by Love, Kimmy
“Mr. Hedley?” a sultry voice from behind him called. Damian turned to see the third woman, the one who'd first caught his attention but the one he thought least likely to be an escort.
“That's me,” Damian said.
The black woman in front of him must have been in her early to mid-twenties. She was tall, with an hour-glass figure that would make heads turn. Was she too sexy? he thought. Her slim waist was accentuated by her curvy hips and rounded buttocks. These were balanced with a full and voluptuous bosom over which the low-cut dress she wore left very little to the imagination – well, Damian's imagination, anyway.
She extended a smooth arm, the color of golden syrup and as elegant as that of a dancer. Damian shook her hand.
“Sonia Wright,” she said. When she spoke her name, her voice was soft and hesitant. Not surprising when Damian's eyes were scooping her up and swallowing her whole. “Am I dressed all right?” she asked. “I do have this jacket if you'd prefer me to put it on.”
“Um … maybe the jacket is a good idea,” he stuttered.
She put on the silky jacket and let it fall loosely over her breasts. Damian coughed.
“Let's get a drink in the bar first. I can tell you what to expect of tonight.” He gestured in the direction of the bar.
As she made her way there he watched her gently swaying hips and shapely brown legs.
“What can I get you?” Damian asked at the bar.
“A red wine … if that's all right?”
“Of course. Anything you want. That goes for the meal, too. When I meet my client, everything will be on me. No need to worry.” He gave an embarrassed cough because he didn't want to come across as some jerk who was showing off.
Once the waiter placed their drinks on the bar, Damian pulled at his collar and began.
“Okay, so here's the deal. I'm not sure what your agency said but tonight, I need you to pose as my wife. We've been married a few weeks and we kept it out of the news because you don't like the publicity. I'll do most of the talking. I just need my client and his wife to believe I'm a reformed character.”
“Reformed from what?”
“Well, I … er … I have a bit of a playboy reputation, you see? And Mr. Merriman seems to have picked up on it. I'm keen to show him I'm a family man. That's all there is to it. This deal is more or less in the bag. All you need to do is seem like you're crazy about me. Just nod and smile sweetly for a couple hours and then you're done.”
“Seems easy enough,” Sonia smiled.
“Easy, sure it's easy, but why do I get the feeling you're a little nervous about this. You've done this kind of thing before, right?”
Sonia took a large gulp of wine. “Can I be honest?” she said in a timid voice, looking around the bar.
“Please.”
“I haven't done this before. This is my very first assignment as an escort.” Sonia looked away from Damian and into her wine glass.
“You're kidding me.” His voice was full of disappointment and she leaped to her own defense.
“But I can do this, Mr. Hedley. I promise I won't let you down. It's a simple enough job and a lot easier than many I've heard about.”
He looked at her a long while and contemplated calling the agency to see if it wasn't too late to send someone who could really pull this off. The deal was a big one. He had been waiting for Joseph Merriman's call for weeks after first submitting his proposal to buy out Merriman Hotels. Now he was ready to clinch the whole thing. Was he about to let an amateur escort blow it for him?
“I shouldn't have said that,” she told him. “I could've lied to you but I didn't think it would be fair.”
“I appreciate that but--”
“Or maybe you want to change me for a white escort instead?”
“No, the color isn't a problem. It's just that this deal is so important to me. I fly back to Washington tomorrow and I want to go back with a signed contract.”
“You will. I'll do everything I can to make that happen,” Sonia said, earnestly.
“Good, because I would've been sorry not to have spent time in your company.”
There was a long silence between them. It was as if time stood still when Damian uttered the words that brought out the deep down feeling they'd both had when they first met. They were sexually aroused by each other. They wondered how they would pull off an act when their underlying desire was to tear each other's clothes off.
“Sonia, it's late. I couldn't swap you for another girl if I wanted to.” He threw back the last of his bourbon and stood to help her off her stool. She took his hand to step down and the second their skin touched, a wave of hot energy passed between them.
“Thank you,” she said, holding eye contact for an overly long second.
Outside the hotel, he hailed a taxi and allowed her to enter first.
“By the way,” he said. “Your name is Penny.”
“Okay, I'm Penny for the night and you're a respectable married man. Tomorrow you can go back to your bed hopping, right?”
He paused for a second. “I guess so. Everything that happens tonight is all about the contract. It's all business.”
“All business,” Sonia repeated and gave him a reassuring nod.
They arrived at the Merriman Hotel and were shown to their table in the plush hotel restaurant. The Merrimans were already seated. Mr. Joseph Merriman was squat and thickset. His gray hair was receding and his bald patch shone under the chandelier lighting. He wore thick glasses and his bow tie seemed to be too tight but he had a huge, genuine smile.
His wife, Gloria, was shorter still, but she looked strong and wiry. Her white hair was pulled into a high bun and her silk dress gave her the air of royalty.
