by Pavan Kaur
“No, and I plan to keep it that way. She’s just wanting money. She should have thought about that before doing what she did.” Pressing the button to the elevator, I turn to look at him. “She had her chance to talk and she fucked it up.” As the doors open and I enter the elevator, I turn back to him. “I'll call you tonight,” I say, waving the file at him.
How dare she call me after two years thinking I’ve forgotten what she did—what they did. I don’t forget… I never forget.
***
I'm not even surprised to see Lexi talking to Joe when I walk into the building. The man brings her cakes and biscuits his wife has made. She's made a good friend in him. My lips curl up in a smile as I hear her laughing.
“Joe, I’m going to ask your wife if that's true, because that's so funny,” she tells him, breaking out into a fit of giggles.
“I can call her if…” He stops talking when he sees me walking closer to him. “Sir, the builders are in the penthouse. They said they had some questions and would like you to go up and speak with them,” Joe tells me, and Lexi jumps off the counter and stands next to me.
I look over her standing in her denim shorts, just the way I like. “Thank you, I'll go straight up.” I look back over at Joe. “What treats have you brought with you today?” I ask him, as I see Lexi chewing something.
“Lemon cookies. It’s an old family recipe,” Joe says, looking over at Lexi.
“I’m not sharing them with him.” She gives Joe a wink. “How was your day? Mine was wonderful. I went to all my beauty appointments then chilled with Joe.” She leans on the front desk, taking another bite of the cookies.
“Beauty appointments?” I ask raising my eyebrows at her.
“I had a facial and—” she stops when her phone rings. “Ms. Jackie,” she says walking away from me.
I watch her walking out of the building. I can tell it’s a conversation she doesn’t want me to hear.
“You got a good one there, sir,” Joe says, and I turn to face him. “You don’t find them like her anymore.” He smiles at me, and I look back at Lexi, who turns to face me, but then quickly looks away. I get the feeling the conversation she’s having isn’t a good one.
“I won’t be letting her go. You will be seeing a lot more of her,” I say, walking out of the building.
“I can look after myself… No… I'll talk to Dan… He’s here and there’s nothing I can do about it, so…” She turns and sees me and stops talking. “Ms. Jackie, can I call you back… Yes… I'll call you later.” She ends the call and puts her phone away.
“Everything okay?”
“Yeah, would you like some lunch?” She looks around the street. “I thought we could have sushi,” she says with a smile.
“I thought we could pick up from last night.” I close the gap between us. “I don’t want the marks on my back to fade,” I say, slowly licking her neck.
“Last night was the wine, it was all the wine, I—”
“I—what? The marks on my back came from you,” I say, bringing my mouth closer to her ear. “I came in your mouth, and I’m sure the wine wasn’t the reason you let me fuck you…all three times,” I whisper.
“So, sushi?” Lexi moves away from me, making me laugh. If she wants to pretend like it didn't happen, then I'll play her game for now.
“Want to order in, or go out?” I ask her.
“Eat in,” she says walking past me and back into the building, and it’s just what I wanted to hear. Nothing stopping me from a repeat of last night.
Following Lexi in, I take my phone out and call the place I normally get my takeout from. “Food will be here in ten minutes.” I place my hand on Lexi’s back and she jumps, which worries me about what that call was about.
“Great, I’m hungry,” she says as I press the button to the elevator. “Are you going to the penthouse first?”
We step into the elevator, and I press her into the corner as soon as the doors close. “Do you know how much I love it when you show off your legs?” I look at her but she’s not looking at me. “Lexi, you might want to forget last night, but I promise you, I’m never going to forget and I plan on doing it again very soon.” Moving her hair out of the way, I move closer to her neck. “Your scent is so intoxicating.” Placing kisses on her neck, I hear her take in a little gasp.
Lexi bites her bottom lips as the doors open. She wants this as much as I want this. I know it, but I have no idea what's stopping her from taking the next step with me.
