Escorting Jessica (5 page)

His stomach tightened and his heart raced. “I, umm, are you busy today? I’m visiting my parents and brother, and if you didn’t have any plans...I thought maybe you’d like to join me?”

“Oh, I’d love to. But I gave Amy the day off, so I have to work. If you’d asked me sooner, maybe I could have—”

“That’s okay.” He shrugged and stood to pace the bedroom. “No big deal. I guess it’s a little soon to meet the parents, huh?” What was he thinking asking her to go meet his family? He was head over heels for Jessica, but he had no idea how she felt about him.
I’m a fucking idiot.

“It’s not that. Really. I have to work, otherwise...”

“I understand. Maybe we can have lunch Monday?”

“I’d like that.”

“Great. Well, I’ll come by the gym at noon to pick you up.”

“Sounds great.”

“Bye, Jessica.”

“Bye.”

***

Jessica hopped out of bed and skipped to the kitchen with Chaz at her heels. She poured his food into a dish and scratched his head before setting the dish on the floor. He purred his approval and she pranced to the shower.

Trevor wanted her to meet his parents. He must’ve really been interested if he was ready to take that step. A giddy giggle bubbled in her chest. She was falling in love.

Even though she had to work, Jessica had a glorious day fantasizing about Trevor in her spare time. She fell into a blissful sleep that night and woke early the next day.

***

“There’s something different about you today.” Amy tapped a pencil eraser on the counter and eyed her boss.

Jessica glanced up but continued wiping down the weight machine. “Oh, yeah? Like what?” Only an hour and a half to go until Trevor arrived. She didn’t try to hide her smile. “I’m still the same ole me.”

“No. There’s something else. You seem...lighter today. Happier.”

Jessica stopped wiping and strolled to the counter. “I have another date with Trevor. He’s picking me up at noon.”

“I knew it!” Amy slapped her hand on the desk. “You slept with him, didn’t you? You’ve got the glow of a girl who got laid.”

“Is it that obvious?” Heat flushed her cheeks. “I mean, it had been a while.”

Amy laced her fingers together and held her hands against her heart. “Oh, do tell! Was he amazing?”

She bit her bottom lip and cast her gaze to the floor. Should she tell her friend what really happened? Why not? Maybe Amy could help talk up the service to the gym members, too. “I didn’t exactly sleep with
Trevor.
”

Amy tilted her head to the side. “Come again?”

Jessica took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “I, uh, he offered to let me try out a new service. Something his business is offering now.”

Amy’s eyes widened. “You did it with an escort?”

“Not just one.” She flashed a tight smile and raised her eyebrows. “Four.”

“Four? At a time? All at once?” Amy picked up a fitness magazine and fanned herself.

Jessica shrugged. “Yeah. And Trevor watched.”

“Holy mother of... You? I... Oh, my god! That had to be the most exciting thing ever!”

“Oh, Amy, it was. He called me yesterday and wanted me to go meet his parents. But I had to work, so I didn’t. But, I—” Her ringing cell phone cut her off. “Let me get that. It’s him. Hey, Trevor!”

“Hi, Jessica.” The tone of his voice made her heart drop. “Listen, I have to cancel our lunch date. I’ve got to meet with...a potential client.”

“Oh.” Her voice was barely a whisper.

He perked up. “Well, you know her. You remember Courtney Lee, right? From school?”

How could she forget? Courtney was a cheerleader, and she dated just about every hot guy at their high school. “Umm, yeah. I know
of
her.”

“Okay. So, I have to meet with her. I’ll call you later. I’m running late.”

“Sure thing.”

Jessica fought to hold back the tears as they said their goodbyes. Her lip trembled as she shoved her phone into her pocket and looked at Amy.

“What did he say?”

“He’s going out with Courtney Lee.” The tears that threatened to spill turned into deep sobs as Amy rushed around the counter to comfort her friend. Jessica leaned into Amy’s shoulder and cried. “She was only like the most popular girl in school. I think Trevor was the only hot guy she didn’t date. I guess he’s finally getting his turn.”

Her heart felt like it had been ripped from her chest and crushed in a vise. How could he be so nonchalant about going out with another woman? After he had just invited Jessica to meet his parents?