Mr. Merriman stood when he saw the couple arrive.
“We're not late are we?” Damian said with a wide smile. “But don't blame the wife, I was the one who took ages to get ready.”
Mr. Merriman laughed as he shook hands with Damian. “No, no, you're not late at all.”
Damian was sure Merriman's eyes, in their thick glasses, were on Sonia's breasts.
“This is my wife, Penny,” Damian said as Sonia outstretched her hand.
“My pleasure,” Merriman said. “And let me introduce you to Gloria.”
Gloria didn't stand but she smiled sweetly as Damian shook her hand. When she shook Sonia's, she held onto it with both hands.
“My dear,” Gloria said to Sonia. “You look absolutely ravishing. I can see that it would take a woman with your beauty to tame a stud like Damian Hedley.”
Both Sonia and Damian laughed as they took their seats at the large table.
“Well,” Sonia said. “He was already tamed and ready to settle down when we met. I didn't have so much to do in that department. I guess you could say it was good timing.”
“How did you meet?” Gloria asked, as the waiter put menus in front of them all. Damian and Sonia both looked at each other.
“You tell it, sweetheart,” said Sonia.
“No, no,” Gloria interrupted. “Men always skip the best parts. You tell me, my dear.”
“Well,” said Sonia, who looked at how pale Damian was becoming. “It was at a party. A garden party to be exact. You remember, don't you, Sweetheart? Joyce and Anton were getting engaged. I was Joyce's friend and Damian knew Anton. We arrived separately and as the evening continued, I noticed Damian was always where I happened to be. At the buffet table, next to the band, by the bar. It was like he was following me. It turned out he was, but I didn't find out until the very end. It started to rain, you see, and I was at the far end of the garden. It rained heavily, just really suddenly, and I could either make a run for the house or shelter under the trees.
“I chose to run, but I tripped, and there was Damian, right behind me like a little puppy. My heel had gotten stuck in the grass and he helped me up and carried me to shelter. I thanked him and told him it was lucky he always seemed to be there whenever I looked up. He said he would alway
s be there for me. He'd be my knight in shining armor. And from that day, he was.”
“What a delightful story. Is that how you would have told it, Damian?” Gloria smiled at them both.
Damian, who had been absorbed by the story, didn't hear the question. He stared at Sonia and said, “That's exactly how it happened. I couldn't take my eyes off her.”
They ordered their meal and the course of the evening was going just the way Damian wanted it to go. Sonia could see he was happy with her and was relieved he hadn't called the agency to swap her for another escort. She was enjoying Damian’s company. He was good looking, and his sense of humor matched her own. He had such a relaxed way about him that he put the whole table at ease.
Sonia observed him closely. This had to be the full-on charm he used in business as well as his private life. If he was this way when he tried to pick up women, it was no wonder he had so much success and could get as many women as he pleased. She thought about how many that could be. Had he slept his way around every single woman in Washington, DC? The Merrimans seemed to know a lot about his reputation even if she didn't, so he must have quite a few notches on his bedpost.
She studied his profile. He had a strong chin and a brave nose. His eyes were the most striking and she melted a little every time he looked into her eyes. He is such a good actor, she thought. He was making her feel as if he really was attracted to her. She knew from the feeling lowdown in her stomach that she was attracted to him and she lit up each time he put an affectionate hand on hers or their legs accidentally brushed together under the table. By the time dessert was served, Sonia found herself wondering if a man like Damian Hedley could ever be tamed.
“That was a marvelous meal, Mr. Merriman,” Damian said. “The food in your hotels is always top class.”
“Well, you know we only hire the best chefs,” he replied. “Something I hope the future owner will continue to honor. Food was where we started, you know? My great, great grandfather owned a market cart and sold meats and cakes, of all things. Years later, that became a delicatessen in Harlem and from there, the family went into the restaurant business. A guest house followed shortly after and by my grandfather's time, we had our first hotel in Manhattan. This very one, in fact. Although it has gone through several transformations. The rest, as they say, is history.”
“I love that there is history in this place, in the business as a whole,” Damian enthused. “My family always worked hard and that's how our money came. But like you, I wasn't going to sit back and be a trust fund baby. I worked damned hard, if you'll excuse my language, Mrs. Merriman. I didn't accept a cent from my father and developed my suite of health spas on my own.”
“And I commend you,” Mr. Merriman said. “And I can see by Penny's face, she's very proud of you, too.”
While Damian had been talking, Sonia had her elbow on the table, chin in hand, listening intently to how Damian became a billionaire. Now that he'd mentioned health spas, she'd recognized the Hedley name. She knew the Hedley and Duke Health Spa on the Upper West Side across from Central Park. She'd gotten a free pass from a friend and marveled at the chic style of the place. He was the Hedley of Hedley and Duke. His status was finally coming into place and she was practically drooling at how successful Damian actually was.
