Page 5 of Escort Mountain Daddy

I was startled, looking at him with confusion, “Huh?”

Kellan smiled, resting his cheek in his hands as he studied me, “You want to make people jealous, right? You want your ex to be jealous that I have you like that waitress was jealous that you were with me. Am I correct?”

Wow, he caught on.

“Basically,” I murmured, hoping that he wasn’t judging me. “I decided I don’t really want him back, but I want him to regret inviting my family and I to his wedding. I think it’s just weird but my mom loved him, and thinks I was stupid for letting him go. So, I also need you there to change her mind about him and make her realize that I don’t need him.”

“I see,” Kellan murmured, looking like he was getting lost in thought. “May I ask why you broke up with him?”

I knew this was coming, so I just told him the truth, “Honestly, he bored me. We were together for so long, and, yes, he was good to me, but the spark wasn’t there anymore. I didn’t necessarily want to be with someone else, I just didn’t want to be with him anymore. I lied to him though and made him think I was moving on to make him hate me so he would just leave me alone. It worked, but my family now still thinks I’m the bad guy. I didn’t want to attend his wedding but my mom isn’t giving me much of a choice, telling me that I should be happy he moved on… it’s complicated.”

“I get where you’re coming from,” Kellan said, shaking his head, “but I do think you went about that in the wrong way.”

I sighed, shrugging my shoulders, “I was young and stupid.”

“You’re twenty-four, right?” Kellan asked, no doubt having read my profile.

I nodded.

“We all make mistakes.” Kellan said, “I have as well in my years, and I have broken a heart or two. It’s the way of life, and we learn from it. We are only human.”

“You’re right,” I said, feeling a little more curious. “Can you explain to me what you did with your ex if you don’t mind?”

Kellan stilled, a bewildered look on his face. I froze, realizing I might have just asked about something that should have been left alone. I avoided his eyes, blushing.

“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have asked that,” I mumbled as the food was placed in front of me. “That’s not any of my business.”

“No, it’s okay,” Kellan said, shrugging his shoulders. “I’ve been asking you quite personal questions to get a feel for what you need and who you are. It’s okay for you to ask me questions as well; that doesn’t mean I’m going to answer you.”

I gnawed on my bottom lip, peeking up at him, “Are you going to answer my question?”

Kellan was silent for a moment, and I thought he wouldn’t.

I guess I was wrong.

“I only had one serious relationship in my entire life,” He said, cutting up his food as he spoke. “We grew up together, but we didn’t start dating until we were in high school. I had the biggest crush on her, and I never thought that she would date me because I was a bit of a troublemaker. When we started dating, it was like a dream come true.”

“What happened?” I asked him, wondering if they had just broken up like any normal high school couple.

His jaw clenched, and he shook his head, “Toward the end of our senior year, she was diagnosed with a rare form of leukemia.”

My heart dropped in my chest.

“It was too far along,” He continued, smiling sadly. “I did whatever I could to make sure that she was happy and content. I tried to help her through all the pain and give her whatever she needed. It killed me to see her deteriorating before my eyes, but she continued to have a smile on her face, telling me that she had made amends and she was okay with going because she knew I was going to be alright. She ended up dying the day after graduation in my arms while we slept. I didn’t even get a chance to tell her goodbye.”

My heart ached for him, and without realizing I had done so, I reached across the table, holding his hand, “I am so sorry, Kellan, that must have been tough on you.”

Kellan glanced down at my hand on his but made no move to push me away, “It’s fine. I got over it a long time ago. She’s in a better world anyway, no longer suffering. It’s what I would want for her.”

“Is her death the reason you never dated again?” I asked him curiously.

“Not really,” he said, withdrawing his hand as he shook his head, “I just never found anyone I connected with, and then when I decided to join the escort business, it was just easier to not date because of what I had to do.”

Oh yeah. My thoughts drifted to the packages that the escort business offered.

“Was it worth it?” I murmured, watching him carefully.

Kellan was silent for a moment, and I saw the war raging in his eyes. No doubt he was debating on what to tell me, how much to tell me, and I couldn’t say I necessarily blamed him. I was just a stranger, someone he was going to make money off of, and I don’t think that I really had any reason to be asking him these kinds of questions.