by Folsom, Tina
That jab hurt. Sabrina had put herself on the shelf after the disaster with her fellow student Brian, who’d obviously just wanted to see if he could get her into bed so he could post a sex video on the internet. The humiliation was something she never wanted to feel again.
She’d buried herself in her studies after that and rarely taken part in the school’s social activities to avoid seeing him more than she had to.
“You need to get over it. What better way to do it, knowing exactly what you’re up against? It’s a one-night thing. He’s from out of town. You’ll never see him again. This is your chance to do something crazy, have fun, have fabulous sex, enjoy yourself, let loose.”
Holly gingerly bit into a cracker as she glanced at Sabrina.
Sabrina was torn. She wanted to help her best friend out of a jam. Holly had helped her out so many times over the last few years, and she really owed her. But this? How could she agree to pretend to be an escort and go to a strange man’s hotel room to have sex with him?
If her parents ever found out, they’d be appalled and sink into the ground out of shame for their daughter. Yet, one thing Holly had said, stuck. She had wallowed in her bad memories and hadn’t let anybody close because of it. She was afraid of getting hurt again and had passed up sex because of it.
Perhaps it wasn’t any worse than a blind date. Two strangers, a dinner, some sex. Wasn’t that what most men expected anyway from the women they dated? Only they got away cheaper, with just a lousy dinner. Why not sell herself for something more, something closer to what she was actually worth?
And besides, she’d started missing sex and the touch of a man. You couldn’t cuddle with a vibrator. But her fear of being hurt again had held her back from dating. She’d figured that once she met the right guy, things would fall into place. But they hadn’t. She hadn’t met anybody, and she was just as lonely now as she was after the debacle in law school.
Maybe Holly was right, and it was time to let loose and have one wild night with a stranger. Just one night. Without regret, without ever having to see the guy again, so there could be no embarrassment and no hurt. He wouldn’t even know who she was. Anonymity was a great protector.
“Will I have to ask him for the money upfront?”
Holly smiled. “No. Everything’s already paid for through the office. No messy dealings with cash. It’ll be like a date.”
Sabrina nodded slowly. There was no going back now. She had to be brave to help her friend—and herself in the process.
“Ok. I’ll do it. I’ll be Holly Foster for tonight.”
4
The minute Daniel opened the door of his hotel room, he realized why the escort agency had charged him an exorbitant amount of money for the pleasure of having the dark haired woman accompany him for the evening. She looked as if she’d stepped out of a fairy tale.
Her stunning green eyes looked at him. There was surprise in them as well as a silent question. Had she knocked on the wrong door? He hoped not.
If this was truly the escort they’d sent him, then he cursed himself already for not having asked more details about what he’d actually paid for. Was this strictly just a companion for the reception, or would she provide him with other, more personal services later?
Unable to speak, his eyes did all the talking for him, sweeping over the soft features of her face, her graceful neck and the slender curves accentuated by her light summer dress, short enough to show off her shapely legs all the way down to her elegant ankles. He noticed her chest rise with every breath she took.
Her breasts were the perfect size for his hands and firm without the aid of a bra. The slinky summer dress with spaghetti straps didn’t allow for one.
How long he’d stared at her, Daniel truly couldn’t tell. Maybe a second, or maybe as long as five minutes. But he knew why he was suddenly tongue-tied. It was a clear case of lust. Severe lust. Uncontrollable lust. Afraid he’d blurt out what was on his mind, something along the lines of I want to fuck you now, he clenched his jaw together and kept gazing at her lips. They were red and full and parting slightly as if waiting for his touch. He wished.
His imagination took him on a wild ride. He could see himself ripping the clothes off her body and ravishing her like a predator. Her soft body underneath his, he would ride her hard until she’d scream his name.
God, what he wanted her lips to do to him. Now. Instantly. He’d dated his fair share of pretty women and had bedded plenty of them, but the woman who stood before him was more than pretty. She looked like she was made for love.
