Succulence (Succulent Trilogy #1) (10 page)

CHAPTER TWENTY
-TWO

During my one-year review, I was approved for a salary increase, bumping me up to $48,000. That was a really nice price for what I was doing, and par the course for where I’d be going if I kept my focus throughout the duration of my career.

The raise was effective on my next paycheck, but I decided to celebrate immediately with Stacy. After informing Dean about taking a longer than usual lunch, he informed us to go right ahead and let Stacy know they’d have to meet as soon as she got back, since he had to leave early to pick up his wife and daughter from the airport, and would be taking the next few days off.

I knew his words were code for sex. Dean’s increasingly insatiable appetite led to him getting off on the idea of getting laid in his office while overlooking the highway and imagining people the buildings across the street seeing him. He also liked the thrill of potentially getting caught with his pants down, even though we all knew it could never happen anyway.

I treated Stacy to Gordon Biersch, a restaurant and brewery hybrid in North Park. While looking over our menus and sipping lemonade, I asked her how things were going.

“Le sigh,” she said, shrugging. “Dean’s a horny toad who likes to fondle my breasts and blow his load in my mouth over a power trip. My mother’s recovering from her accident but not from my father’s affair, and dad has not only refused to come home, but he’s moved his things out and says he wants a divorce. Since I don’t want to meet or know about the slut he’s having this new baby by, he doesn’t want to talk to me either.”

I furrowed my brow and swallowed. That was a lot for anyone to deal with or take in. I had no idea how to respond to it at all. “What about school? Are you enrolled right now?”

“Yes, I am, but I still owe about $500 right now, or they’re going to kick me out of class. I’m scrambling to see about getting a payday loan.”

“No!” I yelped, loud enough to make her jump.

“Sheesh, lady! What’s your problem?” she said, looking at me like I have two heads.

“No payday loans. Are you crazy? They’ll eat you alive.” I’d read about payday loans so many times. They promised immediate relief, but were a surefire way to lose your mind and spiral out of control.

“Well duh, but I need the money to stay in school,” she said. “I don’t want to take out any student loans if I don’t have to. Those things never go away.”

Yeah, you’re right about that,
I thought. Regardless, I still didn’t want to see her screwing herself over with a payday loan. She’d never see the end of getting that thing paid off either the way things were going. She’d already given up her apartment and moved back home to combine expenses, and scraped the entire summer to get enough money to register for school.

“Don’t worry. Things will work out,” I offered, turning to order Garlic Fries and Lobster and Shrimp Mac & Cheese. Stacy ordered Herb Mahi and a Long Island Iced Tea.

“Don’t judge me. I need this drink, man,” she warned, pointing her finger at me. “I seriously do.”

I raised my hands in surrender. “I won’t judge you.”

I excused myself to go to my car, saying that I forgot my card, then texted and said I needed to check on an appointment I scheduled at Aveda. In actuality, I went to Whole Foods and purchased a bottle of wine, a pretty $250 gift card, a birthday card with an envelope, and a gorgeous gift bag. Then, I stopped in Aveda and booked hair appointments for both of us the upcoming Saturday.

Before heading into the restaurant, I dipped in my “petty cash” envelope in my car, which held about $4,000 in it. The money was extra cash given to me by clients for a job well done. I used to blow this money; now I held on to it all. In the event I quit the escort game sooner than I originally anticipated due to Jared or some other reason, I needed to have reserves on hand.

I believed in Stacy. She was strong and resilient, even if she was being used and humiliated to keep her job. She never asked for handouts, and she never seemed to allow the pressure to break her more than she needed to. After growing so close to her over the past year, I could see she really needed the money more than I did.

So I did what any friend or big sister would do: I cut my $4,000 in half, counted out $2,000 in cash, put it inside the birthday card, sealed it and headed back inside.

I didn’t think I had taken that long, but the food had arrived by the time I came back.

