Desire (Desire, Book 1) - By Missy Johnson Page 0,24

happy I’d managed to say my stage name without rolling my eyes. Couldn’t Emily have picked any other name?

“Nice to meet you, Bambi.” I could feel his eyes linger over my curves. I suddenly felt very uncomfortable in my tight black dress. It was sinking in that even at reception, I was as much on display as all the other girls.

“I’m Michael. I’m here for Emily.”

“Right. Take a seat, and I will let her know you’re here.” He winked at me as he headed for the couch. He was cute. Really cute. From the suit, and the cockiness I guessed he was a corporate guy. Emily had told me something like ninety percent of the clients were simply men who worked too hard, too long hours to have time to meet a woman.

Most were not interested in anything other than sexual release, and it was much easier to pay for that without all the hassle of a causal relationship. Grabbing the phone, I dialed the playroom (dubbed the playroom by the girls because it was full of everything you could think of to help them relax between clients). I was relieved when Emily answered.

“Hi Emily, Michael is here for you.”

“Oh good.” She giggled. I shook my head, getting the distinct feeling she loved her job sometimes. I glanced back at Michael and smiled. He nodded and went back to his phone.

Emily came out for Michael, leaving me alone once again. Getting the first client out of the way had made a huge difference to my nerves. The rest of the night went smoothly, with most of the time spent playing games on Facebook. The end of my shift came much faster than I was expecting.

“How did you go, Kait, any problems?” Mauve asked, popping her head into the office.

“No, it went well. I enjoyed myself.” I smiled at Mauve as I pulled my jacket on, secretly happy that she’d come to check on me after my first shift. She looked genuinely pleased. And I honestly had enjoyed myself.

“That’s great. I’ll see you tomorrow. Let me know if you have any problems.” I waved to her as I left the building. Barry sat in his usual spot, not looking up as I left.

I was way too buzzed to sleep. Glancing at the clock, I saw it was after three. I’d been home for half an hour. I’d half expected Ara to still be up, but she wasn’t. Then I remembered her early start for college. The thought of college reminded me of my assignments which really needed starting.

Sighing, I grabbed my laptop. If I wasn’t going to sleep, I may as well make use of the time.

I set myself up in the kitchen, where the lure of the TV couldn’t run me off course. After three hours I’d managed to put a huge dent in most of my essays.

It was now just after six. Too late to go back to bed, but too early to actually do anything. I made myself a cup of tea (I was determined to cut down my coffee intake), grabbed a banana, and went into the living room. My reward for doing my homework was re-runs of General Hospital.

Lucky me.

After dropping the kids at school, I collapsed into bed, exhausted after the last few long days. I felt as though I could sleep forever, and I was sure I was starting to hallucinate. The vibration of my phone woke me up. I glanced at the screen, my vision blurred, sure I’d only been asleep for a few minutes. It took me a moment to make sense of the number. It was Devon.

“Hello.” I mumbled. Gosh I sounded like a drag queen. Worse, I sounded like a drag queen who’d just woken up after a twenty four hour bender.

“Kait?” I cringed at the concern in his voice. I sounded that bad?

I coughed. “Yes, it’s me. Sorry my voice isn’t exactly morning friendly.” He chuckled.

“It’s nearly two in the afternoon.” I glanced down at the alarm clock. Huh. I had no freaking idea where the last five hours had gone.

“Well sue me. I didn’t get much sleep last night.” I grumbled. “And someone ruined my usual before work nap too.” I added for effect.

Not that I’d been complaining.

“You didn’t seem to be complaining about that too much last night.” He retorted amused, echoing my thoughts.

“So how can I help you?” Juggling the phone to my ear with my shoulder, I pulled on some pants. If felt wrong to