“So, we met in Vegas,” Yvonne continued. “And since then, we’ve been casually seeing each other. You became something of a lover. I got into the habit of flying you out to meet me for company whenever I traveled.”

“That’s believable too? That you’d fly a lover to wherever you were, just to see them?”

“It’s believable to anyone who knows me. When it comes to women, I’m quite picky. If I find someone I’m compatible with, I like to keep her on hand. If that means flying her across the country when I need her, I won’t hesitate to do that.”

“Someone you’re compatible with?”

“Let’s just say, my tastes are very… specific.”

It was obvious that Yvonne wasn’t referring to her tastes in appearance or personality. In Ruby’s line of work, she’d seen it all, from the tamest to the most scandalous kinks.

Ruby sucked her lip. What was it that Yvonne was into?

“Back to the matter at hand,” Yvonne said. “After a year or so of casually seeing each other, we both began to feel like what was between us was more than just physical.” She paused. “However, we were afraid to confess our true feelings.”

Yvonne spoke as if she were discussing a business deal. Ruby wondered if Yvonne had spoken to her friends about their marriage the same way. She didn’t sound convincing at all.

“So, when we met up in Vegas over the weekend, we got blind drunk, drunk enough to finally talk about how we felt, and ended up having a quickie marriage. After we sobered up, we discussed the situation and we decided we wanted to stay married, so I brought you here to live with me. Again, there’s that element of truth.” Yvonne folded her hands in her lap. “So that’s what I’ve told my friends. We’ll need to build upon the story, add some details. But that’s the foundation of our back story.”

“That works for me,” Ruby said. “So, we should probably tell each other about ourselves. Our backgrounds and so on. We should know the details of each other’s lives, being married and all.” And if Ruby was lucky, talking about themselves would get Yvonne to loosen up a little.

“Good idea,” Yvonne said. “Why don’t you start?”

“Okay. I’m twenty-five, although I usually don’t admit that to my clients. I grew up in a town a few hours from Vegas, moved to Vegas when I turned eighteen, and I’ve been there ever since. Not sure what else there is to say. I should mention, my real name’s Ruth.”

“I know. It’s on the marriage certificate. Is Ruby just a name you use for work?”

“Kind of,” Ruby said. “I started using it because the name Ruth isn’t very glamorous, and it stuck. Nobody calls me Ruth anymore.”

“Ruby it is,” Yvonne said. “Do you have any family?”

“Mom, Dad, and four older brothers. Things were rowdy growing up. What about you?”

“My father died ten years ago. My mother passed when I was young.”