Jake The P.I.

Jenny came into my office and sat in a chair. I sat on the edge of the desk just to be near her.

"Jenny, we have found out all kinds of things and I'm afraid everything is going to come to a head by next week. I need you to be perfectly honest with me in everything you say. It's imperative you tell me the truth."

"I haven't lied to you, Jake. I haven't lied to you about anything."

"I know but I have more questions I need answered. Did you know that Roger was making it with Doris?"

She was biting her bottom lip before answering. "I suspected it but didn't know it. I didn't tell you because I didn't want to accuse Doris of anything without knowing anything except what Roger told me."

"Go on, tell me the rest."

"Roger would brag what a good looking woman Doris was and what a good ... um, sex partner she was. He wanted to know why I couldn't be like that. He did tell me if I didn't go to the swap fest with him, he would take Doris. He would always talk about other women like that. I figured if it was true you would find out while investigating him. I'm so sorry, Jake. I didn't want to be the one to tell you unless I knew for sure, which I didn't."

"What about your financial arrangements? What can you tell me about that?"

"I don't know too much about it. Roger takes care of most of it. He's in banking, you know."

"Tell me everything you know. It's really important. I'm not interested in your money but I do need to know your financial situation."

"I know you don't want my money. You want my ass and you can have it if you want," she smiled.

"I want more than your ass. I want your heart too."

"You've always had it, Jake. You just never knew it," she had a tear in her eye. About our finances, when we got married, Roger's dad gave him a million dollars. Of course we bought the estate and Roger is in investments and invested the rest."

"Did your dad give you anything?"

"Yes. Just so you know, Jake, I really love my dad. I know people think all investment people are takers but dad's not like that. He earned his money the honest way. He gave my sister Rachel and I each five hundred thousand dollars when we got married."

"Did Roger invest your money too?"

"No, believe it or not dad really didn't trust Roger and dad invested my money for me. Roger was pissed but I told him I wanted to do business with my dad and of course Roger never said any more about it."

"What is your investment worth today."

"I have no idea. I really don't. Would you like me to call my father and ask him?"

"Please, if you don't mind. You have to trust me here."

"Jake, there's no one I trust more than you. I'll call dad now. What phone should I use?"

I had to laugh, she was so sweet, "Use your cell phone."

"Hello, dad. I need a favor from you. It's something that can't wait. Can you tell me what my investment is worth? No, dad, I don't want to take it out. I just want to know how much it is.... What? You're kidding me, right? Dad, I really need to know the truth ... It is the truth? It's worth four million dollars. Oh, my God, dad, it's so hard to believe. Hold on a second, dad."

"Ask your dad to take all the money out of your name as soon as possible. It's imperative that he do this now. Get the investments out of your name and tell him to not leave any trail behind. He has to do it now."

"Did you hear him, dad. I don't know but please do what he says. It's no trick, dad. I think Roger might want a divorce and he would try to get the money or something. Yeah, dad, just do it. I'll call you later and try to explain. I love you, dad, and thank you. Bye."

"Thank you, sweetheart. I feel a whole lot better about that now. By the way, where are you going Saturday?"

"Roger asked me - or almost told me - to go see my sister this weekend. How did you know?"

"He told me to watch you this weekend. He thinks you're going to go see the man you're having an affair with. So, it was his suggestion for you to see your sister?"

"Yeah, I called her and she won't be home this weekend. I haven't told Roger yet. Do you want me to tell him I'm not going?"

"You're going alright. You and I will take a short trip somewhere. After all I have to keep my eye on you this Saturday. The best way to do that is to have you in my bed."

"Roger's going to one of the swap fests, isn't he, and probably taking Doris."

"Yes, I'm pretty sure that's what's happening. Do you want to be with me Saturday?"

"Jake, I want to be with you the rest of my life. Married or just living together, I don't care; I just want to be with you."

What more could a guy ask for? A life long friend wanting to be with you. Is there such a thing as the forth time's a charm? We made plans to be together that next Saturday. It's kind of funny when you think about it. We were having an unplanned wife swap. I knew one thing for sure. I would never, ever share my Jenny with anyone, including Roger.

