Sins & Mistrust

by Lucero, Isabel

  I pull up to the same driveway the cab dropped me off at months ago. I suppose I shouldn’t have come over, but at the time it wasn’t out of the ordinary. He knew what we did wasn’t anything serious. He let me fuck his mouth, and was fine getting himself off at the same time. It was never a relationship. Now he’s coming around wanting more, and I need to stop this now before it gets worse.

  When I get to the door, it swings open and James stands there with a smile on his face.

  “I knew I’d get you to come over,” he says.

  “We need to talk,” I say as I push past him.

  I stop in the foyer and turn to find him crossing his arms over his chest and watching me with narrowed eyes.

  “What’s going on?”

  “I can’t do this with you anymore. What we did was very sporadic to begin with. You know there was never anything serious between us.”

  He tilts his head, his jaw becoming tense. “Why’s that? Because you’re an escort? You can’t let your precious clients know that you enjoy fucking men?”

  “You’ve always known about my job,” I say between gritted teeth.

  “That doesn’t stop you from fucking somebody else.”

  “What are you talking about?” I growl.

  He laughs a humorless laugh. “Oh come on, Marc. I know you’re fucking Lincoln Cash.”

  “How do you know Lincoln?” I demand.

  I don’t understand how he knows about my relationship with Linc. I don’t know what he does in his free time, I don’t know what his job is, and I never cared to find out. Maybe he works for Lincoln.

  “Are you not denying your relationship with him?” he asks.

  Denying what I have with Lincoln seems wrong. I think briefly about how it would feel if he or Nathalia denied being with me.

  “I’m not denying anything. I want to know how you know him.”

  “I can’t believe this shit,” he says, pushing his blonde hair back and out of his face. “I fucking knew it. He wouldn’t tell me, but I fucking knew it.”

  “Knew what?” I demand, growing angrier.

  “You and I have something in common, Marc,” he says, a twisted grin on his face. “Lincoln likes to fuck me too, but he won’t commit. Don’t think what you have with him is anything serious. Lincoln gets his kicks out of fucking with people’s emotions. He’ll drop you soon enough.”

  “You and Lincoln?” I ask, completely surprised.

  “Yep.”

  My mind races. I think back to what Lincoln told me the other night about a guy who he fucked around with that told him he was fucking me. That guy’s name was Trystan, though.

  “James, is that your real name?”

  His brows furrow in confusion. “Yeah. Why?”

  “What’s your last name?”

  “James,” he answers like I’m an idiot. “Trystan St. James. I go by James, though.”

  “What?” I roar. “Trystan St. James? You’re the one who told Lincoln I was fucking you? What the hell is wrong with you?”

  “He told you?”

  “Of course he fucking told me. He wanted to know if I was fucking somebody else. I said I had no clue who a Trystan was. Why would you tell him I fucked you? You know I haven’t.”

  My anger rolls off of me in waves, and my fists clench down at my sides.

  “Isn’t it kind of fucked up that the two men I’m attracted to and have tried my hardest at pleasing and being with, don’t share the same sentiment. Instead, they find each other, and I’m supposed to be okay with that?”

  I almost feel bad for him, but he’s going around and lying.

  “So, what? You were trying to keep us apart?”

  “How would your job feel if they knew you were in a relationship with a man? You know how Kristi felt when she found out you were into men. I wonder how all the women you fuck would feel.”

  “Fuck off!” I yell, backing him into the wall. “Why don’t you learn to keep your mouth shut? Because one of these days that mouth of yours is going to get you in a lot of fucking trouble.”

  A slow smirk crosses his lips. “You do know Lincoln has a special relationship with a woman, right?”

  He thinks his announcement is going to shock me, maybe he hopes it’s going to piss me off, but little does he know I share the same special relationship.

  “I do know. I know her well, and everything between all three of us is just fine. I’m sorry you haven’t found someone to be with, but neither Lincoln nor I are going to be that person for you. I need you to quit trying to come in between us, and your threats against me about telling my job aren’t going to work. I’m not even escorting right now, so it doesn’t matter.”

