Page 31 of Courting Clemson

“Hmmm,” was all I could say. I really didn’t know how to respond to her. She gave me a really weird vibe, like she was always up to something. It seemed like she spoke in a code I couldn’t decipher, and I had too much going on to even try.

But she kept on giving me advice I didn’t ask for. “With all the stuff Liam buys me and does for me, I can’t imagine what you could get from that one.” Her eyes glittered like a three-year-old staring up at the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree.

When she saw my reaction, she frowned. “Don’t act so pure and chaste, girl. What’s the harm in getting what you want if you’re going to give up the goods anyway?” She shrugged. “At least that’s how I see it.”

And never was I more grateful for not relating to this girl on a closer level. What kind of fucked-up mindset was that? Wasn’t she basically defining prostitution?

“I’m on legs,” I muttered and walked away from where she was half-assing bicep curls. If my coaches noticed I wasn’t following the schedule, I’d play dumb. It was arms for me today too, but I couldn’t stomach an entire workout alongside Charlie.

Nearly three hours later, I trudged through the front door of our little rental to find Grace on the sofa, deeply interested in some reality show. The last time I’d seen her was when I tucked her into her bed the night before.

“Hey, how are you feeling?”

“Great!” she chirped happily without taking her eyes off the show.

That was my hint to leave her alone, and I was fine with that. I grabbed two hard-boiled eggs from the refrigerator and refilled my water bottle from the dispenser in the door.

Before hitting the shower, I decided to check my email to see if any of the jobs I’d applied for today responded. There were a few that required applications to be filled out online as well, and I wanted to submit those.

While I was working on my latest employment history on the second application, a notification scrolled across the top of my screen.

Lucas Allen sent you a message.

And why did that give me a little flip-flop in the pit of my stomach? It never hurt when a guy was interested in you, but I needed to finish the things on my find-a-job list before anything else.

After dealing with the disappointment of not receiving any job offers in my inbox, another email caught my eye.

Are you ready to try Sugar Dating?

Financial independence awaits!

Plain curiosity had led me down the rabbit hole of looking into sugar dating in the past, so I was familiar with the concept of women providing nonsexual companionship to men for money. But I had never considered it. I’d certainly never sleep with anyone for money…so if that was the situation being promoted in this email, that was a complete nonstarter.

But maybe there was an answer to my problems after all.

Finding this new message in my inbox seemed like a sign from fate. Either that, or that bullshit Charlie was spouting today about Luke having money might have been living rent-free in my brain. Luke was absolutely not a candidate. I liked him, and I would never use a man I cared about for a cash grab.

But—and that was a really big but—if a man knew the situation going in and was actively seeking a certain type of exchange… Would it be so wrong?

First, I’d have to set up a profile on Sugar Dating or one of the other popular sites that orchestrated this type of coupling. A quick internet search and a few really active Reddit threads later, I had an entire page of notes on the basics and how to avoid getting scammed.

All right. I could do that.

I visited the Sugar Dating site and clicked on the tab to create a profile. I had read using a fake name was very common, and having a very unique first name could lead to exposure. I decided to use my middle name, Nicole, then did a search for common surnames and picked one.

And so I became Nicole Green.

It took me the rest of the evening to craft a profile I was happy with. I posted a few pictures of myself without any sort of editing, because apparently that was a big turn-off. I also was careful to not cross post any shots that I had previously posted on any of my social media profiles so a perspective date couldn’t do an image search and find out my real identity. Thank God for that Reddit thread, because I wouldn’t have thought of a lot of this stuff.

The last thing I needed was a scam. I was in this to make money, not lose it.

When it came to expectations, I was honest and clear that I was not looking for intimate physical relations. Companionship, event dates, and social engagements were selected as my top three priorities. Earning money was a given. Otherwise, that would’ve been at the top of the list.

Apparently, Sugar Dating had to approve my profile before it went active, so when I was content with what I’d included, I submitted my application. They advised it could take a few days to go through the review process, so I would also continue the traditional job search in the meantime.

Two more online applications for traditional jobs were completed and sent before I couldn’t keep my eyes open. It had been a stressful day, and I crashed into a deep sleep within minutes of hitting the pillow. One last thought before I drifted off, though… I completely forgot to read the message from Luke.

Shit.

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