The last part makes me a little nervous; I need this contract to remain in effect for at least several months so the media gets the idea that Kenzie and I are a couple and they get off my ass about my personal life. What happens if Kenzie cancels the contract after a couple of dates? I will be in the same situation I’m in now only the media will probably rip me a new one for being able to keep a woman for, a short period of time. As I down my glass of scotch, I decide to sign the contract, even with the risk of this backfiring. Weighing the pros and cons of the situation, if Kenzie decides to end the contract quickly, the PR department will just have to find a way to put a positive spin on it so I don’t look like an even bigger ass to the media. The risk of not doing something, letting my integrity be further destroyed, is too big of a risk. If things go well after a few dates with Kenzie, I will find a way to insure that she realizes that staying in the contract is in her best interest.
Kenzie:
“Bridget, it’s Kenzie; I’m returning your call from earlier. I apologize but I was working at the bakery this morning—“
“Of course, I apologize for calling you then. I’ve made a note in your file to only call in the afternoon; hopefully I’ll remember that.”
“It’s fine Bridget, really.”
“I’m calling to confirm the details for the New Beginnings Gala tomorrow night. I understand you have already obtained your dress and accessories for the event.”
“Yes, I have everything.”
“You have an appointment at the salon tomorrow at one, again the expense will be charged to my account so there will be nothing for you to take care of while you’re there. A car service will be outside of you apartment—“
“Wait, I thought we were meeting at your office?”
“You are meeting Mr. Parker here, Kenzie. The car service is from me, not Mr. Parker. I don’t see it being feasible for you to take the subway to get to my office in a ball gown. It doesn’t seem practical therefore, I have arranged a car service to bring you to my office. The same car service will meet you here after the gala to bring you home. I will not be here as I will be getting ready to attend the gala as well. However my security team will meet you and Mr. Parker in the lobby before and after the event. Mr. Parker’s driver will transport you and Mr. Parker to the Gala and back to my office. Did you receive my email yesterday?”
“Yes, I’ve reviewed the information you included about Mr. Parker and where he stands on various topics.”
“You don’t have to agree with any of his beliefs or stances, however what is key is that you do not verbally disagree with them while at an event. If they start talking about something you disagree with, either keep it to yourself or excuse yourself to use the ladies room.”
“I understand, Bridget.”
“The back story, should anyone ask, is that you and Mr. Parker met at a coffee shop a couple of months ago and have maintained contact with each other since.”
“Okay.”
“Oh and Kenzie, Mr. Parker’s parents are hosting the event so his family will be in attendance. They are unaware of this arrangement.”
“Of course.”
“Good luck, Kenzie, and try to enjoy yourself. I will be there if you need me but otherwise I will not act as if we know each other.”
“Thank you Bridget.”
Chapter 11
Kenzie
“You’re a fucking bitch! You can’t do anything right, can you?” he screams at me.
“I’m… I’m sorry,” I cry as he grabs my hair in his hand and pulls it hard so I fall onto the floor.
“I ask you for one fucking thing! One thing! Is it too much to ask for a hot meal to be on the fucking table when I get home? I work all day to keep a roof over your fucking head, to keep food on the table and what do I fucking get in return? A fucking cold dinner?”
SLAP
I wake up covered in sweat, my heart beating erratically as I frantically look around the room expecting him to be standing there. When my brain finally catches up to reality, my breathing finally begins to slow down as I realize he isn’t here and can no longer hurt me. I haven’t had a nightmare in a couple of weeks; they seem to come at random times and always without warning.
Tonight’s nightmare was more of a flashback, as most of them are. It was the night he hit me for the first time. I remember every detail as if it were yesterday. He left that morning requesting I have dinner ready when he gets home, as was the request every day before he went to work. He told me that day he would be home by 6:30 and that he expected dinner to be on the table when he walked through the door. I did just that: I had dinner hot and on the table by 6:25 in case he was early. He didn’t come up home until after eight that night and then was mad because dinner was cold. His screaming and yelling at me was nothing new—it had started a couple months ago but that night he slapped me for the first time. I still remember being in such shock that he hit me.
I shake my head, trying desperately to rid myself of those memories. I desperately need to focus on today and not on the past. I can’t spend my day thinking about him or I won’t be ready for tonight. I wish I could change the decisions I made back then, but it’s too late now and I just need to focus on moving forward. Tonight is my chance at changing my life; I need tonight to go perfect. Bridget sent me Mr. Parker’s schedule of events for the next two weeks that he has requested my attendance at. Even though he is asking about the dates now, I believe it is under the premise that tonight goes on without a hitch.
I need tonight to be absolutely perfect; the last thing I need is my shitty past distracting me. I need to be at the top of my game tonight. I need everything to be perfect. If tonight is perfect then I can quit working at the store and begin saving money so I can get out of this crappy apartment and into a safer neighborhood. Since meeting Mr. Parker earlier in the week, I’ve found myself starting to consider a future beyond this dump. I even looked into taking a few online classes from the local community college but I haven’t decided what I want to work towards yet.
