After renting the Malibu house, he didn’t move in fully, at least not immediately. He moved his photo set there, as well as anything fashion-related. He also purchased some extra equipment for his hobbies, from music to kitchen, even expanding the home gym with some select equipment.
Unfortunately, those decisions meant there was some work to be done. And, since there was a delay, he also hired some professional cleaners for deep cleaning. Altogether, those changes would take ten days.
Another reason for his lack of hurry was that Annie refused to move to Malibu, which he let slide. But, he used that as a way to convince her to actually unpack, and treat the Pasadena apartment as her own place.
In exchange, she insisted on paying the rent, which he had to accept. It was amusing just how hard Annie fought to maintain her independence and refuse his money. He liked that about her.
Luckily, she didn’t fight that much when he suggested turning the area which he previously used as a photo set into her study corner, including a study table large enough for her to spread all her books.
And strong enough to handle some extracurricular activity.
As a certified nerd, Annie had a preference for getting bent over her desk for some quick fun…
That was not the only thing he had done in that period. Apart from some fun dates with the ladies in his life, he had two photoshoots with Kandi, her masked photos the perfect way to boost the lingerie website, the sales picking up.
It wasn’t successful in the way Haley’s fashion site was, but that didn’t mean it was unsuccessful; not with sales already nearing a hundred thousand dollars. The margins on lingerie were even better than their margins on fashion clothing.
It made Rachel quite happy.
With the proof of concept working, she started visiting designer houses and making deals; adding some interesting upscale items while he merely took the photos. He didn’t even deal with daily uploads and reports, as Annie had taken them over.
Business gurus were right. Hiring the right people and giving them the initiative they needed was the key to success.
Or, in his case, seducing the right people…
&&&
Soon, he decided to have another New York trip; which had multiple reasons. One, Max was getting stressed about which place to lease among the shortlisted location, and he needed to solve it.
And, more urgently, a quick hack through the public NYPD servers suggested gigglepig operation was struggling, which would mean Rosa was getting more and more stressed about her task force. He knew that the solution through Pontiac Bandit shouldn’t be too far away, and letting that happen would be a waste.
Which was why, once he landed, he dropped everything he had at a hotel and visited a club that was heavily involved in the drug trade. He even hacked one of the manager’s phone to issue a VIP invitation to himself, creating a reason for his presence.
He already knew about the sale, as drug dealers didn’t have the best cybersecurity, but he still made sure to observe multiple transactions, even took a picture before he sent a message to Rosa, telling her whether she was still looking for gigglepig, because he had just been offered some.
Her response was immediate, warning that if it was a joke, she would make him regret it. That triggered a quick back and forth, where he shared the picture he took, described the general security, including a maintenance corridor she could access from the VIP section, which went to a suspiciously crowded room.
He also mentioned that he was fending the enthusiastic managers throwing girls to give her an opening, with the implication that, things would be easier if she could bring backup in a way that he could convince the club manager about him having a type.
It seemed the easiest way to ensure Rosa would bring Amy. He expected it to work, because from Rosa’s perspective, he had no idea who Amy was.
And, while Rosa might have insisted on going solo any other time, he knew just how stressful the task force was for her. Meaning, her latest message was no surprise.
‘I’ll have a backup. Female, also Latina, red dress and pink handbag, will start by saying she hates pilsners.’
He smirked, the code suggesting Amy’s relationship was Teddy was still ongoing, but on fumes.
Good, he never said no to some extra points. And, the challenge of convincing straightlaced Amy to cheat was just as fun. Especially when Teddy was the target.
Rosa and Amy arrived within two minutes of each other, long enough to avoid suspicion, yet close enough to support each other in case of a problem.
Rosa arrived first, walking in with a loose, dangerous trek. She tried to look nonthreatening, but failed spectacularly at that. She was lucky that the bouncers were too misogynistic to register her as a threat while she was wearing a black dress, too tight to hide anything.
A good call, he decided, especially since the bouncers weren’t careful enough to pay attention to her stylish, knee-high leather boots. With her past as a dancer, those reinforced heels were deadly weapons.
Not metaphorically.
She started dancing the moment she entered, while Amy walked around the crowd, and came to the bar. He caught her gaze, and gave her a subtle signal that he agreed with Rosa.