Amy patted her on the back. “Now, now. Let’s not jump to conclusions. Did he
say
he was
going out
with her? Maybe she just needs an escort.”

“I doubt it.” Jessica reached for a tissue and wiped the mascara from beneath her eyes. “She’s beautiful. She was eight years ago, anyway.” How could she have let herself fall so fast? She read him completely wrong. Maybe all he wanted from Jessica was a business partnership. Could that be it?

The door chimed to signal the entrance of customers, so she excused herself to the restroom to clean up. She needed to suck it up and make it through the day. She could have her pity party when she got home.

***

Trevor reached for the phone to call Jessica back, but stopped himself. Why did he think telling her he was meeting with Courtney would make canceling the date any better? By the tone of her voice, it seemed to make it worse.

He shouldn’t have canceled on her. He should’ve told Courtney he was busy and she’d have to make room in her schedule another day. But she was insistent. And from what she said, the meeting could make Hill’s Escorts quite a bit of money.

But Jessica was more important to him than his job. Now he’d have to work extra hard to prove it to her. The sooner he could get through this meeting, the better.

Chapter Eight

“Aren’t you going to answer that?” Amy’s imploring gaze couldn’t sway her. Trevor was calling—again, but Jessica had nothing to say to him.

“No.”

“Can I answer it?”

“No.” He’d called twice since he’d broken her heart to go out with another woman. What could he possibly want? To tell her how amazing his date went? No way was she going to subject herself to that. She had one more hour of work left, and then she could go home to Chaz and cry in his fur.

Amy sighed and shook her head. “I’m going to start a load of towels. I’ll be okay if you want to cut out early.”

“No. I’m fine.” She picked up a ten-pound weight and moved it into the proper slot. Why was it so hard for her members to put the weights back in order? She squatted behind the rack and got to work organizing. Her thoughts kept drifting back to Trevor, though. What if it really was just a business meeting? In his line of work, he probably met with tons of female clients. Would she have had the same reaction if it had been some random woman, and not Courtney?

If she continued dating Trevor, would her jealousy get in the way?
That’s just silly, Jess. So all of his clients are women. Big deal. He doesn’t date them,
But why did he feel the need to emphasize he was meeting with Courtney?
That
was the problem, wasn’t it? She could handle him having female clients. Her old high school insecurities were just rearing their ugly heads. But she wasn’t the same self-conscious, unassertive little girl she used to be. She was a grown woman, for goodness’ sake. Still, he’d sounded so excited that it was Courtney.

With the last weight in place, she sat down behind the rack and put her head in her hands. She was overthinking it. As usual.
Even if it wasn’t officially a date, I bet he wanted it to be.

When the door chimed, she didn’t look up to greet the newly arriving member like she usually did. Her mind had already checked out for the day.

“Hello? Jessica?” Her heart leaped to her throat when the smooth, velvet voice startled her. She shot to her feet and tried to hide the anticipation in her eyes.

“I’m here. What’s up?”

Trevor’s eyes glimmered when he looked at her, and a crooked grin spread across his face. “I called you. Twice.”

She waved him off. “I’ve been really busy.”

“Okay.” He shoved his hands in his pockets and shuffled toward her. “And now?”

“Just finishing up.” Dusting off her yoga pants, she fixed her gaze on his chin. If she looked in his eyes, she might crumble. “How was your date?” She knew her smile was tight with venom, but she couldn’t help herself. Thoughts swirled like a whirlpool through her mind, and icy adrenaline coursed through her veins.
Breathe, Jess. Breathe.

“My date? I didn’t go on a...oh! You mean Courtney?”

“Of course, I mean Courtney. Did you have
another
date today?” Heart pounding, she marched behind the counter and with trembling hands, grabbed her purse off a shelf.
I have to get out of here. Away from him.
When her emotions were under control, then she could talk to him.

“Jessica.”

“It’s okay, you know. I mean, you and I weren’t official. We weren’t...anything, I guess.” She brushed past him, heading straight for the door, but he caught her by the wrist.

“Jessica, please.”

With what she hoped was an indifferent expression on her face, she stopped and slowly turned around. The hurt in his eyes tore at her heart. Had she been wrong? Of course she had.

