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“I’m going to give you two some space,” Dan mutters, heading down the hallway to his bedroom.
The tension in the air between the two of us is so thick it's almost visible. Andries watches Dan go with a look of betrayal in his eyes, before he tries to sweep past me and out of the living room.
Desperate, I grab his arm with my two hands, forcing him to stop. “Wait! Please hear me out. This isn’t what you think.”
He heaves a long sigh in annoyance, before turning around to face me. “You say that a lot, you know? When I found out you were a prostitute, you told me the same thing; that it isn’t what I think because you’re just the manager of a bunch of sex workers, not one yourself. And now here you are again this time to back track after Patricia being raped by your lovely client.”
Raped? What a big word!“It’s more nuanced than that,” I tell him instead, putting on a softer tone. “You are much moreupset than Patricia herself is. She seems more embarrassed than anything.”
He shakes his head, disappointment lacing his features. “I knew you’d say that. You’re lucky she signed that NDA and liability waiver, because Elise and I were all but begging her to go to the police and report that piece of shit you call a client. But she wouldn’t because you made sure that she couldn’t!”
What? The police?Is he crazy or what?I take a step back, blink a few times, my mouth gaping in shock as I process his comment. “I can’t believe you’d do that, especially if Patricia didn’t want to! Had she given in, she’d be in legal trouble, and it’d beyourfault, not mine,” I snap, unable to keep my indignation out of my tone.
He takes a few angry steps forward, closing the distance between us. “You know what I could do that would keep her out of legal trouble while also exposing what you and your nasty clients do?” he asks, his voice hoarse and threatening. My heart starts pounding fast inside my chest, but it’s because of the closeness. “I was contacted by a reporter that is doing a hit piece on you, and he seemed desperate for information. The only reason I didn’t give it to him was because he has a bad history with my family. But now—”
“Kenneth?” I ask, surprised. “Was his name Kenneth? He was harassing me at a party, but he was asking about you, not the other way around. I told him to fuck off.”
A shadow of doubt passes over Andries’ face, gone in an instant. “What? That doesn’t make any sense.”
“Those reporters lie! He knows we are split up and is hoping that, in our anger, we’ll spill our guts to him just to hurt one another.” I blow out a slow breath, my eyes dropping to the floor for a beat before meeting his gaze again. “I didn’t tell him anything. Did you?”
“No. But now I regret that decision.”
“You know that, even if I wouldn’t pursue Patricia for breaking our binding agreement, the client himself would, if this story is allowed to hit the news. You’d be hurting me but ruining her in the process. It isn’t worth it to you, I know that.”
He pinches the bridge of his nose, shutting his eyes for a moment as he processes everything I just told him. He looks hurt, but mostly angry.
“I despise you,” he growls, the disappointment in his voice catching me off guard. “It’s you who put her in harm's way and now you’ve tied the hands of everyone who wants to expose you.”
“Andries…” I sigh but keep my tone even. Screaming at him will only throw more gas to the fire. “These things are so incredibly rare that they’re almost unheard of. Patricia is humiliated and angry at herself, but what she’s most upset about is the fact that she can’t take jobs at my agency anymore.”
He physically recoils, his eyes widening at me. “She’d go back and do it again?”
I shrug one shoulder. “Like I said before, she made ten thousand euros in three hours. That might not be much in your eyes, but for a girl like Patricia, it’s enough to come back for another taste.” I shake my head, tired of the same argument replaying between us. “Look, for some women, prostitution is just work. Why don’t you understand that?”
He gapes at me, and like a viper, suddenly strikes out and grabs my face in one of his large hands, squeezing tight. It hurts, but it’s the shock that affects me more.
“If prostitution is just work, then why don’t we have a course at the uni for girls like you and Patricia to become the best whores in town, huh? Maybe we should have a program teaching girls how to perform the best blowjob so they can put it on their resume? What do you think of that?” His hand continues squeezing my cheeks so hard that it makes my pulse steadily rise in anger. “You’re the most immoral and disgusting bitch I’veever known,” he hisses, his face inches from mine. “Don’t ever try to talk to me again.”
In a panic, I try to slap him away, shocked beyond recognition that he’d dare touch me like this. He dodges my flailing hands, pushing me back as he releases me, and before I can try and fight back he’s stormed off down Dan’s hallway and locked himself in another room.
I’m beyond startled as I rush out of the house, feeling my cheeks with my own hands. I open my front facing phone camera to look at my reflection, and besides some redness, there aren’t any marks. It looks like the trauma of that terrifying moment will stay internal.
For me, the day is done. So many things are ruined beyond repair that I just want to go to bed and forget my interaction with Andries even happened. It isn’t meant to be though, because before I can even get back to my car Poppy is calling me. As soon as she starts talking, she sounds worried and anxious.
“Uh, Roxanne? Karl is here, and he wants to talk to you right now. Can you come back?”
Wiping tears from my eyes, I mentally prepare myself for yet another battle. “I’m on my way.”
***
“Hello, Karl. Or should I sayRobert? You’re awfully brave to show your face here after what you’ve done.”
My fists are clenched at my sides, fingernails digging into my palm in my fury as I lay my eyes on the man who decided to betray my trust for good. Karl is with another man, who from the looks of it, seems to be his attorney, and my old client’s face is steely.
“Roxanne,” he starts, while I make way into my office and shut the door behind us. Once we hear the click of the door closing, Karl proceeds, and to my surprise, his tone is rather humble and genuine. “I want to apologize for everything that has happened. I got carried away. We both did. It was all too easy to forget she was someone I hired. We just meshed so well, and the sex was consensual. It was the natural ending to a night between two people who have chemistry.”
“It can’t be consensual if she’s drunk, asshole!” I snap back.
