Dark Escort (10 page)

He was backing me into a corner and I didn’t like it. “Cato, do you want the gig or not? I’m not required to tell you anything. So, just accept that.”

He finally backed off. “Of course I will. Anything you need, I’m here. But I wish you would trust me and open up to me. I’m your friend, Katarina. Friends talk through their problems.”

“And I appreciate that, but there’s nothing you can do to help me.”
Actually, there was nothing anyone could do.

He sighed in defeat. “I really hope you change your mind someday.”

“Maybe I will…but I don’t think I ever will.”

He looked at me with pity, the exact look I didn’t want to receive. “A beautiful girl like you should never be sad.” His voice came out deep and quiet, and his eyes carried his emotion.

I didn’t know what to say or how to deal with his sympathy so I looked down.

Cato’s fingers moved under my chin and he lifted my face up. He stared into my eyes like he was trying to read me like a book. Then he came close to me and wrapped his arms around me. He held me close like he had no intention of letting go.

It was nice to be held, for no reason at all. It was nice not to feel alone in the world. It was nice to feel like someone cared. I returned his embrace and rested my head against his chest. His heart beat slow and thudded in my ears. I closed my eyes and treasured the affection, unsure why I loved it so much.

Cato

Katarina wanted me to marry her. I would pretend to be her loving husband for years to come. It was a long-term gig and a guarantee of work. The other guys would love the offer because it was easy money. But her request concerned me.

It was one thing to marry a longtime friend for the political advantages even if there was no love involved but to hire someone to be a spouse was a different ballgame. At least if she married Joey she wouldn’t be alone. Living a lie like this was a guarantee she never wanted to settle down with anyone.

Why?

I already asked her and she wouldn’t confide anything in me. She was a locked chest and I didn’t have the key. An ex-boyfriend obviously hurt her, shattered her into unfixable pieces.

I wanted to break his neck.

Whatever he did, he really damaged her. She didn’t believe in love and wouldn’t even make the effort to give it another chance. Such a loss of faith could only be caused by something unspeakable.

Katarina deserved more than that. She deserved another chance at love. I didn’t want to agree to this arrangement because of that reason, but I also wanted to agree so I could show her how different her life could be.

When we hung out, she opened up and let her smile shine through. She laughed and had a good time. Once her guard was down, her happiness and joy was infectious. She was just like the girl I met in Times Square two years ago. The playfulness was her most recognized trait, and she didn’t hide it when she was around me. But it took a long time for me to pull it out of her.

Whenever she wasn’t thinking about whatever it was that was causing her so much pain, she was a happy person. She let her hair down and ran around like she didn’t have a care in the world. When I pushed her into the wind tunnel, she screamed at first but then she embraced the fall. She extended her arms and laughed as she fell to earth. The moment I saw the picture of her I had to buy it. Perhaps it would encourage her to remain this way.

I headed to the winery at lunchtime to see her. Perhaps she and I could get a bite to eat. Whenever I wasn’t with her, I was looking for reasons to see her. I’d never gone out of my way to spend time with a girl, but Katarina completely changed the type of guy I was. Sometimes I wondered if I really liked her, or if I just liked her because she was the first woman to reject me. But it didn’t really matter.

I arrived at the vineyard then walked inside. The building was classy and elegant, and there were bottles of wine on display. People in black slacks and black collared shirts walked around. There were offices as well as a restaurant inside.

“Can I help you, sir?” a man asked me as I examined my surroundings.

“I’m looking for Katarina.”

He nodded. “I see. This way.” He led me past the restaurant and down the hallway. The building expanded into different sectors, and we reached a large office and a secretary sat at her desk just outside it.

“Thank you,” I said to the man as he walked away.

The young brunette behind the desk looked me up and down, trying to be discreet in her gaze but failing miserably. “Can I help you, sir?”

“I’m here to see Katarina.” I loved her name. It was so sexy and it rolled right off the tongue.

