Sold to the Dom

by Amy Brent

  * * *

  Megan Brown found herself faced with yet another dilemma. She could pay all of her bills and not have enough money to feed herself, or she could pay some of the bills and lose something equally important like… power. She put her head in her hands once more, sighing as she glanced over the pile of bills on the table in front of her. She worked too hard to have nothing to show for it. Every single day at the diner she put in hour after hour to try and make it all come together, but she was failing miserably, with no light in the trees.

  As usual, she grimaced when she heard the loud clank of tires outside her apartment building. She wasn’t in the best of neighborhoods, but she could afford it and it was home. There had to be more to life than this, had to be more she could do than to wait tables in a shabby bar where all she seemed to be in place for but to be hit on by men, who assumed she was an easy option since she just so happened to be a big girl.

  Being a big girl didn’t define her, in fact being big and beautiful was part of what she loved about herself. Sure, she could focus on losing the weight eventually, but in order to do that she had to love who she was now. She walked now, over towards the one window in her efficiency apartment, looking down over the riff raff in the parking lot. Yes, she loved herself, and one day she would be out from under this mess once and for all.

  She walked carefully to the bathroom, looking closely at her reflection. Her skin was a shade of honey and chocolate. Not dark, but not light. Her skin was flawless, something she got from a long line of women in the family. She took care of herself, her make up light, never really enjoying the weight of it on her face. Her body wasn’t like the typical women most men would find attractive, no instead she was curvy and full. Her hips were very clearly defined in her outfit, but she loved it.

  Sadly, everyone couldn’t hang. That was obvious when her boyfriend Raymond had been caught red-handed with one of her friends. There was something about having a friend that was model thin, and a blonde to boot, that made men act stupid. Her friend Leslie had been around for years, but she was swayed by Raymond, and the two of them had been caught red handed the day she came home early from work. The reality of the situation is that he probably had cheated on her more than once, and this was simply the straw that had pushed her over the edge, once and for all.

  Sadly, she had lost a friend as well, but no real friend would sleep with her man. Of course, when she had confronted him, all the while calmly waiting for him to get the rest of his things out of her apartment, he had blamed her weight. Vaguely she remembered him telling her something about how she didn’t take care of herself enough etc. But deep down, though it had stung for a moment she knew that wasn’t true at all.

  Sitting down once more she glanced over at the newspaper, hoping to see something new and exciting she may be able to do to earn some extra money. An ad caught her eye, and she had to smile slightly as she read it.

  * * *

  Do you have free time on your hands? If so, we may be able to pay you

  For your precious time. Fun and exotic locations, meeting, fun and new people.

  Seeking women for dating site, all sizes, ethnicity and ages.

  Whatever they were selling, it certainly was worth a shot. After all it did say all sizes. She dialed the number, and was given a time to come in and meet with someone. All she could do now was see what this was all about.

  * * *

  Nicolai

  * * *

  There were days when he thought his responsibilities would never end. To make matters worse, he was stuck in the United States looking for his brother, who would manage to get the family name drug through the mud in more ways than one. He glanced down at his watch, frowning. The flight was delayed, undoubtedly giving cause for concern from his mother. Everything about this plan, she had helped him concoct felt wrong, and it would likely backfire on all of them.

  Roman, his brother was the heir to the family fortune, to the inheritance, well… to damn near everything. He was 2 minutes older than him, and about 10 years younger in his maturity level. On more than once occasion Nicolai had to step in for a function and pretend to be Roman. Serving on the board for the business, escorting one lovely lady after another to functions. Even once he had met an ambassador from the Ukraine, presenting business options on how to strengthen the supply of their family holdings. All the while he did his work, he received no recognition for any of it.

  He loved his brother, there was never any doubt about that. He simply wanted him to stand up and lead the way the family expected him to. Instead, he left a trail of wounded widows, and debts behind him as he enjoyed the luxuries the family name allowed him.

  Soon, he would let it all go, especially if this plan worked. Then Roman would be firmly settled down with a wife, and Nicolai could set out to figure out his own life. Fortunately for Roman they were identical, in almost every way. A full head of wavy honey brown hair and deep brown eyes, they were both tall and muscular. Genetics played a part in that, it wasn’t from working hard at it, at least in Romans case. They both had an easy smile, and at the moment they both sported a full beard. He had adapted it from his brother, and even now the blasted thing was driving him crazy.

  He made his way down the walkway towards the plane, finally boarding. He had more than a couple meetings, and then there was the wife hunting to take care of. Surely he could pull this off, perhaps she would be a sweet girl. He frowned, it was doubtful. Money did the talking, and she would do whatever they told her to fit a particular fit for the family. Nothing more, nothing less. He had two days to find a woman, and give her the part. Surely that was plenty of time in a city like Washington D.C.

  He settled into the plane for his flight. Within the next year he would be his own man, and his blasted brother would be forced to settle down once and for all. He picked up the phone to have a car waiting for him in the city, the sooner he locked in the girl the sooner he could start looking for Roman.

