Page 21 of Forbidden Desires

It was unfortunate and a damn shame, when there was so much more to her than that.

CHAPTER 9

Jasmine

After Felix’s party,workbecame something less than work and more of an enjoyable activity I looked forward to, which was a refreshing change for me. As the weeks passed with Eric as my sole client, we fell into a comfortable routine of attending the events on his calendar and me accompanying him to business dinners as his date, which inevitably ended back at his place to work off the sexual tension that always burned bright between us when we were together.

Sex with Eric was the best I’d ever had, always leaving me beyond sated. And much to my shock and delight, as our arrangement evolved, Eric surprised me with his personality, his likes and dislikes. Which, honestly, was a feat in and of itself.

Six years into this business I’d become a bit jaded, and it was nearly impossible to be surprised by anything anymore. When it came to this line of work, most men assumed that they were giving you an experience that no one ever had before. Tastingfancy wines, trying on pretty clothes, going to high-end bars, casinos, strip clubs—all of it, contextualized with that damnable phrase of “I’ll bet you’ve never done something like this before”.

My time with Eric was so different. He never felt the need to show off his wealth, or overtly impress me. Our relationship evolved in a way that I saw a completely different side to the man than the uptight one I’d originally met at the Spinel Fine Arts Exhibit and Gallery a few months ago. Someone with a lighter side. Someone with a wicked sense of humor at times, yet so much heart when it came to helping struggling artists gain their footing in the industry.

I discovered little quirks about Eric, such as how he liked to pick up mushroom Swiss burgers from a locally owned hole in the wall burger joint that wasn’t located in the heart of Coral Gables, but along its outskirts where the normal, middle-income people lived. He liked it dripping in that unbelievable honey mustard sauce that they drizzled over it, with a side of what they called ‘Holier-Than-Thou’ fries, which were topped in a melted blend of every kind of cheese imaginable, chopped French onions, and bacon.

It was learning that not only did he like jazz, which at this point was a common staple for well-off men who needed to appear cultured, but he had a selection of heavy metal records in his apartment, and a record player, and when he worked late nights he liked to put one on—low, of course, to not interrupt the work flow—and let the music rather than a cup of coffee or a glass of whiskey get him through the hours of paperwork he needed to peruse.

The weeks with Eric went by incredibly fast, then a month, and another. Despite my initial hesitation toward him, I couldn’t deny the strong chemistry between us. More so than I’d felt with any other man. It was a good working chemistry—personalitiesmelding well, our sexual energies perfectly matched and through the roof.

I decided I would have to get Dominique something special to thank her for putting Eric in my path, I thought with a smile as I was getting ready for a dinner with him and a benefactor. He was supposed to be solidifying plans to fund an expansion at the gallery where we’d met, and I secretly loved that he shared those aspects of his business with me. And even sought my opinion on things, like what I had to contribute mattered to him.

I was nearly done with my hair when my phone rang. It was Eric, and my heart skipped a beat and butterflies fluttered in my stomach. Not necessary a good thing when it came to a client. A part of me recognized that my emotions were getting involved, and I did my best to tamp down my reaction so I didn’t sound so breathless with anticipation when I picked up his call.

I connected the line and kept my voice neutral. “Hello?”

“Jasmine,” he said, sounding a bit haggard, along with a strange waver in his deep, usually smooth voice. “I apologize for calling on such short notice. I’m going to have to cancel tonight’s dinner.”

“Okay,” I said, concern twisting through me as I pressed the phone to my ear and walked out of the bathroom, into my bedroom.

Eric never cancelled anything—at least not in the span of time that I had known him. He was a man who meticulously planned his life that even his free time was basically factored into all of his time management.

Something urgent had clearly happened. But what?

I bit my bottom lip as I heard him moving around and what sounded like papers being shuffled in the background. It was the first time in my work escorting that I truly didn’t know what I should do in this situation. Usually, I felt nothing when a date abruptly cancelled—no disappointment, no worry over thereasons why they no longer needed me. So why did I feel this strong urge to rush to Eric’s side and make sure that everything was okay? Thathewas okay?

That deep, genuine concern swirling through me was not good. Not good at all.

“I’m also rearranging some things around for the next few days,” he went on. “Something unexpected came up, and I need to be elsewhere.”

I was definitely curious, but I did what I did best. Accommodate the client without pressure or demands. “I understand.”

There was a pause, then, “Also, I have a favor to ask of you. I would like for you to come with me. This is something that is very different from our usual outings, far more extended, and not something that I had intended to come up quite so soon.”

I was, for a moment, tongue-tied. “Sure. What is it?”

He exhaled a deep breath, shocking me with his next words. “We’re going to New York to see my parents.”

I didn’t get muchfurther explanation from Eric after that, not that I needed one when I was essentially at his beck and call. He told me that I should pack enough for a weekend and assured me that I would be compensated for the time spent in New York and all the expenses included with it. All a part of our arrangement, of course—though that foolish part of me wished accompanying him wasn’t such an impersonal transaction.

He hadn’t told me exactly what meeting his parents entailed, why it was so sudden, or what I needed to be there for to begin with, but this was the nature of what I did. To be what otherpeople needed me to be becausetheyneeded it and I was the only person that could give it to them.

I sighed as I finished packing my suitcase. I had no problems with this because pleasing the client was my job, but I also couldn’t deny the burning curiosity and apprehension that warred its way through me. I recalled the brief conversation at Felix’s party, when the other man had asked about Eric’s parents, and how quickly he’d diverted that subject. In our time together, we’d never discussed his parents, mostly because I’d seen his uncomfortable reaction that day. It wasn’t my place to ask, and he hadn’t offered an explanation. I understood, because I hadn’t shared anything about my mother and father, either.

So why was he taking me to meet his parents?

My phone alerted me when Eric was there, his text coming in with a chime that startled me back to the present. I grabbed my bags and carted them down. To my surprise, Eric was waiting outside the car for me, a pensive look on his handsome face. He’d driven to my place, not Jeff. Quietly, almost solemnly, he took my bags out of my hands and put them in the trunk before we settled in the front seats of the car.

We said nothing to each other, and the ride was silent.

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