Manhattan Miracle (2 page)

Brad
's jaw dropped. "That's fantastic. How do you…aw, never mind. Are you hungry? I'd love to take you to dinner and get to know you. Afterward we could go dancing, to a movie or who knows—"

This is what Amber was talking about.
"Before you get too far, let me explain what I do." Even after all these years it was embarrassing to tell a man what I did—what I was. I took a long sip of my drink as he waited.

"
Yes?"

Then I took a deep breath and blurted it out.
"I entertain men for a living. You can have my companionship for free, but once we hit the sack, you're on the clock."

Shock crept over his face.
"Meaning, if I wanted to sleep with you, I'd have to pay for it."

I nodded.
"I'm afraid so."

His scowl told me he wasn
't too keen about my occupation. "But you're so gorgeous, why?"

"
Why what?"

"
I don't know. It just seems like someone as beautiful as you could manage to make money other ways." He frowned and shook his head. Rolling his eyes, he chuckled. "Listen to me. I just told my friend, over there, that if I was a woman as attractive as you, I would be a slut. Talk about hypocritical."

I laughed.
"Oversexed are we?"

Brad laughed. He had a pleasant easy manner.
"I'm afraid so."

I cocked my head and smiled.
"Me too, I'm afraid."

Taking my hand, he laughed.
"C'mon. Let's go to dinner. It's getting too loud in here and I have a zillion questions. How does de Vinci's sound? They have great food and they're not too far."

"
All right." I slipped off the stool and grabbed my pocket book. His hand went to my waist as if to guide me to the entrance and remained there as we walked out. It felt good.

Waiting for a cab, he asked,
"Regarding the—what you do—I don't even know if I can afford you. How much are we looking at?" 

Chapter Two

Ginger pursed her lips as if debating something. Her whisper in my ear gave me shivers,
"One thousand per half hour or three thousand for all night."

I whispered back,
"That's more than I make. Do you make that every night?"

"
When I find a date, yes. And there are very few nights I don't find a date.

A cab pulled up. I opened the door and helped her in. After nestling in against her and giving the driver instructions, I spoke softly.
"What about an hour?"

"
Sorry, I don't do hours."

"
Is Amber a…"

"
Courtesan? Yes, Amber is one, too."

"
Is that what you call yourselves?"

"
Yes, we know we're prostitutes, but we're so vain, we like to think we're at the top of the echelon."

"
Humph! With your looks and the kind of money you make I'd say you
are
at the top."

The cab pulled up to the curb.
"That'll be ten-seventy-five,"

We exited and I handed the driver a twenty.
"Keep it."

"
Thanks buddy. You have a good time with your lady friend."

Ginger smiled and spoke through the open window.
"Don't worry, he will."

I smiled and sidled up to Ginger. I felt like a million dollars wi
th her on my arm as we entered de Vinci's. The way the maître'd catered to us, you'd think Ginger was at least a movie star. "Yes, Mr. Fairchild, I have a lovely private booth available. Right this way, please."

The booth, around a corner from the main dining room, was quieter and more private than the rest. I d
idn't know who I was trying to impress, but I ordered a two hundred dollar bottle of wine. Perhaps in my mind I'd decided to go for a night to remember. I knew I wanted to wake up with Ginger, so being willing to part with three thou plus a five hundred dollar tip for her,  the idea of spending another six or seven hundred didn't seem outlandish.
I hope my raise will be a big one.

I bristled with questions, so after the waiter took our order, I started in,
"If I were to retain your services for a period of time or the night, where would we go to…"

She snickered.
"Do it?"

I nodded.
"Ah-huh. Where would we go?"

She took a sip of the
wine. "Mmm, this wine is out of this world." Facing me, she explained, "Out of town dates usually have a room. Local dates get a hotel room."

I took a sip. It
was
good. "Couldn't we go to my place or yours?"

She shook her head.
"No. I don't know you and nothing personal, but I wouldn't want you to know where I live."

