Page 30 of At His Beck & Call

Twenty minutes later, Henry is sitting right up close to the tiny TV I bought for the apartment, watching Bluey avidly, giggling along to the show.

Bethany, the angel that she is, bought a bottle of wine for us, and it’s a good one. She pours us both a glass of rosé and comes to settle beside me. Her long hair is tied back with a beautiful ribbon. She sees me admiring it and flicks her ponytail at me.

“I bought you one, it’s on your bed.”

“Stop spoiling me,” I say, throwing a blanket over both of us and settling down on the cushions.

“So, how was it?” she asks immediately. I glance at Henry. He looks too engrossed to care about our conversation. Still, I need to be careful what I say.

“Good. I think. Weird.”

“Is he being a dick? Because I’ll walk right in there and punch him.”

She lowers her glass, wincing as Henry turns toward us, immediately proving my point.

“Bethany said a bad word,” he singsongs, and I kick her playfully.

“Aunty Bethany is allowed to because she’s a grown-up.”

Henry’s eyes are drawn back to the TV again.

“No, he’s not being a d-word,” I mutter. “He’s… thoughtful. I think. It’s hard to tell what he is. He doesn’t show a lot of emotion.”

“So it was good? Did you… You know...”

“No,” I say, lowering my glass and giving her a quizzical look. “Is it normal for a guy to, well,do stuff, without wanting anything in return?”

Bethany raises her eyebrows. “Sometimes, but with the clients I’ve had, it’s super rare, to be honest. He didn’t wantanythingin return?”

“It didn’t even come up.”

“I doubt that,” Bethany says with a wink, and I laugh through my blush, taking another sip of my wine. I can feel the tips of my ears going crimson, and she stops laughing, patting my leg gently.

“Hey, sorry. I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable. I’m not expecting you to suddenly be okay talking about this stuff. You had likeno oneto talk to all your life. I get it.”

“I just feel like he’s paying me a lot for not a lot, you know?”

“It’ll happen. From what I know of Oliver Heath, he’s a bit of an odd guy. The last girl who was with him said he was into all kinds of weird stuff. It’s why I’d told Pippa he wasn’t the right client for you. But if it’s going well, I’m happy to admit that I was wrong.”

“What, for the first time ever?” I ask with a smirk.

“First time for everything,” she says, topping off her wine. “So, you’re okay staying there for a bit?”

“I’ve earned almost ten grand already,” I say, and Bethany doesn’t even look surprised by that. “Is that standard?” I probe.

“No. But Heath isloaded.I’m not surprised. He clearly likes you; he’ll want to keep you. Just make him happy, and you’llhave all the money you need in no time.” We both look over at Henry. “Did you hear from the doctor?”

“Yeah, she has the payment plan and the schedule and wants me to come in this weekend and talk it through.”

Her hand finds my knee beneath the blanket and squeezes gently.

“It’s a good thing, Liss, they’re gonna look out for him, get him better, and this will all be a distant memory.”

I look at my son, at my whole world, sitting there laughing at cartoons, and feel tears welling in my eyes.

Please, God, let that be true.

The next morning, before work and before Henry starts school, I pack everything we need into a bag and head to the gym.