Total pages in book: 25
Estimated words: 23425 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 117(@200wpm)___ 94(@250wpm)___ 78(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 23425 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 117(@200wpm)___ 94(@250wpm)___ 78(@300wpm)
He’s offering more money than I’ve ever had, enough to cover all my family owes, enough that I could quit the life, and I’m actually considering it.
And it’s not just because he’s gorgeous, or that his body is flawless, or that his voice sends shivers down my spine.
There’s something about this man that I can’t quite put my finger on…like we’ve met somewhere before…
*************FULL BOOK START HERE*************
1
Russell
I’m getting less and less into these bar nights of “picking up chicks with the dudes” every time we go out, and it’s making me feel more and more like a wimp. I don’t know what it is – whether it’s just the fact that I’m getting tired of darts and pool and drinking beer every single weekend, or if it’s just that picking up on girls doesn’t do it for me anymore.
Out of all the guys, I’m the only one who has the balls to go and approach a girl, so it’s not like there’s a whole lot of fun to it anyway. The game should be renamed from Pick up Chicks to Watch Russ Pick up Chicks.
“That one over there, bro,” Tyler says, pointing at a bored-looking blonde by the bar, whose friend is clearly ignoring her while being chatted up by some jock-looking dude in the middle of buying her a drink. “She’s totally primed up.”
“Primed up?” I laugh, taking a sip of my Old Fashioned. “Sounds more like a race car.”
“She might be, man,” Nate chuckles. “Never know until you give her a ride.”
Beside him, Jim bursts out laughing. Out of the three of them, Jim loves the dad jokes the most.
“Why don’t you go ask her out, Nate?” I ask, wrapping my arm around his neck. “Or are you too afraid with your movie-star good looks?”
I’m laying the sarcasm on thick, and all the other guys know it and start laughing. Nate laughs and shrugs, leaning into the joke with a nod. “You know me. I don’t want to ruin the chances for all the other guys at the bar.”
“Right,” I reply, rolling my eyes as I finish my drink. “I need a refill. I’ll be right back.”
I get up from our booth and go up to the bar. I’m leaning there waiting when a new bartender comes out from the back. Our eyes meet, and he stops dead in his tracks, cocks his head to one side and points. “Russell?”
“Eric?”
I recognize him immediately as an old buddy from way back in high school. “Hey, man!” I exclaim. “What the – how the hell are ya?”
Laughing, we shake heartedly, and he comes around the bar to give me a hug. “I’m good, man, how are you? Still a teacher?”
I nod. “Yup, still teaching. My fiancée just left me for my lawyer, but other than that, I’m great!”
“Shit, man,” he grumbles. “Life’s a bitch sometimes, ain’t it?”
“Tell me about it.” I nod. “So you’re tending bar?”
“Yeah, kinda,” he replies. “On my way out, though. Just came for my tips. Heading to my other job.”
“Working two jobs? Damn, man. You’re hustling.”
Eric glances from side to side before moving closer and lowering his voice. “Let me ask you something, Russ. Can I still trust you?”
“What?” I chuckle. “Of course you can, man. Who was it that covered for you when Miss Jenkins was looking for the kid who rigged the toilets in the girls’ bathroom?”
Eric laughs and nods. “All right, fair. Listen, my other job isn’t much different than this one.”
“You’re tending bar?”
“Serving drinks,” he replies. “At…high end, upscale parties for the elites.”
“Elites?” I don’t even really know what to say, so I just sort of look at him for a second to see if he smirks to let me know he’s kidding. But the seconds tick by, and he doesn’t. “What are you talking about, man?”
“Super wealthy guys,” Eric replies, a twinkle in his eye. “And women you would not believe hired to entertain them.”
“Entertain?” I repeat.
He nods. “Yeah. You know what I mean.”
“Are you saying what I think you’re saying?”
Eric’s nods become more enthusiastic. “Some just dance – others, well…”
I hear a commotion behind us and turn to see Jim, Nate, and Tyler waving their hands in my direction, clearly wanting me to join them and get back to putting on a display of picking up girls for them. I hold up my index finger and turn back to Eric.
“So high priced escorts?” I say.
“Basically, yeah,” Eric replies. “The highest of the high. I’m talking ex-models, actresses. I had to sign an NDA when I took the job.”
“You’re screwing with me,” I laugh, shoving him in the shoulder. But Eric just shakes his head in reply.
“I’m dead serious, bro. In fact, I’m on my way there tonight. If you wanted me to get you in for old time’s sake…”
Suddenly my heart rate is rising, and the boring evening I saw in front of me seems not so boring. If what Eric is saying is true, this could be a once in a lifetime chance to see behind the curtain of a part of society that people speak about but I never actually believed existed. Something that you only ever see represented in movies.
I’ve come to this same dive bar a million times with the boys, and if I say no to Eric and stick around, I know I’m just going to end up going over to some poor girl and giving her some dumb pickup line to see how she responds just so the boys can laugh about it. And even if she does end up giving me her number – which I doubt – I won’t end up calling her anyway, as I’m never in the dating mood since Cheryl ran off on me with Barry.