here more than once?”
Jim snickered. “I’m sure I could. Why do you want to know, sweetheart?”
“Well, you see,” Nancy replied, taking out a picture from her purse and sliding it across the bar, “I’m kind of looking for my friend. She hasn’t been seen in almost two years, and her mom asked me to help try and find her. Someone told me she liked to come in here, and that the last time she was here, she was with some asshole. So, I thought I’d see what I could find out.” She took a little sip of her drink, which was watered down and tasted more of soda than of bourbon.
He barely glanced down at the picture before raising his gaze to her breasts again. “Not as hot as you, sexy Jessica.”
Nancy giggled. “Thanks – you’re sweet. But could you maybe look again? Please – for me?” She added a little pout to her well-glossed lips.
Jim studied the picture more closely this time. “Yeah, I think I do know this girl. Her name was…Lainie? Janie? Shit, it has been a while. She used to come here regularly to play a few games and then pick up whatever guy looked like he had more than five bucks in his pocket. A few of the guys took her seriously – as if a piece of ass like that would seriously be interested in them.” He gave her a knowing leer.
“Yes, imagine that,” she replied innocently. “So, when she was here, was there one guy in particular who used to come on to her?” Nancy felt an imminent sense of victory as she continued her line of questioning.
Jim rubbed his beard thoughtfully. “Like I said, there were a few. But there was this one dude…He kinda looked like a preacher – definitely didn’t belong in a place like this.”
“Why’s that?”
“Because you see the kind of clientele we have in here – not exactly the clean-cut, khakis and polo shirt crowd, sweetheart. But that’s exactly what this guy was like – suburban soccer dad. Medium height, brownish hair, wore these little wire-rimmed glasses…” Nancy felt a rush as Jim gave a perfect description of Rabbi Stern, but didn’t let her elation show. “He would come in here and drink, didn’t really play. Janie noticed his expensive watch and his expensive shirt and was all over him like white on rice.
“Then as he came in more often, there she was - right by his side. They’d often drink together and then leave together. I had a feeling that they weren’t going to the library, if you know what I mean.” He raised his eyebrows in a mock leer.
Nancy giggled. “So, you think that this guy and Janie were…” She matched his expression.
“Sure do, Jessica. I mean, they were all over each other – it was pretty obvious.”
“Do you remember what nights they would be here?” Nancy asked, taking another sip of her drink.
:”Um…” Jim thought for a moment as he rubbed a spot on the well-worn wooden bar. It still wasn’t clean, though. “I think Wednesdays, with an occasional Sunday? I remember because Wednesdays are usually our busiest night, and they would take up a table even though they never really played, like I said. It pissed off my manager to no end. Until that dude flashed some extra cash around – then, my manager was cool with it.”
“And have you seen Janie lately?” Nancy pressed on, hardly daring to believe her good luck so far.
“Nope.” He shook his head definitively. “She stopped coming in here around two years ago. We all figured that she moved on to another place.”
“If only I knew where that was,” Nancy sighed dramatically.
“Don’t be sad, sexy Jessica. You’ll find your friend.” Jim reached out and patted her hand. Nancy was proud of herself for not jerking it away.
“Thanks for the vote of confidence. And, for your help.” She dug in her purse to pay for her drink and added in a large tip. “Do you think that some of the other guys in here would have remembered Janie, too?”
“Probably, but are you leaving already?” he asked, obviously disappointed. “It’s still early – and my shift doesn’t end until one. I thought you could maybe hang out here and we could…talk some more after I get out of here.” He gave her a wink.
“I’m flattered, Jim – really. But I need to talk to a few more people before I get out of here – it’s a school night. Now, who do you think could give me the answers I need?”
Jim didn’t look very happy, but he reluctantly pointed out a few of the patrons who had been coming to the parlor long enough to have recognized Janie. She thanked him with a little grin and gave him another look at her cleavage before turning away from the bar.
