The Escort

By Ramona Gray

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Copyright 2014 Ramona Gray

SMASHWORDS EDITION

Smashwords Edition, License Notes

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Your support and respect for the property of this
author is appreciated.

This book is a work of fiction and any resemblance to
persons, living or dead, or places, events or locales is purely
coincidental. The characters are productions of the author’s
imagination and used fictitiously.

Adult Reading Material

Cover art by: Book Graphics

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* * * *

Chapter 1

“That is the
stupidest idea I’ve ever heard.” Julie sipped at her coffee and
glared at her best friend.

“No, it isn’t.”
Mary insisted. She took her own sip of coffee before leaning
forward and giving Julie a scrutinizing look. “You’re thirty years
old and you’ve spent your entire life practically locked up in this
ridiculous mansion. Your father is dead, there’s nothing stopping
you from living your life now.”

Julie winced
and stared morosely at the gleaming table top. “Don’t soften the
blow or anything, Mary.”

Mary took her
hand and squeezed it. “Listen, I get that your father had you
convinced that you were worthless but the bastard has been dead for
six months. How long are you going to continue to live in his
shadow? You have no family. I’m your only friend, and that’s just
because I refused to let your father intimidate me, and you spend
all of your time sitting on your ass in front of the television.
That’s no kind of life, Julie.”

Julie sighed
and rubbed at her forehead. Mary was right. She was wasting her
life, had been for the last thirty years, but she had no idea how
to start fresh. Some days just trying to leave the house felt like
too much. She had been bullied and manipulated by her father for
her entire life and even though he was dead, she could still hear
his voice whispering in her ear. She would never be pretty enough
or smart enough for him and after years of emotional torment, it
was too easy to believe that what he had told her repeatedly over
the years was true.

“Fine. You’re
right – I need to get out more. But I hardly think what you’re
suggesting is the right way to meet someone.” She replied.

“This isn’t
about meeting someone.” Mary answered. “This is about getting your
pesky virginity out of the way so that you can relax about it, gain
some self-confidence, and
then
meet someone.”

“And you think
that paying someone to rid me of my pesky v-card is going to boost
my self-confidence?” Julie asked with exasperation. “I hate to tell
you this, Mare, but having sex with someone who’s paid to tell me
I’m beautiful isn’t exactly a confidence booster.”

Mary shook her
head impatiently. “That isn’t what I meant. You think being a
virgin at thirty makes you some kind of freak and, truthfully, it
does just a little.”

“You’re doing a
bang up job of making me feel better.” Julie said sullenly.

“I’m just being
honest. The truth is – you’ll be hard pressed to find a guy who
doesn’t think it’s weird that you’re still a virgin at thirty. That
isn’t going to help your self-confidence or improve your
non-existent dating skills. You need to get rid of your v-card
first and this is the perfect solution. Then you can start looking
for Mr. Right who will love you for who you are, not because he’s
being paid to.”

“Hiring some –
some gigolo to take my virginity is not the perfect solution! Only
dirty old men hire prostitutes to have sex!” Julie replied
vehemently.

“You’re totally
looking at it the wrong way. One, they’re not called gigolo’s
anymore, they’re called escorts, and two – “

“Fine! So I’m
going to hire an escort for a night of wham bam thank-you ma’am
just so I can increase my chances of finding a nice guy?” Julie
sputtered. “Seriously, Mary I love you but – “

“And two,” Mary
drowned out Julie’s protests, “it’s not a wham bam scenario. These
guys are professionals. They wine and dine and will do whatever it
is you want them to. You don’t even have to have sex with them the
first time if you don’t want to. You could go on a few dates and
get to know them before you sleep with them.”

“Yeah, for a
cost!” Julie snorted.

Mary rolled her
eyes. “Like you can’t friggin’ afford it, Daddy Warbucks. Your
father did the only nice thing he ever did for you in his entire
life by leaving his fortune to you. You’ll never spend all of it in
a lifetime, so don’t even try and tell me a few thousand bucks on
an escort is going to break you.”

“A few
thousand?” Julie’s eyes widened. “Just how good are they at sex for
it to cost thousands?”

Mary laughed.
“They’re excellent, Julie. Trust me.”

Julie gave her
a suspicious look. “Have you hired an escort before?”

“No. But do you
remember a couple of years ago when I was hanging out with that
chick, Devon?”

Julie nodded.
“I remember. That girl was a freak.”

“She wasn’t a
freak.” Mary said impatiently. “Anyway, she had an important work
function that she needed a date for. She hired an escort and he was
perfect.”

“Did she sleep
with him?”

“Well, she
wasn’t planning on it but the guy was so goddamn charming that she
ponied up the extra cash and had the best sex of her life that
night.” Mary grinned.

Julie rubbed
her forehead again. “This is ridiculous. I can’t believe I’m even
having this conversation with you. I am not hiring a man to
deflower me so that I can get out and meet other men. Besides, even
if I lose my virginity and learn some moves in the sack, men aren’t
going to be interested in me. Look at me.”

She glanced
down at her chubby body and pulled self-consciously at her yoga
pants.

“I am looking
at you. I know you think that you’re fat and ugly, but you’re not.”
Mary said firmly.

“You have to
say that. You’re my best friend.”

“No, I don’t.”
Mary snapped. “Since when have I ever said something to you just
because I had to? When your eyebrows started looking like two fuzzy
caterpillars were about to have sex on your face, who told you?
When you got that dreadful pixie haircut that made you look like a
fairy after a three day bender, who told you?”