  I’m not exactly sure if that’s true. It very well could matter, but I don’t want him to think he has the upper hand. And until I figure out what I’m going to do about the client I’m still scheduled to meet, I don’t know what to tell my boss.

  “I can’t believe you quit your job to be with two people, one of which I know will break your heart for sure. Lincoln can’t be trusted, Marc. You can’t say I didn’t warn you. He’s a brash bastard, and you’ll find out soon enough that he only cares about himself.”

  Without another word I move past him and leave. Hopefully, we won’t hear from him again. This is too much drama for me and another reason why I didn’t mind avoiding relationships, because if you aren’t in a relationship, there’s no drama and no jealous exes. I hope Nathalia doesn’t have anybody ready to pop up at any time.

  Hours later when I’m at home, I pick up my phone to call Lincoln. I figure I need to talk to him about James…Trystan, whatever the fuck he goes by.

  “Hey,” Lincoln greets.

  “Hey.”

  “What’s wrong?” he asks, sensing the frustrated tone in my voice, I guess.

  “You know how I was on the phone earlier today at Nathalia’s?”

  “Mmhhmm.”

  “Well, I was talking to the guy that I told you I had fooled around with before.”

  “Yeah,” he grunts, starting to work himself up.

  “He’s been trying to get me to go over to his place and I don’t know, fuck around, I guess. Anyway, that’s where I went when I left.”

  “What the fuck, Marc?” he barks, cutting me off.

  “Calm the fuck down, will ya? Let me finish.”

  I hear him growl through the phone and then release a loud breath.

  “Okay.”

  “I went over to tell him face to face that the thing we had going on before was over. I mean, I hadn’t even seen him since the first night I met Nathalia.” Lincoln’s silent on the other end, so I continue talking. “Anyway, his name is James, or at least I thought it was. I found out his name is actually Trystan St. James.”

  “What the fuck?” Lincoln rasps.

  “Yeah.”

  “Are you telling me you’ve fucked the guy that I let suck my dick?”

  “What? No. Are you telling me that you fucked the guy that sucked my dick?”

  “I never fucked him!”

  “He says you did. He told me that you like fucking him too, but that you don’t commit and just get off on fucking with people’s emotions. He basically warned me off of you, saying you can’t be trusted, because you’re only looking out for yourself.”

  Lincoln lets out a string of curse words. “That fucking son of a bitch!” he mutters a few more things and then seems to calm down. “Marc, I never slept with that guy. Ever. He sucked my dick, and I didn’t even return the favor.”

  “I believe you.”

  “Good,” he breathes a sigh of relief. “I believe you didn’t fuck him either.”

  “Well, he knows about us and Nathalia. He tried to surprise me by informing me of your special relationship with a woman. I told him I knew her well and all of us were happy. So, you should just be aware that he has the piece of information.”

  Lincoln’s quiet for a while. “You told him about all of us?”

 
“Yeah. Why?”

  “Nothing. Just surprised, I guess. That’s fine. I have a meeting with his dad soon. That’ll be fun.”

  “Is his dad a manager?”

  “No. He’s an investor in one of the clubs I own.”

  “Oh. How many clubs do you own?” I ask, realizing I only know about the sex club and one other one.

  “Six.”

  “Oh.”

  “I wish I could tell him what a fucking asshole his son is.”

  “I take it he doesn’t know about you two.”

  “I don’t even know if he knows his son is gay.”

  I laugh. “Wow.”

  “Yeah.”

  “Well, I’ll let you go so you can get to your meeting, I just wanted you to know what was going on.”

  “Thanks, Marc. I appreciate it.”

  “Alright, talk to you later.”

  “Yeah, bye.”

  When we hang up, I decide I should send Troy and Jace a text. We’re all scheduled to be at the club this weekend, and they’ve been trying to get a hold of me to make sure I’m going to be there.

