Hi Fi

"But you will heal, and then you and Simone can start to rebuild your lives. You'll have children, too, and I could tell when we were talking downstairs how much you're looking forward to that and how much you'll love your children.

"I know you'll be a good father and a faithful husband. Except for running around on Simone, you're not really a bad guy."

Jerry tried to speak through his choking gasps and sobs. He gestured at the wastebasket. Paula and Prudence looked at it and back to him. Finally, he gathered himself and sniffed a few times, but instead of putting on his clothes, he went to the wastebasket and pulled something out of it. He held in in front of their puzzled faces.

"What does RP stand for?" asked Prudence, reading the large letters that had been written with a thick purple marker on the condom wrapper he was holding up.

"RP stands for Royal Pimps," he said, looking at them mournfully. He spoke clearly now, but he seemed to be working to control himself so he would not break down again.

"That was our secret society in high school. My friends and I pretended we were hot lovers, and to prove it, each of us always kept a condom in his wallet. The funny thing is none of us lost our virginity until college, but we kept the rubbers. We present them to each other in our special club salute whenever we see each other, and then we have a big laugh."

"Is that it?" asked Paula. "That's what's bothering you? You want us to believe your phony rubber story?"

"Wait a minute, Paula. That rubber was pretty old and brittle. Why would he carry it around? Is that all you want to tell us, Jerry? I have a feeling there's something else you want to say.

"You're taking this hard. I don't want you to do anything foolish. Would you like me to hold you again for a while until you're ready to talk? I don't mind."

"Thanks, Prudence," he said. "You're too kind. I don't hold what you did against you and Paula. It's not your fault. Simone lied to you.

"She knows I've never been unfaithful, but I think she's cheating on me. She's been acting strangely for a few months, and I've suspected it. I hoped she would end the affair. The videos are to prove I'm no better than she is, so I have no right to complain."

He began to weep softly.

"You're wrong, Jerry. I was there with Paula when Simone hired us. We talked a long time. She just wanted to stop your cheating. She really loves you, but your cheating is hurting your marriage."

Jerry's voice was now stronger and more assured.

"I don't blame you for believing her. Simone's so good at lying that I think she believes her own lies sometimes.

"It doesn't matter. You were just doing your job. I've been lying, too. I've been lying to myself, telling myself that she would come to her senses and we could go on.

"When the two of you started abusing me, I thought you were psychopaths, and I was trying to be cooperative so you wouldn't mutilate me or kill me. When you told me she was the one who hired you, I realized my marriage was over."

After a pause he said, "I think I'm ready to get dressed now."

"Good," Paula said. "Listen, Jerry, I hope you realize that Prudence and I were doing this professionally, and we've got nothing against you personally, no matter what we said. We acted in good faith and did our little play because we thought it would save your marriage. I hope you just think of us as hookers on an outcall job."

"I understand," he said.

Prudence watched him get dressed. When he stood up shakily, she walked over to him and pushed him back down on the bed with both hands. As he sat up, she sat down next to him. She was still naked.

She turned to him and kissed him hard on the lips and then pulled him violently to her and embraced him tightly as she began sobbing over his shoulder. Paula stared at her. Jerry looked straight ahead.

Finally, Prudence stopped crying, sniffed a few times and let Jerry go. She pushed herself away from him on the bed.

"Godammit, Jerry," she said, "if I find out you are acting right now, I'm going to kill you, and then I'm going to kill myself for being such a sucker. But my gut feeling is that you're being honest.

"I'm going to do my own private investigation to make sure. If you're telling the truth, that means you'll be getting divorced, and that will give me the chance to make this up to you. I'm retiring from the detective business as of right now.

"When I told you before that I could really go for you if you weren't a lying cheat, I was telling the truth. I got into this business because every boyfriend I ever had turned out to be a cheater. Until tonight, I didn't think I would ever find a good man.

"I don't know if you can ever forgive me for what I did, but if you and your wife split, I will try with all my might to prove to you that I'm a different woman than the one you met today. I want to make amazing love with you, with no pain or humiliation Oh, and I love children.

"Do you believe me, Jerry? I know I'm sounding crazy. I just met you for the first time tonight, and all I've done was talk to you in the bar for two hours. Well, not counting what I did to you here. If you don't believe me, tell me right now, so I don't come crawling to you and beg you to let me into your life."

He was quiet for a few seconds. Then he said, "I don't believe you, Prudence."

Both Paula and Prudence inhaled sharply.

Prudence stared at him for a minute, and then she screamed.

"You bastard, Jerry. I should slap you harder than Paula did. I saw that little tic at the corner of your mouth. You are the world's worst liar."

He smiled and opened his arms. She laughed as she fell into them. Paula stared at them incredulously as they laughed and cried together.