  As he stepped out into the city he made his way to the agency he had procured a month before. Today he could review the tapes, and find the right one. She would have to be attractive, and have some spirit. She would have to be able to be the epitome of etiquette. Most of all she would have to learn when to be quiet, and when to talk. He made his way inside to see the woman he had to choose from.

  Blonde, blonde, blonde. Petite, fragile, full of… With a sigh he sat back in the chair. They were all beautiful girls; he wouldn’t take that from them. The fact of the matter was that here in the states this is what “top of the line” was. He knew if he debuted a fiancé with blond hair the media would have a frenzy with it. His brother’s tastes were very different, and in particular he disliked blondes. As he waited for his coffee, he clicked on one profile after another. He scrolled through them all and passed her at first. He moved backwards and waited.

  She wasn’t typical in any way at all. She had skin the color of dark caramel, and green eyes. Her body was what caught his eye initially. Curvy, and feminine, she was in fact, quite beautiful. She spoke with intelligence, asking as many questions to the interviewer as they asked her, which caused him to smile. She was certainly not the quiet type. Soon the interview was over and she stood, smiling and shaking the interviewers’ hand. He watched her as she walked, her head held high, obviously she had been offended by something she had been asked.

  Yes, there was something special about her, and he couldn’t wait to meet her.

  * * *

  Megan

  * * *

  “Wait, wait let me get this straight. I came in for an interview last week, was put on reserve and now you’re telling me you need me? She sat back, frowning. Something was definitely wrong.

  The entire premise of the ad had been misleading. She wasn’t sure she could even go out with any of these people, not if they expected something from her she wasn’t willing to give. Now, they had called her in to talk about a potential offer.

  The petite blonde was red faced a
s she glanced down at her. Megan found herself mildly amused at her actions. She cleared her throat.

  “Well, it seems there was a client who scanned through the women, and he uh… he chose you. I can assure you the offer is a good one, very good actually.”

  She leaned back in her chair, crossing her arms. “Ok then, what’s the offer?”

  The blond jumped into action, obviously motivated by her commission.

  “His name is Roman Gregorio. He is Russian, very handsome actually. He needs an escort to a few functions over a three-day period starting Friday. There are a few catches’, however you would have to be able to conform to.”

  “Hmm, a catch? Imagine that.” Megan methodically tapped her foot as she waited for the blond to finish.

  “Yes.” She cleared her throat. “He would need you to appear to be his fiancé, publicly, and stay with him for the duration of your assignment.”

  “What? Ok sweetheart, I don’t think so. But, thank you for the offer.” Megan couldn’t believe it was really, any of it. She stood to go and approached the door.

  “Wait! The pay is $500,000 dollars.” The blond was overly eager now.

  She paused, turning slowly. “I’ll do it.”

  She made her way to the car lost in her own thoughts. That was a lot of money to pretend to be the fiancé to some rich guy. It would fix all of her problems at least for the time being and possibly set her up for a more productive future. It would certainly pay for college. She smiled to herself. This was certainly starting to sound like an amazing adventure.

  She found herself at home, looking through her closet. She lived in the rural area of Virginia, but close enough to Washington. When she had gone locally to apply for this crazy “job” in the first place she’d had no idea her information would be sent out to surrounding counties. Now, she had one day to pack everything she thought she would need and at Dulles International Airport by Friday morning.

  There were various things in her closet, a little bit of everything really. She knew that she needed to look nice, presentable for the events she was going to. She had to wonder why he had chosen her, over all the women in the place. It was obvious that she stood out a little different than the others. With a shrug, she decided to not think about it, or care. No matter what happened, she would be 500 thousand dollars richer in a few days. There was still some apprehension in her deep down as she loaded up her things and made her way to the car the next morning. She took a deep breath, smoothing down her dark silky hair as she made her way to the airport.

  She found the counter and picked up her information. As promised everything had been taken care of and she soon found herself in a luxurious seat sipping champagne. Whoever she was working for certainly did have taste. The flight was relatively short, as she exited the plane she felt herself a little more excited than before. He was going to meet her here, and take her back to the hotel as a couple. Her role in this assignment was going to start very soon indeed.

  She glanced around until she saw a sign with her name on it. She had to swallow hard, as she looked at the man holding it. He was short, a good two inches shorter than she was, balding with a slight grey smattering of hair on his otherwise shiny head, and he was frowning at her as she approached him. She knew this was going to be much harder than she thought. She decided to do her best, after all he had chosen her. She thrust her hand out to him, which he simply looked at.

  “I am Megan.” She said it calmly as she waited. He gave her a once over and gave her a slight bow, before turning to have her follow him.

  He was a rude little negative thing, but she followed along, determined to make it through the next three days with some sense of dignity. She watched him as he made it to the car and helped her inside, never once smiling at her or saying a word. It would be very difficult indeed to pull off being his fiancé if he was going to be so difficult to talk to. She settled into the plush seats, thinking about her situation once more, letting it roll around in her brain. The truth of the matter east that she didn’t even know this guy, and here she was sitting in his car. He could be a serial killer or something. Who knew?