And then she spoke. Like the soft trickle of a mountain spring, her voice pearled off her lips.
“I’m Holly, Holly Foster. The agency sent me.” There was still some uncertainty in her eyes. She wasn’t sure if she’d arrived at the correct room.
“Hi Holly, Holly Foster,” he greeted her, letting her name roll off his tongue. “I’m Daniel, Daniel Sinclair.”
She stretched out her hand, and he grasped it with his. “Hi Daniel, Daniel Sinclair,” she repeated and chuckled nervously. The chuckle sliced right through his body, making him feel like a college kid again. Was she really his date for the night? When exactly had he died and gone to heaven? Had the plane crashed?
“Please, come in. I’ll just get my jacket, and we can leave.” Daniel motioned her into the suite. Damn reception. He could think of better things to do with her than drag her to a boring business event. Drag her to his bed was more like it.
As he disappeared in the adjoining bedroom, Sabrina took the time to calm her nerves. She’d passed the first hurdle. When he’d stared at her while she’d waited at the door, she’d not been sure if she’d come to the right room. Why would a man as gorgeous as Adonis need an escort?
His imposing figure clad in dark pants and a white dress shirt just reeked of breeding and confidence. Surely more than a dozen women on this hotel floor alone would have loved to run their hands through his thick dark hair and throw themselves at him—or under him. Why he needed to hire an escort when he could certainly get anything he wanted for free was beyond her.
Suddenly the thought of having sex with a stranger wasn’t quite as daunting anymore. She’d do him anytime. God, she sounded like a hussy in her own mind. What had happened to the reserved and cautious woman she normally was? Had she turned into Holly already?
Sabrina was still absorbed in her thoughts when Daniel returned from the bedroom, now wearing a matching jacket, making him look like he’d just stepped out of a fashion photo shoot. Why was a mortal allowed to look this good? Were the Gods messing with her?
“I’ll fill you in on the way.” Daniel took her arm and led her to the door. The feel of his hand on her naked skin sent warm tingles rippling through her body.
“Where are we going?”
“To a reception at the Fairmont.”
As they made their way to the Fairmont Hotel, the famous hotel that had survived the 1906 earthquake, and which was located just across the street from the Mark Hopkins, he gave her more information.
“You’ll be accompanying me to an important business reception. I’ll introduce you as my girlfriend.” He glanced at her and smiled. Walking next to him, she could smell his masculine scent. It was intoxicating.
“Will people believe that? Surely, they know whether or not you have a girlfriend.” Her question about a potential girlfriend had nothing to do with the fact that she was skeptical about his plan. She was curious about the answer, which it seemed he didn’t want to give.
“Don’t worry. Nobody knows anything about my private life. They’re all business acquaintances. So, here’s your job for tonight: stay by my side, flirt with me, and if we do get separated and you see me talking to any woman under fifty, rescue me.”
“Rescue you?” Sabrina gave him a surprised look from the side. God, his profile was stunning.
Daniel laughed softly. “Yes, and that’s your most important job for tonight. I don’t want any of these eligible
single women digging their claws into me thinking they can … Well, anyway, if any of them come too close, you need to jump in and assert your claim on me. Make sure they know you mean business.”
Sabrina laughed. “Any preference on how I should assert my claim?” She had a few ideas herself but didn’t want to be presumptuous.
The look Daniel gave her was searing hot, unless she’d completely lost her mind and projected onto him what she wanted to see. “An intimate touch always works wonders, trust me. And any appropriate terms of endearment will be appreciated too.”
“I’m sure I can come up with something.”
His eyes locked with hers. “I’m positive you can.”
At the door to the hall where the reception was being held, they stopped. “I should hold your hand when we go in there.”
She swallowed hard. “Of course.”
When he took her hand and intertwined his fingers with hers, a bolt of lightning shot through her body. She was surprised at herself. Never had a simple touch by a man had such a profound effect on her.
