Lexi
Monday morning, I got an email from Ms. Jackie. It was to let me know that Ethan had sent her a message saying thank you. That was it, nothing else. I was worried I may have done something to displease him, but she reassured me everything was okay, so I let it go. He was a one-time client, and I'll never have to work with him again.
Mid-week clients are the best. They’re usually lonely men that just want some company over dinner. They fly me out to wherever they are, I have dinner, and then fly back the next morning. It's simple. I love the meals, but prefer not to have to dress up in heels, overdone makeup, and fancy dresses. Dress casual is my favorite.
I have to fly to Vegas on Saturday morning for a casino opening with Mr. Williams, then fly back Sunday morning. Mr. Williams knows how much I love going to Vegas and always gets me the best suite.
“Are we still going out tonight?” Alex looks over at us all.
“It’s Friday night, and for the first time in ages, we are all free. So, we’re going out.” Helen points to each one of us. For the first time in a long time, we all have a Friday night where we can hang out together.
Abandoning my phone, I get interested in the planning. “I’m in. When, where, and what time are we meeting?” I ask.
“Seven, at my place for pre-drinks,” Alex says. We are all laughing when Ms. Jackie walks into the office, but stop talking to give her our full attention.
I take my planner out to write what dates my clients have booked me for. We typically know our schedules about two weeks in advance to give us time to prepare for whatever it is we are attending. I’m booked up through next week. I have a club opening event in LA, and I’ll be there for the weekend.
She goes through everyone’s plans for the following weeks. Alex has a new client added to her—some sports guy.
As soon as Ms. Jackie finishes talking, I look up at her. I’m still waiting for my assignments as I’m the only one that has nothing scheduled. I’m worried that Ethan has given me a bad report and that’s given Ms. Jackie reason to doubt me.
“Lexi, let’s go grab some lunch and talk a minute,” she says, grabbing her bag. I look back at all the girls. Am I worried? God, yes. What did Ethan say to her?
I mouth, ‘see you later,’ to the girls, and follow Ms. Jackie to the Italian restaurant across the road. She doesn’t say a word, and that only makes me even more anxious. The waiter seats us at our usual table, and I watch her take out her planner. She looks at me, so I take mine out too.
“You have a new client, and I know you're going to ask a thousand questions—”
“No.” I already know where she's going with this. “Not Ethan Knight,” I beg her. If I thought it would work, I would drop to my knees and give her the puppy dog eyes.
She looks at me. “Ethan Knight is your new client. Do you know anything else about him?”
“Only what you have told me. The no Google search rule, remember?” What the hell is going on here? She’s not telling me everything because she normally would never agree to this.
“Do you trust me?”
“Ms. Jackie, you know I trust you. I would feel better if I didn’t think you were keeping something important from me.” My mouth suddenly goes dry, so I take a sip of water. “Why do I get the impression you’re not going to tell me anything?” Folding my arms over my chest, I lean back in the chair and wait for her to dispute my claim.
“As with any client, if I think things are getting out of control or if you feel unsafe, I'll drop him without a second thought.” I start tapping my fingers on the table. She takes hold of my hand. “Lexi, I can’t tell you everything yet, but when the time is right, I'll answer all of your questions.”
“You do realize you're encroaching on my dating rights with this, don’t you?” I start laughing because it’s not like I have a boyfriend or anything, but the tension is thick, and I need to lighten the mood. I’m getting a little annoyed with this whole situation. Why is she breaking her number one rule?
“If you find a boyfriend, then we'll go from there.” She smiles at me and then looks up to someone behind me. “Thank you for joining us, Ethan.”
The chair next to me moves. I straighten myself up, plaster on my professional face, and smile. Ethan doesn’t even acknowledge me. God, I want to hit him.
“Thank you for inviting me.” His voice is so sexy. No, stop thinking about his voice. Remember that you hate him, I remind myself.
“I always attend the first meeting, then after that, it’s between the two of you. Lexi, you need to keep me in the loop if you make plans in case they conflict with scheduling your other clients.” Jackie opens her planner and looks through her dates.
“I would like her to be with me this Saturday,” Ethan tells her as he looks through his phone.
“I can’t. I’m in Vegas and don’t get back until Sunday afternoon,” I say, looking through my planner. A noise comes from his mouth letting me know he’s not happy, but I don’t care.
“Then how about Sunday when she gets back? I have a meeting scheduled for Sunday, but I can move it to Monday if I need to. I can even send my driver to pick her up at the airport.” We both look at Ms. Jackie.
I shake my head, but Ms. Jackie ignores me. What the fuck? Am I invisible? “I have my car, thank you,” I bite back. He’s just being an ass now.
“All my girls have their car if they have to drive anywhere,” Ms. Jackie tells him.
He shifts in his chair, clearly not liking that he’s not getting his way. “You’re letting her fly to another city with someone, but I can’t pick her up from the airport?” He looks at Ms. Jackie. Anyone can see he's getting pissed.
“She has worked with this client for a long time and is comfortable with him. When she feels the same with you, then she will be more than happy for your car to pick her up and drop her off. Am I right, Lexi?” Ms. Jackie looks at Ethan then back to me. I look at them both. Why do I get the feeling they know each other?
“Yes,” I answer in one simple word.
“Jackie, you know I won’t hurt her.” He moves closer to the table, and I watch them both.
