Choices We Make: The Moretti Brothers Series (3 page)

CHAPTER FOUR

Dominic Moretti, founder and CEO of Moretti Global Technology Corporation, looked at his friend of 15 years and couldn't believe what he was asking.

“Come on man, I can't believe that you are still doing this shit.  I thought you were done with this gigolo bullshit when you left grad school, if you need money you could have just asked me.”  Kevin looked at his best friend and rolled his eyes. He and Dominic were roommates in college and became instant friends.  Dominic was the only one who knew that Kevin was an escort in college, making enough money to pay for his tuition without having to take out any loans.  Dominic never judged him and always had his back.  Dominic was taller than Kevin by three inches.  At six foot five inches tall he always commanded attention when he walked into a room and those gray eyes had women beating the door down to get next to him.  Now his friend was one of the richest men in the country, and unless you were a computer geek and understood computer software and their creators, you probably never heard of Dominic Moretti.

Kevin redirected his attention to his best friend who was waiting for a response.  “Whatever!” Kevin waved his hand in a dismissive gesture. “It’s not like that Nick, she's special and I’ve told you before, I stopped being an escort years ago except for Jacqueline and I don’t charge her.  Look, her name is Victoria Hart and she is not only Jackie’s partner but also her best friend.   There's something about her Nick, she has very sad eyes and I really want her to have an enjoyable experience.”   Kevin sat in the chair behind his desk.  “Look man, you know how I feel about Jacqueline, hell, I haven’t slept with any other woman since her and I want to start a relationship with her. But if I don’t find someone for Victoria and she will find someone else and if it ends badly, I know Jackie will blame me.   Come on man, this is a win-win situation for you.  I know you haven’t gotten laid since Anna and your ass needs a vacation as cranky as you have been lately.”  Kevin got up and sat on the edge of his desk “How many more assistants have you gone through since we last spoke?”  Kevin asked jokingly.  

Dominic knew his friend was right, he was working long hours before Anna left, then after she left him, his worked even more hours so he wouldn’t have to think about her.  Three months after she left, he received two major contracts for his software design, both contracts netting him over eight figures.   Because of the nature of his business he was able to keep his staff relatively small but had begun to work seven days a week.  He didn’t regret it because he loved what he did.  He now had all the money he could ever spend in three lifetimes, but he was unhappy.  Maybe a vacation was exactly what he needed. 

“Think about it Nick, two weeks in paradise with a beautiful woman, all the sex you can handle and at the end you walk away with no commitment.  Please, do this for me.”  

Dominic sat in silence for a while.  Two weeks of sex with no strings attached did sound very tempting.   Lately he had been bombarded with unwanted invitations from woman who read the computer news and were aware that he was now a very wealthy man. He refocused his attention back at Kevin.  “How do I even know she will excite me enough to keep it up for two weeks?”  Dominic asked with a slight grin.

“Trust me man, once you see her, I know that won’t be a problem for you.” 

They sat there in silence for another few seconds.  “Okay I will meet with her.”   Kevin waited for him to agree before he sprung the one stipulation on him. 

“Oh, there's one final condition, she insists on having sex without using a condom.”

Dominic turned to face Kevin, trying to comprehend what his friend just said.  “Did you just say without using condoms?”  He repeated, hoping he heard wrong. Kevin’s only response was a nod.  “Is this some kind of joke, you know my number one rule is to always wear a glove. I have never slept with a woman without a condom and I'm not going to start now, so I’m going to have to decline your tempting offer.”

“Wait Nick, she's willing to be tested now and two weeks before the trip.  She just asks that you do the same.  You both can get tested together and then you will be able to speak with her doctor.”

“Kevin you know I don’t have a problem being tested, hell I get tested annually anyway. What happens if she becomes pregnant, I’m not ready to be a father.  This is not an arrangement I’m comfortable with.”

“I'm sure you will have this conversation with her, she has documentation from her doctor and will also give you permission to talk to him about her inability to conceive, that’s the reason she’s so comfortable with having sex without a condom.”

