The Escort

Chapter Two- The First Meeting

Lia found herself dumbfounded as to why she was so nervous to meeting someone like Cameron. He was attractive, but in a way that would usually be the opposite of her type of lover. Cameron gave a vibe that was an all-American-boy, when she would usually go for the types that were rugged and brawny. She had been so nervous in fact that she had tried on over fifty outfits until finally deciding on the simple little white dress that was decorated in a shiny golden floral pattern made out in sequins. But as she slid a twenty to the taxi driver in the seat in front of her, she knew it was showtime and played her most important character yet-as well as the easiest. This was because she felt as though her and Cameron had a lot in common such as strict parents and broken hearts-only hers had been scabbed over from almost five years prior.

With a nostalgic 90s song having played the first notes of its chorus, Lia demanded the room as she made her way confidently to the car. She set her purse upon the counter top that had been littered with the shells of varied nuts and water rings from drinks gone by.

“What can I get ya?’ The bartender asked as he completely ignored his customer who had been waving for his attention for the last five minutes.

“I think she was first…” Lia commented as the bartender reluctantly looked to the young woman who was desperate for a drink. Without knowing her story or even her name, Lia could tell this woman had just been through something heavy on the relationship front. Due to the bruises on her arms that she tried to conceal and the nervous tremors when men looked at her, she could tell it was a heartbreaking abusive relationship.

“Now that you’ve played good samaritan, what can I get ya?” He spoke in a now agitated tone, as if disappointed to see the object of his momentary affection having a sense of human decency. Lia constantly played it safe when it came to a drink and so she ordered a mocktail; a Shirley Temple. Both those beside her at the bar and the bartender himself looked to her curiously before returning to their tasks. It was during this time when her gaze shifted to Cameron as she found him to have already been looking at her. He held a drink in his hand with a small cocktail straw between his teeth as he smirked in her direction, but looked away the moment she glanced in his direction.

Lia prepared this scenario in her head a million times-half of those million having been when she was on the taxi ride over. She knew she would order a drink, “bump” into Cameron, and help him clean off in the unisex bathroom where sparks would fly and an intimate moment would then be shared. But this would not go as planned as she climbed down from the bar stool and towards Cameron who was now turned from her with his back towards her as it was his turn in throwing darts with Perry and Logan by his side. Not wanting to seem too desperate, she moved to the vintage Wurlitzer directly across from the dart board and focused on a song to show her deep side to hopefully draw him in. But as she turned to see if she gained his attention as the vinyl was moving onto the turntable, she found the unwanted attention of a man she would have liked to keep as a stranger.

“I haven’t seen you ‘round here before…” He spoke while he stood with enough confidence as if he stood a chance with her. The man was almost repulsive with the scent of cheap cologne and cigarettes surrounding him and his desperation. He stood with an arrogance that made her nauseous before then trying to reach for her waist without even speaking a second sentence to her. She tried to keep with her sweet appearance in case Cameron had been watching but found it infuriating how this man expected her to be okay with this. She quickly jumped back in response and tried to move to the other side of the bar before feeling his hand pull on her wrist, causing her to jump backwards. The swift motions of this then caused her red colored drink to fall against her ivory colored dress.

Without an apology from the man, she hurried into the bathroom before being seen by Cameron in hopes of using whatever she could to then emerge from the bathroom in something unstained. Her mind went a million miles as she considered using toilet paper or even cleaner left over by a lazy custodian now asleep against the wall with headphones keeping him in his slumber. As Lia pulled a napkin from a dispenser to the right of the sink, she then dipped it beneath the warm water with soap rubbed upon it, and viciously rubbed it against her dress-only causing the stain to smear. Before she could consider looking through her purse, she forgot she had left it on the counter of the bar. She knew that if she crossed her arms, it would hide the stain enough for her to get her purse.

But before she could make it from the bathroom, the door came open and the man responsible for the stain in the first place had entered without permission with a stack of napkins having been given, or most likely taken from the bartender. The unnamed man seemed to show an act of decency but eyes of deceit as he watched her lustfully as she patted down her chest in an attempt to ease the stain.

“If you wanted me in here, all you had to do was ask…” He attempted to joke as she looked at him through her reflection in the mirror before giving him a kind yet undeserved smile. She could feel his creepy gaze frozen on her back as she verified this suspicion by looking at the mirror and seeing him watching her as if she was a meal to him and not another human. Due to feeling unsteady and with her taser having been in the purse that was too far away to be utilized, she moved to leave the restroom. It was at this moment that she realized he had locked the door upon entering-and also the same instance that she felt his hand hard on her wrist.

“You aren’t getting out of here until you give me what you promise…” His grip became painful on her frail wrist as she tried to pull away but found his once light gray eyes to turn a nearly demonic black.

“This isn’t funny anymore…” She tried to feel out the situation before then feeling his overweight strength push her back against the sink and clasp over her mouth so she couldn’t scream.

“Be a good girl and bend over the sink so we can get this over with…” He spoke as he kept a hold on her mouth and turned her against her will as she was forced to watch her body be thrown without care via the reflection. Her makeup was now smeared and her hair disheveled during the altercation as she could hear the man unbuckle from behind her and prepare to expose himself for pleasure. “Maybe I should have you get on your knees...But then you might try something to-”

“Is everything okay?” An unknown voice spoke on the outside of the bathroom door as Lia felt as if this was her only chance to get someone’s attention before her pride and mental state would be altered forever. She knew his strength was too great to break from but she knew if she could make any noise-even just a whimper, then whoever it was could help her. She used the empty canister of what once held a candle and threw it at the door while distracting the man enough as he loosened his grip. It was done just enough that she bit his hand and kicked him from her as she fell onto the floor, bashing her knee against the cement ground.