While she got closer, he examined her outfit. She was in the red dress, fitted to a degree that suggested it had been tailored carefully, enhancing her assets, with a deep cleavage that sent his imagination wild.
He could also see the signs of it staying in the wardrobe for a few months.
He guessed she bought it for Teddy before realizing he was the most boring man alive, and a sexy date was out of question.
She wasn’t as comfortable on heels as Rosa was, and radiated a nerdy energy even in her sexy dress, which, amusingly, made her blend in even easier. She looked like a college student who had broken up with a boyfriend and decided to visit a club for revenge.
In other words, prime target for the womanizers. Which was why he didn’t waste any time before approaching her, leaving Rosa dancing by herself at the other side of the club.
“Hey, beautiful, may I get you a drink, maybe a beautiful pilsner?” he asked.
“God, anything but a pilsner,” Amy responded, her distaste clear. “I hate them.”
“Excellent,” he said as he put his hand on the small of her back, and led her toward the bar. “So, you’re Rosa’s … friend,” he said, with just the smallest touch of hesitancy.
Amy nodded as she whispered back, though she had to hug him for it. “You don’t have to feel stressed. We are professionals, and this is a strictly fact-finding mission.”
“Good.”
“You don’t have to do anything. We have the control,” she said.
“You have a point, but to bring you to the VIP room, I need to make it look convincing, so I’ll be flirting with you heavily. Ask for a pilsner when you feel uncomfortable, so I can dial back.”
Her distaste at the mention of pilsner was too amusing. Amy was just the right combination of badass, nerdy awkward, and beautiful, which, to him, was like catnip.
Once they were at the bar, they had to go back to their roles, as there were too many people near them, and there was no guarantee about their identities. He put his hand on her waist, gently moving it up and down without touching anywhere unsafe.
Her cover was a master’s student in art history; and the level of detail she was able to answer his casual questions suggested that it was one of her majors back when she was in college.
But, because he was a bastard, he offhandly mentioned the historical intersection of puzzles, art, and math, even name-dropping Loculus of Archimedes. Her eyes brightened, her expression intense, the way the usual clubgoers showed whenever they received a gold credit card from their sugar daddies.
With that, he found himself exchanging numeric puzzles and occasional limericks, Expert Math solving the former, while Lyricwriting assisted the latter enough for him to bruteforce the rest with Intelligence.
A hunk talking to her about puzzles while treating body like a temple was enough to put her arousal to overdrive. He suspected that the undercover mission helped. She liked work too much for it not to cross her wires somewhat.
“That’s enough chatter, let’s dance,” he said as he slipped his hand lower and pulled her to the dance floor. That shocked her until he leaned forward and whispered in her ear. “I think our cover is safe, but Rosa is getting tense. We better give her an opening to approach before she stabs someone,” he said.
Amy’s eyes widened in a way that suggested she might have actually forgotten she had a partner. He didn’t blame her, not after he pressed every button she found attractive in a man at once. “A warning. I’m a terrible dancer,” she whispered.
“Let me lead,” he whispered, even as he let his hand dip down to her hips, squeezing before he pulled her close enough that their bodies were smashed together. He tried to lead, expecting it to be easy with all his skills and stats.
Only to be surprised.
She was even worse than he expected, proving near impossible to lead, and he had multiple skills helping. “Look, relax, and continue telling me about the importance of puzzle boxes.”
“Are you sure? I already have trouble giving my full focus…”
“That might be the part of problem,” he said. “When it comes to dancing, panicking and overthinking doesn’t help.”
“I …” she whispered, but nodded with a blush when he squeezed her ass encouragingly. Her quick acceptance showed just how good an idea it was to meet her during an undercover mission.
Of course, knowing Amy from the show, he knew that what was going on was a result of perfect timing. Her relationship with the most boring man imaginable was running on fumes, and the mission gave her the perfect excuse to do something entertaining.
Especially since at this point, Jake was dating Sophia, which meant she was open to a true adventure.
Moreover, just as he was starting to see a pattern in the otherwise nerdy women, once their straightlaced attitude was broken, their preferences were surprisingly malleable.
It was how they ended up pushing toward the VIP section, their bodies tangled, his lips caressing her neck to distract her from the fact that she was dancing.
