The Escort Read online

  “Screw you.” I hopped down from the table, found my panties on the chair and pulled them on, then tugged down my skirt and buttoned my blouse.

  “I just did.” He waved, then walked away.

  “Where are you going?”

  He kept right on walking.

  My every instinct screamed for me to chase after him, to demand we talk this through—whatever this even was. But because my heart wanted to play nice with Nathan, my head wouldn’t allow it.

  All those times before when I’d thought we were done? Those had been merely a drill.

  This was the real thing.

  Nathan Black was officially out of my life, and the knowledge annihilated me.

  Chapter 31

  Nathan

  Aside from the calls I made to family back in Arkansas, I spent New Year’s alone in my shitty apartment, eating Chinese takeout and registering for new online classes. Since I’d flunked the last semester, my only option was to try again.

  One week passed and then another.

  I found a job stocking groceries in the Chinese supermarket down the street, and tried to think about Carol as little as humanly possible.

  After selling the Bentley, and paying taxes on that and the total of all the money Uma had given me, I had a nice cushion, but nothing to turn flips over.

  Every night after finishing my online homework, I scoured job boards for any legit opportunities that offered on-the-job training. Most were for scammy-sounding marketing jobs or truck driving. I’d sent my résumé to a local company that manufactured deep-sea fishing lures and had a full-time opening on their assembly line, but hadn’t yet heard back.

  I checked my spam file—just in case. There wasn’t anything from Catch Me Inc., but after permanently deleting all the get-rich-quick schemes, sex ads, and letters from overseas folks who’d inherited millions and needed me to “most graciously allow them to store their millions in my account,” the only things left were about ten notes from [email protected].

  I stared at the screen for a long time. Could this be the same company I used to obsess over back when I’d been desperate for any way to make a living that didn’t include stacking cans?

  I opened the letters to find they were all the same. An open invitation to visit a Palo Alto firm called Great Ideas. Like most every other ad I’d answered, this was probably a scam, but I fired off a response.

  A few days later, I had an answer. A guy named Luke wanted to meet with me in his office. I filled out an online application.

  Next Wednesday, I traded shifts with a guy I worked with, then took a series of buses to the Great Ideas office. All was going great until I got off the bus at the address I’d been sent to, only to find they’d screwed up by sending me to Zoogle headquarters.

  Fucking swell.

  According to my schedule, it would be at least forty minutes till the next bus came, so I headed inside to ask the security guard if he’d ever heard of the Great Ideas company, and if so, if he happened to know their correct address.

  Carol had told me that she and Liam worked on the top floor, and the place was massive, so I figured the odds of meeting either of them in an awkward encounter was nil.

  Entering the mirrored, towering office of Zoogle was like stepping into a tropical-themed Oz. Palm trees lined a massive atrium that was big enough for a babbling brook to run down the center. Everywhere I looked were yuppie types like the ones I’d seen at the coffee shop where Carol and I had met. They all looked busy and productive and smiley. Good for them for being able to bow to King Liam, but it would be a cold day in hell before I’d ever sink to that level.

  Liam was fundamentally a decent guy, and I got that Ella loved the shit out of him, but my admittedly fragile ego had a hard time grasping how a dude not that much older than me had achieved his level of success.

  After shutting my gaping mouth, I strolled up to the guard desk to ask my question.

  “Funny you should ask.” The guard, a jovial guy with a beer belly and vivid blue eyes, rose and pointed toward the farthest elevator bank. “I get that question all the time. Great Ideas has an office in the building. If you’ll show me your ID, I’ll get you all fixed up.” He punched my info into his computer, then waited while a printer popped out a temporary badge that even had my driver’s license photo on it. He attached it to a lime-green Zoogle lanyard, then handed it to me. “Nathan, what you want to do is head to the executive level, where a guy named Luke Corbitt will meet you. Looks like you’re right on time, so I’ll call and let him know to be waiting.”

  “Thanks, man.” I grabbed the ID, but wasn’t sure I wanted to go any farther.

  The top floor was where Carol and Liam hung out. The last thing I wanted was a run-in with either of those two.

  “Go right on up,” the guard urged.

  I released a long, slow breath before aiming for my appointed elevator.

  I wasn’t big on prayer, but shot up a quick one for protection in keeping me away from Carol. The bite from our last encounter still stung.

  “Nathan Black?” Sure enough, the moment the elevator doors swished open, a yuppie type in tan cords and long-sleeved flannel held out his hand in greeting. “I’m Luke. Good to finally meet you. Liam forwarded me your series of emails a while back, and—”

  “Wait—Liam, as in Liam Stone?”

  “Sure. Have you met him?”

  I winced. “You could say that. I thought this whole Great Ideas thing was its own company? The guard said it’s just housed in the building.”

  “Technically, it is kind of its own special entity, but trust me, that’s a good thing. Great Ideas is Liam’s personal baby. The men and women who are accepted into our program go on to some pretty amazing gigs.” The whole time we’d been talking, Luke walked and I followed. He stopped at the entrance to a conference room, holding out his hand for me to go in.

  I passed him, only to get a shock.