The doors open and I pull away from her. Following her into the kitchen, I pour myself a glass of whiskey and stand back just watching her. What's going through her head? What's she thinking about?
She looks through her phone, then dials a number. “Dan, are you free to talk?” She looks over her shoulder at me, then back out of the window. “Yeah, Ms. Jackie called me and told me he’s found me and is here.” I want to know who this he is, and why she has been acting funny since the phone call with Jackie. “I know… Do you want dinner tonight?” she asks. She looks over at me, silently asking if we have plans tonight. I did, and they involved her being naked in my bed, but I don’t own her. She’s her own person and I want her to live her life as normal as possible, so I shake my head to let her know to go ahead and make her plans. “Meet you there.” Ending the call, she looks over at me.
“What time are you leaving?” I ask her, as she walks back over to me.
“About seven. What’s the plan for tomorrow?” she asks, grabbing a water bottle out of the fridge.
Pulling her closer to me, I cage her between my arms. “For starters, I thought I could eat you.” I place my hand on her waist letting my fingers brush her skin.
“I shouldn’t have had sex with you, not even for four million dollars,” she tells me. I grin at her as I take my hand out from under her top. “I’m worth more than that.”
“Worth so much more.” Bringing my lips to her ear, I nibble on her earlobe and whisper, “I'll burn the contract if you say you will go on a date with me.” I kiss her jaw. “I want you in my bed.” She moans as I move my lips to her neck. “You want me just as much as I want you,” I mumble as I kiss the soft spot between her neck and collarbone, my hand slowly moving up her body.
“No, I don’t.”
Pulling away from her, I look in her eyes. “You do, too. Your eyes are begging me—your heart is beating harder because you’re excited.” I slowly brush my finger across her waist and stop just above her button of her shorts. “And, if I touch you here, I’d bet my whole bank account you would be wet.”
She smiles when there's a knock on the door. “Ethan.” I turn around to face her. “It never hurts to say please,” she says then walks away.
I look at her for a moment. The word ‘please’ leaves her lips like it’s important to her. Something is happening to her; something she doesn’t think is important enough to share with me. I’m going to call Jackie for a dinner meeting for tonight. Maybe she can tell me something about what's going on with Lexi.
Lexi
He was supposed to only be a client. I shouldn’t have had sex with him.
I don’t know what got into me. Maybe it’s because it had been so long since I’d had sex and he was just so good at making me want him. I never knew sex could be like that. Even now, I still feel his lips on my neck, his fingers on my skin, his smell imprinted on my brain.
I’m sitting on the couch with my eyes closed, trying to ward off this headache that's threatening to take over my senses. I’m replaying the conversation with Jackie in my head over and over again to make sure that he wouldn’t find me. I mean, I even changed my name.
“Ms. Jackie, if I work for you, you need to know something important about my past. Other than my brother, no one knows I’m here. I thought I could keep a low profile, but this job means I’m going to be out there more, and I may have to go back into hiding again.”
“Are you in trouble?”
“My name isn’t Lexi Jacks
on, it’s Teresa Campbell.” I take in a deep breath and wipe a tear from my cheek, steadying myself to tell her about my past.
“Lexi,” Ethan says, and I open my eyes. “You okay?” I look at him sitting next to me.
“Yeah, I just have a headache, that’s all.” Getting up, I need to walk away from him. I can’t let him get involved in what might happen next. “This needs to end. I’ve emailed Ms. Jackie with my reasoning, and today is my last day so—”
“Do I not get a say in this?”
“No.” I go to grab my bag, but Ethan stops me.
“Talk to me.” Please. “If it’s about the other night, I promise not to touch you again.”
I don’t know who he’s trying to fool. Even I know he’s lying. “I just think it’s gotten to the point where you don’t need me anymore,” I tell him as I pull my arm away from him. “I’m running late for dinner with my brother.”
“This isn’t over,” Ethan says as I walk over to the door.
