Page 97 of Back Room Host

Maybe one more …

“If you need time, that’s okay too, but PLEASE, give me a chance.”

32

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Juri

Walter was nice, but my real reason for accepting his offer was the hope of securing an apprenticeship. After spending five hours in his friend’s fancy apartment, I walked out with nine hundred Swiss francs, a few new contacts, and only one thing on my mind: I wanted to get high as quickly as possible. I had just pulled off an Oscar-worthy performance—Walter never even noticed I was already on something when we met.

But Luca noticed.

Damn it …

On the way home, I read his messages. He had deleted the first two himself, which made me chuckle. He must have been annoyed that I claimed not to know him, but it was necessary because Walter insisted on absolute discretion. However, the remaining messages confused me so much that I immediately put the phone away and hurried home.

What does he expect? That I’ll let him know after every job if everything went well? Is he crazy?

The thought that Luca was worried about me felt strange. Besides Noé, no one had ever cared about me before. And even Noé had eventually stopped lecturing me because he realized I solved things my way. But the fact that Luca wrote several messages and obviously feared for me tore me apart. Not because I didn’t find it sweet. It was super sweet of him. But I couldn’t let him into my head even more than he already was. Otherwise, it would make my job impossible.

His dark roots were gone, so he must have had a hair appointment. The platinum blonde suited him so well.

How much I wanted to kiss him when he appeared unexpectedly in front of me. The attraction between us was soobvious. Every fiber of me longed for him. For his lips. His warmth. And yet I couldn’t allow it. Everything had been a lie. I felt betrayed by him, and that pain had given me reason.

At home, I swallowed a pill, hung the scarf on the door handle, and sat with my back to the door. I just wanted to shut down, forget everything. And I did just that. Choked off my breath until my body shook uncontrollably, then I collapsed and plunged into the rush.

***

On Friday, I had a new client. He had messaged me, and after chatting and getting to know each other a bit, he sent me a photo of himself. He said he didn’t want to be charmed or courted. He was only interested in sex. That was okay with me because when I had created the schedule and assigned Walter on Thursday, I already knew I needed something on Friday that didn’t require too much acting talent.

I arrived at the hotel on time and waited for my new client. He showed up ten minutes late and apologized. He was in his mid-forties, wearing a suit and tie, with his brown hair slicked back with lots of gel. At first glance, he looked like a banker with his suit and tie, but he had mentioned in his message that he worked for an insurance company.

“I’m so sorry for being late! Juri, right?” His open, slightly mischievous smile was somehow contagious.

“Thomas? Hello. No problem,” I replied and shook his hand.

“I live right around the corner,” he said, placing his hand on my back like a gentleman. “Shall we?”

“We’re not going to the hotel?”

“No. We’re going to my place. It’s the next building over.”

“Ah, I see, I just …”

“Yeah, it was easier this way. The entrance to my house is a bit complicated to describe.”

“Okay.”

He was right. I would never have found the entrance myself. We took the elevator to the seventh floor and entered his apartment. It was large and stylishly furnished. In the living room, there was a similar couch setup to Luca’s home. However, the space had more of a catalog-like feel to it. At Luca’s place, you could still sense that students lived there.

“Do you want something to drink? A beer? Water? I also have juice.”

“Beer sounds good.” I hung my coat over the back of the sofa and approached the large window front. “Do you live here alone?”

“Yes, it’s a bit expensive, but I feel totally comfortable here.” He stepped beside me and handed me a bottle. “Cheers.”

I clinked glasses with him and took a big sip. “The balcony is huge.”

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