This was the fourth time he had visited the agency.
They must have made a small fortune out of him, he thought, as he waited in reception. He sat thinking back to the first time he had used one of their escorts. That was for the firm’s Christmas party, then there was the tennis club’s dance, then the complimentary ticket for the theatre, for two, and now for his cousin’s wedding. He didn’t enjoy coming here much. It all felt a bit underhanded. He felt sure some people would have guessed what he was doing; would have realised that he didn’t have any real girlfriends to take to these things. The girl at the front desk called out softly that he could go in.
The familiar manager stood and smiled as he entered. They shook hands and sat. Him, feeling a touch unsure about going through the same process again, and her, concentrating on scrolling through his particulars on her screen.
“I’m just looking to see what we can do for you. I see from your email that it’s for a wedding. I can think of one or two of our ladies that would be a most suitable companion for such an occasion. Just a couple of weeks away, is it?”
He nodded and said, “Yes, that’s right.”
“Oh!” she said, looking up smiling. “I see you now qualify for our Gold Class membership.”
Something inside him cringed.
With an enquiring look, she asked, “Would you like to sign up for that?”
He sat for a few moments, bobbing his head around as though he was trying to decide whether he would or not.
Suddenly, he got to his feet. “Look,” he said, rather abruptly, “I’ll be in touch.”
She watched, a little confused, as he left the room.
At the desk, the girl looked up expectantly. He just smiled and waved as he left the building.
Out on the street, walking back to his car, he turned it all over in his mind. Who was he kidding? He made a decision.
He would ask Samantha from the bakery…