  Me: Hey, yes, I’ll be at the club on Saturday.

  Instead of replying to my text with another text, Jace calls me.

  “Hey,” I answer.

  “What’s going on, man? We’ve been trying to get in touch with you since last night.”

  “Not much, busy with…clients. You know.”

  “Yeah, well, not anymore.”

  I laugh. “Oh yeah. Mr. Monogamous now, huh?”

  “Yeah,” he says with a chuckle.

  “That’s good, man.”

  I hear yelling in the background, and I’m pretty sure it’s Troy.

  “Shut up, man!” Jace yells.

  “What’s he yappin about?”

  “Talking shit. You know how he does.”

  “Yo, Marc,” Troy’s voice bellows through the phone. “You need me to escort you to the club? If I don’t, I don’t know if you’ll show.”

  We all laugh. “Fuck off, Troy. I’m gonna be there.”

  “Okay, man.”

  Jace gets back on the phone. “He thinks he’s funny.” Jace’s voice lowers. “He’s over here making sure Adrienne brings her friend Emilie to the club.”

  “What you say?” I hear Troy ask in the background.

  “Nothin’, man. Chill out.”

  I laugh. “He’s got a thing for Emilie, huh?”

  “Yep, but he doesn’t want to admit to it. Lame ass. Anyway, Adrienne’s coming on Saturday, and Emilie too. So, if you want to invite someone to come with you, you can.”

  “Yeah, I don’t think I’m going to do that,” I say with a short laugh.

  “Always the bachelor, huh?” he asks with a chuckle.

  “Something like that.”

  “Alright, man. We’ll see you Saturday, then.”

  “Sounds good.”

  The week comes and goes quickly. The club ran smoothly while we were there, and I enjoyed myself, but couldn’t stop thinking about Nathalia and Lincoln. They spent that night together at Lincoln’s place, and weren’t aware of what I was doing, exactly. I said it was club business, which it was, but they probably could have gone with me. I just didn’t think that was best. Not yet.

  November is fast approaching, but all of our schedules have been conflicting lately. Nathalia has to go out of town a few times, and Lincoln has six clubs to make sure are running properly, and I have the start-up of my own, and now we’re discussing buying property for another club. Lincoln mentioned moving his sex club, so if he does, I’ll see if we can acquire that building.

  Jace and Adrienne have extended an invite to me for Thanksgiving at her dad’s house, but I won’t go. We haven’t discussed it yet, but I’m sure Lincoln, Nathalia, and I will do something together. If we’re all in the same town, that is.

  My phone rings, and I notice the number is one I don’t recognize.

  “Hello?”

  “Marc? Is that you?” the female voice asks.

  “Yes, this is Marc. Who is this?”

  “Oh, come on. Don’t tell me you’ve forgotten me already? It’s Jordana!” she chirps.

  My heart drops. “Jordana, of course I remember you. How are you?”

  “I’m great, honey. So happy to talk to you.”

  “Yeah, you too,” I manage to get out.

  “I came back early, and I’ve already talked to Liz over at Elite. She told me to just give you a call.”

  Fucking Liz. Of course she would say that. Liz and Jordana have known each other on a personal level for a long time. With Liz knowing I took a break, but also knowing Jordana is the woman I still have on my schedule, she knew I needed to talk to her.

  “Wow, well, welcome back. How long are you here for?”

  I pray internally that it’s only a weekend.

  “I’m not sure yet, but probably a little while. I have some business to take care of here. My boss is here trying to get ideas for hotels and casinos, so he’s meeting with architects and I’m expected to be by his side.” She sighs. “But, the good thing is I’ll be able to see you again for a while. Yay!” she squeals.

  Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. What am I going to do now? She’s on my schedule. She’s been on my schedule for a long time now, and I definitely don’t have other appointments to work around, and Liz knows that, so I’m absolutely free. Except I’m not. I have Nathalia and Lincoln to think about.

  “Marc? You still there?” she asks.