Dominic looked at his friend with a suspicious eye “I’m going to pass Kevin, it just seems suspicious to me,” he said incredulous. “Look I have to go, I will talk to you later and good luck with finding someone.”  Dominic said as he walked out of Kevin’s office. 

“Just meet with her and then give me your decision.”

“See you at Thursday’s workout” Dominic said without acknowledging Kevin’s request.

*****

Two days later Dominic sat in his office reviewing the same file for the third time.  Since his financial status changed, he had been very suspicious of all the invitations he received from women, but this one was perplexing to him.  He opened the file again.  “Why would such a beautiful wealthy woman need to pay for sex?”  His investigator was very thorough in doing a background check on Ms. Victoria Hart, including all past relationships.  He called Kevin.  “Hey Kev, did you get someone to go on the trip?”

“You know I didn’t man, who else am I going to get to go?”  Kevin said still annoyed that his best friend could not help him out, but he did understand he was asking a lot.

“I will go on one condition,” Dominic said.

“What is it, anything man,” Kevin said excitedly.

“You can’t tell her about my business, I will use my real name, but that’s all I want her to know.  As far as she is concerned I am a paid escort.”

“No problem, I will call her and set up the meeting.  Thanks again man, I know Jackie will be pleased.”

“Yeah, yeah, you need to be honest with Jackie and let her know how you feel, this shit has been dragging on too long and it’s really getting old, handle your business.”  That was the last thing Dominic said before ending the call.

*****

Victoria was actually excited about her upcoming trip and nervous about meeting the man who was going to accompany her. She decided if there were the slightest bit of weirdness she would cancel the trip.  They had arranged to meet at Morgan’s an upscale restaurant in Center City, the restaurant was at the top of one of Philly’s skyscraper buildings.  It was Dominic’s idea; he sent her an email and asked if she could meet him there.  To date, their only correspondence had been through e-mail.  He told her he had a table reserved under his name, Dominic Moretti.  Victoria was meeting him after work, so she freshened up and headed out. 

When she got to the restaurant, she was told that Mr. Moretti was detained and that he would be there shortly.  Already extremely nervous, she sat and ordered a glass of wine.  She had lost the courage she had when she initially made the decision to throw caution to the wind. 
What the hell was I thinking?
She made up her mind to tell him thanks, but no thanks, then the waiter brought her drink and she glanced at the menu again, not knowing what to do with herself. 

Victoria looked up from the menu and noticed a few women in the restaurant were eyeing an extremely handsome white guy who was standing at the hostess stand.  He wore a navy blue suit that fit his body like a glove.  He looked to be well over six feet tall, with beautiful black hair that was slicked back. She along with all the other women in the restaurant continued to stare.  She wanted to see the lucky woman who was attached to Mr. Sexy on a stick. 

As he walked towards her she looked away not wanting him to think she was gawking at him, which she was. As he approached she looked down at the menu again, waiting for him to pass her table before she took another glance, when he stopped in front of her table she looked up startled. 

“Ms. Victoria Hart?” 

“Yes, are you Mr. Moretti?” 

“Yes I am.”  He signaled with his hand for permission to sit.

“Please have a seat,” she said as she glanced around the restaurant and as she suspected most eyes were on their table. 

He signaled the waiter clearly oblivious to all of the attention he was getting. “Can I get you another drink?”  He asked, interrupting her thoughts.

“No, I’m fine.”  She looked at the incredibly sexy man sitting in front of her.  It never dawned on her that he would be white.
“Of course Dominic Moretti, how could I not have known with that name,”
she thought.

“So Mr. Moretti…”

Dominic interrupted her “please call me Dominic.” His voice was low and deep and it oozed sexiness. 

She cleared her throat, trying not to show her nervousness.  “Dominic this is a very nice restaurant, do you come here often?”