“I didn’t have a date with Courtney. I had a meeting. I thought I told you that.”

Yanking her hand away, she fiddled with her purse strap. “Meeting. Date. Whatever you want to call it, you sounded pretty happy about it.”

“I was happy. I...” He sighed. “She works at an event planning business. She needed some escorts to dance with the guests at a party she’s putting together.”

Jessica furrowed her brow and slumped her shoulders.
Don’t I feel like an ass.
“Oh. When you said it was her, I just assumed...I thought—”

“That I would actually date a girl like Courtney?” He chuckled. “I don’t go for the domineering, bitchy type. I thought you knew that.” He reached for her hand and laced his fingers through hers.

“What type do you go for, then?”

Pulling her closer, he rested his other hand on her hip. “You, Jessica. You’re the only one I’m interested in.”

“Oh. Well, that’s okay then. And, I’m sorry for being jealous. I promise I’m not usually like that.”

“It’s okay.” He grinned. “It’s kind of cute.”

She placed a hand on the back of his neck and pulled him in, placing a tender kiss on his lips. He kissed her back, opening his mouth to allow her tongue to tangle with his. Deep and slow, the kiss sent warm shivers cascading through her entire body.

He pulled away, cupping her cheek in his hand. Rubbing his thumb across her lips, he pressed his forehead to hers. “Now that we have that misunderstanding settled, why don’t you come home with me? I’ll show you just how much you really mean to me.”

“You expect me to just drop everything and follow you home?”

He grinned. “Yeah.”

“Tell you what.” She slid her hand down his back and squeezed his ass, pulling his pelvis into hers. “Let me go home and freshen up. I’ll be over in an hour.”

He leaned in so close she could feel his breath on her ear. “Perfect.”

Chapter Nine

After a quick stop at the florist and his favorite restaurant for a to-go order, Trevor rushed home to get ready for Operation Romancing Jessica. If he’d had more than an hour, he could’ve whipped up something homemade for dinner. However, he’d have to save his culinary skills for a later date. And there would be plenty of them.

He put the food in the oven to keep it warm, placed a bouquet of burgundy roses on the table, and took the rest of the flowers to the bedroom. With a fresh set of sheets on the bed, he arranged the room just right before taking a quick shower.

The steamy heat of the water beating down on his skin loosened his muscles. But it did nothing to still the rapid beating of his heart. He shut off the water, dried off, and ran a hand through his wet hair to tousle it. Then he slipped on a pair of faded jeans and a light blue shirt.

He went back to the kitchen to set the table and light some candles. Popping open a bottle of wine, he put it on ice to chill just as the doorbell rang.

***

Jessica smoothed her dress over her hips and made sure it showed off her assets just right. An hour had barely been enough time for her to shower and get ready, but she didn’t want to waste another moment. As soon as Trevor opened the door, she was going to make certain he knew she wanted him in bed.

As the doorknob turned, she put on her most seductive smile and shifted her weight to one leg, thrusting her hip to the side. The door swung open, and Trevor smiled.

“Wow. You look amazing, Jessica.” With a hand on her hip, he pulled her through the threshold. “I guess I didn’t need to make dinner. I could just eat you all night long.”

She strutted past him, taking his hand in hers. Then she stopped. “You made dinner?”

“Well,
made
is a stretch,” he said and guided her toward the kitchen, where the scent of chicken and pasta wafted to her senses. The table had been set for a romantic dinner, complete with candles and a beautiful bouquet of roses. “I picked up dinner. I’ll have to cook for you another night. When I have more time.”

He poured them both a glass of wine and motioned for her to sit. “I hope you don’t mind.”

“Trevor, this is amazing. I wasn’t expecting dinner at all. I thought—”

After spooning the meal onto their plates, he stopped to look her in the eyes. “You thought we’d head straight to the sack?”

The heat of embarrassment rose on her cheeks because, frankly, she’d expected a night of nothing but sex. The romance was a bonus she hadn’t expected. “Well, I...”

He joined her at the table and took both her hands in his. “I absolutely plan on taking you to bed tonight. But I want you to know that you’re not just a fuck to me. You mean so much more.”