  Liam and Carol sat at a long table that held a muffin basket, a fruit tray, an assortment of juices, and a whole lot of pamphlets and high-tech gadgets.

  Oh, hell no.

  Carol actually gasped, then covered her mouth.

  Liam rose, extending his hand. “I’ll be damned. Talk about a crazy coincidence. You’re hogfan72?”

  “Yeah. But looks like there’s been a mistake, so I’m gonna go.” I hitched my thumb toward the door.

  Luke looked all wide-eyed and confused, like he’d swallowed a frog. “Is everything okay?”

  “How about letting me handle this from here?” Liam suggested. “It just so happens that the candidate and I go way back.”

  “Oh—well, sure,” Luke said. “I’ll be in my office if you want me to get him started with orientation.” He waved. “Nice meeting you, Nathan.”

  “Likewise.”

  Once Luke had shut the door, Carol shot up from her chair. “What are you doing here?”

  “I could ask the same of you.”

  “Now, now, kids. Let’s not let this get out of control. Carol, you know as well as I do that the program runs blind. Nathan, as you may or may not have already heard, Great Ideas is a pet project of mine. I know there are a lot of smart folks out there who didn’t have the same educational opportunities as me. Because of that, I place ads in small papers. I’ve got enough résumés from big-name school graduates to carpet I-280. What I’m looking for is—”

  “With all due respect,” I said, “I appreciate this big front you’ve put on for my benefit, but Ella put you up to this, didn’t she? She knows I need a job, and that Carol doesn’t want to be with a guy who can’t support her.”

  “How dare you put words in my mouth?” Carol snapped. “You are the last person I’d want to see in this program, because only hardworking, genuine people need apply. This is the kind of once-in-a-lifetime opportunity anyone would be a fool to pass on. And I’d like to know how Ella could have put Liam up to this when she doesn’t even know the program exists.”

  “
Well…” Liam reddened. “She’s knows about it, but Nathan, I swear to you, man, your being here is a straight-up coincidence. I vet every single applicant from those ads, and dude, I was blown away by not only your tenacity, but the outside-the-box thinking that this company needs to keep rising to the next level. If I’d had any idea what kind of head you had on you, I’d have hired you last year.”

  I held up my hands in surrender. “I get it. You two are putting on a great little performance. But seriously, I’m out of here. Tell Ella thanks, but no thanks. I can find my own job.”

  “You idiot,” Carol said. “All along, the main thing keeping us apart has been your pride. It was pride that made you take that escort job, and pride that kept you from telling me the truth on an easy half-dozen occasions. Oh sure, you said you did it to protect me, but let’s get real. First, you’d been too embarrassed to tell me Uma had made it impossible for you to quit, then it was your pride again not wanting to tell me you’d been beaten half to death, because something like that would never happen to a real man, right? And let’s not forget the night you got charged with murder. Pride got in the way then, too, because if you had just told me you were going on one, last date with Margot, regardless of the outcome, you would have had a built-in, airtight alibi. But no—you always have to do everything on your own, and I’m sick of it.” She slapped the table, then shot me a go-to-hell stare before exiting the room.

  For the first time since I’d known him, Liam seemed at a loss for words. Finally, he said, “That could’ve gone better.”

  “Sorry about that. I, ah, guess I’ll just go.”

  He nodded. “God’s honest truth, man, neither of us knew you were coming in. For what it’s worth, if you change your mind about being in the program, give me a call. It’s a full-time gig with a base salary of fifty K plus two weeks’ vacation and standard benefits. You’d start with my next group and spend a few weeks in each department—sometimes in different offices all over the world. The full rotation takes four years, and if, at the end of that time, you feel like you’ve found a niche within the company you’d be happy working in, we’d love to have you. If you’d rather move on, that’s cool, too. Oh—and we’re affiliated with UC Berkeley, so you’d be doing concurrent coursework during the length of the program. When it’s finished, you’ll have also earned a business degree.”

  I clenched my teeth, balled my hands into fists. “Thanks, but not interested.”

  “I get it,” he said. “I used to be you. God’s honest truth? If it weren’t for our shark lawyer, Garrett, Zoogle might not have ever left me and my pal Owen’s basement. Like you, we were just kids with good ideas, but no real practical knowledge of how to put them to use. Forget what Carol said. I’ve known her forever and she’s got it bad for you, man. Her mood will blow over. But a chance like this—whether you get back together with her or not—could fucking change your life. And make no mistake—I’m not just handing this to you. You’ll earn your keep, just like everyone else in the program.”

  I turned to the door, and then froze.

  What the hell was I doing?

  How long had I been busting my balls looking for a chance like this? Now, here it was, being served up on a diamond-encrusted platter, and I was seriously about to fuck it away? Carol was right. I’d been blind on so many levels, but all along, she’d read me like a book.

  “Nathan?” Liam asked. “You okay? If you have like an aneurysm or some shit, Ella will have my ass.”

  I laughed, then sobered. “Not that I guess it matters to anyone but me, but man-to-man, for real I’m here on merit and not because you’re doing Ella or Carol a favor by taking me on?”

  He held up his right hand. “God’s honest truth. Your ideas excited me, and it’s no secret that you and I have never been big fans of each other.”

