Unlawful Escort (Unlawful Series book 1) (4 page)

She changed into jeans and t-shirt as soon as she got home and went straight to the café. She would take a month
off from work at the café, she decided. That should give her enough time to decipher whether or not her plans with Sebastian would pan out.

Her boss, Michael was unfortunately not as cooperative as she had hoped;
flatly threatening to fire her. However after carefully emphasizing her exceptional skills in the kitchen, pleading and eventually resorting to bribing him with her famous apple pie, he finally relented.

She didn’t realize that she had had so
many reservations as to the authenticity of Sebastian’s offer until his lawyers contacted her as he had promised, a few hours after her lunch date with him. She retrieved her father’s picture from her nightstand after the lawyer hung up; pressing her lips to the cold surface, as she so often did for comfort and prayed that this whole ruse would not blow up in her face.

CHAPTER FIVE

“WELL DON’T JUST STAND THERE”,
Sebastian barked as Paige contemplated running back into her house and hiding in the basement, “get in!”

Stomping down the notion, she scurried into the rear
seat of the car beside Sebastian; dread settling in the pit of her stomach and her palms clammy with sweat. Everything had gone as planned; the money had been wired to her account the day before, as agreed and she had wasted no time in starting the process for Joshua’s transplant. She sighed wistfully; the thought of Joshua getting a second chance at life made the prospect of what she was about to do, a little less daunting.

“Having second thoughts already?” Sebastian asked suddenly
, pulling her out of her reverie.

“Not at all”, she said with as much exuberance as she could muster.

He trained molten brown eyes on her, their pensive depths touching the delicate contours of her face and her heart skipped a beat. Suddenly the spacious confines of the car seemed stifling.

“I
’m not normally very fond of redheads”, he murmured, “but I find that I like yours very much”.

Her eyes widened in shock and she inhaled sharply as h
e lifted a large hand to stroke the soft tendrils of her hair which was hanging loosely about her shoulders. For a moment she thought he might kiss her and her eyes drifted to his lips; her heart hammering in her chest. But his hand fell, slowly, away and she released a breath she hadn’t realized she was holding.

Say something, her mind screamed; but for the li
fe of her, she could not figure out what.

“Was… that a comp
liment?” she stuttered breathlessly.

“I suppose it was
”, he said, an odd expression in his eyes before he glanced away.

They drove in silence for a few minutes
while Paige attempted, with little success, to relax her stiff posture. Finally concluding that such a thing was no to be had, she made a feeble effort at conversation.

“
So… what’s next..?” she asked hesitantly.

“
I’ve scheduled a fitting for your new wardrobe and a full body make over”, he said, “and then it’s on to my apartment”, her pulse skittered at the mention of his home…soon to be hers as well.

Guilt prickled her conscience as
he explained that he had expunged all evidence that she was an escort, she was a college student and she had taken the semester off from school and they had met at a charity dinner, a month ago. She sighed in relief when his cell phone rang and he was immersed in conversation for the remainder of their journey as she would rather not be reminded of what she had agreed to do.

She struggled to
calm her fraying nerves as they arrived at their destination in the heart of Manhattan’s Upper East Side; constantly glancing over her shoulder for fear that someone would identify her for the imposter that she most certainly was. They were greeted by a beautiful strawberry blond woman with a perfectly toned body and bountiful bosom, whom Sebastian introduced as Leila. She hardly speared a moment’s notice for Paige; her attention centered on Sebastian.

Paige wondered idly if something was going on between the two as she
noted the woman’s lingering touches on ‘Brad’s’ arm as she called him, throughout their brief conversation.

“Leila will
assist you with anything you need”, Sebastian said, finally tearing himself away from the other woman who stared coldly at her, “I’ll be back to get you”.

She stared at Sebastian’s retreating back, forlornly;
wishing he would stay. She felt like a child on her first day of school; alone and unsure. After all, he was the only person she knew on this side of town, not to mention that this deception of theirs’ would take some getting used to. She squared her shoulders and met Leila’s cold blue eyes head on. It was evident that she and Sebastian travelled in the same circles and Paige had the distinct impression that she needed to make it clear that she was no push over if she intended to make this hoax a success.

She soon discovered that she had had nothing to worry about as she barely saw Leila beyond the few moments it took her to deliver Paige into the care of one of her employees. She then spent the better part of the
afternoon being pampered from the grooming of her long wavy red-gold hair to a thorough manicure, pedicure, massage and facial treatment.

She hardly recognized her reflection
in the mirror as she smoothed the casual royal blue designer silk dress that the friendly store clerk had given to her a moment ago. Her hair framed her, lightly, made up face and the knee length dress outlined the rounded shape of her hips; her ensemble gave her a radiance that she hadn’t possessed that morning.

There was a light fluttering in the pit of her stomach as she made her way to the exit to meet Sebastian. She felt like a teenager going on her first date; nervous yet excited, all at once.
Her pleasant state of mind died of a cold dose of reality as she entered the lobby and saw Sebastian and Leila conversing. This is a business arrangement, she reminded herself sternly and she would do well to remember that for the remainder of her time as his makeshift girlfriend. She cleared her throat loudly and the couple turned to face her; the smile on Leila’s face replaced by distaste as she saw Paige.

“I suppose we should be on our way”, Sebastian said, his brown eyes glazed with desire as they seemed to devour her.

“Later…” Leila purred; a hint of promise in her eyes.

“I’m not sure I’ll be available”, Sebastian said, his voice tinged with annoyance.

