The 20,000 Dollar Question

"So you have thought about it?"

Roger wasn't sure he wanted Linda to answer that. Still, twenty grand was twenty grand, and they could sure use it. At least half of Roger's brain wanted her to do this. If anyone could earn twenty-thousand dollars this way, it would be Linda. The rest of Roger's brain reminded him of how jealous and angry he became...even over nothing,

He was weighing these two diametrically opposed viewpoints in his mind when Linda broke the silence, "Sure, I've thought about it." "I mean, if I was ever going to do a thing like this, it would be now, not after I've...we've... had kids." Then she kissed him and rolled over, leaving Roger to lie there and think about this a little deeper.

Twenty-thousand semolians. That would go a long to pulling them out of the hole they were in. That in itself was kind of depressing. To know that they could have a windfall of twenty grand and still only break even was not something to celebrate. Still, just breaking even would let them sleep at night. And it wasn't like Linda was going to cheat. This was not the movie, Indecent Proposal, for Christ's sake. It was just stripping and dancing. "You're not allowed to touch the women in those places, right?", he thought. Roger was not as sure about that last part as he'd have liked to have been. Maybe he had seen too much porn. In any club he had ever been in, you were lucky to get a warning about touching. So no harm...just get naked, show off the great body that the good Lord blessed her with, dance around...she likes dancing, and win the contest. Just don't punch anyone for looking...or tipping. Ugh. And with that thought, Roger too fell asleep.

"Are you sure you want to go?" Linda already knew the answer but thought she would give Roger one last chance to change his mind. "You better not start any trouble. We both agreed on this. I know how you get. I'm going to be naked and men are going to look and probably say stuff."

"I'll handle myself...just make sure no one 'handles' you", he warned. He was trying to make it sound like a joke but she could hear that undertone of jealousy already bubbling to the surface.

"And why does it have to be the entire weekend?", he asked. "I wish I had read the rules a little closer"

'It's not the whole weekend. It's a couple hours Friday and Saturday night. By Sunday afternoon we could be holding our check."

Unlike Roger, who had the attention span of a squirrel, Linda had read the rules. In fact, she read them more than once. If she was going to do this, she was playing to win, and not have any surprises. The basic premise was that the contestants would take turns stripping and dancing, just like the "regulars". No names would used, only numbers, which would be painted on their backs with Day-Glo paint. "I guess they don't want anything spoiling the view from the front", she mused. Each night, after all the contestants had danced, they would all be brought out together for one last chance to wow the crowd. The patrons would then vote by writing a number on a slip of paper and handing it to one of the topless barmaids as they made their way through the crowd. After both nights, the girl with the most votes would be declared a winner. Linda figured that Rog would only read the words; strip, dance, no touching, and $20,000. The truth was not that far off.

There were some other items of interest in the sheet of rules. First, the girls could dance on the stage, use the poles, and/or make their way around the bar just as any of the paid strippers. They could not perform a lap dance. Second, the no touching rule would be enforced BUT...this was a big "but" that could blow the whole deal with Roger...but the contestants could receive tips. In fact, they were encouraged to do so. Accepting tips meant that the tips would have to be held onto somehow. Anyone who has been to such an establishment knows how the tips are placed and held...in the g-string. There really aren't any other options. So when the rules say no touching, there is definitely some room for latitude. That is true of the bouncers anyway, maybe not so much for Rog.

Linda gave Roger one more chance to sit this one out but when he got into the driver's side of their SUV, she knew it was game on. They rode most of the way there in silence...each nervous for their own reasons. When they arrived, it was time to split up. Contestants went in one door, patrons in another, Linda grabbed Roger's hands, looked him in the eyes, and said, "Just remember, this is for the money. We both agreed. Nothing is going to happen that wouldn't happen if we were at the beach." Of course Roger didn't buy that but before he could make his argument, she cut him off, "OK, ok...a little different than that. But no one is going to do anything to, or with me. Just be happy and proud that you will be the one taking me home. We are going to win twenty-thous-and dol-lars!" With that, she disappeared inside. Any thoughts of going in after her would put to waste when Roger got a look at the backstage bouncer. "Steroids...", Roger muttered as he walked towards the main entrance.

Inside on that first night, things went pretty well. There were so many hot, naked dancers that Roger had a hard time staying focused on just Linda. Not that Linda wasn't smoking. He was quite surprised by how easily this seemed to come to her. When it came time to strip off her outfit for the first time, there was no visible hesitation. With a big smile on her face, she took off her clothes with the same concerns she might have getting ready for a shower at home...none. Linda was 32 years-old. Her hair was long, blonde, and quite sexy, especially when she curled it. Her tits were fine and her ass was even finer. Of course, the four-inch heels didn't hurt. She danced to the sounds of the music, along with plenty of whistles and various "proposals". The contestants were able to pick their own music and Linda had a great selection of "hair bands" with more than one selection from Motley Crue. Despite being torn between jealousy and lust, Roger kept it together and only couple of times did he feel his hands clenching into fists. Both times were when someone's hand lingered a little longer than Roger liked when tipping. The second time actually had Roger beginning to rise from his stool until he thought about the wrath that would come his way if Linda had stripped for nothing, Surely a jealous, brawling husband would mean disqualification. Feeling good about her chances for victory, they drove home vastly more animated than on the way there. They both talked about how hot the whole scenario had made them. There would be no simple kiss good-night tonight.

Saturday night was going much like Friday night with one exception, Roger was drinking too much, too fast. He just wanted this over with. To be honest, he was not even sure that Linda would win. On both nights, the patrons were advised to consider the entire package; body, yes, but also personality and dance moves. It was hard to know how much these hounds were going to care about personality when Double Ds were bouncing in their faces. If they did consider total package, Linda had more than a good chance. Her body was tight and she could dance. Roger was also surprised at her flexibility.

Now maybe because it was Saturday night, or maybe because it was the second and last night of the contest, everyone seemed to be getting a little more intoxicated, a little rowdier, and a little bolder with their tips. Roger was no longer enjoying himself as much as the night before. He even went so far as to grab the arm of one of the tippers whose hand seem to linger a little too long and too close to an area that Roger was rather possessive about. Linda immediately shot him a look that said, "don't blow this!" He let the arm go and any sort of incident was avoided and forgotten. Before Roger knew it, the contest was over and all the contestants were out for one last chance to win over voters.

Then came the big moment....'"and the winner is.....the lovely and sexy number 11!" Eleven? That was Linda's number. She won! We won! Twenty-thousand-freaking dollars! These were Roger's thoughts as everyone was clapping and yelling and the other contestants were congratulating Linda. He was so happy, he didn't even get jealous when the giant Hulk of a bouncer, the one from backstage, lifted her up on his shoulder to parade her around the stage so she could collect the admiration of her new fans. As the bouncer carried her past Roger, a little black notebook fell out of his pocket. Roger, still elated, picked it up and planned to hand it to him later when the situation allowed.

The victory lap was taking longer than Roger expected so he began to flip through the pages of the little black book. What Roger discovered next ended the celebration in his mind. In the pages of the book were all the numbers of the contestants, their names, stars, and in the case of one, a phone number. It was number 11. Lovely Linda Barker. Four stars. Followed by Linda's cell phone number. Worst of all there was an asterisk and a note: "The winner?" Great oral...can't wait to call for more.

Looks like Linda bought some insurance.