Chapter 8
EIGHT
“ H ow’s your day going, chickadee?”
Managing to unstick her locker, she turned toward April, who was emptying out hers.
“Not so great,” she admitted. “I just had to drop the girls off to their grandmother.”
April linked her fingers together to crack them. “I wish you’d let me take care of that bitch.”
Rolling her eyes at April, she released the first carefree laugh she had in days. “I wish I could let you. The problem is, I don’t believe in violence to solve my problems.”
“Shit …” she drawled out. “That’s how I solve all my problems.”
Sage rolled her eyes at her friend again. “You mean you get Dragon to solve your problems,” she corrected her.
“Same thing.” Shoving one of her breasts coming out of her red bra back inside the tiny cup, April continued cleaning out her locker. “You want the rest of this gum?”
Sad, Sage took the pack of gum and put it in her pocket. “I was hoping you would change your mind about leaving.”
Dread filled her. When she had started working at Foxy Maid’s, she and April had been partnered together to clean houses.
April had been a Godsend. The women hired to be cleaners were given the choice of cleaning the house topless or clothed, in a uniform.
Cleaners wearing the least amount of clothes were paid more than those who wore more, which were given a standard salary.
Not only did those willing to shed their clothes get paid more, they weren’t expected to share their tip money.
She had made it clear to Ivo, the owner of Foxy’s Maids, that she wouldn’t be cleaning in anything other than the uniform, and she had stuck to it.
To Ivo’s credit, he had never pressured her.
In fact, he had accepted cleaning assignments just to fill her empty work slots because he knew she desperately needed the money.
After she worked with April for almost a year, Ivo started sending both April and her on lone jobs. Her salary had taken a direct hit, but April shared the tips.
“Sorry, chickadee, Dragon doesn’t want me showing these tits to anyone but him anymore.” Raising her hand, she wiggled her fingers to show off the new flashy diamond on her finger. “Got to admit”—April giggled—“I’m going to miss a few of my clients.”
“Let me guess which ones?” She laughed. “Mr. You Missed A Spot, or Mr. Tidy My Underwear Drawer?”
April snorted in disgust. “Neither of those kinksters. I have clients who just like to watch.” Snapping the locker closed, April gave her a serious look. “I asked Ivo to give you first dibs at them before giving them to anyone else.”
“No, thanks.”
Setting her box on the break table, April gave her a determined look, her hands on her hips. “Keep an opened mind for once. Have you come up with the dough to pay your rent yet?”
“I will,” she stated optimistically.
“How? You going to manufacture money out of thin air? If you lose the apartment, could you even swing enough to pay the deposit on another one?”
Sage didn’t answer her questions, because she didn’t have the answers herself.
“I wish I could help you out more.” April gave her a compassionate smile. “You don’t deserve the crap landing on your plate, but I have my own set of problems, which Dragon is going to take care of for me so I can quit working.”
Sage walked to the table and picked up the clear garment bags.
“There is no way I can go into someone’s home wearing the bottom half of a maid’s outfit with a thong on my ass while I clean topless, or wear any of the other outfits they could choose.
I can’t.” Setting the garment bag down, she went back to her locker to twist her hair into a top knot.
“You’re the only friend I have here.” Dry-eyed, she stared inside her locker. “My only friend in this whole damn world. I know you have my best interests at heart, but you’re braver and stronger than I am.”
April gave a loud sigh. “You’re stronger than you think you are.
You just haven’t reached the point where you’re out of options.
The first time I went to clean in one of these getups, I thought I would barf on it and Ivo would make me pay for it.
We women do what we have to do to make ends meet.
Believe me; having enough money to get away from my ex was worth me flashing my titties to someone who paid for the privilege instead of me having to hand my paycheck over to my abusive husband. ”
“I keep hoping I find another solution. If I get past my probation period at Hollingsworth, the pay bump will help.”
April stared at her pityingly. “Unless Glory or one of the girls have an emergency. Then what will you do?”
“I don’t know,” she admitted.
“There is another solution. You just don’t want to consider it.” April gave another sigh when she saw she wasn’t making any headway.
“Listen, these clients Ivo is going to ask you to take care of are my two best clients. Matthias Luciano gives me the biggest tip. Vicky and Stephen Goodwin are my easiest, and they don’t care which fantasy outfit you wear. They’re generous tippers, too.”
Sage bit her lip. April was upfront at how much she made on her jobs.
“I don’t suppose either of them would consider me cleaning their home in my uniform?”
“Afraid not. The Goodwins use it as a way to spice up their marriage without cheating, and, well …” April paused. “Matthias … likes to look, without all the touching.”
Her shoulders slumped. “I don’t even go topless in our apartment walking from the bathroom to my room.”
“I didn’t think I could do it, either, but I did,” April encouraged her again. “You can do it, girl. I have faith in you.”
Sage bit her lip until she could taste blood in her mouth.
The time was coming when Glory would no longer be able to continue watching the girls, which was why she was so desperate for the job at Hollingsworth.
She was hoping the girls would be in school before that time came, but Glory’s health wasn’t getting better—it was worsening.
How could she manage to pay a babysitter when she was barely coming up with the rent?
“Hell, wear a wig,” April suggested. “None of them will be looking at your face, anyway. If you wear a wig, they’ll probably think it’s me.”
“They’ll be able to tell,” she said drolly. “They’ll take one look at me in one of the costumes and ask for their money back.”
She was grasping at straws to keep from taking one of the jobs. She already felt there was an imaginary guillotine in position over her head. Another expenditure like lunch yesterday, and her family would be homeless.
Sensing she was succeeding at getting through to her, April became even more persistent.
“At least take Matthias. We look enough alike he won’t notice the difference. We have the same hair color and length of hair. He’ll just assume you’re me.”
Sage was tempted but tried to find another excuse to convince April it wouldn’t work. “He would notice the difference in our voices.”
“Matthias never talks to me.” April wasn’t giving up.
The woman should have been a realtor or a car sale’s person.
“I haven’t said one word to him since I’ve started working for him.
Most of the time, I only see him when I clean his office, which usually takes me about thirty minutes.
I clean that room last. When I clean his desk, his eyes are on my tits, not my face.
” April gave a sultry laugh. “You don’t even have to touch him to take the tip.
He leaves it on the entry table while I’m putting the cleaning supplies away. ”
Thinking over every single way it could go bad—and she definitely wasn’t going to do it—she still found herself asking another question.
“Which outfit does he pick for you to wear?”
“Either the French maid or just a plain oversized T-shirt. Thong bottom,” April was quick to answer.
“I’ll think it over.” Buying time, she went back to her locker to close and lock it.
“Don’t take too long.”
“I won’t know until Friday if I’m off probation.”
“What would it matter, anyway? Even if you do, you should still take the clients I’m offering you.
The money will give you breathing room to get ahead before some other shit lands on your plate,” April advised.
“With your freaking luck, a meteor will land on your car, or you’ll break a leg tripping over one of the girls’ toys. ”
Sage made a face at her. “My luck isn’t that bad.”
“Yeah?” April raised her eyes skyward. “You’ve had four flat tires in the last two months. Before that, your transmission went out, about the same time you caught a virus from the girls and had to miss work to stay home with them so Glory wouldn’t catch it. Before that—”
“Never mind,” Sage stopped her. She didn’t need to relive the nightmare of her life.
“Face it, chickadee, you wouldn’t have any luck at all unless it was bad.”