LOGINShare
3
Last Updated:
2022-03-02 23:13:52Helen looked around nervously. She had never seen the man. How was she supposed to answer? The stranger was clearly playing with her. If she said her date was gorgeous, she’d be in trouble when the short, bald guy rolled in. After scrambling for a moment, she answered, “I like the way he looks.”
“Hmm,” the brown-eyed stranger said, as he suddenly turned around the corner and put his arm by her shoulder, nearly pinning her against the pillar. “And you’re friendly with him no doubt?”She nodded and said testily, “That’s why you shouldn’t be putting the moves on me.”“Mark!” someone suddenly called from the other end of the lobby. It was a silver tinkling voice, exactly like the sound of Christmas ornaments jingling.Helen turned her head to see who had called her date’s first name, when suddenly the stranger in front of her closed in and whispered, “Sorry for the late introduction. I’m Mark and I’m guessing you’re my date. Vera? Am I right?”“Yeah,” Helen breathed, very much aware of his cologne. Breathing it in was a new sensation. What on earth was he wearing? But Helen still had the presence of mind to say, “But you’re not behaving very well. Do you have to stand that close to me?”“I need you to help me with a little problem,” he said, taking her hand in his and leading her toward the woman who had called to him. He held onto her hand and introduced her to a ravishing blonde.Her name was Laura. It was only necessary to take one look at her to learn that she was eating her heart out for Helen’s date.“Don’t you ever go out with the same woman twice?” Laura asked poisonously when Mark slipped his arm around Helen’s waist.Helen smiled and looked at him. Yeah, he definitely looked like the heart-breaker type. She was smiling though, because she was happy he had turned out to be her partner for the night. She couldn’t help it. So far, none of her dates had been with men that were above an average on an attractive-o-meter. Mark was undoubtedly a ten on any woman’s rating chart. At least she wouldn’t have to kiss someone at the end of the night she was not attracted to. So, she was smiling and enjoying the fun of being with a man who was obviously popular. Mindy had already prepared her for being a tool to make another woman jealous.“Don’t scare Vera,” Mark said to Laura sternly.“But I know how you like to give your flings the idea that it’s not just a fling,” she said, looking particularly wounded. “Someone needs to warn the poor girl.”Helen smiled and answered before Mark had a chance to say anything. “Thanks for the warning, but I’m too young to settle down. You should just enjoy the moment. Don’t you think?" Even Helen thought her cheerful eyes and ringing voice were irritating as she said those words. Saying a line like that irked her conscience, even as she said it. She didn’t believe it at all. She wanted a steady boyfriend who wouldn’t just use her for a fling, but for a long life of deep, lasting love. However, Mark was paying her to be on his side, so she said what she had to without choking on her own tongue.Helen knew she was successful when Laura gave her a disgusted look and then beckoned for someone across the room to join them. “He’ll make you sorry, even if you have that attitude,” she said crossly as she took the arm of a young man. He was tall and blond and Helen might have been mistaken, but she thought Laura's date looked at her a trifle longer than was necessary.Helen flashed a smile back at him. It was all part of leading her secret life. Smiling sweetly at strangers was all part of being Vera. Well, she wouldn’t have to do it for much longer. New Year's was going to be the last night. Afterward, she’d have to make up the difference washing dishes in the back of the pub again. Maybe then she could relax because no one would ever find out what she’d been doing.Mark led her over to the coat check and politely helped her remove her coat. “You really riled her up,” he said as he offered her an arm and led her down the stairs to the ballroom.“Is she your ex-girlfriend?” Helen asked, trying to get a grasp of the situation. Maybe he would tell her.“Not exactly. More like a hopeful girlfriend,” he explained.Man alive! He had excellent posture. Helen pushed her shoulders back and tried to walk with half as much dignity as him. Having to match a guy like him was daunting, but she’d do her best. “And this is your way of letting her down easy?” Helen asked.“Sort of,” Mark agreed, turning his dark eyes toward her.“Did you have a fling with her?”Mark looked annoyed, but it didn’t make him look like an ogre. With features like that, he couldn’t stop being gorgeous even with a scowl on his face. Even his arm was solid.“I don’t think that’s any of your business,” he finally replied. “I said I need you to help me with something tonight and it wasn’t her. I assure you, I can take care of that situation myself. There's something else. Last year, at the New Year’s party, I had some… unpleasantness at midnight. You’re going to keep me out of trouble. All right?”Helen smiled and promised she’d do a good job.Related chapters
Whenever 4
