"God, Jeremy, you are an ugly broad."

He shrugged, gave his partner the finger, and then continued to apply the new tube of MAC lipstick. Skye thought cherry red wasn’t his color, but kept her opinion to herself. She had already hurt his feelings when she questioned his choice of outfit.

With his massive, gym-induced frame and his square jaw line, Jeremy was an attractive man. However, with his usual grim demeanor, he had the kind of face that most people tended to overlook. In his elaborate get-up, he transformed from an athletic man to a striking woman.

Skye grabbed her lipstick before he used it all. "I don’t think this is going to work."

"Sure, it will. It has to. I’m not going through all this for it not to."

She wasn’t paying attention to him. She was too busy trying to see if she could salvage the rest of the tube. He had pressed down so hard that the lipstick hooked in one direction. She tossed the tube in Jeremy’s new purse. She would just charge the lipstick to the client’s expense list.

Glancing at her watch again, she glared at her partner. He acted like he was getting ready for a beauty pageant. Poking him in the shoulder, she said, "Come on, Jerm. We don't have all night."

"Hold up," he said. "I need to finish the rest of my make-up. You’re no help at all."

"Sorry. I know how to apply mine, but I’m not a make-up artist." Skye noticed that his hands were steady as he put on the eyeliner. He was a lot better at it than she was. She usually ended up poking herself in the eyeball.

She ran through the client’s file in her head. Five years of working together had shown Skye and Jeremy their fair share of cases. Most of their investigative work consisted of following employees involved in worker’s compensation claims. All the two of them needed was a few clear pictures of the “injured” party playing golf or fixing his roof and their job was done.

Lately, S and J Investigative Services had been more involved in the cheating-spouse industry. Their client list had been steadily increasing over the last year. Skye didn’t know if more people were cheating now than they did a few years ago, or if more people were just willing to pay a professional to investigate the alleged indiscretion.

In a way, Mrs. Katherine Cooper, the new client, was the typical Orange County suburban housewife. She was born with a silver spoon in her mouth, and she’d never worked hard in her life. She lived a life filled with comfort and wealth, but she wore her unhappiness like a shroud.

While Jeremy had an aversion to rich, white women, Skye didn’t mind. They were the most likely to pay upfront with cold, hard cash. She recognized the look of suburban boredom on their faces and knew many of them felt trapped in a loveless marriage. They had all the privileges of upper-class life but were still miserable.

Skye actually felt a little sorry for Katherine Cooper. Unlike the typical OC housewife, Katherine was polite. She didn’t treat them like they were a couple of her hired illegals. More than that, her case was so out there that Skye just shook her head in disbelief.

Skye and Jeremy had been doing investigative work for a while. They’d both learned that there are all types of people and that there’s a fetish for everything you could imagine. Mrs. Cooper had also learned that when she discovered that her husband enjoyed getting it on with bodybuilding drag queens.

The curious wife had found some interesting pictures while snooping in her husband’s locked office. The jpegs alone had been shocking enough. But then, in a hidden compartment, she found still photos that seemed rather recent. The pictures hid nothing, and she recognized her husband in most of the shots.

Instead of confronting her husband right away, Katherine scanned a few of the photos and uploaded them onto her notebook computer. Before he returned for the day, she put everything back in its place. She started to research investigation firms the next morning. She heard about Skye and Jeremy from one of her best friends. Even though they were a small firm, their names were well known throughout Orange County.

The job was simpler than some of their previous assignments. They didn’t need to catch Mr. Dale Cooper in the act, as Katherine had accumulated enough evidence to completely humiliate her husband and perhaps ruin his career. After all, he was a councilman in a very Republican district. He had his eyes on a congressional seat, and what Katherine knew could dash those hopes.

All they had to do was take a few pictures of Mr. Cooper in an underground fetish club. Their client had a reliable source that said her husband was a regular there. The club only allowed men, so Jeremy would be on his own for the rest of the assignment.

Pulling out her notepad, Skye went over her notes again. The case didn’t need much preparation, but she wanted to do a run-through in her head. Jeremy liked to go with the flow, but she liked to prepare for the worst-case scenario. The opening from The Cure’s "Love Song" interrupted her thoughts. Whenever I’m alone with you, you make me feel like I am home again. Jeremy looked up when he heard the music.

