“I can't go to this alone, and I can't not go! What am I supposed to do?” You asked your friend on the phone.
“Why don't you just tell the truth? Say you've been really focused on your work.”
You rolled your eyes dramatically.
“People say that when they've given up on dating. I mean, I have given up, but I don't want anyone to know…”
Your ex boyfriend's wedding was only days away, and you still didn't have a plus one. The thought of showing up without anyone at your side made your head hurt. It wasn't that you cared about your relationship status. It was the inevitable questions, the looks of pity from his mother, and the idea of having to talk to people without a buffer. The whole reason you'd broken up was because you felt completely out of place around his friends and family, and he did everything in his power to make that worse. It was almost as if he enjoyed watching you squirm. He wanted you to feel inferior.
They were rich, well traveled, and educated while you were just very well educated- because you worked your ass off for financial aid. You came from a different world and they made sure you knew it.
You sighed loudly as you tapped your pen against the edge of your desk.
“Why can't you just skip it? Why do you care what these people think?” Your friend asked, practically reading your mind.
“Um, well the problem is that his dad is one of the most influential people here,” You whispered.
“At your job?”
“Yeah. He got the job after I was hired, but that doesn't matter. If I don't go to that wedding and it pisses him off, I'm screwed.”
You spent the rest of the day making a list of all the men you knew. You hoped one of them might want to attend a free party with you, but they were either busy or completely opposed to dressing up.
“Why don't you hire an escort? There are tons of them in the papers and on Craigslist. I've thought about it…when I was really desperate.”
Your coworker hadn't meant to make you feel worse. At least, you didn't think he had, but you couldn't be sure. However, the mental image of him hiring a male escort just to kill the loneliness was depressing.
On your way home, you began to consider his idea more and more. You wondered how much it would cost to hire someone to be your date. They wouldn't have to do anything untoward, and they'd get a very nice free dinner. On top of that, you wouldn't even make them dance with you because you were an embarrassment on the dance floor.
“Ugh!”
As you lay in bed later that night, tossing and turning in your rumpled sheets, your mind kept drifting back to the same thought.
Hire an escort.
“Fine. I am desperate,” You announced to the darkness.
You had never seen a more attractive man in your entire life. In fact, when you opened your front door, you blinked several times to make sure you were seeing him correctly.
He was at least six feet tall with long black hair and bright green eyes. And when he saw you ogling him, the corners of his lips turned up in a show of slight amusement.
“Hello darling,” he purred, “You look ravishing.
You meant to say hello . You really did. But you hadn't expected this. You hadn't expected him.
“You don't have to dance with me- I'm a klutz,” You blurted.
You felt the burn on your cheeks as soon as the words were out of your mouth.
His grin grew wider and he took a step closer to you.
“Well, you just haven't had the right partner.”
His tone suggested that he wasn't just talking about dancing, and you found that you didn't mind at all. In fact, if this man suggested that you stay home and dance all night, you wouldn't argue with him.
“We had better get going,” You managed to choke out.
The one caveat in his ad had been, “ I don't drive,” and you wondered whether he had one too many DUIs or if he simply didn't have a license. In any case, the way he folded his long legs into your passenger seat was a sight to behold.
“So where are you taking me, love? Dinner with the parents? Work function? A cheap hotel room?” He winked suggestively.
“Does that happen a lot?” You asked, mainly out of curiosity.
He laughed.
“Only if I want it to.”
You suddenly wondered whether he wanted it to. Then, with a pang of guilt, you realized you didn't even know his name. The ad had said Presidential Escort , and you hadn't asked for a name when you'd called. It had been a bit humiliating even though the voice on the phone was calm and sympathetic.
“I'm so sorry…I–I didn't get your name,” You said, quickly glancing in his direction.
“Most people call me Mr. President, but you…” He paused, looking you over and grinning, “You can call me Loki.”
You wanted to ask why people called him that. You really did. But you were nearing the wedding venue and you needed to fill him in on the intricacies of the evening.
“Alright so this is my ex’s wedding…” You started.
“Ah, so I'm the new lover,” he purred.
You squirmed and nodded.
“The one who made you forget all about your ex the moment you felt my tongue caress your delicate flesh,” he whispered.
Your mouth fell open but no words came to you. It was as if this man had you under some kind of spell. Under any other circumstances, you would have slapped the shit out of him and taken off, but something about him made you want to stay.
“I– yeah – I mean…” You swallowed hard, noticing that his eyes hadn't left your face for one moment.
“I've never done this before. Hired someone, I mean. I just couldn't face this alone.”
The man- Loki - you remembered his name, thank goodness, smiled kindly and gave you an understanding nod.
“Then don't look at it like you hired me. I've told you my real name. We know each other. By the end of the evening, perhaps we'll know each other much better?”
Once again, his tone and his sexy stare made you think he was picturing you naked beneath him, and you honestly hoped he was.
The ceremony was exactly as you'd expected- too stuffy, too expensive, and far too long. You wondered why two people needed to tell each other every thought they had ever had about each other in front of all of their friends and family.
“Dear gods, are they dying or getting married?” Loki muttered beside you.
You giggled.
“I mean…do they not want to be alone? Oh dear…is he impotent? Perhaps that's why everything is so…”
You couldn't stop giggling, but you had to stop him before you both ended up getting tossed out of the venue, so you instinctively reached over and put your finger on his lips.
That was a mistake.
Without a glance in your direction, he grasped your wrist and held it in place as he softly kissed your fingertip.
You gasped, and you noticed his eyes shift toward you; his lips curling into a smirk.
“ I don't have that problem, love,” he whispered, taking your finger into his mouth and sucking it gently. You squirmed as you felt the moisture pool between your legs.
“Dear God…” You muttered, eliciting another grin from him.