"
So, I need to get a hotel room."

I loved her angelic smile.
"That would be best."

"
Okay, the next question is a bit personal. Is that all right?"

She flicked her wrist.
"Go ahead. I'll either answer or I won't."

"
Fair enough. How did you get into the…?"

"
Business of entertaining men?" she prompted me.

"
Ah-huh."

She broke a roll in half and buttered it.
"I started during my second year of college. Have you checked on the cost of college lately? Trying to keep up with the bills, rent, tuition and books, I worked two jobs. Juggling work and going to classes was next to impossible, but I managed, until the economy collapsed."

"
What happened?"

She sighed.
"My world collapsed with it. One employer laid me off and the other cut my hours in half. I was sinking fast and had to do something drastic, so I signed up with an escort service that one of the girls recommended. They screened and provided the dates and were very good at making sure I was safe.

"
After my first date, I threw up. I didn't like what I did, but what choice did I have. I either do it or give up college. After several dates, when money wasn't a problem any more, I really thought about what I did to earn it and it didn't seem that bad. I was living a glamorous life and men literally fawned over me." She paused and smiled at me. "I've even had Johns propose."

I laughed.
"I'll bet. What made you decide to continue after you finished college?"

We paused when the waiter served our salads.

Ginger picked up her fork and dug in. "Who said I did?"

I started to respond, but she waved me off and continued,
"After graduating at the head of my class, with a degree in business administration from Columbia, I depleted half the money I'd saved, while spending six months looking for that elusive job. Finally, Amber and I got together and went back in the trade."

"
So you've stopped looking for work?"

She
squirmed a little at my question and took a sip of wine before answering, "Pretty much. The way the economy is, everyone has cut back and hunkered down. If I could find a decent job, like the one you seem to have, I'd consider it. I'd really like the chance to prove myself in the business world, but I don't know…"

Pushing my salad bowl to the side, I leaned forward.
"What? What don't you know?"

"
I might miss the life. Once I got past the shock of selling my body, and accepted what I was doing, it became like a game that I started to thoroughly enjoy. The thrill of wondering who will I pick to be my lover that night and the pleasure of getting paid handsomely for doing something I like—having sex. Then there are the intangibles, like dressing tasteful and seductive to go out. Having men look at me with lust in their eyes—being desired."

Her short, low cut, white satin sheath with leather and gold chained belt and high heeled open toed sandals were certainly tastefully seductive.
"Heck, I could get into that. Tell me, do you have orgasms?"

"
Oh yes, my libido's very strong and I almost always have at least one orgasm."

I laughed.
"What a job! High pay and orgasms aplenty!" 

She laughed.
"It's not all peaches and cream. While I can usually avoid a man with hygiene issues, I can't always avoid one that plays rough."

The waiter set the entrées before us, and left.

Ginger took a deep breath. "Smells delicious. I'm famished."

"
Before we start to eat I have one last question."

She gazed at me with beautiful, cornflower blue eyes, waiting.

"I want you for the whole night, so would it be all right if we go to the hotel from here?"

Whether she meant it or not, she said,
"I'm looking forward to it."

"
Great. Which hotel do you suggest?"

"
Hmm, that could be a problem with the big entrepreneurial convention here this week. I imagine Lower Manhattan is booked solid." The heat that she generated when she laid her long-fingered, feminine hand across mine, shot straight to my dick. "Don't take this wrong, but it's too bad you're not from out of town. We may not be able to get a room."

I was crushed.
"What're we going to do, then?"

She flashed a reassuring smile.
"There's a hotel I like not far from here, near where I live. After we eat, I'll see if I can get us a room there."

I breathed a sigh of relief.
"That would be great."              

~ * * ~

Once we began to eat, the conversation dropped off to the occasional 'could you pass the salt' or 'mmm, this is delicious'. Too my surprise, I found myself gazing at my date more often than usual. The more I looked at him, the more I found Brad Fairchild charming and devilishly sexy.