Stop getting ahead of yourself, Kenzie.
I mentally criticize myself, I just need to focus on today. If I get my hopes up about the future, something will happen, my plans will be ruined and leave me nothing but disappointed again. It’s nearly five in the morning and although I would rather still be asleep, I know it’s highly unlikely that I will be able to fall back asleep after that nightmare. Whenever they hit, if I try to go back to sleep, I typically end up right back in the middle of it again. I learned years ago it was better to just stay awake than try to fight it and go back to sleep. It’s funny, I can’t recall a time in my life when nightmares weren’t an issue. Maybe when I was really little… it’s hard to remember when they started but I know they were there even before he came along. After him, the nightmares were there, only now nightmares fall into one of two categories: before or after him.
I’m nervous about tonight but I’m also confident in my ability to fit in. I went to the library earlier this week after Bridget confirmed that Mr. Parker had decided to move forward with our arrangement. I googled him and as he mentioned I would, I found many business articles written about him and PFS. I was floored when I learned that he is considered New York’s most eligible bachelor and even more so when I learned that he was also a billionaire, despite being only a few years older than me. I knew he had money; I doubted many people could afford Bridget’s prices but I had no idea he had that much money. The business articles written about him were all very complimentary and from what I read, everything about his business seems legit.
In addition to the links to hundreds of business articles, I found nearly as many links to tabloids that had written stories about Mr. Parker. Nearly every article tried to connect his business life with his personal life. A few speculated that if he continues to be unable to maintain a relationship with a woman his company will likely go under in the near future. Despite reading all of the articles, I still can’t figure out how the repo
rters are making the connection between his dating life and his business decisions.
What I did find interesting is that up until two years there weren’t any negative tabloid stories published about Mr. Parker. He was pictured in several articles with a beautiful blond on his arm; some referenced the woman as his girlfriend while others called her his fiancée. Then she is no longer in pictures with Mr. Parker and that’s when the negativity started.
My phone dings, alerting me to a message. I’ve set alerts on my phone when something new is written about Mr. Parker. I don’t want to get caught off guard if something big happens that I should know about. So far in the last few days nothing has been published other than a business article highlighting a deal he recently closed on. Today’s link sends me to a tabloid site that I’ve come to think is the one out to destroy Mr. Parker or PFS, based upon the crap that they write.
“Who will Mr. Parker bring to the gala tonight? Another nameless woman who will leave him after tonight? Or will he attend the event solo, yet again? What is Mr. Parker hiding and how is it related to PFS?”
Although I’ve only met Mr. Parker twice now, it doesn’t really seem like he is trying to hide something. Since I’m not exactly a detective I guess he could be and I wouldn’t know. Everything I read online about Mr. Parker and PFS plus the information that Bridget provided me, suggest that there is nothing illegal occurring.
As the day progresses, I find myself growing more and more nervous about the gala tonight. After reading everything I could about Mr. Parker and PFS, I researched tonight’s event. I didn’t want to show up and have no idea what the gala was raising money for. I learned that New Beginnings is an agency that focuses on bringing quality prenatal services to women in low income neighborhoods. Unlike many programs, they continue providing services until the child begins attending school. New Beginnings provides home visits, nutrition care, post-partum screening for the mother and ensure that the child sees a pediatrician regularly.
I learn that Mr. Parker’s parents have been hosting fundraising events for New Beginnings for the last ten years when it was started. Tonight’s event is an annual fundraiser that typically raises more than a quarter of a million dollars for the charity. I also read that there will probably be roughly 200 guests in attendance tonight, everyone from politicians to successful business men who will make large donations to support New Beginnings.
I spend the afternoon at the salon, my hair is trimmed and highlighted before placed into a half up half down style which Bridget recommended to compliment my gown. After my hair is done, I have a manicure and pedicure, plus get my eye brows waxed before my make-up is applied. I’ve never attended an event of this magnitude and I’m very grateful that Bridget scheduled all of this for me today. Business dinners, dates and small events I can handle but I don’t think I would be able to get myself ready for something this large by myself. By the time I leave the salon, even I’m shocked at the woman I see before me. I look elegant, sophisticated and somehow the salon made me look like I should be attending an event where people in attendance easily earn in a month what I earn in a year. I decide to splurge and take a cab back to my apartment rather than the subway. Although it cost an arm and leg to go this far, it’s worth it as to not mess up my make up or hair while on a train.
When I finally reach my apartment, I have less than thirty minutes to get changed before the car service Bridget organized is scheduled to pick me up. I take my gown out of the garment bag and place it on my bed before getting out the undergarments and other accessories needed for tonight. The gown is black with sequins sewn in allowing the light to shimmer off of it. The dress is form fitting on the top but loosens at my hips so it falls to the floor.
I fell in love with the gown the moment I tried it on but had sent a picture to Bridget just to make sure it was appropriate for the event even though the sales woman working with me insisted it would be fine. She, of course, confirmed the dress was perfect and insisted I had to wear it tonight.