“What the hell was that?” You asked as the two of you made your way to the reception hall.
Loki stopped walking and turned to stare at you.
“What the hell was what, darling? I'm supposed to be your lover, am I not?”
He was, but he wasn't supposed to make you–
Before you could finish your thought, he pulled you forward, crashing his lips into yours. One hand reached up to caress your cheek as the other wrapped around your waist.
He pulled away long before you were ready.
“Apologies, love. Your…impotent ex and his new bride were coming this way. I was just doing my job.”
“N-no apology necessary,” You breathed.
The reception was better than you'd expected, mostly because there was free food and an open bar. Plus, your “date” was sexy as hell and you were almost certain you would get a second serving of that kiss at some point.
Unfortunately, the moment you began to feel more secure, your ex’s mother decided to make her presence known.
“Well, hello there y/n,” She bellowed.
The woman didn't have a low volume. She always spoke like she had noise canceling headphones on.
You sighed and glanced at Loki, who was playing the part of a new lover very well. The way he looked at you made your heart leap into your throat. No one, including your impotent ex boyfriend, had ever looked at you that way. You had to remind yourself that the man beside you was just a very good actor.
“Hello,” You replied, hoping your cordial tone would drive the obnoxious woman away quickly.
Unfortunately, she leaned closer; her chunky body pressing against you as if she barely noticed.
“Who is this?” She whisper-yelled, grinning from ear to ear at Loki. You briefly wondered if she realized she looked like she was about to eat him.
“Most women call me Sir ,” Loki replied, reaching over to take your hand.
Her eyebrows raised slightly as she looked at him over her half rim glasses.
“Is that what you call him?” She asked you, sarcasm dripping from her words.
Loki’s mouth curled into a devious grin and he wrapped his arm around you.
“Only when she wants to. She has rank.”
You knew that everyone at the party would be gossiping about you and Loki after that, but you didn't care. All you wanted
was for her to leave you alone.
Thankfully he had frustrated her to the point that she simply turned on her heel and stalked away.
“Was she someone important?” He whispered.
His breath tickled your ear, and you giggled.
“The ex’s mom. She's a pill. Thank you for…that.”
Loki looked confused for a moment, but he nodded.
“I meant what I said. You know my real name. Therefore, you are special, darling.”
You didn't know whether to believe that or not. Somehow, you thought there might be hundreds of women who knew his real name. And most of them have probably moaned it in the throes of passion, you thought.
“Would you care to dance, kitten? We'll surely be the talk of this little party if you let me lead,” he winked.
“I can't dance. I'll embarrass you and everyone else who sees us.”
His eyes locked onto yours as he studied your face.
“I promise I won't allow that to happen. Trust me?”
He was right. You had never danced with anyone who could lead so well. You didn't even have to think about it. You just enjoyed yourself, and other women stared at you with envy.
As you looked up at him, Loki looked as though he was truly enjoying himself. You wondered if he was just acting or if he might actually enjoy your company. He gave you a soft smile- one you hadn't seen from him before- and brought his lips to your forehead in a genuinely affectionate kiss.
“I'm glad you called. You made this event sound abysmal, but attending it with you has been…well, I should be paying you. ”
“Did you actually bring a gigolo to my wedding?” A terribly familiar voice came from behind you.
“What?” You turned, your heart in your throat.
It was him. Of course it was. He had never gotten over the breakup, even though it was his fault.
“Pardon me, but did you just refer to me as a gigolo ?” Loki asked, seemingly perplexed by the situation you were both in.
“That's what you are, isn't it?”
You were suddenly so angry you didn't care about your job, your ex, or his stuffy ridiculous family.
Your palm connected with his cheek; the crack echoing around the reception hall causing everyone to stop and stare.
“You're wrong as usual! You never had any respect for anyone who doesn't fit your arbitrary ideals! That's why I left you. And this man- ” Your voice calmed as you looked at Loki, “-he is real…and I'm madly in love with him,” You pulled Loki forward and kissed him passionately.
“So suck it, Y/ex/n!”
Your outburst inevitably led to your ejection from the venue, but you couldn't care less. Loki had taken your hand and the two of you laughed as you stole as many guest gifts from the table as you could.
“I hope you like bubbles, love,” Loki said as you climbed into the car.
You couldn't stop laughing. “I'll probably get fired on Monday.”
Loki was looking at you with a strange expression, and you suddenly stopped.
“What? I hope you didn't mind–”
He was shaking his head as he took your hands.
“No one has ever…stood up for me like that. I mean, I know you were standing up for yourself, but it felt like you were defending me as well.”
You frowned. Imagining him not having anyone in his life that would defend him made you feel sad for him. Everyone deserves someone who cares for them.
“I was defending you, Loki. It really pissed me off when he insulted you that way.”
A few seconds later, he was still looking at you like he wanted to say something, but didn't know how.
“Loki?”
His mischievous demeanor from earlier was almost completely gone as he took a breath, steadying himself.
“Y/n, I've gone out with a lot of people. Men and women. I'd wager there have been hundreds of dates. But I've never been afraid of what would happen when one of them was over. I'm afraid I'll never see you again. I've never felt this way before. That was an absolutely dreadful wedding reception, but I would have happily stayed there all night as long as I could dance with you.”
You could hardly believe what you were hearing. This incredibly sexy man actually liked you?
“Wait. Are you saying that you like me?” You asked, incredulous.
“Well, kitten, you did tell your ex that you were madly in love with me. So is it okay that I have feelings for you?”
You nodded, smiling at him. He wasn't just handsome. He was funny and apparently very intelligent. And most importantly, he was gentle and kind with you.
“Although…I'm going to need more of your lips on mine if you're going to get paid for tonight…” You joked.
Loki leaned very close to you; his mouth just inches from yours.
“The only payment I'm accepting is a second date.”