The more distracted, the better dancer she became … comparatively. His hands firmly held her ass, puppeting her like a sexy marionette. Getting in the mood, she didn’t say anything when his hand slipped under her dress, cupping her toned thigh directly.
[Achievement complete. Give Amy a plausible deniability to finally have some fun despite dating the most boring man in the world.
Challenge: Hard]
[+10 Intelligence
1 Random Gold Skill
1 Random Gold Reward]
[Bonus achievement complete. Netori effect in play]
[+10 Agility
1 Random Gold Skill
1 Random Gold Reward]
Getting Intelligence from Amy was not a surprise, though Agility from Teddy surprised him. But then, he remembered the guy might be boring, but he also broke a lot of records for training courses and shooting ranges and such, which made sense.
He certainly wasn’t complaining, because his Agility had been lagging behind.
While they danced, he caught Rosa's eye across the floor, who was looking at them with mostly a mixture of surprise and anger, but he didn’t miss the hint of desire.
Rosa’s cocktail of emotions didn’t slow her down, because her expression told him that Rosa treated that complicated emotions like she did everything else: swept under the rug and focused on the mission.
She got closer, while catching his gaze to nod toward the VIP entrance. He got the message, and started drifting toward the VIP room entrance, close enough for the bouncers to hear them when they talked.
It was when Rosa approached. “Hi, handsome,” she said, her tone sexy and trashy, which played with her sharp aura perfectly to make her look like an opportunistic party girl trying to seduce her way into the VIP room. “How about you ditch the nerd and take me instead? Unlike her, I am an amazing dancer,” she said as she pressed her body against him.
That was no exaggeration. She was an amazing dancer, with years of classical dance training leveraged to rule the club floor.
He didn’t say anything, just wrapped an arm around her, his hand slipping down to cup her ass. Rosa’s arrival finally awake Amy from her daze, but she only started dancing terribly rather than pulling back.
“I think I found my entertainment,“ he said to the bouncer with a wink, ready to go back to the VIP room. Then, he flicked a bundle of cash to him. “I would appreciate if you could send something ‘extra’ to my room to keep us going,” he added.
The bouncer just nodded. After all, he was a rich artist dragging two sexy Latinas to a VIP room, which was half the reason seedy clubs like this existed.
He kept his hands on their hips while he led them to the room, and sat in a spot that would be visible from the dance floor. Just as he was considering how to convince Amy to escalate, she sat on his lap. Rosa looked at Amy, surprised, and Amy blushed. “We need to create a reason for you to get bored and check that corridor,” Amy whispered.
All three of them was aware that she didn’t need to give him a lap dance for that, but none of them said anything.
He was happier to see that Amy’s sheer incompetence at dancing didn’t apply to lap dances.
“We’ll talk about it later,” Rosa said as she leaned, kissing his neck, playing the role, though despite her supposed disapproval of Amy, her own acting wasn’t exactly reluctant. Her legs parted, allowing his hand to slip between her legs.
Soon, the waitress came with a large tray, which included multiple bottles of alcohol, and, at the center, multiple pills. Rosa’s sharp gaze suggested that it was exactly what she was looking for.
“Thanks, sweetie,” he said to the waitress even as he grabbed two pills, and acted like he threw them to his mouth, then took two more, and repeated the motion for Amy, which made both Rosa and Amy tense.
“You can’t—“ Rosa started with a sudden fury the moment the waitress disappeared, but he interrupted her with a kiss.
“Relax,” he said after pulling back, and showed his palm, with four pills safely there. “Just a little magic trick,” he said. “Don’t tell me you don’t remember my handcuff trick,” he said.
“What handcuff trick?” Amy asked.
“We—“ he started, only for Rosa to grab his hair and tug hard.
“Tell that story, and no one would be able to find your body,” she warned, angry and intimidating. Unfortunately for her, while it might have scared anyone else, it just aroused him more.
“Then, you have to do better to keep my mouth shut, Rosa,” he whispered, amused that Amy actually paused, the dynamic clearly surprising her. After all, it was Rosa, scary enough to intimidate other cops.
“You wouldn’t—“ she started.
“Oh, I would, unless you manage to keep my mouth shut. I was at the shooting range—“ he started.
Rosa silenced him with a kiss.