I still don’t understand why Bridget felt I needed to purchase all new undergarments; it’s not like Mr. Parker will be seeing any of them. Bridget said something about it would make me feel sexier and therefore more confident. I agreed to appease her, once again grateful that I’m not the one having to pay for all of this. I didn’t catch the price on the gown, but I know the bra and panties cost a several hundred dollars together. Then there were stockings, shoes and jewelry that were added in with the gown to complete the outfit for tonight. It’s funny, I’ve been dressing women for events just like this for the last year and a half but never once considered how much really goes into the outfits or the price of everything.
By the time I am strapping my shoes on, the alarm on my phone indicates that it’s time for me to leave. I grab the silver clutch and wrap before peeking out the window to confirm the car service has arrived. It’s not hard to determine which car outside is for me. A sleek, obviously fairly new sedan stands out in front of my crappy building with a man dressed in a suit waits in front of it. The car obviously is unique among the usual curbside wrecks and doesn’t belong in this type of area, so it’s pretty safe to say the car is for me. I glance at the bathroom mirror one last time, making sure that everything is perfect before I lock my door and head downstairs.
“Ms. Rose?” the gentleman at the car greets me as soon as I step outside.
“Yes,” I confirm.
“I am here to take you Wilder Consulting,” he opens the door and I immediately slide across the leather seats.
“There are water bottles in the cooler at your feet if you’re thirsty.”
The ride to Bridget’s office doesn’t take long but as we approach, I can’t help but get more nervous as each minute passes. So much rests on tonight: whether Mr. Parker knows it or not, he holds the key to my future. If everything goes well tonight and he still wants to move forward with this arrangement, I will finally have extra money to change all the things in my life I’ve wanted to change. If tonight doesn’t work out and he decides I am not the type of woman he needs for this type of an arrangement, I don’t think I will move forward in working with Bridget. I think it would just be a sign that this business opportunity wasn’t for me.
“Ms. Rose, we have arrived,” the driver pulls me from my thoughts before I’ve even realized the car has stopped. “Take the elevator in the lobby to the fourteenth floor where your party will be waiting for you.”
The lobby of the building is simple but elegant, a security guard at the desk nods in my direction but doesn’t question why I am there or who I’m meeting. I don’t know if Mr. Parker is waiting for me upstairs or if it will just be Bridget’s security team that she mentioned would be here. The elevator ride is slow though I’m sure that’s more a result of my nervousness than anything. My hands play with my clutch as I slowly watch the numbers turn red as the elevator rises. When the bell dings, my nerves hit an all-time high but I push them down and take a deep breath before stepping out of the elevator.
“Ms. Rose, you look absolutely stunning,” Mr. Parker greets me the moment I step off the elevator.
“Thank you Mr. Parker, you look very nice as well.”
He is wearing what I suspect is a black tailored Armani tux complimented with a warm grey tie. Nice is probably the worst word to describe how he looks tonight but my brain isn’t able to process anything except nice and hot and sexy. I figure nice is the safest option…
“Please, call me Nicholas.”
“Only if you call me Kenzie.”
“Agreed. Are you ready to head to the gala? It’s a little bit of a drive in this traffic I’m afraid but we should arrive on time.”
We ride the elevator to the parking garage in complete silence but it’s not an uncomfortable silence. When the elevator doors open in the underground parking garage, Carter is waiting for us and escorts us to a large, black pristine SUV that looks like it was just driven off the dealer lot. Carter opens the door for me as Nicholas wal
ks around and gets in the other side.
“Do you have any questions about tonight, Kenzie?” Nicholas asks.
“I have reviewed all of the information that Bridget sent me and confident that I can recall where you stand on the issues she shared. I also spent sometime this week researching your company and the information published on your most recent projects.“
“You’ve been busy.”
“I wanted to be prepared.”
“I assume you saw the tabloid articles?”
“I did. I have to say I struggle to see how people are connecting your personal life to PFS’s success.”
“I can’t either. Frankly if I wasn’t concerned about how my employees and people I’m currently doing business with, I would say fuck it and not even do anything to address the articles written. However, when a magazine was found in one of our staff lounges open to the article questioning my ability to manage hundreds of employees, I knew I needed to do something and fast. I have too much at stake to let a few arrogant reporters destroy my life. This,” he gestures between us, “is a very small price to pay if it means the nonsense disappears and I can focus entirely on PFS.”
“Can I ask you something?”
“Of course.”
“I understand why you are doing this from a business perspective, but Bridget had mentioned your family would be in attendance tonight and that they are unaware of our arrangement… ”
“And you’re wondering why I haven’t told them about this?”
“If it’s too personal, you don’t have to tell me—“
“It’s not that. Honestly, it was never an option to tell them about this as far as I’m concerned. If I’m going to fabricate a lie that I need hundreds of people to believe, the less people who know the truth the better. For the most part the press has left my family alone, but there have been times when they have approached them about my personal life. If they believe the same lie that everyone else believes, there is no chance for them to let something accidently slip.”
On His Terms (The Arrangement Series Book 1) Page 11