CHAPTER THREE

Getting custom-made clothing was not something Meredeth would usually do, but she was treating herself after getting a huge bonus. She needed a killer suit and dress to impress her clients in Japan. They were very stiff about what women should wear to business meetings, and her business casual attire wasn't going to cut it any longer.

She'd spent nearly an hour choosing the right fabric on her first visit. A classic-looking menswear plaid with a beautiful white linen for her blouses. She opted to have three other blouses made from the same linen but in different colors.

On her second visit, the tailor took some measurements that she found odd. Not the measurements themselves but the way in which he took them. The tailor seemed very handsy, always touching her flesh, guiding his hand along her skin unnecessarily.

The confusing thing for her was that he seemed very flamboyant, very gay. She didn't care one way or another, but why all the touching and feeling? It just wasn't normal.

Today was the last fitting of the garments. Just in time for her trip to Tokyo, leaving in three weeks' time.

"What are you doing?" screeched the woman standing beside her on the short dais. Meredeth stared at the woman, wanting to tell her she felt the same way.

"I'm just fixing the hem, ma'am," said the gentleman. "I need for you to just open your legs a bit so that I can be sure everything will fall properly once we have it fixed for you."

"I've never had anyone ask me that."

"I'll be right back," he smiled. "Don't move."

Meredeth smiled at the woman, and she shook her head.

"It's so weird. He doesn't need me to do that," she said.

"I'm glad it's not just me," whispered Meredeth. "I don't understand any of this. It's my first custom suit, but I know how suits fit and how measurements are taken. It all feels really weird to me."

When she was certain he'd left the dressing room area, the other woman stepped off the small dais. Don't move? She was uncomfortable having stood there for almost an hour. He fixed everything about the new suit and then fixed it again. She didn't mind that her tailor was a male. After all, she suspected he was gay.

But the way his fingertips brushed her breasts and the inside of her thigh made her question everything. Now, asking her to open her legs wider for the hem of a straight skirt seemed absurd!

She stepped back, glancing at herself in the mirror. Turning, she liked the way the suit fit her and was pleased with her choice of fabric. At the bottom of the skirt was a small red dot.

"What on earth," she whispered. She brushed the skirt, but there was nothing there. Standing up again, she saw the dot one more time.

Slowly, she walked toward the dais, looking down at the tiled top. The red dot was coming from within the tile. It was a camera. A camera was beneath the tile. Kneeling down, she pressed her face against the tile, then stood quickly, tearing the zipper at the back of the skirt. Just as she stood, he reentered the room.

"Oh, no. Now look what you've done."

"I'm sorry. I dropped my earring," she said, panicked. Meredeth stared at the woman, seeing the fear on her face.

"It's fine, darling," said the man. "I believe we're done here. Go ahead and take everything off. It will be ready by Friday."

The woman changed in record time, giving Meredeth a strange look that made her feel wary. When the man came back to check on her, she was off the dais and waiting for him.

"Are we done? I'm sorry, I have another appointment," she lied. "I need the suit by next Friday."

"Of course, honey," he smiled. She went inside the dressing room, turning her back to the mirror, unsure of why. "If you need help, love, I can help."

"I'm good," called Meredeth. She pulled on her linen shorts and the t-shirt and stepped out of the room, handing him the garments. "I'll see you Friday."

"Sure thing, love!"

She left the shop on Burgundy and walked as quickly as she could toward Cosimo's Bar, a local favorite. She took a seat at the bar and jumped a mile when someone spoke to her.

"That was weird, wasn't it?"

"Jesus!" she gasped.

"Sorry. I didn't mean to scare you. But it was weird, wasn't it? I mean, the way he touched us, and I'm positive there was a camera in the floor of the dais, beneath the tile."

"Dear lord," muttered Meredeth. "I've never had a suit made before, so I was hoping I was just being paranoid."

"Should we call the police?" asked the other woman. Meredeth looked at her, then extended her hand.

"I'm Meredeth."

"Jade. So, the police?"

"I think I know someone better than the police."