He enjoyed Rosa’s lips, but he also used the moment to tease Amy. One of his hands climbed up, slipping into her cleavage to directly tease her nipple, making her moan.
Her reaction surprised him, especially since she was still fully sober; but then he realized his other advantage. Her relationship woes had played a big role, but Rosa’s presence was playing a role as well.
After all, for Amy, Rosa was simultaneously her greatest competition, her best friend, and someone she desperately wanted to impress; a rather confusing cocktail to add to the already interesting situation.
As he played with her nipples, Amy watched Rosa kiss him desperately, and how his other hand was between Rosa’s legs, teasing her directly.
Even then, however, he didn’t expect her next move. She unzipped his pants, pulled his shaft, and pushed herself down in one smooth move, her lower lips wrapping around him.
Rosa pulled back from the kiss, shocked. “Amy just sacrificed herself to give you the perfect excuse,” he whispered. “Leave the room, jealously pouting, and act like you accidentally went into the corridor,” he whispered. “And, just shout if you need help. I’ll hear.”
Rosa walked away even as she tried to catch Amy’s gaze. Amy refused to meet it, but her hips danced.
“Excellent commitment to the role, Detective Santiago,” he whispered, enjoying the way she got even tighter around him at the mention of her title. “With your excitement, even if they check the room, they will be convinced that we took uppers.”
Amy gulped, guilt and desire warring … a battle that guilt had lost decisively. “R-right, the mission,” she muttered, her hips moving perfectly to the rhythm, once again showing that her lack of rhythm for dancing didn’t apply to anything else. “I’m definitely doing this for mission.”
Her tiny dress failed to contain her breasts as she moved, popping out, so he grabbed them, squeezing her nipples. She moaned, radiating desire. In response, she kissed him hard, uncaring just how much the audience below could see them.
With everything stacked against her, it wasn’t a surprise when she climaxed merely minutes later.
[Achievement complete. Tempt Amy until, for the first time, she committed a major relationship betrayal, yet lost in pleasure too much to care.
Challenge: Daring]
[+25 Intelligence
1 Random Platinum Skill
1 Random Platinum Reward]
[Bonus achievement complete. Netori effect in play]
[+25 Agility
1 Random Platinum Skill
1 Random Platinum Reward]
“You’re a very good, Detective Santiago,” he whispered even as he took over control of her hips when her hips paused as she tried to process her intense climax.
As for stats, he used Teddy to further enhance his Agility, curious just how far he could convince Amy to continue without breaking up with him. Too bad that, knowing her, he only had until they left the club if he did nothing, and even he pushed the case, he probably would get only a few more hours.
A pity.
As for Amy’s direct reward, he picked skill. Amy was capable, offering many useful skills, more important than a boost to his Intelligence.
[Expert Spanish]
[Elite Skill: You are an extraordinary comprehension of Spanish. You can not only fluently speak it, but also you’re capable of composing poetry, writing novels, and understand various local dialects.]
A happy reward, one that he needed, as he was looking a way to enhance his understanding.
Amy was nearing her second climax when Rosa arrived, her expression a thing of beauty. Anger and frustration were there. Still, she stood and watched the way Amy moaned, her arousal was much more intense.
Only after Amy climaxed again did he pull out, fixing their outfits while Amy collapsed against his chest, unaware that she had just given an excellent show to her coworker.
Rosa sat back. Amy avoided her gaze. “I have checked the corridor. We’re lucky, and this is actually one of their major distribution spots. We’ll raid the place in an hour. Let’s leave.”
Amy shuffled in his lap.
“Not yet,” he responded. “You leave first, and look frustrated, and we’ll leave twenty minutes later. That way, they won’t suspect me,” he whispered, knowing that Rosa didn’t have to work hard to look frustrated.
“The raid—“ Amy started.
“No, you have to come with me as protection. Just in case. I’m just a weak civilian,” he whispered, winking at Rosa.
Rosa’s conflict was beautiful. She knew how absurd of an excuse it was, but on paper, it made sense. No one would blame her if she sent an undercover detective to protect a key witness. “Makes sense,” she finally surrendered. “Leave in fifteen minutes,” she added.
He smiled at Rosa’s departure, already wondering if he could convince her to join them once the raid was over.