  “True…”

  “With that being said, why the hell would I want your ugly face in my building every day when I don’t even like you?”

  “Good question.”

  “The short answer is that I don’t have to like someone to recognize a spark in them. You’re meant for something bigger than stocking groceries, Nathan. I’d be honored if you’d let me help you figure out just what that greatness is.”

  We shook hands, settled on my start date, and then it was official—I would soon be a Zoogle employee.

  He walked me to the bus stop, and we shot the shit about everything from his and Ella’s soon-to-be-born baby to football, when one of my great ideas struck. I knew how to prove to Carol I loved her. Trouble was, if I’d had to swallow my pride to take this Zoogle position, I’d have to swallow a fucking mountain to summon the nerve to ask Liam for this favor…

  Chapter 32

  Carol

  “Hey, Lou,” I said to the round-faced security guard manning Zoogle’s front desk. “Is my group here?”

  “Not yet. If you’ve got work to do, head on down to the coffeehouse, and when they do get here, I’ll send ’em your way.”

  “Thanks. I owe you.”

  “You’d better watch what you say, or I might convince you we need to go on a date.”

  I blew him a kiss, then started down the lobby’s wide atrium path that led toward the in-house coffee shop, cafeteria and company store.

  It was May, and although time is supposed to heal all wounds, I still missed Nathan every day. Ella’s Maui baby shower hadn’t been nearly as special without him, nor had the blessed birth of Ella and Liam’s adorable baby girl. I focused on my work, and tried not thinking about what I might have done differently to now have him in my life.

  Time had given me a fresh perspective on the events that had occurred while we’d been together. I was no longer angered by Nathan’s lies, but saddened. I also knew that if we ever bumped into each other again at one of Ella’s parties, I’d be the one begging him for a second chance. I’d been too hard on him that day in the conference room, but the shock of seeing him on my turf had been too much. Then, when he’d walked out on Liam’s most sought-after apprentice program without even knowing what all it entailed…well, I’d freaked.

  How could he be that stubborn? It didn’t make sense.

  But maybe that’s why we were no longer together. Because neither of us had ever been any good at figuring the other out.

  “There she is.” Leo approached with my tour group. I led office tours all the time, so this one shouldn’t have been different—only it was obvious from the start that it was. My throat tightened and my voice threatened not to work. “Little ladies, Miss Carol will be leading your tour, and if you play your cards right, she’ll probably get you some presents and ice cream when you’re done.”

  Both little girls clapped and smiled. Jane had dark hair, and of course, my Fern was blond. How was this possible?

  I looked to Conner and Stacia Holden. Though we’d only met once, their angry faces were forever burned into my memory. Today, they met my questioning gaze with apprehension. Mr. Holden nodded, confirming my suspicion that this meeting had somehow been arranged.

  The other fourth grader’s parents smiled and shook my hand. I had so many questions, but I played it cool.

  The girls were here due to winning an essay contest on how they would make the world greener. Jane opted for saving energy by using squirrels to run cars. Fern was clearly the more brilliant of the two, as her winning idea had been to require every home in American to grow a vegetable garden. How could anyone not be wowed by her suggestion?

  For the next three hours, I led the girls and their parents on a VIP tour. They saw everything from how the stream worked and how a special zoological department cared for the tropical birds and fish to our media, software and advertising services departments. Their favorite area was the new product development level, where they got to be the first consumers ever to try out four unreleased phone-app games.

  When I showed the girls everything I could think of—including the executive-wing conference room that had live jellyfish floatin
g in tanks on the doors—I took them to the cafeteria, where they made their own sundaes in the ice-cream parlor.

  We ended the trip with a shopping spree in the company store, where I told the girls to pick out anything they wanted—this portion of the tour wasn’t customary, but I didn’t care. I asked the register clerk on duty to charge my account for the girls’ selections. Fern’s sparkling blue eyes had grown huge when I told her she could have one of our Zoogle laptops, a phone, and a tablet. Of course, I’d given a set to Jane, too.

  “That’s too much,” said Mrs. Holden.

  “Not at all,” I said. “It’s the least I can do for you all allowing me to share Jane and Fern’s special day.”

  When Jane gifted me with a warm goodbye hug, I hoped Fern might feel compelled to do the same. She did, and for those few seconds I held her, I felt impossibly full. This beautiful, smart, funny child was my daughter. My chest tightened and throat once again knotted, but I maintained my cool. I wasn’t sure by what miracle this meeting had come about, but I wasn’t naive enough to believe it pure coincidence.

  When the group left the building, I stood just inside the door, watching them until they’d climbed into their shared rental and drove away.

  My next stop was the restroom, where I found tissues to blot my teary eyes and blow my nose. After that, I strode straight to Liam’s office, not bothering to knock before walking right through the door, then ran to him for a hug. “How did you do that? How did you even know?”

  “Know what?” He glanced up from the report he’d been reading.

  “Don’t play innocent with me, Liam Stone. You and Ella arranged for my daughter to be here, didn’t you?”

  “Did you have a great visit?”

  “What do you think?”

  “I hope it was awesome, because if it wasn’t, I guess I’ll take the hit.”