The hall was busy. Sabrina estimated that over a hundred well-dressed people were in attendance. Waiters circulated with platters of canapés and trays of champagne. While there were certainly many women in attendance, there was an overwhelming number of men dressed in dark suits, some looking more bored than others. Lawyers, for sure. She recognized the type.
Daniel pulled her with him as they made their way through the crowd to the back of the room. He gave off an air of confidence and determination, as if this were his backyard.
“Ah, there you are. We were wondering when you’d show.” A distinguished gentleman in his late fifties stopped them.
“Martin. Nice to see you again.” Daniel stretched out his hand and shook Martin’s.
“May I introduce my wife? Nancy, this is Daniel Sinclair, the man who’s buying us out.”
The petite woman on Martin’s arm smiled broadly and shook Daniel’s outstretched hand. “Such a pleasure to finally meet you,” she chirped while she glanced at Sabrina.
“Likewise. I suppose you’ll see much more of Martin once this deal is finalized.”
Nancy nudged her husband in the ribs and rolled her eyes. “Don’t remind me. He’s going to drive me crazy spending so much time at home.”
Her husband returned a loving smile. “She’s just joking. In reality, she can’t wait to have me spend more time with her. But enough about us.” Martin’s eyes rested on Sabrina. “Daniel, would you introduce us to your companion?”
“My apologies. Martin, Nancy, this is Holly, my fiancée.”
As soon as the words were out of Daniel’s mouth, Sabrina gave him a surprised look but immediately turned back to their hosts and flashed them a charming smile. Why hadn’t he stuck to his original plan? Why suddenly upgrade her to fiancée?
After exchanging handshakes and greetings, they started to make small talk.
“You don’t sound like you’re from New York, Holly,” Nancy remarked.
“I’m not. I’m from the Bay Area.”
Martin gave Daniel a knowing look. “I see. So my company isn’t the only acquisition you’re making in San Francisco.”
Daniel grinned and led Sabrina’s hand to his mouth, planting a small kiss on it. “Guilty as charged.”
The kiss was unexpected and made Sabrina’s heart beat faster. She smiled at him briefly, but the kiss hadn’t affected him at all. It seemed he was used to pretend things that weren’t true.
“What do you do, Holly?” Nancy asked.
When Daniel heard Nancy’s question, he flinched. Damn, they hadn’t discussed a back story at all. He glanced at Holly trying to catch her eye, wondering whether she could improvise, but her mouth was already in motion.
“I’m an attorney,” she offered. He blinked his eyes shut for a second as if waiting for a bomb to drop. Hell, she’d trip herself up with a statement like that. There were more lawyers in the room than at a legal convention in Las Vegas. He should have briefed her before their arrival. This was a disaster waiting to happen.
“Let’s not talk business, shall we?” he cut in, trying to save the day. “Champagne, darling?” He stopped a waiter and took two glasses off the tray, handing her one. Too late: Nancy had already waved a man to them. Daniel recognized him. He was one of the attorneys working on the acquisition.
“Bob, you know Daniel already, but let me introduce you to his fiancée, Holly Foster. She’s an attorney.”
Shit. Daniel almost choked on his champagne. How would his pretty escort handle this? Bob was never one for small talk. All this lanky attorney ever talked about was his work.
“Nice to meet you, Holly. Which school?” As Daniel had predicted, Bob went right down to business.
“Hastings,” she replied without hesitation.
“Wow, what a coincidence. Class of ’99. Is Bunburry still teaching?” Bob was in his element. Perfect, the whole charade would blow up in his face in the next two minutes, Daniel was sure. Couldn’t she at least have chosen some obscure little school somewhere out in the boonies, rather than Hastings School of Law, which even he as an out-of-towner knew, was right in San Francisco? She probably didn’t know of any other law school. Figured. God, he was so screwed.
“He retired last year, finally,” Sabrina answered confidently.