“Do you have an appointment?” She opened a binder with a calendar and looked up today’s date.

“No. I just wanted to see if she wanted to get lunch.”

“She’s very busy,” she said dismissively.

Her secretary was aggressive but that wasn’t necessarily a bad thing. “Could you tell her that her boyfriend wants to take her to lunch?”

“Oh.” She nodded her head slowly. “My apologies…I didn’t know.”

“It’s quite alright,” I said politely.

“She’s with someone right now but I’ll let her know you’re here.”

‘Thank you.” I put my hands in my pockets and waited.

The secretary made the call. “Your boyfriend is here, Kat.” She listened to the other line and nodded. “Right away.” She hung up. “Go on in.”

Fancy treatment.
“Thank you.” I opened the door and stepped inside.

Joey was sitting in a large leather chair facing her desk. A yellow notepad sat on his lap and he had one arm propped on the armrest. His fingers rested on his lips. He looked at me when I entered and quietly acknowledged me.

“How are you?” I said politely.

“Well, you?”

“Good. Thank you.”

Katarina came around the desk and gave me a confused look. She had no idea why I was here or why I wanted to take her to lunch but she couldn’t outright ask me that. She gave me a quick hug and wrapped her arms around my neck.

I took it a step forward and gave her a quick peck on the lips.

She kissed me back then pulled away, giving me that look that said, “Why do you keep kissing me?”

It was hard not to. I’d already kissed her before she hired me, and since I knew how damn good that kiss was I wasn’t going to pass it up again. “Hey, baby. Hope you don’t mind me stopping by.”

“I never mind,” she said affectionately.

“I hope I’m not interrupting anything.” I glanced at Joey then looked at her again.

“No, work never sleeps here,” she said with a sigh. “Joey and I were just going over shipments to Italy.”

“Sounds important,” I said.

“It’s pretty routine.”

“I guess that means you’re too busy for lunch?” I asked.

She looked at her watch. “You came all the way down here…I can spare a minute.”

“It’s really not a big deal,” I said quickly. Actually, I was deeply disappointed. I made the twenty minute drive to look at her beautiful face and spend time with her. If I was going to get her to open up, I had to give her a reason to.

“No, it’s fine,” she said immediately. “I just need to grab something for Joey. Take a seat and I’ll be right back.” She walked out of the office, her hips swaying in the tight skirt she wore. I glanced at her legs and imagined them tight around my waist. My thoughts turned dark and I shook them away.

I took a seat in the other leather chair and rested one ankle on the opposite knee. Joey stared straight ahead and out the window behind her desk. His notepad was untouched. Now that Katarina wasn’t around he wasn’t nearly as welcoming. “Amy seems nice,” I said to break the ice.

He didn’t turn my way. “Yeah, she’s a sweetheart.” His voice was cold.

I already had the impression Amy was just a component in his game, but now I was even more convinced of it. “Why are you trying to convince Katarina you’re over her? She doesn’t seem to care either way.” I wasn’t going to pretend I didn’t know anything. It made my relationship with Katarina more believable anyway. Why wouldn’t she confide Joey’s attraction to her boyfriend?

That got his attention. He finally turned in my direction. “I’m not.”

Bullshit.
“If you say so.”

His fingers still rested under his chin. “You know she’s only dating you so her family will stop pestering her, right?”

I shrugged. “I don’t care. She’s a beautiful woman and I get to have her.”

Anger flashed in his eyes. Like a shooting star, it passed quickly then disappeared. It happened so fast I wasn’t sure if I saw it at all. “You can’t give her what she needs. I can.”

“But you just said you weren’t trying to convince Katarina you were over her…” I caught him in his lie and I smirked without shame. “So Amy is just a ploy?”

He faced forward and didn’t say anything.

“I’ll keep your secret.” I examined Katarina’s wall and looked at her degrees.

“You’re an asshole, you know that?”