Nancy continued to flirt her way through the crowd, talking to the men that Jim had pointed out, but didn’t have any more luck. They recognized Janie and described someone who seemed to have resembled Rabbi Stern, but couldn’t provide her with any more details than Jim could. She noticed that Ned continued to discreetly trail her, keeping a healthy distance but still managing to say within earshot.
Just as she was about to give up, she approached the last person on Jim’s list, a thin, nervous-looking man in his mid-forties with wispy brown hair. The billiard cue wasn’t much narrower than he was, Nancy noted.
“Hey, I heard you were asking about Janie,” he greeted her. “I’m Ray.”
Nancy nodded, her heart beginning to pound in anticipation. “Yeah, you knew her?” she tried for a casual tone. “I’m Jessica, by the way.”
“Sorta, but not really,” the man shrugged. “She was pretty – not as pretty as you, of course,” he winked in a bad imitation of a come-on, “but she also had an outgoing personality.”
She gave him credit for keeping his eyes mostly on her face and not her body. Mostly. “When was the last time you saw her in here? And do you remember who she was with?”
“Yep – last time was like…two years ago? And the guy was tall, brown-haired, clean-cut and wholesome-looking – I remember because he definitely stood out like a sore thumb in here.”
Ray scratched the side of his nose with a finger. “Janie would come in and play with all of the guys, and I’m not just talking about billiards.” He smirked. “This guy, from the first day he came in here, he was smitten with her. Would follow her around, get all possessive when other guys tried to talk to her...”
“Did that piss Janie off?”
“Naw, you kidding? She loved it. She had all of his attention, and it was easy for her to get him to buy her drinks and other shit.”
“Like what?” Nancy asked, keeping her voice calm though she could feel her excitement rising again.
“Well, one day she came in before he got here and bragged how he had paid her electric bill. Then, the next time, she came in and was wearing a nice necklace. Wasn’t like something Elizabeth Taylor would have or anything, but it was much nicer than what she normally had on – you could see that they were probably real diamonds in that thing.”
“Wow,” she replied, sounding impressed. “That was generous of him.”
“You bet. And there was more – she was telling people that he was going to help her buy a car. I think Janie was trying to get him to cover all of her
expenses so she wouldn’t have to work anymore.”
“Do you know where she worked?”
“Place called Dreamz, with a ‘z’ – it’s over on the South Side.” When Nancy looked puzzled, he gave her a sheepish smile. “Strip club. But not one of the big, high-class ones – this place is bottom of the barrel. Or, so I’ve heard.” Ray gave her another wink. “That’s why she didn’t make a lot of cash like the girls at the big places do – honestly, she probably wasn’t hot enough to get a job at those places.”
“So, do you really believe that the guy she was with was buying her all of that stuff?” Nancy ventured. “Or, do you think it was a coincidence?”
Ray shrugged. “Who knows? Janie had a rep for being quite the little liar sometimes, telling people she came from this big fancy family in the suburbs. If that were true, though, what the hell was she doing stripping and hustling guys for cash in a shithole like this?”
Why, indeed? Nancy asked herself. She posed another question to Ray. “Did she say where she was originally from?”
Ray thought for a moment as he scratched his nose again. “Evanston? Burr Ridge? Oak Park? Can’t remember.”
Nancy was about to wrap up but needed to know one more thing. “And you haven’t seen her in here in two years?”
He shook his head emphatically. “Nope, and it was the weirdest thing. She used to come by all the time, sometimes twice a week, and suddenly, she just – stopped. Sorry, Jessica, that’s all I know. Want to play a game?” he asked, gesturing to the cue in his hands.
She feigned reluctance. “Sorry, but I have to go. You’ve been super-helpful though, Ray. I really appreciate it.”
Nancy walked away and was halfway out of the bar when a tall, more-than-halfway drunk blonde guy stopped her. “Hey, gorgeous,” he slurred. “Where you going so fast?” He was built like a barrel – solid all around.
Nancy tried to walk around him but he moved in closer, crowding her. “Sorry - I’m leaving.”
“No, you can’t go yet – I need to talk to you, baby.” He put his hand on her lower back and pulled her to him.