“Alright,
alright!” Julie could feel a grin crossing her face and she sipped
again at her coffee. “You’re blunt and you’re mean. It’s what I
love most about you.”

“Damn straight
it is.” Mary said with satisfaction. She leaned back in her chair
and crossed her legs before looking at Julie’s body appraisingly.
“You’re not fat, Julie. I know your father spent a lifetime telling
you that you were but you’re not. You’re pleasantly plump,
charmingly chubby, curvy in all the right places. You get your idea
of beauty from the internet and the TV because that’s all you see.
You never go out in the real world. Get your ass out of those yoga
pants and into clothes that fit you properly and you’ll look
fantastic. Guys will love your body, I guarantee it.”

Julie snorted
before glancing at Mary’s slender body. “Says the girl who wears a
size four.”

“So what? Who
cares? You think guys will like me better because I’m a size four
and you’re a size sixteen? That’s bullshit. Sure, there might be
guys out there who prefer skinny chicks but there are plenty of men
who like their women with curves. They like a little something to
hold on to during the pushin’.”

Mary made a
rude gesture with her hips and Julie blushed hotly, a nervous
giggle escaping from between her lips before she looked away.

“See! That’s
exactly what I’m talking about!” Mary said triumphantly. “Sex is
even mentioned in front of you and you turn into a giggly thirteen
year old girl. You need to get sex out of the way, learn some
things, before you even try dating. Trust me on this, Jules.”

“Mary, I –
“

“Listen – you
go to the escort agency, find a guy that floats your boat, and tell
him the truth. Tell him you’re a virgin and you’re looking to lose
it and gain some valuable sex tips. Easy-peasy.”

“It’s not
easy-peasy.” Julie protested again. “Besides, what if someone found
out I hired a prostitute? I’d be humiliated!”

“Who’s going to
find out? I’m your only friend, remember? And I’m certainly not
going to tell anyone. Who does that leave? Your dead father? Who
cares what that son of a bitch thinks? Besides, he’s too busy
burning in hell to even notice your new life.”

“Mary!” Julie
gave her a look of shock and Mary shrugged.

“It’s true and
you know it, Jules.”

She jumped up
and headed out of the kitchen and down the hall to Julie’s father’s
study. Julie, muttering under her breath, followed her. She entered
the study and tried to ignore the immediate twinge of guilt. Her
father’s study had always been off-limits to her and, even now, she
felt uncomfortable standing in the room.

Mary plopped
down in the black leather chair behind her father’s desk and turned
on his laptop. Julie crossed the room and peered over her shoulder
as Mary typed.

“Vanessa’s
Escort Agency?” Julie scoffed. “That’s original. Seriously, isn’t
prostitution illegal? How can she even be in business?”

“I don’t know
how it works.” Mary replied. “I mean, being an escort isn’t
illegal, I’m sure they just call the sex part something different.
Like, maybe they refer to it as ice cream.”

“Ice
cream?”

“Yeah! Like
there’s a cost for a perfectly legal dinner with the escort and if
you want
ice cream
after, there’s an additional cost.” Mary
laughed.

She clicked the
link to the website and immediately clicked on the “our escorts”
link. Despite herself, Julie stared with interest at the pictures
that popped up.

“Wow.” Mary
said appreciatively. “These guys are friggin’ dreamy.”

She scrolled
through the pictures of men. “Ooh, I like this one. His name is
Robert and he’s a ski instructor.”

“No way.” Julie
said immediately. “He’ll be way too fit for me.”

Mary rolled her
eyes. “They’ve all got rock-star bodies, Jules. That’s the appeal.
How about this guy? He’s 27, enjoys outdoor activities and is
co-owner of a gym. Nice.”

“Nope.” Julie
replied. “Definitely not.”

“Oh for the
love of Pete!” Mary gave her an exasperated look. “Just pick one,
Jules.”

“What for? I
have no intention of…”

She trailed off
as Mary scrolled further down.

“What? See
something you like?” Mary wiggled her eyebrows at her and then
followed Julie’s gaze.

“Wow…he’s hot.”
She clicked on the man’s profile. “Let’s see. His name is Cal. He’s
33 and he likes walks on the beach, romantic dinners, and fine
wine. Huh. A little cliché but he’s gorgeous so we’ll let it
pass.”

Julie didn’t
reply. She was staring mesmerized at the man on the screen in front
of her. He was smiling easily into the camera and he had an air of
rugged confidence about him. He had short dark hair and green eyes
and a small cleft in his chin. She studied the hard angle of his
jaw and the broad shoulders clothed in an expensive dark suit. He
was beautiful. She couldn’t even picture approaching a man that
looked like him, let alone picture herself naked in front of
him.

Mary clicked a
different link and the man’s face disappeared. Julie felt a tug of
disappointment that quickly turned to horror when she realized Mary
was typing an email.

“Mary! Stop
this right now!” She squeaked.

“Nope.” Mary
replied. She finished typing and Julie quickly read the short
message.

Hello,

My name is
Julie and I’m interested in hiring an escort for the evening.
Please call me at the enclosed phone number.

Sincerely,

Julie
Winslow

Before Julie
could stop her, Mary had clicked on the send button. She gave Mary
a look of fear. “What did you just do?”

Mary grinned at
her. “If you don’t want to speak to them, just ignore the phone
call, Jules. But, if you want to change your life for the better,
then answer the damn call.”

She stood up
and kissed Julie on the cheek. “I’ve got to go. I’m meeting Gary
for lunch at Oasis. I love you, Jules.”