Exiting the building, I start walking to the restaurant where I told Dan to meet me.
I sent Ms. Jackie an email telling her that since I know he’s here now, I can’t risk anything, including Ethan.
Dear Ms. Jackie,
I would like to terminate the agreement between Mr. Knight and myself. I can no longer continue it after learning the news you gave me, as it could put him in grave danger.
I know you will tell me to inform him of the situation and that he can help me, but I know what Sam can do. I’ve seen the things he can do, and I won’t risk it.
Please respect my wishes. I'll let Mr. Knight know about this, but I wanted to tell you first.
I'll come into the office tomorrow afternoon.
Love, Lexi xx
Walking into the restaurant, I look around for Dan and Jon.
“Lexi!”
I look behind me as Dan shouts my name. Giving him a smile I walk over.
“Wine,” Jon says, and hands me the glass.
“You have no idea how much I need this,” I say, sitting down next to Dan and laying my head on his shoulder.
“So, you know I have questions,” Dan begins. “Well, a list of questions. Which one would you like to answer first?”
Giving him a look, I shake my head at him. “Well, that didn’t last long.” I reply. I look at Jon who's shaking his head at Dan too. “Where do I start?” I look at Dan before downing my glass of wine and then filling it back up. I say Ethan has a drinking problem, but maybe I do, too.
“The guy from the other day?” Jon asks, and I look at him. I thought he was on my side. “Come on, I want to know about him. He’s fucking hot.”
“Ms. Jackie broke her own rules for him,” I say before taking another sip of my wine. “Ethan Knight is her godson and he needed a last-minute date to an event, and I drew the short straw. After the event, he decided he wanted me as his call girl. The only answer I was getting from Ms. Jackie was that he would be treated the same as any other clients.” I stop and look out of the window, then back at them. “From the start, I got the feeling he wanted me for sex. I even told Ms. Jackie that, but she kept saying he knew the rules about the girls. Anyway, long story short. I told him I would be his call girl for four million dollars. I figured he would say no. I mean, that’s a lot of fucking money.”
“But he agreed?” Dan looks at me in shock.
“He fucking agreed! Can you believe he played my game against me?” I say as our food is being served to us. Dan knows me well enough to know to order me a burger. “And then, when I signed and was about to leave, you will never guess what he whispered in my ear.” I look at them both as I take a bite of my burger.
“That you’re sexy and he will bend you over and spank you?” Jon asks, making me laugh. Dan shakes his head because only Jon would think of that.
“No. He said,‘You might not be able to give me any sexual favors, but it says nothing about me giving them to you.’” I stop as they both look at me with their mouths open.
“No.He.Didn’t,” Jon says slowly.
“You’ve had sex with him,” Dan adds.
“I had a lot of wine, and-and, the way he kisses my neck… I mean, if he did that alone, I know I would—”
“I get the picture.” Dan stops me. We have always been open with each other about things, so talking to him like this is nothing new for us.
"I sent Ms. Jackie an email to end the contract. I can't risk getting too close to him," I tell them both.
“Do you…like Ethan?” Jon asks.
Jon is like my brother. He and Dan have been dating for close to nine years now. I can talk to him the same way I talk to Dan.
“No, I still say he’s an asshole.” I take another bite of my burger as they look at each other. Even though they aren’t saying anything, their looks are speaking volumes. I know they're thinking something. “I won’t let anyone else get hurt because he thought I was too close to someone,” I tell them both. I can’t have the guilt hanging over me. I still feel guilty from before. I always try to stay happy and tell myself it wasn’t my fault, but that doesn’t mean I don’t blame myself.
“Okay, we understand—you know that. So, what about him? What’s happening?”
“I don’t know yet. I don’t want to leave and start all over again, but I don’t want him to get me either,” I say, dipping some fries into the sauce. “The house has a new alarm system in place, so if anyone breaks in, I’ll know about it. It’s connected to my phone. Plus, I check in with Ms. Jackie every two hours. I’ll call you every morning and every night before I go to sleep. What else can I do?”