“Where were you?” Stacy asked, annoyed that I had abandoned her for so long. She looked at my gift bag. “What is all that in your hand? You said you forgot one thing and needed another and you ditched me to go shopping?!”

“My bad girl,” I winced sheepishly. She scoffed and roller her eyes.

Placing the bag on the table, I pushed it toward her, saying, “But this was important. This is for you.”

Stacy’s eyes bugged. “For me? What’s this?”

“Oh nothing,” I replied, digging into my food. “Just a little pick-me-up to acknowledge everything you’re going through.”

Stacy was already grateful for the wine and the gift certificate, but it was the money inside the birthday card that reduced her into a babbling, bawling, big-breasted bubble of appreciation. At first she was shocked; she’d never seen so many hundred bills in one sitting. Then, she refused the money, telling me there was no way she’d ever be able to pay it back. When I made it clear that I wasn’t taking the money back, and that she could use it for her tuition and living expenses or watch me give it to a random stranger on the street, she burst into tears of appreciation.

“Oh my God, Amy!” she said, while crying. “You’re so fucking ama
zing. I really appreciate this. I’ll pay you back, I swear.”

She jumped out of her seat to hug me. I whispered in her ear, “Pay me back by finishing your degree and getting the best grades you can right now. That’d be more than enough for me.”

****

As soon as we returned from lunch, Stacy disappeared into Dean’s office to fulfill her obligatory secretary-whore duties. I knew she’d be gone for a while, and my workload was light, so I perused a couple of books on Amazon, hoping to find something fun to read. I hadn’t been able to read in a long time, but with work being light and my vacation time now available, there was no time like the present to pick up a few good reads.

I preferred nonfiction books that helped me perfect my communications craft, but I also indulged in a few self-help and erotica books too. I found reading romantic erotica gave me ideas on how to please my clients and put myself in a role of being the best lover they ever had.

I didn’t have to enjoy myself every time I was with a client, but it was important they did, because the happier they were, the busier I was. And the busier I was, the more money I made. Every dollar counted when I was preparing to possibly pull back from the escort business.

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

After Skyping, texting, calling and going back and forth with each other for a couple of months, Jared and I made a date to see each other.

I was excited. I’d be using my vacation time to go home and see him. If things were really, truly, undeniably real between us, I’d have to seriously look into ending my lease in Texas. Or, possibly, sublease it to Stacy on the low, thus giving her all my furniture and housewares so I could move home with a fresh start.
I wouldn’t have minded, because the year was paid up in full again already, and I couldn’t get that money back if I wanted to.

Giving up all my furniture and leaving it to Stacy wouldn’t bother me. She needed to have a place on her own to study without having her mom’s depressed energy in the air. She also needed space to be a grown ass woman period. I didn’t attach myself to too many material things outside of clothes and makeup, so letting her inherit anything I left behind was a no-brainer.

I put in my vacation request three weeks early. I would be in New Haven, spending my 25
th
birthday with my family and friends, not to mention Jared, who asked me to clear the evening before.

“I want to tell you happy birthday first this year,” he said.

I also discussed the potential of transferring to the New York office. Human resources advised that while positions were available, relocation expenses might not be offered. It was a bummer to discover, but not enough to stop me from dreaming. I hoped to figure out a way to get to the East Coast sometime before spring came around. I didn’t want to move right before the holidays if I could help it, but if it was necessary, then I would do that too.

Stacy obviously didn’t like the idea of me going anywhere. If anyone needed me to stay, it was her. She couldn’t face the idea of being left alone with Dean, even if he wasn’t aware that I knew he was blackmailing her. She also had nobody else she could rely on that would give her the emotional support she needed while going through all the problems she had at home while studying for school.

“You don’t need to go anywhere, Amy!” she pouted one afternoon over drinks. “We have to stick together and ride this out – unless you’re moving to New York because you have some kind of rich ball player or athlete paying your bills out there?”