“Take your hand off of me,” she hissed in a low voice, not wanting to attract attention.
Instead, his slid his hand down even lower so that it rested on her ass. “Now, come on, baby. You’re wearing that little shirt and that even smaller skirt – your tits and ass are practically hanging out. You can’t just expect someone not to reach out and touch – unless you’re some kind of a cock tease.”
Nancy pulled her hand back and was about to deliver a punch to his midsection when she suddenly felt someone come up behind her. The next thing she knew, the tall blonde guy was on his ass on the floor and Ned was rubbing his knuckles.
“Hey! What the fuck?” the blonde bellowed from the floor.
“Obviously, your listening skills aren’t too good – the lady told you to take your fucking hands off of her, but you didn’t follow instructions,” Ned snarled.
“Listen, you fucking prick,” the blonde sneered as he tried and failed to get up. “This was between me and the redhead. Go sniff out your own pussy.”
Ned leaned down and punched the guy again, this time on his chin. “You’re just a slow learner, aren’t you, fucker?” he asked, remaining calm. He rubbed his knuckles with the fingers of his other hand.
A beefy bald guy approached the three of them, who were now attracting a crowd. He was obviously the bouncer. “Is there a problem here?”
Ned pointed to the floor. “This guy was being an asshole – wouldn’t stop when the lady asked him to. So, I made him.”
The bald guy glared at them. “Look, I don’t need the cops around here. Just get the fuck out – all of you.”
The blonde on the floor gave him a baleful stare. “I wasn’t doing anything, “he muttered.
“Yeah, I’m sure,” the bouncer said, rolling his eyes. “Just get out. And you better not drive home –last thing we need is to be held responsible if you mow someone down because you can’t hold your drinks.” He turned to Nancy. “You okay?”
Nancy nodded, still miffed at Ned. “I’m fine, thanks.” She marched out of the billiards parlor, Ned close on her heels.
The minute they got outside, Nancy whirled around to confront him. “Nickerson, what the fuck?”
“That guy was being an asshole and needed someone to rein him in, Drew,” Ned said.
His calmness pissed her off even more. “And I told you that I could take care of myself! I didn’t need some big hero to come in and rescue me – I’m not a damsel in distress!”
“I know you’re tough, but come on, Drew. What are you, five-seven, five-eight, and a buck twenty?”
When Nancy refused to acknowledge that his guesses about her height and weight were dead-on, he continued speaking. “That guy easily had six inches and a hundred pounds on you – and he was fucked-up drunk. He really could have done some nasty shit to you.”
“I have a black belt in Judo and I can handle myself,” she insisted stubbornly.
“I know you can, but I just wanted to make sure you were okay. After all, you were doing me a favor. And, can I say that you kicked ass tonight, Drew? I mean, you were fucking brilliant!”
“Damn right,” Nancy replied, trying not to smile. She was still mad at him, after all.
“Those guys didn’t even know what hit them,” he marveled. “They saw you in that sexy little skirt and shirt, and it was like they were injected with truth serum. Jesus – it was amazing. You got me so many leads tonight, it’s unbelievable.”
She was annoyed when she felt herself flush from his praise. “I’m a damn good reporter, Nickerson.”
“You sure are,” he told her admiringly. “Hey, are you hungry? ‘Cause I’m fucking starving.”
Nancy knew she should drop him off and go right home, but she was too exhilarated by her success to care. “I could eat,” she admitted.
“Where’s a good place to get Chicago deep-dish? I’ve heard about it, but have never tried it. Unless you want something else?” he asked solicitously.
“No, pizza’s good. I know a place not too far from here.” They began walking back to her car, which Nancy was relived to find in the spot where she had left it, still intact.
“My treat,” he told her as they drove towards the pizza place. “It’s the least I can do, Drew.”
They pulled up in front of the restaurant twenty minutes later, and Nancy noticed that he was rubbing his knuckles again, which were now slightly swollen and bruised.
“You maybe want to see a doctor or go to the ER?” she asked as they approached the pizza place.