“I know you won’t hurt Lexi, but she doesn’t. Just because you're my godson, does not mean you don’t follow the rules. My girls will always come first.” What? Godson? Did I even hear that right? She looks at me, then back at him. “Ethan, you know my rules. I may have broken them for you once because you needed a pretty girl on your arm to help you land the charity deal, but that was a one-time thing.” She stops and gives me a look.
“Excuse me for a moment,” I say, standing up to leave the table. I know that look. It’s Ms. Jackie's signature ‘I need a moment of privacy with this client’ look.
Walking away from them both, I start walking to the restroom and think about what's happening here. Her godson? Why the hell is her godson one of our clients?
I wait ten minutes for a text or something saying I can come back to the table before I see Ethan walk out. I slowly head back to the table and sit down. I look at Ms. Jackie.
“He called saying he had an emergency and that he needed a girl to come to an event. I know I should have said no, but his mother and I have been friends for twenty years, so I said yes. Now that he has spent time with you, he wants you to be his full-time girl. I’m sorry. I know I should say no, but…” She goes quiet. The woman who always shows a strong front to us girls is just someone who wants to keep her friends happy.
“If I do this, he will be treated the same as all my other clients. He has to book me through you—”
“Lexi, he's a normal client. He gets no special treatment.”
“Then, I'll do it,” I say. There was a time when I needed help, and no one was there. I’m living the life I have now because of her. If she needs me to do something, I will.
“Thank you, Lexi. I know you don’t like him, but I also know you’re very professional.” She smiles at me, trying to butter me up now. “You’ll have dinner with him on Sunday. Here’s his number to ask about dress code and time. He’s changing his appointment to next Friday to accommodate your schedule.” She stops and starts biting the top of her pen, nervous about something. “He said he sometimes has dinner alone and would like some company.”
I look through my planner, writing the dates down she has just given me. “If I'm busy with the girls, or just having a me day, am I allowed to say no to him?”
“Yes. One of the reasons I don’t like to have clients in town is so you girls can still live a somewhat normal life. Him being my godson doesn’t change that. If you don’t want to go out to dinner with him, then say no…”
“But?” I ask. I know there's something she wants to say to me.
“Just don’t say no to him all the time. Remember the football star you had as a client? At first, he only wanted your services as a companion for dinner every night for three weeks. But, in the end, you two hit it off so well he kept a hotel suite for you so you could be close to him.” She gives me that look that says she knows I'm planning on avoiding him unless it’s for a specific event. I understand where she’s coming from with her concern, so I let it go.
“Okay, I’ll have dinner with him two nights a week. Hell, if I’m in a good mood, maybe I’ll add a third.” I’m losing steam in this battle, so I may as well give up while I’m ahead.
“Thank you.” She leans in to kiss my cheek. “So, I'll let you go get ready for your girls’ night out.” We both stand and wave to the manager.
Getting in my car, I pull out my planner and look for Ethan’s number to send him a message. I might as well get it over with.
Lexi– My flight lands at 1pm. What time would you like me over, and what's the dress code?
Throwing my phone in my bag, I start my Audi and head home to have a shower and pamper myself for a night out. I deserve it after this meeting.
I hear my phone beep as I'm parking the car. I dig out my phone from my bag as I'm walking up the stairs.
Ethan- Wear whatever you want. My apartment-7pm.
I throw my phone on the bed and get ready for my night out.
***
The catcalls and wolf whistles follow us as we walk down the street toward, the club. Two men were even brave enough to stop us and ask us out. That always gives us a laugh. I wish men understood that if there's a group of girls out for the night, it doesn’t mean we are automatically asking to get laid.
Out of all the girls, I’m closest to Helen. She always helps me the most when I need advice. I told everyone about Ethan being my new client but didn’t tell them about him being Ms. Jackie’s godson. I think she wants that to be a secret.
I shout our order over the bar while the others get us a booth, then look over at the dance floor, singing along to the song. Alex and I grab the drinks and head to the booth.
“Look at that ass.” Helen points to the guy standing by the booth in front of us. “I would love to grab that ass.” We all start laughing as she eyes him up.
“Looks like someone is going home with a guy.” I give her a wink. I grab my drink and start dancing to the music. “Come on, Alex, dance with me.” I put my drink down and start pulling her from the booth, then we both head to the dance floor.
Spinning around under Alex’s arm, my hips start moving to the music, and I start singing. I know I’m not that good, but it doesn’t stop me. It’s all about the fun.
“How about you shake that sexy ass over this way,” a man’s voice says from behind me as his hands pull me closer. I turn around and smile at him. “Sexy ass, beautiful face,” the guy says pulling me in tighter.
I whisper in his ear, “Sorry, girl’s night out.” I turn back around to Alex.
If I didn’t have to catch a flight tomorrow morning, then I’d be more than happy to get busy with a guy. I can't even remember the last time I got down and dirty with a man.
The girls were happy to spend most of the night at the same club. It was a good night. Some drinking, some dancing, and a few guys chatting us up… What’s not to love? I even got a date for Monday night. Win for me. I wish I could have stayed out longer with the girls, but I need some sleep if I plan on getting to the airport on time in the morning.
Getting home, I check all my flight information to make sure I got everything right. Mr. Williams is picking me up from the airport, then we’ll have lunch to talk about the opening. I’ve worked with him for so long now, I know who I can and can't talk to and what I should and shouldn’t talk about. Mr. Williams and I can easily pull off being a married couple now. I keep telling him he needs to start dating and find a woman who will enjoy his company as much as I do. He says no, but I’m always on the lookout for someone at these events. Someone that I know will make him happy, because I know I won’t let him date just anyone.