Ever since I had given her the money and gifts for school, Stacy was convinced that I had a sugar daddy. Because I was tight-lipped and mum on my love life – she knew Jared and I hooked up, but didn’t know we were together – she swore it had to be a player on the Dallas Cowboys or Mavericks, or some married politician. Because I was also mum about being an escort and we hadn’t spoken of my money issues since January, she had no idea I was hustling my body to make money. I wanted to tell her so bad, but I kept it to myself because I refused to encourage her.

I rolled my eyes as I sipped my margarita. “Girl, no! I just feel homesick. I have nothing in Dallas.” I quickly clarified what I meant. “I have you, and I have GemTech, but aside of that, nothing else is working for me out here.”

“So? Go home more often then. Don’t leave me! I’ll have nobody to talk to.” She pouted like a 5-year-old.

“You’ll always be able to talk to me, no matter where I am,” I promised.

CHAPTER
TWENTY-FOUR

“Holy shit!” I screamed aloud to myself. I received an offer for $75,000 for the upcoming Friday and Saturday evening at the Rosewood Mansion on Turtle Creek. The email read:

We’ll be entertaining two clients from out of town. You and another escort of mine will be provided to entertain, relax and cater to these gentlemen. They are highly distinguished executives with discreet demeanors and impeccable taste.

You were contacted because you came highly recommended within our network. We were told your work is fabulous and worth every penny. We’re sure you will do a great job, but we’re willing to pay you a premium fee of $75,000 for your undivided attention. We’re willing to put down a good faith deposit of $25,000 upfront to secure your time. You’ll receive the additional $50,000 wired in two equal payments of $25,000 before 8 PM each night. We’re offering an additional $25,000 bonus in the event our guests are truly satisfied.

Due to the high profile nature of our clients, we’re submitting a non-disclosure agreement. The non-disclosure states prohibitions meant to protect you as well as our clients. Please read over the agreements attached and fax them over with your wire information to confirm our appointment and receive your deposit…

My head was spinning. Two days for $75,000 – with $25,000 now and up to $100,000 total for a job well done? As much as the business was dragging on me, this was a “Hell yes!” situation.

My greed got the best of me. All I saw were dollar signs as I imagined using the $100,000 extra to pay down another $50,000 of my student loans. Then I did the math. I had approximately $125,000 in my accounts now and owed about $200,000 now. If I took that $100,000 with the $125,000 I had, then I could pay off all the loans and have $25,000 left over.

The succulent idea of being completely debt-free was inspiring me; at the same time, I wasn’t ready to see my bank account drop so drastically. If anything happened, I’d at least have $200,000 to play with.

Either way, I’d be winning. Either way.

****

“If you came back to New Haven for good, perhaps you could start your own consulting practice?”

“You think so?”

Jared and I were discussing the potential of my possibly moving back to New Haven. Like me, he was ready for us to be together. I was ready too, but it seemed things were stalling with HR. They found a position for me back home, but said it’d take a while before they’d be able to bring me in. In other words, I’d be waiting until at least a week or two past the New Year.

We were trying to keep positive spirits. My vacation was approved; unfortunately, the evening I’d be flying out of town was also the evening I was needed for the $100,000 client. I ended up telling Jared a small white lie: my boss was flying in an important client and everyone needed to be in town in order to take care of everything.

“Yes. I’ve known you for almost two years, baby. You live, eat and breathe this communications thing. If you can’t get transferred to New York through GemTech, perhaps you could give your own company a try.” Taking a breath, he muttered something nearly inaudible.

“Speak up, I can’t hear you,” I said, washing fruit I’d just purchased from the farmer’s market.

“I said if things don’t bring you to New York, perhaps I could come to Dallas instead.”

My heart stopped. I bit my lip and shook my head vigorously in horror as I vetoed that proposition. “No, no, no, no, no… That won’t be necessary. I’m coming to New York before that happens.”

