I sat at the table and prayed for a number higher than eight, the dice felt warm in my sweaty hand and I could feel my heart pounding in my chest. They rolled round inside my hand and I scattered them down the table, closing my eyes at the final moment of ejection as they made their way down the table and settled.
I let my head fall backwards, tried to relax my neck, feeling my rich golden hair fall down my back, hoping against hope that finally my luck had changed. I heard the girl next to me gasp and I tried to determine what that meant for me, had I won at last?
Three and Two.
Not enough, not nearly enough.
What would happen next I wondered, I was so far beyond the limit of credit that I had initially agreed that I could not believe the would let me borrow more. My credit cards were already maxed out and however good a customer I was, I couldn't believe that they would let me keep on playing. I had already had an interview with Mr Abadlioi last week after the previous set of losses.
I looked down at the beautiful blue satin dress that I was wearing, I had picked it out because the last time I had worn it, I had been lucky, had come away better than level. I loved the big slit down the front, the way that it showed off so much of my cleavage. Around the casino there were certain rules of behaviour that I loved. Guys could admire a beautiful woman and women could be admired, but no would make much of a move, no one would hassle you. It was nice, and safe.
Economically it was not safe I reflected, economically it was a disaster, a life changing, misery inducing, marriage destroying disaster.
I could feel my string pulling into my ass a little, the tops of my stockings on my hips, the lace gently hugging me to keep themselves in place. The satin was smooth and sexy against my skin and I thought that I may never be able to afford to buy such a garment again.
Silence descended over the table as behind me I could hear a group of approaching me. I turned slowly with a forced smile on my lips.
"Mrs DiAngelo, perhaps I could suggest that you come this way." Mr Abadlioi asked, a cold politeness still evident in his voice.
Behind him were two guys, not goons exactly but big guys that could look after themselves in a fight I was sure. Not that fighting was exactly my thing.
We walked away from the table and I could feel the eyes of all the people on the floor track me as I walked out passed the tables, passed the fruit machines and down a darker corridor leading to the backrooms where the reality of casino debts started to encroach on real life. No longer here were you just dealing in coloured plastic chips, this was where cheques and credit cards lived, and debt collectors and lawyers I supposed.
The guys on either side of me didn't even look at me. Here I was wearing a practically skin tight satin dress, pulled tight over my tits, accentuating my 34B breasts that were otherwise unencumbered with cover or support. I knew that men found this dress very sexy, I had seen the looks of lust, of desire in their eyes many times. I knew that my husband loved to see me in it, loved to see the way it showed the lines of my firm breasts, and just gave away a little of my nipples as they pressed into the fabric.
I was shown once again into his office and sat down opposite him, ensconced behind his huge solid oak desk. He smiled at me graciously.
"Well Mrs DiAngelo, we seem to find ourselves here again. Well, well, well. And so soon." He started.
"I seem to be going through a very unlucky run." I mumbled nervously.
"Yes, well that is certainly clear. But the problem for me is now really just how we are going to recover the funds. I seem to remember last time that you were very keen to keep it between the two of us. Does that remain the case?" He asked, his eyes roaming down over my form.
"Yes, my husband is away, he cannot find out, he works so hard and he has no idea I even come to casinos. But I have spent all my savings. I don't know what to do, I can't ask him for more money, anyway with the new house and things, there is no more money I am sure," I could feel tears welling up in my eyes.
"This is a very difficult situation you have created for yourself. I think you wrote us an additional cheque for a thousand pounds this evening. Will that cheque clear do you think?" He probed, his eyes biting back at mine, then slowly moving down my neck before his gaze rested on the sides of my breasts, clearly visible in the deep V at the front of my lucky dress.
"No." I admitted, I realised we had got past the point where lying was useful.
"And do you have any other ways to pay us back?" He asked, still wilfully staring at my breasts.
"No."
"I see. So you have no job, no income and no savings?"
"No, I have already given you them all." My heart sank further, it was true.
We sat there in silence for a few minutes, I looked at him, a growing feeling of fear and sickness growing in my stomach, an aching dread filling my soul. He smiled quietly to himself, seemingly happy to just admire my form and enjoy this moment of control and victory over a beautiful woman. I started to hate him in my heart, particularly his polite smugness.
I thought over how sad and broken John my husband would be with my behaviour. He was so careful with money, always buying the Ford over the BMW, eating chicken rather than steak, never buying himself new clothes until his old ones were worn out. And I had done this.
"OK, so I have a proposition for you. As it happens tonight is a special night for the Casino, tonight is what we in the management like to call monthly debtors night. In a few hours we have a very select group of clients coming to visit, and you would actually fit in very well, in fact I might say that you might even be the star attraction. But you will have to be a willing and happy participant."
I looked back at him, what could he be proposing? I asked myself.
"What do you actually want?" I asked hesitantly.
"Well we need something from you that can allow us to recover the money that you owe us. It sounds to me as though the chances of recovering this money from you is low, unless you would like to help us out with a very special... hmm what shall we call it, performance perhaps."
I had a horrible feeling I knew what he wanted from me, I could tell from his eyes that he wanted to see me undress, perhaps fuck me.
"Look, if you think I am going to fuck you, to get out of this debt, then you can think again." I observed, I had always been a loyal wife and had no intention of giving in to him. I didn't believe he would just let me off the debt anyway, he was just taking advantage of his position.
He smiled back at me, a knowing look coming across his face.
"I think that perhaps you misunderstand your position, Mrs DiAngelo, may I call you Maria, call me Leo"
I scowled back at him, intent on conveying to him exactly what I thought of his position.
"Either I can call your husband and we can discuss between us how much he is able to pay back of your debt to us," a tear ran down my cheek as I thought of it, "or we can discuss your rate in our little show."
"Now we have a very exclusive clientele that have a very specific... desire... perhaps even fetish. They like to see a happily married woman, an honest woman, an attractive girl-next-door sort of woman, who has perhaps fallen upon hard times, not unlike yourself in fact, they like to see just how far they are willing to go in order to escape their position."
I stood there bemused, amazed that he was making this outrageous proposal.
"And the good news for you is that they will pay very handsomely indeed for the pleasure of seeing these poor unfortunates. Now much as I would like to fuck you here, and indeed you would probably allow me once you had thought about it for a few hours. That would not pay the bills. And this being a business, paying the bills is very much what we need."
"So what exactly do you want me to do? Like stripping?" I asked with a look of horror. "I am not a prostitute you know."
"No I understand that, and I think that is very much the point, you are not a prostitute, they are perhaps a little bored by them, they are looking for fresh uncorrupted women who are new to these things."
I considered what I would be willing to do for money. I suppose I thought, I would take off my clothes for a few strangers if it came to it, for the right money.
"So the format is this," he continued, "you and your fellow paupers will be sitting on the stage, and the clients will post a proposition on the screen in front of you. You quote back a value, how much you want to be paid to perform the action specified, and everything you earn is taken off your debts. I think at the moment you owe us, in the order of fifteen thousand pounds, so you will have to...hmm... work hard shall we say."