I shrugged. “Yeah, I guess.” I didn’t rise to anything he said because it pissed him off more.

“I’m the only man who can put her back together,” he said. “You’re only encouraging her behavior and depression. And you’re okay with that?”

“She seems pretty happy with me.”

“She’s just using you and we both know it,” he said darkly.

“And you’re lying to Katarina and pretending you don’t love her anymore so she’ll marry you,” I said quietly. “Now look who’s the asshole.”

“She
should
marry me,” he said coldly. “It should have been me to begin with. How she doesn’t see that is beyond my understanding. Instead, she went for a cocky pretty boy and got her world ripped apart. She should have chosen me.”

That caught my attention. Joey probably knew the reason why Katarina was so closed off and emotionally unavailable. I was desperate to know her secret since she wouldn’t tell me. But I would feel like a jackass if I went behind her back and asked Joey about it. But if he told me on his own…that would be a different story. “She made her decision. You should just accept it and move on.”

“Easier said than done,” he said bitterly. “If she gave me a chance, she would love again. She’s just too scared. So she finds you and drags you along like a cat toy on the end of a string. She’ll pull you along for a while then cut you loose, just like she always does.”

“I’m going to marry her.” The words echoed in the office and landed on both of our ears.

He turned to me with frosty eyes. “What did you say?”

“I’m going to marry her.” I met his gaze unwaveringly.

He shook his head then turned away again. “No, you aren’t.”

“I will,” I said. “We’ve already talked about it.”

His head snapped in my direction. “You’re full of it. She would never remarry—at least for love.”

Remarry
? So, she used to be married? What happened? Did he leave her for another woman? When did this happen? Maybe she got divorced right before we met and that was why she didn’t stick around the following morning. Now my mind was buzzing with more questions. While Joey answered my question, it led to more questions. “She’s had enough time to move on. And I’m a very patient man.”

He released a light laugh. “Seriously, do you even know her? You talk about her like she’s a completely different person.”

“Because she’s a completely different person with me.”

He shook his head. “I assure you, her only interest in a marriage with you is convenience. If you don’t want to get your heart dragged through the mud, you should get out while you can.”

“She loves me.”

“Cut the shit,” he said.

“She does,” I repeated. “Ask her.”

He studied my face, searching for a lie. “That’s just not possible. I’m sorry.”

“I’m a pretty good-looking guy,” I said with a smug look.

He rolled his eyes and fell silent.

I rested my hand on my thigh and wondered what was taking Katarina so long. “Why are you so into her?” I understood her charms and beauty, but this guy was borderline obsessed with her. I didn’t like it.

“Because she’s the one,” he said quietly. “She’s been the one since I could remember. I had a real shot with her. We were getting so close. Then Ethan showed up and it all went to shit…”

“Close as friends, probably,” I said.

“No. I saw it in her eyes. She was considering me. But then he came into the picture and swept her off her feet. They weren’t together very long, two months, before they got married. It had disaster written all over it.”

I couldn’t imagine Katarina being spontaneous like that. She was so uptight now. Sometimes I caught glimpses of her playful side but it wasn’t strong enough to suggest she would marry a man she hardly knew. “She followed her heart. You can’t blame her for that. Just because it didn’t work out doesn’t mean she regrets her decision.”

He turned toward me again and narrowed his eyes. He didn’t blink while he examined me. “Now I know without a doubt you’re full of shit.”

I had no idea what he meant by that so I kept my silence. It was the smart thing to do.

“She would never fall in love with another man and not mention Ethan. The fact you don’t know what happened is a dead giveaway. This is clearly just a fling and she doesn’t trust you.”

Fuck, I hoped I didn’t screw Katarina over.
I wasn’t sure how to fix it or what to say. I wasn’t even sure what I said to give him the indication I didn’t know about Katarina’s personal life. “No man wants to hear about his girlfriend’s ex-husband.” That seemed pretty safe.