All in all, the evening was oceans more fun than she expected. She danced with Mark most of the time, and when he was called away by someone else, she danced with one of his friends. He had nice friends. They were good looking, young, successful, and didn’t have wandering hands when they danced with her. The food was excellent and Mark was a good date. He was clearly popular both in his profession and with his friends, because he introduced her to at least fifty people, if not more. He had a good sense of fun and knew how to dance. He told her about his interests in a way that none of her other dates had bothered to. It was almost like he wasn’t sure how to date an escort and so he was dating her in the same way he would date her if he was really interested in her. By the end of the night, she thought more than once that it was a pity her date with Mark was just for her job; otherwise, she would have loved to find herself in a more long-term relationship with him.A
Last Updated : 2022-03-02Whenever 5
Two Requests?After New Year’s Eve, Helen went back to washing dishes in the back of her pub for the month of January and tried not to think about what she could be missing working as an escort. After all, not every date had been like the last one with Mark Lewis. Yup! She didn’t think about what Mark’s kiss had been like or how he held her while they danced. She didn’t think about his eyes or the way his hair fell into them. Nope! Not one bit!Best of all, she didn’t think about the money she was missing out on while she worked her honest minimum wage job. At least, not until her January paycheck came in. When she saw the numbers and did the accounting in her head, she computed just one fact—she was in trouble.Mindy was reading a magazine in her recliner when Helen limped into the apartment after getting her pay stub. Mindy instantly flipped the glossy cover shut and took her headphones out of her ears to ask Helen, “So, how
Last Updated : 2022-03-02Whenever 6
Valentine’s Day.Even before the date, Helen felt sure she was already dead and roasting for her sins in hell, but how could she have known that Dominic would take her to the same restaurant as Mark that night? Bah!Helen hadn’t been the one to call Mark to tell him he had been outbid. Helen fed herself all kinds of good reasons why she had turned him down. She was doing it for the money, so why not do it for the money? If that was her philosophy, then it didn’t matter who asked her. The sooner she could pay off Mindy and her credit card, the better. It wasn’t like she wanted luxurious living. Mostly what she wanted was a reasonable meal. Eating cheap Asian noodles two meals a day was hardly nourishing, but she didn’t have money for anything better.She also told herself maybe it was better if it didn’t go any further with Mark. It wasn't like he was going to fall head-over-heels for an escort, and the last thing she wanted was to f
Last Updated : 2022-03-02Whenever 7
When their food came, Helen thought for sure Dominic would send his steak back to the kitchen. It didn’t even look like it had been cooked. When his knife bit into it, his plate practically filled with blood. Was he going to put something that raw in his mouth?He chuckled when he saw her face and offered, “Would you like to try some?”Laura laughed outright at Helen’s screwed up nose and horrified expression. “You should try some.” The other woman laughed. “You’re so fond of 'enjoying the moment!'”Helen pretended she didn’t hear the dig while Dominic took a slice of the steak and put it on the tip of his fork.Crap! Helen thought. I only know one way out of this. She took his fork and as she was about to place that red, raw meat into her mouth, she flipped it around and fed it to Dominic instead, allowing her hand to rest on the back of his neck.“You’re very kind,” he said when
Last Updated : 2022-03-02Whenever 8
Working Nine to FiveHelen got on the bus and took a seat near the front. She pulled out her iPhone and put her headphones in her ears. She could finally afford a cell phone plan.It was April and she had just finished her last accounting exam. It was nice to have it off her shoulders. Her course at the college had been in administrative assistance. Now it was finished, she could go look for a real job instead of escorting guys. Helen wasn’t sure, but she thought the punk band in her headphones sounded like the hallelujah chorus.As a bonus, there was one other reason she was excited about quitting her job as an escort. Once she had her evenings free again, she could maybe try to find a real boyfriend. She’d given up thinking there was a way for things to work out between her and Mark. It had been two months since Valentine’s Day and he hadn't made a request for her since then. Helen kept telling herself it didn’t matter. She had paid off Mindy
Last Updated : 2022-03-02Whenever 9
Helen raised her fist to knock when Mark himself came around the corner.“Oh hello,” he said cheerfully. “Are you Helen Paul?”Helen smiled and put out her hand to shake his. Hers was suddenly sweaty. She hoped desperately that he wouldn’t notice. The inside of his palm was like warm silk.He shook her hand warmly and reached into his pocket to get the keys to his office. “I’m Mark. I’m sorry I wasn’t there for your interview, but I was extremely impressed with what Elizabeth told me about you. It’s so rare to find someone who doesn’t mind working overtime—evenings and weekends. Working in PR is very exciting, but it’s hard to find someone who wants to dedicate themselves to the proper representation of a company. I hope you’re up to the challenge.”She had agreed to work evenings and weekends? What else had she promised?“I am!” Helen claimed energetically.