“Nah, I’ll be fine,” Ned replied dismissively. “Nothing some ice and bourbon couldn’t handle – and some of that ice on my hand.”
She chuckled, despite herself. “Well, there’s a convenience store down the street – we can pick up a bag of ice.”
“Hey, would you mind if we don’t eat here?” Ned asked just before they placed their order. “I think it would be good if I got that ice on my hand sooner, rather than later.”
Nancy hesitated before replying. “So, where would you want to eat it?”
“My place?” he asked tentatively. She rolled her eyes. “No, it’s not like that, Drew,” he continued. “I just want to be able to talk over what you found out and determine next steps, and I definitely don’t want to do that here. Come on, I’ll be good, I swear.”
“Yeah, right,” she grumbled.
“No hidden agenda – I promise.” He gave her a pleading look, and Nancy was annoyed with herself when she fell for it.
“Fine, okay,” she sighed. “Anyway, I guess it’s good for both of us – no one around to speculate where you picked up the hooker.” She pointed to her clothing, and Ned laughed.
--
They arrived at his apartment building shortly after picking up their pizza and the bag of ice, and were both relieved when they found that the elevator had been repaired. He keyed open his front door and flipped on the lights.
“Shit, Nickerson,” she said, surveying the apartment. Somehow it seemed even messier when she was there three nights earlier. There were even more boxes in the living room than before, their contents half-in and half-out of the cartons. “This place looks like a dump. If there were a break-in, how would you even know it?”
Ned laughed. “What can I say? The moving-in process is going slower than I had anticipated.” She set down the pizza box on his kitchen counter as he placed the ice next to it. “Want some Jack Daniels, too?”
“Yep. Need me to help you with your hand?”
“Nah, I should be able to get it.”
After he made a few unsuccessful attempts to open the bag of ice with one hand, she silently pushed him aside and undid it. He looked up, puzzled, when she began rummaging through the kitchen cabinets. “Ziploc bags?”
“Ah. Not sure if I have those,” he admitted.
Nancy snickered. “I forgot – bachelor pad.”
“Hey! I just haven’t had the chance to go shopping yet!” he defended himself.
“Well, do you have anything I can use to make an ice pack?”
“Um…a plastic shopping bag from Wal-Mart?” he suggested, nodding his head towards the cabinet under the sink. Nancy crouched down and fished one out, aware that by doing so, she was giving him a direct view of her cleavage. Just when she began to wonder whether or not he’d noticed, she glanced up at his face and found a small smirk there.
“Enjoying the show?” she asked dryly.
“Just doing what I can to take my mind off of the pain,” he told her sweetly.
“Well, I’m so glad that I can be a distraction for you,” she replied sarcastically. After shaking out the bag, she dumped in some of the ice and tied the top into a secure knot before gently placing it over his knuckles.
Despite her care, Ned winced as the bag touched his sore hand. “Hey, why don’t I get you some aspirin or Tylenol or something? Since I have a feeling that you haven’t unpacked your bathroom stuff yet, let me dig some out from my purse.”
Ned smiled gratefully and followed her to the couch, which was where she had dropped her bag when they’d walked in. She searched and let out a cry of triumph when she found the bottle of painkillers.
“Awesome,” he sighed with relief as she sank down onto the sofa. “Pour me some Jack to go with it?”
“Liquor and aspirin? That seems wise,” she commented.
“I’m sure it’s not, but I don’t give a shit right now,” Ned replied wearily.
Shrugging, Nancy walked back to the kitchen, remembering the cabinet where she’d seen him pull out the bottle of rum a few nights ago. She unearthed two glasses and plunked in some of the ice from the bag before storing it in the freezer and pouring them each a healthy portion of the bourbon.
She handed him his glass and watched with amusement as he knocked back the alcohol in one long swallow. Silently, she poured him a refill, this time bringing the pizza box and some paper plates back with her.
Nancy settled on the opposite corner of the sofa from where he was sitting and tried not to remember how they had kissed and fooled around there earlier in the week. After opening the pizza box, she handed him a slice before taking one for herself.