Bob nodded understandingly. “About time.” Lucky guess, Daniel reckoned.
Before he could disrupt the conversation and steer it in another direction, Martin interrupted him to introduce a beautiful redhead.
“You have to meet Grace Anderson. She sits on practically every charity board in the city. Grace, dear, this is Daniel Sinclair.”
Grace blew a kiss into Martin’s direction and immediately locked onto Daniel. He’d seen that look before. He was being sized up by a woman who knew what she was looking for: a wealthy husband. Glancing back, he saw that his pretend fiancée was in deep conversation with Bob. Bad timing.
“Nice to meet you, Ms Anderson.”
Daniel shook her hand and let go of it as soon as he could.
“Why so formal? Please call me Grace.” Her saccharine sweet smile was nauseating. This was exactly what he’d been trying to avoid. He felt like a caged tiger, just a little less tame. Her suggestive smile told him unmistakably that she was going to make a move on him as soon as he let his guard down.
“Which charities are you involved in?” He had to make small talk, even though he had no interest in talking to this woman at all. She was a carbon copy of Audrey: shallow, pretentious, and out to find a rich husband. Funny, how now that he’d broken up with Audrey, he could see her for what she truly was.
Daniel barely listened to the woman’s chatter and instead tried to hone in on the conversation between Holly and Bob, but they were too far away for him to pick up any snippets over the din of voices in the room.
He realized that Grace had stopped talking and asked him something, when he suddenly felt her hand on his forearm.
“Don’t you think so?”
He gave a non-committal smile and wondered how he could get out of her clutches.
“Darling,” a voice from behind saved him. He turned gratefully as he felt Holly’s hand on his back. “Bob was just telling me the funniest story about his law school days. I think you’ll get a kick out of it, especially since you love baseball.” Sabrina gave Grace a pointed look, then lowered her eyes to where her hand rested on his arm. “Excuse us. I’ll have to steal my fiancé for a moment.”
Grace instantly withdrew her hand as if she’d been burned.
Sabrina pulled him away out of earshot of the woman. “Was that all right?”
Daniel took a step closer to her. “Perfect,” he said and planted a quick kiss on her cheek—her now flushed cheek. “That was close. I don’t know how these women hone in on bachelors within seconds. She was about to dig her claws into me.”
“One of her claws was already on you.” Holly chuckled softly. “You
don’t like women much, huh?”
He gave her an astonished look. “No, that’s not it. I don’t like gold diggers much. So, how did you manage to survive Bob?”
“Easy. Don’t worry about me. I can handle Bob.”
He gave her an admiring glance. She evidently could handle Bob. He figured there were a lot of other things she could handle too, maybe even him. Maybe he could get a taste tonight of exactly how she would handle him.
“Come, we’ll have to mingle a little before we can get out of this circus.” He took her hand again, not that it was necessary, but he wanted to. He liked touching her.
5
Sabrina enjoyed the evening. Daniel introduced her to many people, whose names she instantly forgot as they moved on to others, who wanted to make her acquaintance.
From all the chitchat, she’d pieced together that Daniel was in town to finalize the acquisition of a company, and given the many beautiful young women, who wanted to meet him, she also realized that he was one of the most eligible bachelors currently in town. No wonder he wanted somebody as a buffer. She did her best to scare all women away as he’d requested.
Even though it was her job for the evening, she loved it. She loved touching him, taking his hand, calling him darling. He’d kissed her on the cheek only that one time, and she wondered whether he’d do it again. His lips had felt so warm and tender, and she’d started fantasizing about how his lips would feel on other parts of her body. The thought made her feel flushed.
Since he’d obviously simply hired her to be his pretend girlfriend, though inexplicably elevated her to fiancée status, in order to ward off other women, there was little chance he actually wanted to have sex with her. He seemed like a man who chose his sexual partners carefully and not like one who’d hop into bed with an escort, not even a pretend escort.