The Assignment 4 (9 page)

“The marvels of modern medicine,” Claire said and Lacey could hear the disdain clearly in her voice. “If I ever meet the man who invented Viagra I’m going to shoot him.”

Lacey laughed.

“Seriously,” Claire said. “It goes against nature. God intended men to stop fucking at some point. Viagra allows them to keep going, forever. What woman wants to fuck a seventy year old?”

“I don’t know.”

“I mean, if you love a man that’s one thing. If you grew old together in the security and friendship of a long and happy relationship, then sure, you’d want to make love to your husband. But if you’re just a trophy wife, if you were forced to marry the man, then the last thing you want is for him to be able to pop a pill and get it up.”

“Does he have any unusual tastes?” Lacey said.

“You’ll find out for yourself soon enough,” Claire said. “He has his preferences.”

Lacey sighed. Once again she could see her role in the world being reduced to the level of raw, loveless sex. She was going to have to fuck Mark Wolf as a favor to Claire. She supposed she should be grateful she wasn’t in Claire’s position. Lacey and Chloe had it hard, there was no doubt about that, but Claire’s position was like a life sentence. It would be unbearable to think you’d have to sleep with the same old man, night after night after night, forever. No wonder she was taking a stand against Lally. She had nothing to lose. But there was more. There was another reason. Claire hadn’t said it. She probably didn’t even know it. But Lacey knew. She knew that as well as having nothing to lose, Claire also had everything to gain. If things went well, if she succeeded in getting her father
and
her husband implicated in some big political scandal, then she really could hope for a better life some day.

*

C
LAIRE AND LACEY WERE STILL
sitting by the fabulous window, drinking their second bottle of champagne, when they heard someone arrive at the front door.

“That’s him,” Claire said. “Are you ready? Just remember, you’re my old friend from horse riding school.”

“I’m from Texas,” Lacey said.

“Fine, we rode together during summers. I used to spend summers in Montana. We’ll say you did too.”

Lacey nodded. She prayed she wasn’t making a mistake. There was so much that could go wrong. By coming to meet Mark Wolf she was risking everything. If Mark and Lally were friends, there was always a chance that one of them would see her with the other. And that would raise their suspicions. What were the chances that the whore who showed up at the mansion was the same girl who just happened to be Claire Lally’s childhood riding friend?

But it was too late to worry about such things now. She would have to deal with those issues if and when they arose.

Mark Wolf entered the room and smiled warmly at the two girls sitting on the sofas.

“Honey,” Claire said, “did you get my message? This is Lacey. The friend from earlier.”

“Yes, yes,” Wolf said. He seemed to be in a good mood. He wasn’t bad looking. He was old, but Lacey could tell he’d been good-looking in his youth. His skin was coppery and tanned. His eyes were bright and lively. He seemed nice enough. Lacey remembered all the things she’d read about him, that he was heavily involved in the community, that he was strongly in favor of reducing the size of government, and she could see that sense of individualism and personal achievement in him. He looked like the kind of man who settled the West. He had a confidence about him, a rugged strength. He might have been a cattle rancher or a railroad tycoon in another era. Now he was one of the richest men in the city, overseeing the biggest financial market on the globe.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Wolf,” Lacey said.

“Likewise,” Wolf said and leaned in to kiss her cheek. He lingered a second longer than was necessary and Lacey was sure that he’d taken the time to inhale the fragrance of her perfume as he kissed her. “I noticed you at Daniel’s earlier. I asked Claire, who is that magnificent creature? She said you were an old riding friend.”

“That’s right,” Lacey said. “We spent many happy summers together in Montana as young girls.”

“You’re still young girls,” Wolf said.

He wasn’t just paying them an idle compliment. To him, they literally were young girls. He’d been a grown man long before either of them was born. The age gap between them and him was larger than the gap between most adults and their children.

“I hope I’m not intruding on you two,” Wolf said. “If you were reminiscing I don’t want to disturb you.”

“Not at all, darling,” Claire said. “We’ve been waiting for you. Lacey was just saying how much she hoped to meet you.”

“Meet me!” Wolf said.

“Yes,” Lacey said. She tried to think why on earth she would want to meet a man like Wolf. She figured she might as well try to get information out of him while she flattered him. “I’ve been a big admirer of your community work,” she said.