They ate the pizza quickly, and had both polished off their second slices when she noticed that the expression of pain appeared to be lessening on Ned’s face. “So, ready to talk it through, Nickerson?”
He nodded, giving her a grin. “Yep – feeling much better now. Thanks for your care, Nurse Nancy. ”
Nancy made a face at him. “If you hadn’t acted like a macho asshole, you wouldn’t have needed me to take care of you.”
“Water under the bridge,” he told her, waving his good hand dismissively. “Now, let’s go over what we know.”
“That Rabbi Rob seemed to have picked himself up a little girlfriend?” Nancy remarked, glad to be focusing on the story instead of Ned’s closeness.
“Yep – and that she was using him for his money and other tokens of his affection. How do you suppose a rabbi and stripper came to meet in a billiards parlor, by the way?” Ned wondered aloud.
“That sounds like the start of a joke,” Nancy commented wryly. Ned laughed before she continued. “I’m guessing that he liked to break away from his life as the suburban Dad of the Year and went looking for cheap thrills. Janie saw him as an easy target and lured him in with the promise of sex – even if she didn’t deliver, I’m sure that she dangled the suggestion in front of him like a carrot.”
“Probably, “he mused. “So, do you think she was telling the truth about being from a rich family? And where do you think she’s been for the last two years?”
“Who knows?” Nancy shrugged. “I wonder if Janie knew that he was considering killing his wife, and he did something to make her disappear just so she couldn’t incriminate him?”
“Or, maybe she was one step ahead of him and decided to make herself disappear just as a precaution,” Ned suggested.
“Good point.”
“So, now I guess we start searching for Janie and also see if we can track down her family. Maybe they know something.”
“We?” Nancy commented, eyebrows raised. “Nickerson, I only agreed to help with this one thing. I have my own stories to work on, thank you very much.”
“Come on, Drew,” he wheedled. “You know you’re already hooked – you want to know what happened just as much as I do. And, you know this story is juicy as hell – innocent young mother, an upstanding member of the clergy, a stripper... This one’ll be big if we can break it. Help a new guy out, would ya?”
Nancy rolled her eyes, but she knew he was right. She could already relish the idea of the interviews and digging into the research to nab the cheating, murderous husband. The fact that she’d be working closely with Ned had absolutely nothing to do with her sense of excitement. Or, at least that’s what she told herself.
“Well, in order to find out if her coworkers know anything about her whereabouts and/or about her relationship with Rob, it sounds like a trip to the titty bar is imminent for us.”
Ned gave her a wide grin. “Well, it is crucial for researching this story,” he joked. “I’ll just have to suck it up and go see some naked ladies.”
“Yeah, and I’m sure you’ve never been to a strip clue before,.” Nancy replied dryly.
“Me? Never!” he protested, pretending to be indignant.
“You know, there’s something else that’s been bugging me since I spoke with Jim,” she said, idly tapping her index finger against her bottom lip.
“What’s that? How he couldn’t seem to keep his eyes on the bar and off of your tits?” Ned supplied helpfully.
She snickered. “Well, that, too. No, it’s something that he said. Something about how Janie had scoped out the rabbi because he was wearing an expensive watch and nice clothes.”
“That’s kind of interesting. I didn’t think that assistant rabbis made all that much money in a medium-sized synagogue. I mean, they make a nice salary, but not enough to buy expensive watches and flash cash around, I’m sure,” he remarked. “Plus, he and Bailey had just bought a very nice house in Skokie before all of this and had purchased a new car six months before that.
“And, from what I’ve researched so far, neither his family nor hers appeared to be wealthy, either, so it’s not like they were helping to foot the bills. On top of that, Stern was pretty young, so I’m sure he had some kind of student debt for rabbinical school, right?”
Nancy nodded thoughtfully. “Do you think he had a second job? Or maybe took out a personal loan on top of his student loans?”