“No, this is actually my first time here; a really good friend recommended this place.” Dominic stared at Victoria for a few seconds, noticing how incredibly beautiful she was and couldn't imagine why she'd need to pay for a date.

Victoria looked at Dominic nervously.  “So Dominic I assume that Kevin has explained the arrangement?”  Dominic looked at her and took a sip of his drink before speaking “Yes he did explain the arrangement; however, I have some reservation about the one of the stipulations.” Dominic was still apprehensive about sleeping with someone he didn’t know without a condom.  He had promised himself, the first time he went without a condom would be with his wife or a significant other in a committed relationship.

She interrupted his thoughts. “Can I be very frank with you Dominic?” Dominic nodded as he held her gaze.  It was at that moment that she noticed his beautiful gray eyes. They were so clear that she was momentarily lost in her own reflection. Glasses clinging at another table brought her out of her haze.  “Huh hum… so I assume Kevin spoke with you about the testing and the condoms.” She waited for his response but he continued to stare.   “I want to explain my position and afterwards if you choose not to go I will understand.” Victoria took another sip of her drink before continuing, “First, I did not come to this decision lightly. You see I am turning thirty five in almost two months, the last time I had sex was five years ago and before that I've had a total of three partners in my lifetime, I’m not ashamed to admit I am not that experienced.” She took a sip of wine to calm her nerves before continuing.  “Just to give you a little background on me, when I was younger I was diagnosed with cancer, it was treated with surgery and chemotherapy but the side effects of my treatment left me sterile. This trip and your companionship is a gift to me, for my birthday. For once in my life I would like to experience sex the way it's was meant to be, without any barriers.  Dominic, all my life I've been very cautious and guarded.  About four months ago I lost my mother to a brain aneurysm.  She was the epitome of a free spirit and I intend to follow in her footsteps. I intend to let my guard down, throw caution to the wind and truly enjoy myself for once in my life.” Dominic could hear the determination in her voice.

He continued the eye contact, amazed and astonished by her candor.  He couldn't imagine this extremely sexy woman sitting in front of him had not had anyone to love her in five years.  He was fully aware of her mother’s death and her past lovers as well as her successful business.  His background check was extensive; it included the fact that she was unable to bare children.  He continued to stare as he took another sip of his drink.  Any apprehensions he had coming into the restaurant were all gone and he really wanted to go on this trip with her, he wanted her, he wanted to show her what it was like to be taken care of, totally.

“You don't have to give me your decision tonight, take a couple of days and think about it and let me know if this is something you think you can do.” Dominic continued to look into her beautiful brown eyes and knew that he was not going to refuse her request. “I'm sure Kevin discussed the financial agreement, if that is not satisfactory to you, we can talk about renegotiating the agreement.” She paused before continuing.  “One of my main fears in meeting you this evening was that there wouldn’t be an attraction.”  He stared directly into her eyes.  She looked into her wine glass trying to avert his gaze before looking at him again.  “I definitely feel the attraction, but if you don’t feel the same and don't think that you can fulfill your end of the agreement, I will understand.”  She looked into his eyes and continued,  “Dominic, have you ever slept with a black woman before?”  Dominic gave her a smile as he looked into his glass before taking another sip.

“No Victoria, I haven’t, but I plan to rectify that in about two months,” he said as he continued to smile, causing his beautiful gray eyes to sparkle as he brought her hand to his lips and kissed it.  She could see the lust in his eyes, as they appeared to darken.   Her heart was beating so loud that she could feel it in her eardrums.  She inwardly breathed deeply trying to get her heartbeat under control.  “Thank you,” she said a she released a breath.  They ordered dinner and continued their conversation.  She found it really easy to talk to Dominic and was looking forward to their trip together.  They exited the restaurant and waited for the valet to bring their cars around. Victoria's car came up first; Dominic leaned over to her and kissed her lightly on the cheek “I will talk to you very soon.”  She looked up at him and he pressed his lips across hers very softly.  Dominic waited for Victoria to pull off, before he did the same.