After dinner while we enjoyed coffee and shared a delicious crème brûlée, I called the
Hudson Court Hotel and handed my phone to Brad.

"
Ah yes, I need a room, for tonight."

"
That's all you have?"

"
All right, we'll take it."

"
Just a minute."

I studied Brad as he dug out his wallet and read off his credit card information. I enjoyed his company and felt at ease with him. I smiled. Being with him seemed almost as
if I were on a real date.

But it wasn
't a date. It was a business proposition. In thirty minutes or less, I would take his money, take off my clothes and we would fuck. In the morning after doing the most intimate thing a man and woman could do, we would part and most likely never see each other again.

Out of the blue, I felt melancholy. No John had ever made me feel cheap. No John had ever made me feel regretful. No John had ever made me think the things that were buzzing around in my mind.
What if I'd never become a whore? What if I'd managed to find a real job? What if Brad and I hooked up and instead of fucking…we made
love?

Made love?
Do I even remember how to make love? Did I ever know?

"
All set."

I snapped out of my reverie, and glanced at him.
"They had a room?"

There was mirth in his eyes and a huge smile on his lips.
"Yes, one." He  signed the restaurant's credit card receipt and rose. "Are you ready?" 

Dutifully, I rose.

Brad's eyes flashed a look of desire. As he edged closer to me, his lemony masculine scent wafted into my nose. He smelled as good as he looked. He grasped my upper arms and leaned in. My breasts, pushing into and rubbing against his firm chest felt delicious. As did his hardness pressing into my abdomen and mound. He peppered moist kisses up my shoulders and neck, sending shivers the length of my arms and neck.

Finally, his soft, yielding lips tentatively, gently touched mine. 

His tongue laved the crease between my lips. Then without going further he said, "I hope you don't mind. I've been dying to taste your luscious lips all night."

Feeling a passion I hadn
't felt in years one of my hands clawed through his mane while the other wrapped around him, pulling him even closer, pulling his cock even harder into my softness. I crushed my lips against his and forced my tongue past his crème brûlée flavored lips. My tongue barged into his mouth swirling and sweeping everything as if I could pass my fever through a heated kiss, while my demanding sex pushed itself into his compelling erection 

As my heart beat a rapid tattoo against my ribs, sensibly my future bed partner pulled away and smiled.
"Save that passion for the honeymoon suite we have."

It took a second to soak in, then I laughed.
"Honeymoon suite?"

He shrugged.
"It's all they had. Besides the only thing better than spending the night with a beautiful girl like you, is fantasizing she's my wife."

All of a sudden, I felt giddy.
"Honeymoon suite with a heart-shaped bed and whirlpool tub?"

He shrugged again and stuck his hands out to the side.
"I don't know. We'll have to go there and see."

I picked my purse off the table and looped my arm through his.
"I have a feeling this could be fun. Let's go."

~ * * ~

"So Carpenter, what do you think of my project?"

"
He's interesting. She is too."

"
Yes, she's another project of mine. I had no idea they would meet up tonight. Ginger has so much potential and she's wasting it as a plaything for men."

"
I can see that. Beauty and brains. Together, they make a lovely couple."

"
They do, don't they?"

"
Yes, maybe they could make each other happy because what they do for a living doesn't seem to."

"
I know he's not, but she seems to like what she's doing."

Carpenter fidgeted.
"She likes aspects of it, but from what she said, I think she'd truly be happy if she could be challenged—if she could prove herself in business. I think Ginger would be happier if she did what Brad does."

Soriano cupped h
er chin. "Hmm, and he'd be happier doing what she does."

"
I don't know if he would be happy being a prostitute. He seems to be more intrigued with the idea of being a glamorous woman and all the trappings."

"
Well there's nothing we can do about that. Carpenter, I have another problem I must look into. Would you keep an eye on our unlikely couple?"

"
Sure Boss, whatever you say. Will you be long?"