Ned shrugged. “It’s very possible. He could’ve also been secreting away money in a separate bank account that no one else knew about, not even his wife.”
“Here’s a question you may know the answer to…If Stern was meeting Janie once or twice a week, what kind of excuse did he give to Bailey?”
He smirked. “Private counseling sessions, private Hebrew lessons, private Judaism classes to members of the community...”
Nancy shook her head. “Yeah, they were private sessions, all right - one-on-ones, apparently.”
“Okay, so it sounds like we have a good starting point – we visit the classy-sounding Dreamz to see if we can get any information from Janie’s fellow strippers, we see if we can find Janie’s family to find out if they know anything, and we follow the money to find out how Rabbi Stern was funding his extracurricular activities.”
“I’d also suggest talking to Rob and Bailey’s families again – hers, at least, will want to do anything they can to help bring her killer to justice. And, possibly to the senior rabbi and other members of the congregation. Maybe one of these people secretly does have their doubts about Stern’s innocence, and they were the one who sent the picture to the cops. And if not, who did?”
“See, I knew I was right about you, Drew – you’re a damn good investigative reporter. Thanks for agreeing to pitch in – you won’t be sorry.”
Nancy doubted that, but nodded anyway. “Well, now that I’ve given you your meds and we’ve eaten, I think it’s time for me to go.” She rose from the couch.
Ned stood also, looking disappointed. “You sure? I know I don’t have much here, but I know I have an unopened pint of Ben and Jerry’s New York Super Fudge Chunk, if you want some.”
“No, that’s nice of you, but I really should get going.” She walked to the door and had her palm on the knob when she felt Ned’s hand on her shoulder.
“Thanks for tonight, Drew,” he told her in a husky voice. “I really do owe you one – you were a huge help. And you looked fucking amazing , sexy as hell - did I already tell you that?”
She turned and nodded without even being aware of it. “You did,” she whispered, unable to tear her gaze away from his lips.
“Then let me thank you properly,” he told her, his tone pitched low as he pulled her closer to him.
Before she knew it, his mouth was mashed up against hers, her legs were wrapped around his waist, her arms were thrown over his shoulders, and he had her pressed against the back of the door.
“Shit,” she moaned as she fisted one of her hands in his hair. She could feel his erection through his jeans and she unconsciously bucked her hips against it.
“Fuck, Nancy, that feels so good.” Ned took his good hand and slid it under her skirt.
“We can’t,” she sighed against his mouth.
“Why not?” he mumbled.
Nancy couldn’t think of a single good reason, especially as his hand began to edge towards the crotch of her panties. “Because…we work together and it’s not a good idea,” she finished lamely.
“Well, your pussy thinks otherwise, because you are wet as fuck, Nancy. I can feel it right through your underwear. You’re wet and hot and dying for me like I’m dying for you.”
“Ned,” she groaned, “Please.”
“Please what, Nancy?” His voice was low and dangerous against her ear. “Please let you go, or please fuck you? Which is it?”
Nancy didn’t even know the answer herself. She debated for a split second before unwinding her arms from his shoulders and yanking her shirt over her head.
Ned rewarded her with a lustful grin before running his tongue over the spot where her breasts met, the firm, high mounds pushed together by her bra. “God, you are hot.”
Nancy reached down and unbuckled his belt before working on the fly of his jeans, letting out a soft hum of anticipation when all of the buttons were undone. She dipped a hand into his boxers and began to stroke his bare erection. “Umm, ready for me already?”
“From the moment I saw you in that little skirt and shirt,” he groaned. Nancy noticed his wince as he moved his injured hand to cup her stroke the creamy tops of her breasts.
“Should I get on top again?” she panted. “This way, you won’t have your weight on your bad hand.”
“Good idea,” he told her, dipping his fingers under her bra to seek out the firm, pink tip of her right breast. He toyed with it for a minute as Nancy continued to stroke his cock, both of them sighing with pleasure.
Suddenly, he pulled away and kissed her firmly, deeply on the lips. “Bed. Now.” Ned reached behind her to undo the clasp of her bra, letting out a sound of satisfaction as the lingerie hit the floor.
