Bill sat at the slot machine absent-mindedly feeding quarters into its insatiable opening. He was barely aware of the crowd that slowly passed between him and the object of his main focus, a good looking blonde, in her early 30s who was attracting a small crowd of her own. She was sitting at one of the high-stakes Blackjack tables, displaying, in his opinion, way too much of her long, smooth legs. But it wasn't only her legs that solicited an occasional double take from passersby. If one were to watch patiently for a hand or two, they would be rewarded with a enticing view of her perfect breasts, for her loose blouse was open to the point that whenever she leaned forward to place a bet or take her winnings, they were there to behold.
Although he was intrigued by her immodest behavior, he was more interested in watching her hands. Whenever she leaned forward, and her neighbors to the left and right would crane their necks to peer down her blouse, she'd use the distraction to palm a chip or two from one of their towering stacks and slip them into her skirt's pocket. Bill estimated that during the five minutes he had been watching, she had managed to pilfer at least six of the black hundred dollar chips and maybe one or two of the purple five hundreds. He could see that her nipples were erect and knew she was becoming aroused from the attention she was attracting as well as the threat of being caught. Bill knew this because the woman was his wife Laurie, and he was there to provide support as well as protection, should anything go wrong.
He smiled to himself, and decided it was time to relieve her of the chips, so that in the event casino security became suspicious, she wouldn't have any evidence on her person. As he slipped the last quarter into the slot and pulled the handle, he noticed that two large men in ill-fitting suits had moved to stand behind Laurie. Clanging bells and flashing lights suddenly distracted him and he looked at the machine with exasperation as quarters began to cascade into the tray.
"Just my luck," he thought. "Not a winner all night and now I hit." He scooped as many quarters as he could into two large buckets before turning back to check on Laurie. Panic began to set in as he realized the chair where she should have been was empty.
"Are you leaving?" a voice croaked beside him as Bill frantically scanned the casino floor for his wife.
"Huh?" he answered looking up to see an little old woman standing beside him.
"Are you going to play this machine any more? Because if you're not, could you move please so I can try my luck."
"Oh, yeah, sure," he snapped hastily. "Sorry."
When he turned away, he just saw Laurie, being shepherded by the two men towards the casino. Bill started across the floor, hoping to intercept before they got to the door he knew was labeled "Security."
"Hey, mister. You forgot your money," the voice croaked as he pushed his way through the crowd.
"Keep it," he shouted over his shoulder as he tried to keep the trio in sight.
"It's going to be close." Bill thought as he darted and twisted his way through the crowd. "Please let me get there in time," he implored silently. His college football experience paid off as he arrived at the door, at the same time as the trio.
"Hi honey," he said as casually as he could. "What's going on?"
"Do you know this woman?" the taller of the two men asked.
"Yeah, she's my wife," he answered then asked his wife again. "What's happening?"
"I don't know," she said, her voice quivering, as tears started to form at the corners of her eyes. "They said they are casino security and something about cheating. But, Bill, I didn't do anything wrong."
"Bill, is that your name? " the man asked and when Bill nodded silently he continued, "would you also mind joining us for a little chat?"
Bill appreciated the fact that arguing would only attract attention and raise the ire of the guards, so he reluctantly agreed. Besides, even if it was one on one, Bill was outsized by each of them and Bill was no lightweight. He guessed the taller guard to be 6'6' and about 250, while the shorter one, who Bill estimated at the same weight, packed his into a more compact 6'1 or 2" frame.
As the door closed behind them, with an additional ominous click, Bill saw that they were in a type of office. There were two desks, a scattering of chairs and file cabinets and, along one wall, a bank of video monitors. Bill stared at the grainy black and white images, then felt Laurie's hand take his. He turned away from the monitors and looked down at his wife, who had been pushed down rather unceremoniously into one of the chairs by the so far, silent guard.
"It'll be okay," he said reassuringly. "But next time wear something less revealing and maybe these guys will leave you alone."
"Isn't that right, guys?" he said addressing the pair. "You're just upset that the saps out there were ogling my wife's tits instead of tossing their money away."
At that moment another door, in the wall opposite the one through which they had all come, opened and a man in uniform entered. He had the casino logo on one sleeve, with a patch containing the word "Security" stitched above it. On the other sleeve he had the standard three chevrons of a sergeant. He sat down heavily at the desk across from where Laurie sat and after running his eyes up and down her body, asked with a long tired sigh, "What have we here?"
The shorter of the two guards, the one who had done all the talking up to now, responded.
"Sarge, we think this broad mighta been skimmin' chips by flashin' her tits and lettin' the marks see 'em, and then taking chips from them. We didn't have any complaints, but I had a hunch and Yuri here backed me up," he continued indicating his partner. Yuri nodded enthusiastically, but still didn't say a word.
Almost in unison, Bill and Laurie began to speak, each professing her innocence. Bill added his exception to the guard's vernacular, his face reddening as his anger grew.
"Hey, watch how you talk about my wife. She's not a broad and I take offense at your accusations."