“Really?” Wolf said, obviously pleased with what he was hearing.

“Yes, it’s so admirable when people give back to the community. I hear you’ve been building parks, supporting good candidates, that sort of thing.”

“I try,” Wolf said, “and just out of curiosity, young lady, who would you consider a good candidate?”

“Well, someone like the new mayor, for example.”

“Do you know him?”

“I’ve met him through my work,” Lacey said.

She knew she was taking a huge risk. If Wolf found out who she really was she’d be in trouble, but she figured the only way to secure her secret was to let Wolf know she was a call girl. That way, if he found out later he wouldn’t be suspicious of her. By letting him in on that secret, she hoped she would be able to keep her other more important secrets from him.

“And what work is that?”

“Well, it’s nothing suitable for polite conversation,” Lacey said, looking at Claire, “but I do try to keep up with the news and I can honestly say I think this new mayor will be very good for the city.”

Wolf was nodding, thoughtfully. “Clever girl,” he said, as if talking to a pet dog who’d just brought him a ball.

Lacey gave him a seductive smile. She knew she was charming him but it would take a lot more than some pleasing small talk to seduce him. Especially with his young, new, beautiful wife right there in the room.

“There’s something very comforting,” she said, “about knowing that we’re in the hands of such fine men.”

“Comforting, you say?”

“Yes,” Lacey said. “This might be hard for a man of your stature to appreciate, but the world can be a frightening place when you’re a girl, alone in the world. I sometimes feel very alone and scared, as if the world is a cold, harsh place that offers no sympathy.” It sickened her that she was sucking up to him like this but she had to do it.

“It’s not that bad, is it?” Wolf said.

“Well, not with men like you around,” Lacey said, giving him another seductive smile. “When my parents died, I was so scared. Everything about the world seemed nasty and sinister. But then I learned that there were strong, good men like you out there. Men who seemed not only capable, but willing to take care of the community.”

“Is that how you see us?”

“Yes, certainly. Men like you, in positions of power and respect, you take care of all of us. Sometimes when I feel scared or alone I try to think about you, of what you and your colleagues are doing for all of us, and I feel comforted.”

“My goodness,” Wolf said. “I can’t say I ever thought of it that way.”

“What other way is there to think of it?” Lacey said, blatantly flirting with him. “Put yourself in my position, or in the position of any single girl. You’re essentially alone. You have no one to look after you. You have no one to take care of you. You have no one to
love
you. Outside your door the city rages like a war zone. There’s crime, there’s disorder, there’s chaos. I lay in my bed at night, cold, alone, frightened. And then I see that there are knights like you out there doing the things that we all need. You’re making the world safe for all of us. You’re making it kind. You’re making it a home.”

“I’ve never heard anyone speak about my class with such admiration,” Wolf said.

“That’s because you’re always with people like you. You’re with the people who are looking after things, who are trying to make things better for the rest of us. But put yourself in our shoes. Look at it from the perspective of the other half. Look at the world from the perspective of a girl like me, who has nothing, and you’ll see the world very differently.” She looked at him. He was nodding approvingly at everything she said. “I don’t mean to be melodramatic,” she said, “or to look like I’m seeking sympathy, but my family died when I was very young.”

“That’s terrible,” Wolf said.

“It was, but I was lucky. My family was wealthy. I wasn’t destitute. I was able to spend my summers horse riding with wonderful girls like Claire. I was able to get a good education. But I was still alone. I’ve had to fend for myself. I’ve had to make decisions,
compromising
decisions, to keep my head above water. It’s not easy to maintain a life of privilege once you’ve become accustomed to it.”

“I’m certain it’s not,” Claire said, supporting Lacey’s line of reasoning and showing her husband that she was in full agreement with her friend.

“From where I’m standing, the world is a much safer, kinder place because of men like you,” Lacey said. “And I want to thank you for that.”

Wolf was beaming with glee. He’d never been so charmed in all his life. He looked like he couldn’t possibly get happier. He got up from the sofa and poured himself a glass of whiskey.

Lacey shot a quick glance at Claire. She looked pleased, like this was going to work, and she wouldn’t have to share her bed with Wolf for the night. Wolf wasn’t the worst man in the world, but Lacey knew that it could quickly become hell to have to have sex every night with a man you didn’t love. She understood that. She understood it very well.