Nancy leaned on his shoulders for support and wrapped her legs tighter around his waist. He carried her through the apartment to his bedroom, their mouths hot and demanding against each other as she remained wound around him.
The minute they got to his bedroom, Nancy slid down his body to a standing position and they frantically stripped what was left of off each others’ clothing. When they were both naked, Ned yanked back the covers and quickly dug into his nightstand, tossing a few condom packets onto the tabletop. He flopped down onto his back, gesturing for her to climb on top of him. Nancy leaned over him to slide the condom onto his erection, her breasts brushing his chest, before pulling back and sitting on her haunches.
“Nancy,” he groaned, frustrated. “Come on.”
She shook her head and climbed off of him, scooting around on her hands and knees until she was facing the foot of the bed. Placing her weight on her hands, she inched backwards until she was straddling his hips.
“Reverse cowgirl? Fuck, yeah,” he groaned his approval.
Nancy spread her knees further apart and began to slide down on his cock, wincing slightly as she felt the head slide past her lips. She began to rock her hips downwards to take him slowly, inch by inch.
Once he was all the way inside of her, she began to ride him in hard, deep strokes, her hands out in front of her helping to keep her balance. Ned growled from behind her and thrust his hips up to meet hers. His good hand stole around to play with her clit as she bounced up and down on top of him.
Nancy let out a cry of delight and moved faster, hearing the bedsprings squeak underneath them. When Ned took his hand from her pussy, she emitted a noise of protest until he began using it to alternate between slapping her ass and pinch her nipples.
“So good,” she whimpered. “God, don’t stop!”
“You told me you like it rough, baby,” he grunted.
“God, yeah,” she sighed. “That’s the way I like it.” Nancy leaned backwards and put her hands behind her so she could change the angle of penetration. This way, he felt so fucking huge that she could barely stand it – the combination of pleasure and pain was incredible.
Ned took the opportunity to grab a fistful of the long, reddish-blonde hair that was cascading down her back and not-so-gently pulled.
“Ooh, fuck, yeah,” she shuddered, reaching her hand down to stroke her clit as she continued to ride him.
She felt his other hand nudge hers aside as the two of them toyed with the sensitive nub together. Nancy leaned back even further, a shriek of pleasure on her lips as he surged up underneath her and bit her shoulder.
“Fuck, you feel so damn good,” he hissed. “Hot as hell. You are fucking incredible in bed, you know that?”
“Oh, yeah, oh!” Nancy shouted as he pulled her hair even harder. She dimly registered the headboard slamming into the wall but kept going – she was just on the cusp of her orgasm and couldn’t even think about pulling back.
Ned gave her ass another stinging slap and pushed his hips up so hard that she felt herself start to come. She closed her eyes and started to scream, not caring that it would probably cause his neighbors to start pounding on his door.
Nancy continued to ride him as she felt herself explode into a fierce orgasm, still screaming. He moaned her name, signaling his own impending release.
The energy she had just exerted, combined with the mindfuck of a climax he had given her, suddenly made her weak. She tried to disengage from his now- softening cock, but could barely move her legs. Every muscle in her body ached and her ass was probably bright red. It would be a bitch to sit down tomorrow.
Her intent was to sit down or lie down beside him, but all she could do was pitch forward, face-first into the mattress between his legs. She heard Ned chuckle between gasps of breath. She should probably give him a hard time, but that would have required more energy than she had at that particular moment. Plus, she found the coolness of the sheet to be soothing against the burning heat of her breasts and face.
Once Nancy was able to regulate her breathing, the reality of what she had just done began to sink in. “Fuck, this was a mistake,” she moaned into his comforter, still face-down on her stomach.
Ned snickered from his position on his back next to her. “That’s not what you said ten minutes ago, Drew.”
Nancy didn’t have to look at him to know that he was smirking. “Well, I had a momentary lapse of judgment,” she told him, using her hands and knees to push herself up so she could crawl off the bed.