Last Updated : 2022-03-02Whenever 10
He was a gem! He had to be an absolute gem! Not only did he not recognize her from before, but he was honestly happy to have her working for him. He said he’d been working his job for the past seven months and he’d been promised an assistant when he was hired. But it was only recently the budget was approved for him to finally get one. He was delighted.“Now my office will be clean,” he said jubilantly. “And that’s so important in our line of work. I have to invite people into my office all the time and it’s so painful when it’s a mess, but I don’t have time to clean it.”Helen’s first day of work was incredible. Working for Mark was going to be awesome!And he’d never find out she was Vera. If she had to protect her secret to her grave, she’d do it, because as soon as he found out, she’d probably have to leave. It would be a pity. The job had been too hard to get to simply cast it off
Last Updated : 2022-03-02Whenever 11
Another JobHelen’s first week at work was a blast. She had no idea dull work could be fun if you were working with the right people. She’d often heard Mindy say things like that. It didn’t matter what your job was, as long as you got to work with fun people. Well, Mr. Mark Lewis had the market cornered on making the workplace fun.For one thing, he was absolute eye-candy. There wasn't a woman who didn’t look on him like he was the ‘golden boy’ of the office. He was charming, charismatic, and he looked positively mouthwatering regardless of the circumstances. And Helen was his partner in crime. She was the little person he took everywhere with him. He took her to meetings and lunches with business partners while he fleshed out press releases and argued with talkative men about upcoming projects. He called it ‘training.' It made her feel instantly popular and accepted by everyone in the office.Mark stayed in his office and wor
Last Updated : 2022-03-02
Latest chapter
Whenever 47
A RoleAfter all was said and done, Helen and Mark were back in the office on Monday, making eyes at each other across her desk. Two days later, Helen got fed up and moved her computer so it faced a different direction. How were they supposed to get any work done if they could see each other so easily? And because they were really part of the public relations department and not models, they had to do press releases and meet with members of the marketing department to make sure the launch of the new phone went well.It was weird. When they went to the meetings where the pictures from their ad campaign were shown, everyone immediately recognized Mark and commented. No one recognized Helen. The first time it happened, Mark went to her rescue and told them she was the model he posed with, but afterward, Helen told him he didn’t need to do that again.“It looks like the company can’t afford real models. Just let them think I’m a glamorous overpriced
Whenever 46
After Mindy was finished, the two girls went and put on their clubbing gear. Mindy wore a gold-colored top and black pants. She looked like a panther. Helen wore a light green dress that gathered over one shoulder and hung loosely over the other. Little beads were sewn artfully across it like a fairy had lost her balance over Helen’s head and dropped stars all over her. As she looked into the mirror in the bathroom, she thought she looked better than she’d ever looked for a date before. Even though she was dressed like Vera, she could still see herself peeking out through the facade.When she and Mindy came out of the bathroom, Mark was waiting for them. To Helen, his expression was unfathomable, but Mindy seemed to think something when she saw him. If anything, it was as though Mindy understood something Helen did not.“You look nice,” he said to Helen as he took her arm and led her toward the elevator.Mindy hung outside as the doors closed,
Whenever 45
Breaking it up“How did it go?” Mindy asked Helen when she stepped into their apartment very late that night.“Badly,” Helen said as she dropped her keys, bag and shoes in the entryway. She came into the living room and threw herself into Mindy’s recliner. “I hate everyone,” Helen said expressionlessly, even though that wasn’t how she was feeling.“Well, I warned you,” Mindy said, shrugging in her more-experienced-than-you manner. She leaned forward and asked, “So, what’s the verdict? Do you get Mark, like you wanted?”“I’m not sure I want him anymore. Did I tell you that he got offered a job in London?”“No,” Mindy gasped. “Bloody Hell! Is that what this is about? You were trying to get him to stay?”“Not exactly. I was trying to get him to like me properly, but you were right about that, too. He’s never going to like me t
Whenever 44
“Goody for you,” Helen said sarcastically. She didn’t care two straws if Dominic owed Laura favors. “When’s the wedding?”“It was yesterday. I think they’ll announce it at your wrap-up party.”“Oh? Really? And why are you here now? Is Alexander bummed about missing out on the shoot?”“Why would he be bummed about that? Like he cares if he blows off Capier! In his mind he was only doing it as a favor to Laura.”“And in your mind?” Helen asked, thinking of Dominic’s face when Alexander walked off the set.“They were important clients,” he admitted wearily. “Any paycheck is better than none, which is where he’s headed.”“And you?” Helen asked suspiciously. “Did you decide to blow him off?”“Soon, Vera, soon. It won’t be long now before he isn’t offered anything new. He ran off the set.