I told Jenny that I had let Roger know that I had found out that she was with another man the day we spent together. I explained my plan to her and asked her to have a talk with her dad. If he would agree to back her up everything should turn out all right. I kissed her goodbye and told her I would see her on Saturday.

On Friday, Sally, Jim and I got together to see what else we came up with.

Jim went first, "Doris is playing Roger. She is interested in his money and is willing to get divorced so they can get married. According to the grapevine, Roger wants to divorce Jenny and marry Doris. He's seeing her through sex blinders. She is willing to be his sex and swap partner, as long as they get married and no prenuptial agreement. I hate to say this, Jake, but they're two sorry individuals and deserve each other."

"You're right, Jim, I can't agree with you more. What about Jenny? Is she involved in any way, shape or form?"

"Nope, the banking group has no idea who she even is. It's kind of funny too because her dad's a big shot in the investment industry but rumor has it that he's an honest guy and has never been involved with the lower element of the industry."

"That's good to hear. We are going to need him on our side. I feel a little better about him now. Okay, Sally, what's the latest on the financial side?"

"Jake, you're not going to believe this but I think this will answer most of the questions you are asking. Roger's damn near broke. He pretty much blew his million inheritance and made some horribly bad investments. I went through all his financial records that were hidden in his computer. To the best of my knowledge he borrowed a half million dollars on a second mortgage. So the only money available to him is what ever monies Jenny has saved. I wasn't able to find out how much that is since he tried to tap that account but was unable to."

"I could kiss you, Sally, but you would probably slap me. That's the connection! Roger's broke and wants Doris. He can't have her unless he has money. The only money available to him is Jenny's net worth in her portfolio which her dad oversees. So, Roger knows the money is there but doesn't know how much. Until yesterday, Jenny didn't even know. Guys, she's worth four million dollars."

"Holy shit! So since there's no pre-nuptial, then if they get divorced and the money is divided equally then Roger stands to get his hands on two million dollars and Doris," replied Jim.

"You got it, good buddy. So our job is now to do a hell of a lot of acting. You are going to the swap meet on Saturday, correct?"

"Yes, sir, got a date and everything. Besides getting some pictures I'm going to get myself laid a few times. This is a hell of a good job. Oh, sorry, Sally."

"Don't apologize to me. I have all I can handle at home and can have it there any time I want," she laughed.

"Okay, guys, we need to call Roger and leak some of this news to him. Sally, remember those love letters to me on Jenny's hard drive? I want you to make copies of them but change the name say, to Brian. Then I want them deleted from the copies of Jenny's hard drive. I want you to make copies of those letters on the drives we took from Rogers computer. We want it to look like Roger wrote the letters to incriminate Jenny. Then fax those letters to Roger today."

"Oh, you're rotten, boss but I love you anyway. You might want to nuke Jenny's hard drive in case anyone goes back to check it."

"Nuke it? What the hell is that?"

"Take this disk and put it in her computer when you see her tomorrow. It will wipe out all those pre-existing files. Take this disk and put it in Roger's computer. It will put those letters you wanted into his files."

"Damn, girl, you're worth every penny I pay you."

"No, I'm worth double the money you're paying me and when this gig is over I want to hire myself a helper."

"You got it, sweet cheeks. Hire all the help you need," I replied.

"Jake? When do you expect the shit to hit the fan?"

"I figure Monday. I don't want Jenny to be with Roger after this weekend and I'm sure as hell kicking Doris' ass out on Monday also. It might take a week to get the sides together for a meeting. By the way, Jim, you'll have to handle the meeting. I know the judge is going to want our report and I don't think I'll be present since both Jenny and Roger will be there. Do you think you can handle it?"

"You've saved my ass a number of times and I will be forever in debt to you. This time I get to do you a favor and save your girlfriend's ass. It will be my pleasure."

"Jim, we were both military heroes and now best of friends. You don't owe me. You're as good a friend as a person could ask for and I will always watch your back."

"Okay, guys, enough scratching each others nuts. We still have work to do," laughed Sally.

Chapter 4

It was Saturday and this was the beginning of the end for two marriages. I knew when I returned home on Monday that my marriage would be over. I headed to Jenny's place since her husband was paying me to keep my eyes on her. I parked on the hill overlooking the gated entrance waiting for Roger to leave. I made sure that when he left home that he would be able to see my vehicle; after all, he should see his money working for him.