“Well, since it took longer than a moment for us to fuck, I’m not buying it,” he replied.
She bent down to grab her clothes off of the floor, suddenly irritated when she remembered that her shirt was still on the floor in front of his door. Nancy snatched up her skirt and underwear and tried to shimmy into them with as much dignity as she could muster. It was hard to be dignified, though, when she was shirtless and aware of Ned’s eyes on her bare breasts as they jiggled.
“Laugh all you want, but this is never happening again,” Nancy told him, pausing from zipping up her skirt to give him an icy glare.
“Uh huh,” Ned told her, sounding completely unconvinced.
She stalked off to the living room, Ned at her heels as she grabbed her bra and shirt from the floor “
“Nickerson, I mean it – we cannot have sex again,” she said firmly.
“Why not?” he countered. “We both enjoy it, and we’re both good at it. I mean, you were the one screaming loud enough to wake my neighbors, right? That was you?”
“That is not the point.” She shrugged into her bra and clasped it behind her, not missing Ned’s look of disappointment as it covered her breasts. “We work together and this was totally unprofessional. I knew this was a fucking mistake – I knew it. “
“Come on, Nancy, don’t be like this,” he pleaded. “We’re grown ups – there’s nothing wrong with what we’re doing.”
She gave him an incredulous look. “Are you joking? You can’t see how this will complicate our working relationship?”
“I already told you that it doesn’t have to!” he protested. “I mean, what happens at work and what happens in my bed are two damn different things, Drew!”
“Oh, really?” she demanded archly. “So, if we’re working on a story together, then you won’t suddenly think of how you were grabbing my tits and slapping my ass as we fucked? Or, when we’re out interviewing people, you won’t remember how we screwed so hard that we nearly rammed your fucking bed through the wall, into your neighbor’s apartment?”
Nancy was even more irritated when she saw the ghost of a smile cross his lips. “Nope.”
“You’re a goddamn terrible liar, Nickerson,” she told him before pulling on her shirt.
“Look, I again promise not to say anything to anyone or talk about this when we’re at work, okay? I just really want your help on this story, Drew – please don’t say that you’ve changed your mind.”
Nancy knew that she should tell him to forget it, to go to hell. “Oh, I’m still working on the story, Nickerson,” she told him, shocked when she heard the words come out of her mouth.
Ned smiled. “Great. So, you want to stay, or…”
She gave him an exasperated glare. “Oh, hell no. I said I’d still help you on the case, but we are not fucking again.”
“Fine,” he shrugged, obviously amused.
“I mean it,” she told him firmly.
“Fine,” he repeated. “So, let’s meet in the office tomorrow to talk about who we’re going to interview and in what order. Say, 9:30?”
“That should work,” she replied, gathering up her purse and digging through it for her car keys.
“Great. So, I guess this is a bad time to ask whether you want to get some dinner with me tomorrow night, huh?”
Nancy looked up, astonished. “Nickerson, what the hell is wrong with you? Did we not just say that the only relationship we’re going to have is going to be work-related?”
“Yeah, but you need to eat sometime, Drew,” he reasoned. “And, I already told you that I don’t know anyone here.”
“Yes, I do need to eat – but I can do that by myself. Or with my friends,” she said, stressing the word.
“Hey, I thought we were friends!” he said in mock protest.
“Don’t push your luck,” she told him grimly. “Now, I’m leaving.”
“See you tomorrow, Drew. Nine thirty,” he called out as she walked out of the apartment.
When Nancy was back in her car, she leaned back in the driver’s seat for a minute, exhaling loudly as she drummed her fingers against the leather-wrapped steering wheel.
“This was entirely too risky, and you know it. What the fuck is the matter with you?” she scolded herself aloud. “You have worked entirely too hard to get where you are in your career, and now you’re just going to fuck it up over some guy? A guy who’s great in bed, but still…”
Nancy tried not to think about what it had been like to be in bed with him earlier, what it felt like to come around him. Her hands were shaking as pushed the key into the ignition and drove off towards her apartment.