“Baby it’s not a problem. I have some strings I can pull -”

“NO!” I checked my voice. “Sorry about that, baby. I’m just super excited to come back home with you and all my family. I don’t want anything to stop me now that the potential to be with everyone is finally here.”

Lowering my voice to a soft whisper, I cooed. “Just be patient, baby. It’s worth it. I promise it is.”

I could feel him rolling his eyes, and licking his lips through the phone; it was a habit of his when he got annoyed or aggravated. He cleared his throat. “If you insist. I don’t see what the big deal is. What are you hiding in Dallas that nobody can come see you?”

I shrugged, popping a grape into my mouth. “Nothing. I’m just always busy out here and there’s not much to do here when I’m at work all day.”

He sounded like he knew I was lying. “Aha. I see.”

Moments of silence passed, making things tense.

“I guess I could definitely give the consulting thing a try. Do you know any good books on consulting?” I asked, breaking the ice. “If I can get a head start while I’m out here, that may help.”

The news cheered him up. “Yeah, actually. Alan Weiss has a book on consulting.
Million Dollar Launch
is what I believe it’s called. It’s for all kinds of consultants. You should look it up. I might have a copy I could mail you.”

“No that’s okay baby,” I said. “I’m going to pick it up on Kindle when we get off the phone. Just text or email me the link.” I watched his chat bubble pop up on my iPad screen. He had pasted the Amazon link in my inbox as we spoke. I knew to make good on my promise to download, because if he had the book and I wasn’t reading it, he’d pick up on it and chastise me.

As long as he spanks me while he chastises me, we’re all good,
I thought to myself with a smirk. It was getting cold and it had been quite a while since I had seen Justin, the engineer. We had emailed back and forth since our last meeting, but if he wasn’t booking an appointment, the conversations would go dry. He was rather boring when he wasn’t with me in person, and thus, the connection died off and I stopped responding.

****

“What are you doing this weekend?” Stacy approached me in the bathroom, curious about plans. It was Thursday night, the eve of the big event. “Do you want to go shopping with me on Sunday?”

It sounded good, but I already knew I wouldn’t be able to. “I’m pretty booked Friday and Saturday. I’m running around getting ready to head to New Haven for my birthday. I leave Sunday evening – I thought you knew?”

“I had no idea. I’m pretty busy Friday and Saturday too. Perhaps brunch on Sunday morning before you go? No need to spend all day shopping if we’ll both be pretty worn from the weekend,” Stacy offered, shrugging off my rejection as she washed her hands.

I’ll be pretty worn alright, that’s for damn sure.

“Sure, no problem,” I offered, smiling widely. “It’d be nice to see you before I fly out of town.”

Especially when I’m flying out of town $100,000 richer.

She smiled at my approval, squeezing my shoulder in excitement on the way out. “Awesome sauce. We’ll plan it out during lunch!”

As Stacy left me to my own thoughts, I fantasized about getting through the next 72 hours and leaving town richer than I had ever been. Sure, $200,000 wasn’t technically rich, but it was more money than I’d ever have in my life. It’d be enough to pay off my student loans, or move to New Haven without any worries. It’d give me the potential to enjoy having a clear slate, which is something I’d love to have moving into the next phase of my life.

I loved being independent, but I missed my family. I was ready to return to New Haven and reunite with everyone, or at least live in New York, and figure out a way to make it in the Big Apple. I wasn’t a fan of living in the City, but under the right circumstances, I was sure I could find something that worked for me.

Best of all, the way things were going, I wouldn’t feel like such a loser if I ended up living at home. I didn’t plan on staying at home, but if I didn’t get a job in New York, I could manage to stay home or in my own place while ironing things out.

I hated leaving Stacy and GemTech alone, but I was falling in love and needed to be where my heart led me: to Jared.

Smiling at myself in the mirror, I blew a kiss. In 72 hours, I’d be $100,000 richer and finally able to move back home with the man I wanted, the job I wanted and possibly the life I wanted.

You’ve got this baby!