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Right.
I sigh, combing my fingers into my hair as I watch my roommate dig through the clothes on the bed with excitement. This is one of the few times I have witnessed genuine happiness in her eyes, and the fact that she doesn’t seem one bit worried about what it’s costing me terrifies me.
I walk to the window and stare out. It’s snowing heavily tonight. I bet the park is packed with people skating on the ice and families holding their little ones as they whirl around in the cool wind. I want that too. I’d been looking forward to it all year, hoping I’d be able to spare enough money for new ice skates. I guess if this weekend is a success, I’ll be able to buy them easily. All I have to do is spend three days and two nights keeping a stranger happy, and on Christmas, no less.
“What if he doesn’t like what he sees and asks for a refund?” I ask, part of me hoping that’ll be the case. No man that contracts companionship, and at such an expense, would want someone that looks like me. I’m not ugly; I don’t think I am, anyway, but I am not Kim either. She is a willowy blond beauty with bright blue eyes that seem to attract every man’s attention when we go out. People tend to overlook the awkward, freckled brunette standing next to her. I don’t mind the attention, or lack thereof, but this could prove to be a problem when I meet this stranger.
“Maybe you should go—” I start.
“Oh, trust me, I would jump on the opportunity, and not just for the money.” A phone is thrust in my face, and I blink at the bright screen. It takes me a second to make sense of what I am staring at, and when I do, all the air gets sucked from my lungs. “I mean, who wouldn’t want to do a hottie like this!”
A hottie?
No, that is no way to describe the dark-haired Greek god seated behind a huge executive office table with his eyes fixed firmly on the computer in front of him. He seems so focused on what he’s doing and oblivious to the fact that someone is taking a photo of him. I grab the phone, running my eyes over every little detail I can discern about the man. Kim huffs at me, clearly annoyed, but goes back to sorting through the clothes on her bed.
Even more shocking than the scary perfection of the man is the reaction his mere picture has on me. My pulse thrums erratically as a warm heat settles in my stomach, and more than anything, I long for the man to look up, so I can see his eyes. I bet they are as intense as the rest of him.
“Are you sure—”
“He could be a catfish,” Kim says, snatching her phone away. “A man that hot doesn’t need to pay for sex. My guess is someone took a photo of him and is posing as this guy, but who cares? With the money we are getting when all this is over, what he looks like doesn’t matter.”
“B-but—”
“I can’t say the same thing for you,” she says, grabbing my chin and yanking my face up to meet her eyes. “We’ll need to hide those ugly freckles and make it so he doesn’t turn you away the moment he sees you.”
I swallow deeply and nod, hating myself a little for it, but what choice do I have? Our argument today has already taken everything out of me, and I just want this day to be over with. I’ll just do what I have to for the weekend, and when I come back, I will take my share of the money and move out of this apartment. Kim and I never have to see each other again.
“Fine, let’s do this.”
“Yes! I’ve always wanted to give you a makeover!” She jumps excitedly, oblivious to the toll this is taking on my psyche. “Once I am through with you, you are going to look just like me!”
That’s what I am afraid of.
Chapter Two
Nick
It’s snowing heavily tonight.
Snowflakes fall relentlessly as I drive, mocking my indifference to the holiday season. The houses, adorned with lights, seem like a desperate attempt to brighten the one fucking season I cannot stand. What is so special about Christmas anyway? For as long as I can remember, the holiday never held any form of meaning for my family. My father, as did his father before him, spent every holiday at the office, building an empire, and I intend to do things the same way.
With only one difference.
I don’t have a wife and son waiting at home in a cold room, occasionally glancing at the clock and wondering if their husband and father will return to share Christmas dinner before finally giving up and going to bed.
I shake my head, as if to be rid of the memories that plague my thoughts every year during this cursed season. A mix of annoyance and impatience settles in as I navigate the wintry landscape, counting the minutes until I arrive at my office.
Half my mind is on the snowy road, and the rest is on the contracts I need to go over before signing them. I have a lot of work that needs to be done, and while most of it doesn’t have to be attended to until after New Year’s Day, I have every intention of getting it done before this year ends.
To further distract myself from the invasive thoughts of my past, I decide to call my secretary to have her get all the contracts ready and on my desk before I get there, but once the call connects, it’s not her voice on the other end of the line.
“Nick, buddy! Hey!”
I bite back an annoyed groan and glare at the road as I silently beg for patience when I hear my best friend and business partner’s voice. “Give Mary the phone. I don’t have time to engage you.”
“Cheery as always. You know there is a reason everyone calls you the Grump, right?”
I pinch the bridge between my eyes, my patience growing thinner by the second. Only Eric can get on my nerves this fast, and he does so banking on the fact that we’ve been friends all our lives. I’m well aware of my employees’ opinions of me and why they prefer my best friend.