  “Yes, sorry. Well, that’s great, Jordana. I’m sure you’re happy to be back.”

  “I am! Can we meet up? Say, Friday the first? I’ll send you the address of the hotel I’m staying at.”

  “Uh. Yeah, that’s fine.”

  “Great! I’ll talk to you soon.”

  “Bye.”

  I hang up and try to think of the best way to handle this. Obviously, it’s best to be honest with them, but I don’t look forward to that conversation at all. Jordana was a regular. We had sex almost every time we were together, so I know she’ll want that again.

  Fuck.

  My father sends me on a last minute trip to California. He needs me to meet with some important people there while he stays here and meets with even more important people. That’s how I take it anyway. If he can’t be in a meeting, I’m sent in his place, and since the meeting in California was rescheduled at the last minute, I’m forced to fly out without more than an hour’s notice.

  Fortunately, I have my own room at that hotel too, so I don’t have to pack anything. I’m whisked off to the airfield and put on a private jet, and I land in California an hour and a half later. I have just enough time to go up to my room change, shove some food in my face, and then be down in the conference room.

  Before the meeting begins, I send a text to both Lincoln and Marc letting them know where I am, and then silence it and drop it in my purse.

  Three hours later, I make it up to my room and kick my shoes off. I dig into my purse and pull my phone out, then I collapse onto the couch. I go to check my messages, but find that the phone died in my purse.

  I drag myself into the room and plug my phone in. While I wait for it to charge, I strip my clothes off and flop onto the bed. Sleep swallows me up and I’m out before I can even think about doing anything else.

  At seven in the morning, my phone rings, waking me up. I get up and drift towards my phone, my eyes partially closed still.

  “Hello?” I say in a sleep-filled voice.

  “Nathalia? Are you okay?” Marc’s voice asks.

  “Yes, yes. Why?”

  “I’ve been calling and texting you forever.”

  “Sorry,” I reply, making my way back to the bed. “My phone died, and while I waited for it to charge, I just fell asleep. It was a long day.”

  “I understand.” He pauses. “I need to talk to you.”

  “Those are never good words, Marc,” I say.

  “I know. I’ve already told Lincoln, and he’s not
too happy.”

  “Now you’re scaring me,” I reply.

  He sighs heavily. “The reason I didn’t quit my escort job was because I still had a client on the schedule. She booked me way ahead of time, and has already paid the agency. She used to be a regular, but left town for a while. When she found out she was coming back, she booked me again. It was before I met you. Well, she’s back now.”

  It takes a few seconds for everything to sink in.

  “I uhh…I don’t know what to say. What does that mean?”

  “It means I am scheduled to go out with her tomorrow. I’m on her time now. She’s paid for my company, and she’s friends with my boss. It’s such a mess. I’m sorry.”

  “Are you going to sleep with her?” I ask.

  He sighs again. “We always did before. I’m sure she’ll want to again.”

  “You can’t say no?” I ask, my voice going up a couple octaves.

  “Nathalia, look, I’m going to have dinner with her tomorrow. I will talk to her and inform her of my situation, and I won’t sleep with her.”

  “Marc, I told you to never refer to me as a situation. Are we together or not?”

  “Yes, you know that.”

  “I’m not so sure.”

  “Nathalia, what else am I supposed to do? I told you I’m not going to sleep with her.”

  “I have to go, Marc. I have a flight to catch. We’ll talk later.”

  I hang up the phone before he can reply and I instantly call Lincoln.

  “Talk to Marc?” he asks as soon as he picks up.

  “Yes.”

  “And?”

  “And what, Linc? He’s going out on a date with a client! A client he’s had sex with many times before!”

  “You don’t have to tell me, he already did. I was sure to tell him how I felt about it.”

  “How do you feel?”

  “Annoyed. Mostly because he didn’t mention this woman being on his schedule before. He knew she’d be back in town, so I’m wondering why she was never brought up.”

  “Do you think he has feelings for her?”

  “I don’t know, babe.”