“Oh, I am proud,” she said, surprised she was caught staring by Joseph Merriman. Damian looked at her and smiled as if to say, 'Good acting!' He kissed her cheek.
“Penny's heard all this before,” he said. “I'm sure she's bored to death.”
“Not at all,” Sonia replied. “I'm always excited to hear all about your successes.” She gave a warm smile and Damian rested his hand on hers. She liked how it felt.
“But, Penny,” Gloria Merriman said. “These men have dominated the conversation so much, I have no idea what it is you do.”
“Me?” Sonia said, looking at Damian.
“Yes, let's talk about you.”
“Oh, there's nothing special about me. I work with children. I'm a teacher.”
“How nice,” Gloria beamed. “What age and what school?”
“Um, kindergarten. Little, tiny people. I love my job. The school is in Brooklyn.”
“You must have the patience of a saint,” Gloria said clapping her hands together. “I remember the trouble I had with our son and there was only one of him. And it is such a shame he doesn't want to carry on the business. He's happy to drift around and do very little.”
“Because he gets away with it, dear,” her husband chimed in. “That's what I like about our man Damian here. He wasn't content to live off his parent's wealth, he went out and worked. Exactly the type of person I want running this business. Sadly it won't stay in the family, but with my son at the helm, Merriman wouldn't stand a chance. Sad but true.”
“Am I right in thinking that maybe we have a deal?” Damian ventured to ask.
“We might,” Mr. Merriman said, looking at his wife. “But I still need to sleep on it. To be honest, I have a meeting on Monday with a foreign company who want buy us out, too, and I want to meet and discuss their proposal.”
“That's absolutely fine,” said Damian, taking his napkin off his thigh. “You call me early next week with your decision and we'll take it from there.”
“That's very good of you, Damian, and I look forward to speaking to you then.”
They all rose from the table and walked to the door. Mr. Merriman kissed Sonia's hand and shook Damian's.
“It was a pleasure to meet you both,” he said. “And I hope you enjoy the rest of your stay in New York and have a safe journey back to Washington, the pair of you.”
Damian held Sonia at the small of her back and walked her out of the hotel. Out on the street, he exhaled loudly.
“Well, that didn't go too badly,” he said. “In fact, it went extremely well. I think old Mr. Merriman has warmed to the idea of selling to me. I know who he's meeting with on Monday. Some cold investment agency, no experience in hospitality like me. But I have a feeling Merriman cares more about the integrity of his brand than he does another few billion dollars. Penny, I mean, Sonia, I think I have this in the bag.”
He was staring straight into her eyes as a light breeze started to wrap around them.
“I'm glad it went well,” she said, staring straight back at him. “I guess this is where we part ways then.”
“I guess,” he said slowly, his body inching a little closer. “Can I get you a cab?”
“Please,” she said. “But not in front of the hotel, they might be watching out of a window. You never know.”
“That's true.” Damian took hold of her waist again and they walked slowly along the wide sidewalk. He gently rubbed the small of her back and paid no attention to the passing taxis. Sonia edged a little closer but came to a stop. He nearly walked into her.
“This ought to do it,” she said. “They can't see us from here. I think I see a taxi.”
“Right,” he said, not looking at the road at all but watching the soft mounds of her breasts meeting at the top of her dress. Her large bosom heaved up and down as she breathed and Damian loosened his tie.
“How far do you have to go?” he asked her.
“Not very. I'm about five miles east of here. I share an apartment with my best friend, Bibi. But she's out of town.”
“Really?”
She wondered why she said that. It wasn't a come on, or at least she didn't think it was.
“I tell you what,” Damian said. “I'll escort you back in the taxi and then go on to my hotel. How about that?”
“Oh, you don't have to do that.”
“No, I insist. I want to make sure you get safely home. After all, if I clinch this deal it will be because of your phenomenal acting. You were wonderful, Sonia.”
Their eyes met again. This time Damian allowed himself to be distracted for long enough to see a taxi cab and whistle it to a halt. They climbed in and the taxi screeched away so that both fell against the back sea
t with a bump.
“You okay?” Damian said, leaning towards her.
“I'm fine.”
Their lips were only seconds away from each other and before they could catch another breath they were kissing. It was a deep and passionate kiss as if they had been waiting to be alone together all night. And if they were perfectly honest, being alone together had been going through both their minds. Perhaps that's what made them such a convincing couple; this desire to be alone, to be close. To have skin touching skin. To kiss.
Damian's hand was traveling up Sonia's thigh, beneath her dress. It rested there until she made a slight adjustment with her legs and he continued up until his fingertips were touching the lace at the front of her panties. He groaned. The taxi driver coughed and the couple stopped kissing and laughed.