I thought I'd call Doris one last time. The phone rang and she picked up.

"Smith residence," she said.

"Hi, Doris, it's just me. I found out I'll be gone for two nights and won't be back till Monday. Thought I would call you and let you know."

"Are you following Jenny to her sister's house?"

"Who told you that I was following Jenny to her sister's?"

"Oh, um, Roger called. I guess he wanted to talk to you and mentioned it."

The only person who mentioned Jenny's sister was Jenny. Roger told me she was meeting someone. He's the one who suggested she go see her sister. That was a major slip up by Doris.

"I'm following her because she might be having an affair. I don't know anything about her seeing her sister."

"Jake, when you get back we need to talk."

"Talk? About what? Do you want to tell me something, Doris?"

Her voice was soft and nervous.

"It can wait till you get back on Monday. I'll talk to you then."

"Sure, Doris, I'll see you Monday."

"Jake, um ... I ... um ... okay, I'll talk to you Monday." She always ended our phone conversations with, 'I love you' but I guess she just couldn't get it out this time.

Roger pulled out of his drive and I saw him pull up the hill behind me; he thought he was out of sight. He had a pair of binoculars checking out my vehicle. What a dork. While he was watching me I called Jenny on her tracphone.

"Hello," she said when she answered.

"Geez, Sally gets called sweetheart and I just get a hello."

"Hi, honey. Where are you? Roger just left for his so-called overnight meeting."

"I'm staring at your house while Roger is up the hill staring at me. Are you packed and ready to go? Put your suitcase in your car and then leave the property. I'll follow you. After Roger leaves, we need to come back and do a little computer work before we head out. Why not head to the twenty-four hour shopping center and we can leave your car there and just use mine."

"Okay, honey. See you in a few."

"You sound a little down. Having second thoughts?"

"No, I never thought I'd be a divorce statistic. I wasn't overly in love with Roger but I tried to make it work. I'll be over it when I see you. Bye for now."

She hung up the phone and I saw her car pulling out of her drive. Roger must have seen enough as he jumped back in his Porsche and took off. We met in the shopping center garage and she parked it in a very discreet area. She slipped her suitcase onto my backseat and got in the front with me, leaned over and kissed me. A very gentle and loving but yet powerful kiss.

"Jake, I love you with all my heart and soul. Please never hurt me like Roger has."

I didn't reply. I know she had to be thinking about me ending my third marriage. I thought it best to be quiet right then. I knew she was making a statement, not wanting a conversation, so we headed back to the house to finish our computer business.

Monday morning came and we had spent two wonderful days together. I took Jenny back to her car. She had talked to her father and told him she was leaving Roger and was wondering if it was alright to come home. His wife was glad to have one of her daughters back in the house. They were always surrounded by servants and were glad to have family there.

I decided to stop by the office before going home and facing Doris. Jim and Sally were both there already. Hell, it was ten o'clock, they had better be there. I didn't recognize Jim when I saw him. He had shaved off his beard and moustache and also shaved his head bald. He looked like a different person.

"What the hell did you do?" I asked.

"Hey, good buddy, I didn't want to be recognized at the swap meet so I shaved it all off. I scared the shit out of Sally this morning when I came in. I grabbed her from behind and she did that stupid elbow trick you showed her. Man, I'm still hurting."

"Serves you right, you pervert," laughed Sally.

"It there some bad news to report Jim."

"Afraid so, buddy. Do you want to see the evidence?"

"No, I know what Doris' ass looks like. I don't need to see some pervert with his dick in it. Besides, it's Roger's dick we're interested in. Only show the pictures of Doris if his dick's in her. Do you know what I mean?"

"At this meeting, when they have it, you don't want me showing pictures of Doris unless she's doing Roger. I got it. I have pictures of Roger doing about three other women, so I'll just show those."

"Thanks, Jim, I appreciate it. Did Doris or Roger know who you were?

"They were so shit faced I doubt if they knew who they even fucked. Sorry about that but it's the truth. I've got pictures of everyone at that party, maybe fifteen couples. What do you want me to do with them?"