  It may be a good idea to take in her surroundings so that if something bad did happen, she could make it home safely after her escape. She decided to jot down a few notes, stresses and intersections just in case. She slipped the paper and pen back in her bag just as they pulled up in front of a massive and elegant hotel. She gulped hard as she watched him open the door for her. At the very least he had some manners, and was still holding on to chivalry.

  She turned to face him, waiting on him to say something, but he simply made his way up the grand staircase and to the front lobby. She followed along, amused as he sent a few young men scurrying out to the waiting car to get her bags. He was a hard-ass, and liked getting his way. Whoever he did have to marry was a poor girl. They rode the elevator and finally she’d had enough.

  “I know we don’t know each other, but in order for this to work don’t you think we have to at least look like we like each other. I mean you are stone cold.” She glanced at him waiting on a response. When he didn’t say anything, but simply cleared his throat, she felt herself getting irritated. It was just rude.

  “Well, whatever, I mean it’s your money. If you don’t want to talk to me then that’s just fine with me. I’ll just settle in with a good book, and make your appearances. I was just trying to be nice. It’s obvious you don’t feel as though you should do the same.” She snapped at him, and yet she couldn’t stop herself when she did it.

  There was a level of frustration in the way he simply walked out of the elevator as it opened, never once saying a word to her. She would have to be careful with this guy. For whatever reason he wanted her to be pissed off, or he was just a jerk. Either way, she needed to keep her cool before she lost this job entirely. They walked up to a room and he produced a gold key swiping it across the front of the door which unlocked it for them. He pushed open the door, allowing her to walk inside and he quickly followed her. Standing by the door, he cleared his throat once more.

  “Paulson is that you? I can’t believe you made it back so quickly. I had that ridiculous conference call and now I am stuck…” He trailed off as he walked into the foyer.

  It was a rare occasion in her 25 years that Megan had ever been speechless, and this was one of those occasions. He took long strides into the room, his upper body thick and full. His hair fell over his eyes perfectly accenting them, giving her a hint of the chocolate brown there. He had a beard, just enough to give him an edge, and he was beautiful to look at. She felt her body react to him the moment he walked in.

  He turned his attention to her, one eyebrow shot up as he gave her a one over and moved to stand in front of her. He smiled then, making her heart beat faster as he took her hand in his, delicately planting a soft kiss on the juncture between her forefinger and thumb. An odd place to be kissed, but it sent a shiver up her spine nonetheless.

  “You must be Megan?” He gave her a lazy smile. “I am Roman; I see you met Paulson.”

  “Uh, yes, I mean you’re Roman? He didn’t tell me that. In fact, he didn’t say a word.” She looked over and happened to catch a glimpse of what looked like a grin on Paulson’s face before he bowed and left the apartments.

  He let her hand go, and there was a slight disappointment in that. “Ah yes Paulson is a man of few words, don’t take it personally sweetheart that is just who he is.” He walked over to the bar, sauntering and he poured a drink, handing it to her before he took a long sip of his.

  * * *

  “Thank you but, I’m fine for now. I don’t like to drink too much.” She gave him a slight smile.

  “Well, let me show you your room for the next few days.” He walked ahead of her which suited her just fine as she was able to look at him more closely. He had the most adorable mole under his left ear. Something she hadn’t noticed before. She was still looking at him when he opened the door to her room.

  She
had never seen a room like this before, all in patters of blue which suited her. There were flowers and fluffy pillows spread around the room accenting the massive bed in the center. She smiled.

  “This is a beautiful room, thank you.” She glanced up at him, noting the puzzled look in his eye.

  “You’re a beautiful girl, you should sleep on nothing less.” He gave her an exaggerated bow, which caused her to laugh slightly.

  “I suppose that means you’ve begun the facade then?” Very well, thank you dear, I can’t imagine anything less.” She blinked her eyes at him and he smiled at her.

  “We should probably go over the details of what we need to do while you are here, that’s true enough. I’ll let you settle in and when you’re ready just come out and meet me in the dining hall. I’ll be waiting. He turned and whistled slightly as he made his way out of her room.

  Once he was gone she let her body relax, slumping down in a plush white overstuffed chair by a vanity. This job was much more complicated now that she had met the employer. He was too good looking for his own good. With a shrug she slipped into some soft sweats and a t-shirt and pulled her hair up high on her head. She refused to be someone she wasn’t, and her job was to play the role of his fiancé when they were out. As long as she was indoors, she would be herself.

  * * *

  Nicolai

  * * *

  He paused, waiting to hear her moving around in the room. He had been a little taken aback when he had come around the corner and she was standing there. Her video had made her attractive, true, but seeing her standing in front of him had been like a punch in the gut. She was beautiful. He kissed her hand, something Roman would likely never have done. He was doing his best to stay in character as his brother, but he had already slipped once, and he would have to work hard to not do it again. Roman wouldn’t have laughed at her jokes, or smiled at her like some stupid school boy.