Irene walked up to him after it was over and said “James, what are you doing here?”
“Working. You never saw me” he said, trying to melt into the crowd.
The bouncers were there, trying to sort out what happened. The girls decided it was time to leave, so they all piled into Penny’s car and left. Jill was in the back seat with Irene, and she looked at her and very sternly asked “Who the fuck is James? Who does he work for?”
Irene, wondering about the change in demeanor, said “He works for Mike’s partner. He’s a vet with some skills, and if he was working, Mike is probably paying him to take care of you. Of us.” Jill silently stared forward for the rest of the ride home.
When they got out, Irene got out with her and walked her to the door “What is wrong Jill? I don’t understand.”
“My brother’s an ass, that’s what’s wrong!” Jill spat, unlocking the door and walking in.
When Irene got back in the car, the full truth of what Jill said dawned on her. “Holy Crap!” she thought “Now I know what their problem is”. Irene didn’t tell anyone else what Jill had said.
Jill walked in, looked around, and positively roared “Where the fuck are you Mike?!” Mike came out of his bedroom, beer in hand, looking absolutely confused. Jill walked straight up to him and swung with a right hook. Mike, stunned, partially blocked it and backed up.
“What the hell did I do this time?” he asked without raising his voice.
She yelled back “I’m not a goddamn baby. I don’t need a goddamn babysitter. You can trust me, I’m not going home with some random guy!”
“Whoa… First explain what you’re talking about, then I can participate in this conversation” Mike said.
“James. Do I need to say anything more?!” she said. Mike finally understood, his security detail had been “made”. Mike’s phone began to ring. He glanced at it, and noted it was Irene. Looking for some clarity, Mike said, “I need to take this” and answered the phone.
“Hello, go for Mike” trying to make it sound like a work call. “Mike, some guy tried to get waaay to handsy with her. James fixed it, but she seems mad. I don’t know why, but we really need to have a talk on Monday. A very personal talk.”
“OK, got it. See you then” Mike said, hanging up. Jill had calmed a little by then, but there was still a fire in her eyes. “Jill, tell me what I did wrong. Please” he said calmly.
She looked at him and said “I’ve been taking care of myself for years! I don’t need a spy! I’m not going to go cheat on you! I won’t be kept under your thumb!” Mike looked at her, hearing more than she knew.
“I have an idea. Things are often much more clear in the morning light. Why don’t we go to bed and discuss this then. And by the way, dinner was delicious!”
She deflated a little bit. “Make you a deal” she said “If you stay out here and watch a movie with me, I won’t try to kill you. Not even a little. Then we can go to bed.”
“Deal” he replied. They watched a mindless comedy, her snuggling in. Mike was trying desperately not to look down the top of her dress and failing.