Whenever 43
Devilish LaughThe photoshoot in the subway was pretty fun. After the previous photoshoot, Helen didn’t believe Trevor could have more poses up his sleeve, but miraculously, he did. He did these crazy shots with Helen standing on one platform while Mark stood on the opposite one and the train sped between them. At least, that was what Trevor said they would look like once he was finished with them.Helen and Mark spoke briefly before Trevor started taking pictures.“How are you feeling?” Mark asked gently.Helen looked him up and down. He was wearing the same clothes he had worn for the shoot the day before. So was she. He still looked absolutely mouth-watering and Helen was positive she was right to do what she could to try to win Mark even though her shoulders ached. Essentially, she’d worked from early morning and all day to try to make herself ready—not for the photoshoot—for him. He couldn't even see everything she'd done
Whenever 42
Helen sat quietly for a second, thinking. Mark was leaning against the counter examining her expression and waiting for her reply.It was going to tear her apart to say ‘good-bye’ to him, but she couldn’t stop thinking about their relationship. It always felt like he liked Vera far more than Helen, and she couldn’t tie him down if the one he liked wasn’t her true self. She had always thought he was more than she could handle. Why would a guy like him want to be with a plain-Jane girl like her?“Mark,” she said quietly. “It sounds like a great opportunity. I think you should probably take it.”“You don’t want me to stay?” he asked as he turned around and started scrambling the eggs crossly.“Of course I want you to stay, but I also don’t want to hold you back. You know, it’s a delicate balance, but…”“But what?”“But,” Helen swal
Whenever 41
A Makeover for the AgesHelen eyed Mark on the other side of the set. There was quite the bustle of people coming and going with equipment and extension cords. The talk outside the trailer was all business.The second photoshoot was scheduled for one o’clock in the morning; technically, two days later. The pictures were to be taken in the subway, and since they were to include pictures of the train, they needed to be taken after hours.Helen asked Mark if she should come to work the day before the shoot, but Mark said there was no need. He wasn’t going to work that morning either. Apparently, he simply took over Alexander’s contract, with the exception of pay. Mark wasn’t worth as much as Alexander. She overheard Trevor offering him less than a quarter of what they were going to pay Alexander. Trevor apologized for the cut, but Mark shook his head and said it was part of their agreement that he would model for Trevor whenever he needed him, so
Whenever 40
Helen turned to Mark and said, “This photo was up on my friend Shellie’s wall when I was still in junior high.”“Really?” he asked, looking completely aghast.“Yeah, really. Don’t blush, Mark. You looked hot.”“Which is why I want him to take Alexander’s place,” Trevor said. Helen stared at Trevor. “Can you do that?”“Well, since I can’t seem to get in touch with Collin, I guess I can do whatever I think is best. It would be a hassle to have to rebook all the locations and to rehire the temporary staff. The best thing is just to dress Mark up like Alexander—sans turtleneck of course—and to just get on with it.” Trevor added, “Mark looks terrible in turtlenecks.”Helen couldn’t believe what Trevor was suggesting. Switching Alexander for Mark would make the photoshoot fun, the opposite of hell on earth. Her pulse was already racing at t
Whenever 39
Up the CreekHelen and Mark didn’t tell Trevor where they were going for lunch, which was why they were so surprised when he showed up at their restaurant. He dropped himself into their booth, threw his bag across the bench and stretched his legs out so far Helen was positive he would trip a waitress… but maybe that was his plan.“Hey kids,” he said casually.Mark gave him a funny look, but managed to be polite enough to ask without an attitude, “What are you doing here?”Trevor shook his hand at Mark like he didn’t realize he was interrupting a date. “I’m angry,” he said simply.“Of course you are. A whole morning wasted! What exactly happened with Alexander and Dominic anyway? Helen’s convinced Alexander refused to pose with her,” Mark explained.Trevor nodded. “Sorry, Helen. Try not to take it personally. I don’t think it had much to do with how you modeled or
