<div align="center"><strong>~ Sasha Dearing, First Officer of the Gamble - On Persephone with Si and Steve at The Best Little Hot House in Town, about to meet with Ferret about a job ~</strong></div><br/>The cheerful tinkling of a small bell above the door greeted the trio as they entered the flower shop, the cloying scent of hundreds of various flowers immediately enveloping them. A man dressed sharply in a tailored business suit was standing at the back counter while a petite, pretty sales girl rang up his purchase.  At the sound of the bell the businessman turned his head in curiosity to see who had entered the shop behind him, and Sasha was suddenly keenly aware of the threatening image the three of them no doubt presented. With only a brief warning glance toward Si to alert him to her intentions, Sasha effortlessly transformed her outward appearance from cooly professional leader to a soft, womanly persona.<br/><br/>Stepping up against Steve’s right side, Sasha slid her arm around the back of his waist and nestled in closely against him. Resting her head on his shoulder, she brought her other hand up to gently stroke over his chest. Taking on a syrupy tone and speaking loudly enough to be easily heard by her intended audience, Sasha raised her fingers to softly caress along Steve’s jawline as she spoke. “Oh, darlin, aren’t you just the sweetest<em>ever</em>to come with me and daddy to help pick out the flowers for my bouquet!”  The business man at the counter glanced at the cuddling couple and their accompanying well-dressed older man and smiled with a little chuckle and shake of his head before turning back to the sales girl to complete his transaction.<br/><br/>Sashaying over to one of the half-dozen flower-filled coolers in the shop, Sasha began to select individual flowers to compose her arrangement, ooh-ing and aah-ing over the beautiful flowers as she gathered them in her hands. As the businessman walked past her on his way out she flashed him a bright smile for good measure, the man responding with a wide grin of his own before he remembered to nod respectfully to her apparent fiancé as he hurried out. The moment the door closed after the businessman’s departure, Sasha dropped her bridal performance as quickly and smoothly as if she was an eager bride shedding her silken nightgown on her honeymoon.<br/><br/>Sasha had known that Si would respond appropriately to blend in to the scene; he was more than used to following her sometimes unpredictable lead and playing along seamlessly. With Steve still being an unknown factor, she had literally taken him in hand to make sure he played at least a somewhat believable part. It wouldn’t have gone over well to have gotten turned away from a potentially lucrative job simply because they brought suspicion on Ferret’s flower shop with their somewhat menacing presence. Ferret was notoriously sensitive about drawing unwanted attention to her front business, since operating under the radar of the authorities was obviously a crucial component to her back-room business dealings - where she made her real money.<br/><br/>Although Si’s suit looked slightly less sharp for the wear, and his extended commentary out in the street had her rolling her eyes, Sasha had to admit that the man was always exceptionally adept at adapting to any circumstance thrown at them. At almost twenty years her senior, she supposed it could easily be believed by the businessman that he was her father; but as she swept her eyes over his perfectly tailored suit, she knew first hand that the body hidden underneath was anything<em>but</em>fatherly. Her and Si’s workouts sometimes inadvertently timed to coincide with each other, and she had been treated on more than one occasion to witness the rock-hard, lean body he had carefully sculpted with his efforts. Unlike the Cap’n, Si rarely displayed his bared body to view, so her glimpses during workouts were almost like a forbidden thrill. Even though an older man, Si had a body most men half his age would be proud to call their own.<br/><br/>Knowing that Steve would wonder what the hell just happened, Sasha glanced over to him as she elaborated. “Thanks - good show.”  Her eyes dropped to the cigar he had repositioned in his mouth, and she raised her eyebrows at the thought of this bear of a man having some kind of oral fixation. His little comment about liking what she did with his cigar when she had pulled it from his mouth and stowed it in his pocket added to her impression.<em>Ah well, we all have our own fetishes, don’t we?</em>she mused to herself with a sultry smile curving her full lips. His vaguely chauvinistic bravado outside the shop about being able to keep her alive as long as she pointed out the bad guys and odd proclamation about marriage had her hoping to have an opportunity sooner rather than later to sit down for a chat with the man, so she could hopefully get a good feel for just who this Stephen McPherson was. Perhaps if the meet went well, they could go for a drink afterward and the three of them could get to know each other better; at least well enough to become more comfortable working together.<br/><br/>Rounding out her unorthodox flower arrangement of a lavender rose, red dahlia, white lisianthus, soft pink peony, golden calla lilly and hot-pink anemone with a bold sunflower, Sasha walked to the back counter and nodded at the young girl behind the register. The petite girl had a charming pixie look about her with her short blonde hair and smooth pale skin; a rather intriguing juxtaposition of wholesome sexiness. Plucking off several of the soft yellow petals from the large sunflower, Sasha gave the girl the final verbal portion of the elaborate password that Ferret demanded of all her clients. “Do you have any baby’s breath to go with my bouquet?”  The young girl carefully looked over her arrangement to confirm that she had selected all the correct "password" flowers to gain entry; satisfied, she replied with the pre-arranged reply. “I’ve got some in the back - would you like to pick yours out yourself?”  The girl's (http://www.beautycareforu.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/emma-watson-2011.jpg) caramel brown eyes then roved slowly over Si and Steve appraisingly, a coy little smile gracing her lips, before turning to escort them all to the back of the shop.<br/>