Leila’s cheeks flamed with embarrassment and Paige frowned. What was going on between them? Had her presence ruined their relationship somehow? Was Leila in love with Sebastian? Her heart ached for the other woman. But why would Sebastian pay an escort to pose as his girlfriend when he had such a lovely woman as Leila?

None of this made any sense, Paige thought as she mumbled her thanks to Leila
and marched to Sebastian’s waiting car; guilt eating at her insides as she thought of how she was ruining the other woman’s life. She was suddenly angry with Sebastian for placing her and Leila into such an awkward position. Couldn’t he have taken her someplace else? It was cruel of him to be rubbing their, so called, relationship in Leila’s face.

Paige studied him through hooded eyes as he spoke on his cell ph
one on the ride to his apartment; fighting to contain her ire at the situation. She studied his mouth; the way it thinned when it was apparent that he was displeased at whatever was being said on the other end of the line, the whitening of the edge whenever he was angry and the sensuous curve whenever he smiled. Why did all the cute guys have to be such jerks? She wondered crossly. And this one was way out of your league, she reminded herself. She was just a means to an end for him; like so many other people in this man’s life; Leila for example.

She contemplated
confronting him about what he’d done; eventually deciding that it was none of her business. They would be separate people sharing a house; nothing more and she wouldn’t take the liberty of crossing that line as she had an uncanny feeling that such a thing could only spell disaster.

CHAPTER SIX

SEBASTIAN’S APARTMENT WAS AS HUGE
as it was magnificent. Located in the Upper West Side of Manhattan, the duplex Penthouse was the epitome of wealth and luxury. She tagged along behind Sebastian as he gave her a grand tour; dumbstruck by the impressive beauty enveloping them. Situated on the top floor; the floor to ceiling glass walls and double height ceilings provided a breathtaking view of the entire Manhattan area and substantial lighting. The kitchen was every chef’s dream and she fell in love with her bedroom immediately upon entering it.

“The building has a housekeeping team”, he informed her as she appraised the room
with its splendid décor of sky blue and white hues and radiant sunshine from the glass walls, “you can call them if you need any help unpacking”.

She glanced at her small suitcase on the carpeted floor and snorted. He had told her to take nothing in the form of clothing but she had still taken a few personal items.

“I’m certain I can unpack my things myself”, she said sarcastically.

“Suit yourself”, he responded, offhandedly.

She sighed deeply and turned to face him. It was late evening and the fading light cast eerie shadows across his handsome features and she suddenly realized the intimacy of the moment and she almost forgot what she was about to say.

She forced her attention to the matter at hand.
“Sebastian…”

“Brad…” he corrected, “
all my friends call me Brad and my girlfriend should”.

She rolled her eyes, starting again, “If this plan is going to be successful, you need to be honest with me”, she said tentatively and he quirked an eyebrow. She rushed on, “what’s going on between you and Leila?”

His lips curled into a mischievous grin. “You mean Mrs. Leila Thornton”, he quipped, wry amusement sparkling in his brown eyes and she blinked in shock, “wife of the very wealthy hotelier, Philip Thornton”.

They weren’t together!

“Oh…” she stuttered, her face red with embarrassment, “I… I think…um… I’m ready to see that terrace now”, she breezed past him into the hallway.

He caught up with her and they retraced their steps downstairs and out unto the most amazing patio she could have imagined.

“This is beautiful”, she murmured reverently, as the light breeze tickled her face.

“Yes it is."

Similar to the rest of the apartment; it was vast and could have been more suitably referred to as a garden rather than a patio. She fluffed the soft cushions resting on the many sofas strewn across the patio; enveloped by the sheer etherealness of her environs. The mild scent from the vast array of flowers wafted below her nostrils and she closed her eyes for a moment; absorbing the moment so that she could relive it whenever she felt distressed.

She opened her eyes and gazed at the massive buildings
, traffic and shoreline in the distance and for a moment she felt as if she was in the heavens above looking down at the earth below.

Reluctantly, she tore
herself from her momentary reprieve and followed Sebastian back to the living room.

“I have to go back to the office”, he said suddenly, “
you can order room service or if you want to go out, call me and I’ll send James”.

“Ok”, she said, suddenly nervous.

“And there is one other place we didn’t visit”, he said, his brown eyes alight with mischief and something else.

“Where?” she asked, hesitantly.

“My bedroom”, he said silkily.

“I don’t think such a tour will be necessary”, she said breathlessly
, her heart racing.

“
I can be a very patient man…” he said and strode towards the door and left.

She
fought to calm her racing heart as she retraced her steps to the patio and sat in one of the sofas. What if Sebastian was a psychopath and had lured her to his apartment to rape and murder her and then dump her body in a dark alley somewhere? She shivered at the thought? No, she decided; he would not take such a risk. For all he knew, she had a family somewhere who knew exactly where she was at this very moment.

Omitting the
sordid details; she had taken the liberty of giving Meredith, her kindly neighbor, Sebastian’s address along with her cell phone number; informing her that she would be away for a while. She shook aside her dismal thoughts; it was too late to consider such things. She stiffened her spine; she had made a decision and she would stick to it.

She rose reluctantly from her relaxing position on the sofa and went to retrieve her purse; it was time for her daily visit with Joshua. Disregarding Sebastian’s instructions to inform him if she was leaving the apartment; she hailed a taxi t
hat took her directly to the hospital. Joshua was elated to see her, as always, commenting on how beautiful she looked and enquiring if she had a date and laughing gaily when she told him that he was all the man she needed in her life at the moment.