"Just file them. If you have names, put them on the back. If we ever get any as clients, we will have a head start."

"Will do Jake, and again, sorry about Doris. For something brighter, how was your date with Jenny?"

"It was great. Maybe I'll tell you about everything except the love making sometime."

"Did you say lovemaking? You usually say, fucking or having sex. What gives?"

"Drop it, pervert," said Sally. "Leave the boss alone. He said he would tell you later. Go put on a hat or something. The glare off your head is bothering me," laughed Sally.

"Just so you guys know, Jenny moved back with her parents for now. Roger or someone will probably be contacting us about divorce proceedings soon. Are we all set with the computer files, Sally?"

"If you made the changes in their home computers, we're set to go. To be honest with you, boss, I only met Jenny the one time and she seems nice; I'm glad we're setting up that bastard husband of hers."

"Okay, guys, that's about it. Time to go home and get divorced. By the way, Sally, is this business protected against a divorce?"

"Jake, on paper we are running in the red. I don't think Doris will go after it. You might want to take this paper with you explaining our negative worth in case the issue comes up."

"Thanks, Sally. Catch you guys later."

I left for home to watch my third marriage go down the toilet. Three years, almost a record. My first one did last four years but that was only because I was in the service. The second lasted two years. Should I really try again? Something to think about.

I arrived at home and Doris was on the porch of our condo. It was just a small two bedroom place. Doris always wanted a mansion but I didn't have any money. I pretty much lived job to job.

I didn't even have to go in the house. Doris already had some of her bags packed and sitting on the porch.

"Jake, I'm leaving you and want a dissolution of our marriage."

I just looked at her instead of saying anything. I knew she was nervous. She also seemed sad. Finally I spoke.

"Okay, you want out, then I'll ask for a divorce. If this ever comes back to me, I want it known that it was you that had the affair. My only question is why Roger? He's a scumbag. Is he that great a lover?"

I was mildly calm. I didn't hate Doris. I wasn't about to yell and scream at her.

"You know this isn't about love. It's about money. Jake, the money I received after the old geezer settled with me after my first divorce is getting low. I'm down to about sixty thousand dollars. You know me better than anyone. I like nice things and I want a big house and fast cars. All the things you can't provide. I know that sounds materialistic but that's who I am."

"What about the sex, Doris?"

"The sex with you is great, Jake. I can't deny that. I have never had sex with a man that is better than you. Hell, you're twice as good as Roger will ever be, but I'm in my thirties, Jake. I know I have the looks to attract men but my looks won't last forever. Roger is rich and can afford to keep me in the kind of comfort I want. I can have sex with anyone, Jake. I need to look at my financial future. With you there probably isn't one. I know you understand."

"Yeah, money isn't my forte, I probably never will have much. I guess I should have known we wouldn't last that long together."

"We made good sex together though, didn't we, Jake? No man could make me cum the way you can. I do have to say I will miss doing it with you. Please don't hate me, Jake. I don't hate you. In fact I do have strong feelings for you. It's just time for me to move on, to have a rich man keep me."

"You do realize you're whoring yourself out, don't you, Doris? Sex for the person with the most money."

"You're right but we all sell ourselves out for something. At least my price is high enough to keep me in comfort. Jake, even though I'll be with Roger, I'll come see you if you ask me too."

"No, the problem is you were my wife and you fucked Roger and probably others. I now have to live with that. I will hold that against you. No, I don't hate you but I hate that you did it while being my wife."

"How long did you know about Roger, Jake?"

"Not long enough to put a stop to it. What do you expect to take with you?"

"All my personal things and what's left of my settlement if it's alright with you. I'm not expecting anything from the business and the apartment is rented. You'll need the furniture. I'll be moving in with Roger tonight. You do know that Jenny moved out don't you?"

"Yes, I followed her, remember? She didn't seem to be having an affair this weekend. She just visited her sister like you said. I guess Roger just wanted me out of the picture so he could have his way with you."

Doris was almost crying. "You know, I hate myself right now, don't you, Jake? I hate what I did to you and if Jenny didn't cheat on Roger I hate what I did to her. I can't help it that I'm this way. I just want nice things. Please forgive me, Jake."