“Darling,” Claire said, “would you be so kind as to excuse me. I’ve had a very long day.”

“Oh yes,” Wolf said, as Claire got up from where she was sitting. “I should accompany you.”

“No, no,” she said. “I wouldn’t hear of it. Lacey’s been dying to get an opportunity to speak to you. I know she has. I don’t want to prevent you two from having the opportunity to get to know each other.”

Wolf looked at his wife for a few seconds, trying to determine her meaning, before nodding simply. “Of course, dear,” he said, quietly.

Claire came over and kissed Lacey on both cheeks.

“It’s been so wonderful to catch up with you, Lacey, darling.”

“You too, Claire. Thank you for your kind hospitality.”

Claire excused herself and left the room leaving Lacey and Wolf alone. Wolf sunk onto one of the sofas, his glass of whiskey in his hand. He seemed tired to Lacey, sad even.

“Are you alright?” she said. “I should go. You must be very tired.”

“No, no, dear. You stay. That’s your job after all.”

“Excuse me?” Lacey said.

“I know who you are, my dear. I’m not as naïve as I look. You don’t get to my position in the world by falling for every trick someone tries to pull on you.”

“Trick?” Lacey said, desperately.

Her mind was racing. She was so afraid she’d blown everything. If Wolf knew who she was then that was a complete disaster. The story would be finished. Her opportunity to get revenge on Lally for everything he’d done would be over. But it was worse. It was much worse. How would things be for Chloe and Claire now? Oh god, she’d blown it. She’d blow it big. Chloe would be fired, or worse. Claire’s life would be in ruins. What had she done? How could she be so stupid?

She tried to remain calm. She tried to keep her composure.

“I know my wife too well to be duped by something like this,” Wolf said.

Lacey looked up at him. “What do you mean?”

“I know she doesn’t really love me. How could she? I’m forty years older than she is. I supposed I should be grateful for the affection and kindness she does give me.”

“I’m sure she loves you.”

“Then why has she left me here with a beautiful call girl? To talk politics? No my dear, I know when I’m being set up. She’s pawning me off.”

Lacey felt relieved. Wolf had seen through Claire’s plan but he didn’t know about everything else that was going on. The game wasn’t up yet. She began to calm down and relax her breathing. She’d been so scared that everything was ruined, that it would all be over, and it wasn’t.

“I’m sorry,” she said to Wolf. “If you’d like me to leave?”

Wolf shook his head. He was disappointed that his wife wanted him to let his sexual energies out on a call girl, but not so much as to actually send her home.

“Who are you?” he said to Lacey.

“I’m a call girl. That’s how I know your friend, the mayor.”

“Which agency do you work for?”

“Mayfair.”

“Then you’ve been to the mansion?”

“Yes.”

“And perhaps you know Claire’s father too?”

“Yes, I know him,” Lacey said. “But Claire doesn’t know that.”

“Are you really friends with my wife?”

“Yes. That’s why I’m here.”

“How much is she paying you for this night?”

“Oh,” Lacey said, “she’s not paying me. I’m here as a friend.”

“You’re quite a friend if you were willing to charm her old husband for her.”

“I wasn’t charming you,” Lacey said. “I meant everything I said.”

“Come now, my dear. The game’s up. You can stop pretending.”

“Okay,” Lacey said, “I was charming you, but your wife isn’t paying me anything to be here. I meant it when I said I was here as her friend.”

“What did she ask you to do?” Wolf said.

Lacey felt awkward. She felt as if she’d someone gotten herself between this man and his new wife. He wasn’t the monster that she’d imagined. He was hurt by the fact that Claire had arranged a hooker for him.

“She wanted me to seduce you,” Lacey said.

“So that she wouldn’t have to?”

Lacey was sad. She could see the regret and disappointment in Wolf’s face. But she told herself not to be too taken by sympathy for him. He was a very rich and powerful man and he had still accepted the daughter of a business associate as his wife even though the girl didn’t want to marry him. He’d accepted a forced marriage, and that was a serious crime against any woman. How could he expect any different after he’d taken Claire as his bride against her will?