Skye pulled her mobile phone out of her pocket. Of all the songs she had programmed, only one person held the title to "Love Song." She didn’t have to look at her phone to know it was Sean.

She thought about letting it go to voicemail, but was too curious. She flipped her phone open. "What?"

"Hey, baby. Did you miss me?" said the familiar deep voice.

"I’m hanging up," she said.

"No, wait," Sean said. "Don’t be like that. I just wanted to ask a favor."

"Depends on what it is." She tried to keep her voice casual.

"Did you ever have Jefferson for Criminal Procedure? I desperately need an outline.”

Skye thought about telling him to write his own course outlines. "Nope, I had someone else. I’m not sure if I have any outlines on file anyway," she said, instead.

"Oh, well, that’s okay." He paused. "So how have you been?"

"Okay." She noticed Jeremy staring at her, and took a few steps away from his curious ears. "Just business as usual. How’s law school?"

"It fucking sucks." He laughed. "I should have listened to you. You tried to warn me."

Skye nodded even though he couldn’t see her. "Yeah, well, the work is manageable. You just have to get through it. If I can do it, anyone can."

"Don’t sell yourself short," Sean said. "You always had the book smarts. I’m not like you, so I have to work twice as hard." He sounded tired.

"You’ll do fine," she said. She always told him that the first year would be the hardest. She hated law school but managed to graduate and pass the bar on the first try. Currently she was a licensed attorney, but it had been a few years since she practiced.

The pause in the conversation became long and bordered on being awkward. Jeremy caught her attention and made kissing noises against the back of his hand. She rolled her eyes and turned away.

"So are you seeing anyone?" Sean asked.

"No. Not that it’s any of your business." She stopped herself from asking him the same question. They had broken up almost a year ago, but the wounds still seemed fresh.

"I’m not seeing anyone seriously, in case you were wondering," he said.

Skye noted the word "seriously." That meant he didn’t have a girlfriend, but he was probably screwing around with some girl. She tried not to think about it. He was a single guy, and didn’t owe her any explanations.

"How’s the meathead?" he asked.

"Fine." Skye glanced at her watch. "Speaking of which, we have an assignment tonight. So I have to run."

"Alright," he said. "Good luck. Be careful, okay?"

"I always am.” She hung up quickly. She knew him too well. Even though he tried to act casual, he only called her when he wanted a quick roll in the hay. He knew that she had a hard time staying away from him.

This time she didn’t want to give him the chance. She reminded herself that they were no longer in a relationship. They were simply friends who had sex occasionally. Beyond that, things could get complicated. Skye didn’t like complications.

She glanced at her watch again. "God, Jeremy, it’s taking you forever and a day. You’re worse than a woman."

"I was just waiting for you to finish your call." He stepped into the light. "So how do I look?"

Skye walked around her partner and looked him up and down. Jeremy chose an all-black ensemble with a cocktail-length dress and sparkling fishnet stockings. A slit up one side of the dress showed off his muscular thigh and meaty calf. The soft fabric of the dress clung to his rock hard muscles, and the scooped neck showed a hint of pectoral muscles.

Although the dress was simple, his make-up was more dramatic. Bright multi-colored shadow and fake lashes accentuated the green of his round eyes. He painted his lips cherry red and used sparkling gloss on top. He even sprayed glitter all over his bare arms and neck. He looked like a bodybuilder who had been kidnapped and made over by a roving band of mad drag queens.

Skye moved her eyes up and down the tight dress. She didn’t know how he had been able to get it on over his massive chest. She thought Jeremy toed the fine line between campy and hot.

"Well?" he asked. "Don’t just stand there and stare at me like I’m some piece of meat. Does this work or not?"

"Jeremy, you are a sexy bitch."

He grinned and looked into the full-length mirror. "If I were a straight dude, I’d still want to do me."

Skye rolled her eyes. Even in full-out drag, Jeremy was beyond arrogant. She pointed at the three-inch stilettos on his feet. "You can walk in those?"

"Barely. I’m hoping that I won’t be on my feet all night long."

She picked up their equipment case. "Let’s get this show on the road. Mama needs to get paid."