“Help me!” She pleaded as she felt a hand upon her ankle before being whipped onto her back. Due to the violence and strength in her opponent, her head hit the floor just enough to cause her vision to blur and her equilibrium to become incoherent. The man would not allow her to get away from him again, and so with one arm across her chest to push her down firm and his legs having since straddled her to the ground, she was left to the pity of anyone who could have heard the struggle. As the man hurried to expose himself to her, having been successful in allowing his unalluring erection to hit against her thigh, the door suddenly came open and the bartender and an unknown set of men had pulled the man from her. The man was held against his will as the bartender was on the phone with the police and the man who helped pull him brought her some ice he had gotten from behind the bar.

“Are you alright?” He asked as she noticed how it had been Cameron. She was completely unprepared to have met him in this particular moment as she had anything but the upper hand.

She could only bring herself to nod in a response as she then looked to Perry and Logan who were still in shock from the scene. It seemed almost instantaneous when the police had shown up and taken the man off of the premises. After they had received a statement from her, she returned to the bar to collect her purse before noticing Cameron fighting the courage to come speak to her.

“Thank you…” She said in a nearly hoarse voice from the man having applied enough pressure on her throat to cause such an effect.

Cameron nodded as his eyes didn’t move from her as he was unaware of someone capable of holding such beauty-inside and out. “You have good taste…” He commented as he motioned to the jukebox that was now playing “Love Bites” by Def Leppard.

“Thanks.” She chuckled before a small stream of blood had emerged from her lip. Cameron took it upon himself to collect a napkin from the bar’s back and moved to her to dab the crimson stream from her perfectly glossed lips. For a moment, his eyes fixated on her lips as he had imagined pressing his against hers. But her lips curving into a smirk had forced his eyes to then refocus upon her piercing gaze.

“Cameron…” He said as he extended his hand, nervously setting out his left one-although he had been right handed. He quickly corrected this with forced for an awkward handshake that eventually went on longer than intended.

“Lia.” She said sweetly, having perfected the correct tone that would be enough to hide her usual arrogant and sarcastic tone.

“It’s nice to meet you Lia, although, I would have wished for better circumstances.” She smiled to him as she found it alluring as he seemed to speak as a romantic hero from an old Harlequin novel. “Are you sure you’re okay?” He asked with a gaze that was truly concerned-even if his thoughts were lustful of her-her wellbeing meant more to him than his temporary bliss.

“Just...shaken up…”

“I bet...Can I get you anything?”

“To be honest, I’d just like to get out of here.” Her words surprised him as his usual soft eyes were now wide with wonder and excitement that he failed in hiding. “With me?” He asked in true surprise as she slowly nodded. “Only if you wouldn’t mind keeping me company…”

“Yes! I mean no-I...I don’t mind.” As he stood near her, Logan nudged him as a way to tell him to “go for it”. He then tried to push him off as a way to tell him he had it under control before looking back to Lia.

“Do you have anywhere in mind?”

“Anywhere but here.”

He nodded as he followed her from the bar and to the streets outside where a slight chill had now fallen on the usually mild nights. Cameron felt odd to offer his jacket and with her seemingly warm in her jacket made of sweater material, he kept a close eye on her and told himself he would offer if she began to shiver. But in the meantime of waiting to offer his jacket, Cameron then began to fall into easy conversation with Lia.

“Thank you again for what you did...you could have left me in there…” She discussed her fear as he shook his head and gave off a shrug as they walked before a set of cookie cutter townhouses that were almost identical in color, size, and shape-with the only difference having been the lights on in the windows and the potted plants upon the steps.

“I saw him go in after you….I didn’t like the way he was looking at you...Not that I have any right to protect you or anything, I just-”

“Thank you, Cameron.” Her grateful comment made him silent for a moment before he turned to look at her again after blushing towards the ground.

“Are you sure you don’t want to go to a hospital?” Cameron asked as they now made their way through a crosswalk.

“No. I’ll be fine-”

“What if you have a concussion?”

“Then I need to stay awake…” She gave him a side glance that was her own version of allowing her s****l comment to bleed into her new goodie-two-shoes persona. But with her kind smirk, it made any insinuation he had, fade. “Maybe you wouldn’t mind helping me?”

“Sure...what did you have in mind?” Her eyes then fell to a diner across the way as she looked to him with approval before he motioned as a true gentleman to follow behind her. This kind nature continued as he pulled the door open for her in the diner and followed suit before taking a booth near the middle of the restaurant. As she slid into the booth, she neglected to notice the way that Cameron looked at her, as he couldn’t believe he was sitting across from someone so beautiful. But just as they went to order for what would be the start of an unplanned date, Lia felt her phone vibrate viciously in her pocket. When she saw the name come across the screen, her stomach twisted into knots as she saw the texts upon her phone.

“We need to talk.” “Call me.” “Room 1733, tonight.”

“Are you alright?” Cameron asked as he saw the mix of fear and disgust in her eyes as she slid the phone back within her pocket after having now turned it on silent.

As polite conversation ensued and while waiting for their food, Lia made it a point to check her phone under the table so she wouldn’t make Cameron feel as if he was boring her or a waste of her time. Due to this, her sight came across a text message that caused her tired eyes to become wide with worry.

“You come to me tonight or I’m going to mess up his pretty little face…”