Page 13 of Kings of Desire
$300
‘You certainly fit the picture,’ Laura came from behind me, peaking at the letter over my shoulder ‘Easy money. Not great, but easy...’
$300 for half an hour wasn’t great!? I used to make that money in a week, maybe even a week and a half. There wasn’t a chance in hell I was saying no to that.
‘I’ll do it,’ I answered even before anyone asked, mostly to convince myself not to back down, while a warm hand sneaked on the small of my back.
‘Welcome aboard,’ Laura whispered, catching my wrist and practically dragging me to somewhere on the right ‘Come, you have to get ready. The time is so short. I have no idea what the one who’ll pay the bill was thinking, giving you only a half an hour to prepare.’
I turned my head to look at the large clock on the wall- 7:31.
What wasIthinking about accepting my first Pleasure less than half an hour away?
‘Hurry,’ she rushed me, pushing a door to open and guiding me to the middle of an enormous dressing room.If the white Italian custom furniture wasn’t impressive enough, the exhibited display of gowns and shoes was absolutely stunning. Large showroom cases of colorful purses and shoes in all shapes and sizes were defining an aisle that led to the most outstanding collection of dresses and outfits.
‘What is this place?’ I asked with eyes wide open, gleaming at the sequins that were delicately twinkling under the light cast by a crystal chandelier.
‘Hun, as I said, none of us came from money,’ she shrugged, pushing some clothes aside and searching for something. ‘All Pleasures are paid by people belonging to the Elite society, and you can’t really go to the Hills dressed with what you’re wearing.’
Hearing her, I turned my head to catch a sight of me in the mirror. My black skirt could be almost decent, if it wasn’t for the cheap material, maybe even the t-shirt I had on since the hole it had in it was tucked away in the hems of the skirt, but my worn-out shoes would definitely give me away, revealing my true condition.
‘Please, don’t feel offended, I didn’t mean it like that. It’s just that you have to fit in their world, and you can’t do it without selling the whole package illusion. You should have seen the clothes I had when I first came in. Makes yours look like they came from a runway,’ she said, pulling out a red bodycon dress ‘Here, try this on.’
‘But that’s so tight,’ I uttered, looking at the tiny piece of red material.
‘It’s supposed to be that way. Put it on, you do want them to return for another Pleasure, don’t you?’ Lara practically threw the dress in my arms and walked away. ‘I’ll be back in 5, give you some privacy. Put the dress on and do something about that hair.’
Now there was also something wrong with my hair!?
I waited for her to clear the room since I was a little embarrassed to change with her still present, then got out of my clothes pulling on the red dress. It slipped right on me, just like it always belonged there, revealing a whole different person. The curvy shapes of my posterior that I usually hide in my one-size larger jeans along with the large contour of my chest, were turning me from a nobody into a temptress. Yet, there was something missing from the picture. Laura was right about my ponytail, and getting rid of the band that held my locks together made a cold chill run along my spine. It was the best version of me, and I can’t deny that it empowered me to the tip of my toes. But the change was also terrifying me. In an instant, I had become an object of desire, and sooner or later this would have an irremediable effect on me.
The cheering sound in Lara’s voice brought me back to my senses ‘Yes, perfect!’
I could see her admiring me from the distance while I was having trouble arranging the dress to wrinkle itself around my defined shapes, trying to cover them up a little.
‘Just take a deep breath and let it stay the way it’s supposed to be,’ she smiled, sensing my clumsiness but also my timidity. ‘Here, you need shoes too,’ she handed me a pair of black heels, completing mynewfoundimage. ‘A tint of makeup,’ she smudged a brush over my eyes, then a little mascara and- ‘you’re done.’
It was a brand new me staring back in the mirror- acompletely different me.
‘Two minutes left on the clock, you have to hurry.’
Where did the half an hour disappear!? I panicked, steering to the door then almost running into the main lobby.
‘It’s ok, you got this,’ Laura caught up with me since walking in those heels was almost like walking in tin cans.
At that point, she better be right because only moments were separating me from literally stepping into a new era of my life.
‘Sign here,’ Vanya’s voice echoed from her office, stopping me on my way and forcing me to make a small detour to put the pen on the paper.
With no time to read the contract, at this point, it was just about blind faith, praying that I wasn’t repeating the mistake I made with Randy. Maybe I was sealing my fate, maybe it was a pact with the devil, but if that was the case, then the devil was personally dragging me out of my own hell.
Two seconds later and there it was: my name black on white as the dice were tossed and the game had just begun -my first Pleasure.
Chapter 4
Istepped out of the building, eyes looking across the street. A brand-new luxury car was waiting for me, engine purring and the right front door wide open.
‘Hurry up, please,’ a male’s voice was pressing me to move faster, and before I knew it, I was occupying the seat next to the driver.