I can’t move again. I can’t run again. I don’t have it in me to start over again.
“Do you want us to stay over?” The big brother voice is on today.
I smile at him. “I would love you to stay, but I won’t risk it. If he’s the same as before, he won’t kill me,” I say, quietly.
“Lexi, I would feel better if we were there.” Dan takes hold of my hand. “You know I’m a worrier,” he says kissing my hand.
“And you know that if anything happened to you, I would never in a million years forgive myself,” I tell him.
He’s my only family and I can’t lose him. Our mother died when I when I was five, and our dad, he died trying to protect his daughter from this scumbag. I won’t let him take another person from me.
Dan and Jon both look at me, and they know I won’t back down. They know how much I’m dying on the inside, and how I still blame myself.
“I want a phone call the same time you call Jackie, and if you don’t, I’ll be staying at your house, and I won’t leave.” Dan points his finger at me.
Moving closer to him, I kiss him on the cheek. “I know you will, and I know you’ll worry and I know that you love me,” I tell him.
I know what he’s like. He means every word he said, and once he moves in, he won’t ever move out.
***
After dinner, we went to a bar. I didn’t want to go home just yet, so the bar seemed like the best place to go. I called some girls to see if they were around, but wasn’t surprised they were all with clients. I miss going away with clients, of traveling around the country; seeing new places. I miss dressing up to go to an event.
Once all this mess is finally over, I'm telling Ms. Jackie that I want all my clients back. I can't wait to get back to work.
As soon as the taxi pulled up, Dan told the driver not to leave until I was safely inside the house.
I pay the driver after he stops the car in front of my house. Walking up the stairs, the drivers stays where he is as I open the door. Turning the alarm off, I give the driver a wave letting him know he can leave, then take my phone out and call Dan.
“I’m home. Just turned the alarm off,” I tell him as I take my shoes off, placing them on the side.
“Does everything look right, nothing out of place?” he asks. I can just barely hear him over the music.
“I’m checking, but t
he alarm would’ve picked up anything. Have a good night out,” I tell him. He goes to say something but I don’t let him. “I'll call you in the morning.” Ending the call, I head to the kitchen to get a bottle of the water from the fridge.
Taking a sip of water, I lean on the counter and look at the magnets on the refrigerator, looking back on old memories. My eyes widen as one picture stands out. My heart skips a beat. I take a step closer to the fridge to see if it’s there, or if it’s me being paranoid.
Grabbing my phone, I dial Ms. Jackie’s number as I run up the stairs into my bedroom. Getting into the closet, I wait for her to answer the phone. I crawl into the corner, pushing away my shoe boxes. “Ms. Jackie, he’s here… He’s found me,” I whisper.
“Ethan, call the police. Lexi, listen to me, I’m on my way,” Ms. Jackie tells me.
“Teresa?” I hear him calling from the bedroom. “Did you think I wouldn’t find you?”
The doors to the closet open. I see his shadow, so I push myself further into the corner. I scream when I feel his hand on my ankle.
“Nooo! Ms. Jackie! Please, please, please!” I scream as he pulls me out, my nails digging into the carpet. “Please,” I beg.
Ethan
Three hours earlier.
The second Lexi walked out of my apartment, I was on the phone with Jackie. I have no idea what's going on with Lexi, but I know there's one person that does.
She agreed to have dinner with me, and said she has been busy all day and hasn’t gotten to Lexi’s email yet, but will read it before we meet up. I told her that no matter what Lexi said, she wasn’t going to be anyone else’s call girl.
My meeting with London went well. For the first time, something is going right with it. I let them know Travis would now be heading up the project and to contact him if they needed anything. I told Travis if he messed this up, he would lose his bonus at the end of the year. He wasn’t happy about it, but I don’t care. I want this closed by the end of the month.