Secrets of a Gigolo

4

Brianna was bussing the table when her cell phone rang. She knew she wasn’t supposed to have her phone on her when she was waitressing, but Wallace was lenient with her knowing she was trying to get a better job. She took her phone out of the pocket and held it up to her ear. “Brianna Parker.” She answered.

“Hola Señorita Parker, my name is Chino Rodrigues, Señor Cooper’s personal assistant. Señor Cooper would like to extend an invitation to you to join him for dinner tonight at his home in Beverly Hills.”

Brianna got excited. “Really? I would love to join him for dinner.”

“Very good. Eight o’clock, I trust you know where it is.”

“I’ll be there with bells on.” She said, and the line went dead. Brianna giggled with excitement her harassment had paid off. Now she just had to get off work early so she could go home and change into something more appropriate. What did one wear to interview a gigolo?

Brianna told Kate about her progress and asked for the rest of the night off. Her sister-in-law was very understanding, but she still needed Violet to cover her shift for the rest of the night, so for incentive, she offered Violet her tips for the day. Since Violet needed the money, she came in.

Brianna thanked her for covering her shift, and Violet just smiled as she counted Brianna’s tips. “You go have dinner with the prince of seduction don’t go get sucked in. Remember he’s for hire to the highest bidder, and you don’t have that kind of money.” Violet teased.

Brianna headed back to her apartment and took a shower then she changed into her most appropriate and professional outfit. Grey slacks and a white silk blouse with a fitted matching jacket. Brianna swept her long blond hair up off her shoulders into a tight professional bun which she held in place with a chopstick. She then packed her voice recorder into her handbag and got into her Pinto and headed for Beverly Hills.

She pulled up to the gate around seven-forty-five and pressed the buzzer announcing her arrival. This time the gate opened and let her onto the property. Brianna drove up the cobblestone driveway and parked behind a black Jag. She got out and looked around the property. It was closed in by a high stone wall that seemed to go around the whole property. The iron gate was the only way in or out. There were beds of local tropical plants. The place seemed well maintained.

The house was huge from the outside it appeared to be a modern contemporary building of steel and glass. There were tall windows, but the drapes were drawn in every one. It was a three-story building with a block like architecture. The three-car garage was not connected to the house. There was a grey flagstone walkway that went around the garage possibly to the backyard.

She walked around the car and up the paving stone steps to the front door. She was about to press the doorbell, but the door opened at the last moment, and a Mexican man in his late fifties opened the door. He dressed in black slacks and a white button-up shirt. It wasn’t a uniform, but it was classy and professional. This must have been the man that had called her. “Welcome Señorita Parker, may I take your coat?”

Brianna shrugged off her jacket and handed it to the butler. He hung it up in the closet next to the door and then gestured for her to follow him. He escorted her into the living room which like the exterior was very impressive and contemporary in ash greys and maroon colours. There was fine art on the walls and even an abstract steel sculpture in the corner. Seated on the floor next to a gas fireplace lay a large white and brown Pit-Bull. Brianna came to an abrupt stop when the dog got up and started toward her and began to sniff her intensely. She was nervous she knew dogs like this were often aggressive.

“Does he bite?” She asked as the dog sniffed her pant leg.

“Milo is harmless.” A male voice said from behind her. Brianna turned around to see Mr. Cooper coming into the room in a dark grey suit. He looked spectacular. The man certainly dressed up nicely. He snapped his fingers, and the dog trotted over to his master and jumped up until he patted his head and scratched him behind the ear. “He’s a big suck.” Mr. Cooper smiled and then turned to his butler. “Chino, would you please put Milo out.”

“Si Señor.” Chino took the dog by the collar and took him over to a set of sliding glass doors and put the dog out into the backyard.

“Mr. Cooper I’m so glad you agreed to talk to me.”

“Well, you’re very persistent.” He said a little annoyed. “I figure you’ll just stalk my friends and me until I give you what you wanted.”

Brianna blushed. “Well thank you anyway.”

A short Mexican woman came into the room wiping her hands on an apron. “Dinner is served.”

“Thank you, Esmerelda.” He said and then gestured for Brianna to follow him into the next room where there was a round cherry wood table with four chairs and three place settings.

Mr. Cooper pulled out the chair for Brianna which she found very nice. She took her seat and felt the need to comment on the third-place setting. “Are we expecting someone else?” She asked curiously. Before he could answer a young dark-haired girl came rushing into the dining room. She couldn’t be more than seven. Brianna was speechless at the sight of this child.

“Did you wash up?” Mr. Cooper asked.

“Yes.” She said climbing up into her seat at the table. She dressed in a lovely little black and leopard print dress her dark hair hung in loose curls bobbing on her shoulders and down her back.

“Miss. Parker let me introduce you to my niece, Eliza. Eliza says hello.” He said taking his seat at the table.

“Hello.” She said out of habit but with no interest in the woman at her uncle’s table.

“Are you babysitting?” Brianna asked quietly.

“No.” He said with a smile. “Eliza lives with me. I’m her legal guardian.”

Brianna hadn’t expected that. With the lifestyle, he led it was a shocker that he was responsible for a young child. She didn’t know what to say. Brianna looked at the child and smiled. “Do you like living here with your uncle?”

Eliza nodded. “Eliza’s been with me since she was one. She doesn’t know any other life.”

“What happened to her parents? If you don’t mind me asking?”

“Well we have no idea who her father is and her mother, my sister, was in no state to care for her so to keep her in the family she came to live with me six years ago.”

Esmerelda came in with two plates of blackened snapper and placed one in front of Mr. Cooper and Brianna. “Oh, this looks so good,” Brianna said admiring the dish in front of her. Esmerelda left the room briefly and returned with another plate for Eliza. Brianna was surprised that the child would be willing to eat this beautiful dish. “Wouldn’t she rather eat something childish?” She inquired.

“Why?” Mr. Copper asked. “This is perfectly good food besides Eliza’s never been picky she’ll eat anything you put in front of her.” He said proudly.

Brianna watched in awe as the child dug right into her meal without protest. She wanted to know more about the little girl the man was caring for. “So, you’re seven? You must be in what, second grade? Do you like school?” Eliza just nodded as she swung her legs back and forth. “What do you like to do?”

“I like music.” She said stuffing a mouthful of fish into her little mouth. “I play the violin?”

“Wow, how cultured. Do you like the violin?” She nodded again. “How long have you been playing?”

“Since I was six.” She said.

“Do you normally stay up this late?” Brianna couldn’t help thinking this was a late night for such a young child.

“I stay up when Uncle Zac is home.” She said.

“Between her school and lessons and my busy work schedule we make the most of what time we get.” He said. She noticed he said work and not dates and Brianna wondered if Eliza had any idea what her uncle did to provide her with this home. “But it’s bath and bed after dinner.”

Eliza frowned. “Are you going out again?”

“Maybe but I’ll be back before you get up in the morning you got my word.” He promised her.

“You have plans tonight?” Brianna asked.

“I rearranged my evening for you. But we’ll see how the night goes.” He said. “Do you want wine?” He asked.

“Sure.” Brianna looked him in the eye. “So, about the interview…”

His eyes narrowed in annoyance. “I’m sure you can understand I keep the details of my career discreet around my niece. So, we can talk shop when she leaves the table if you don’t mind.”

That seemed like a perfectly reasonable request. “Of course.”

“Esmerelda.” He called out raising his voice, and the woman materialized in the room next to Brianna with two wine glasses and a bottle of white wine. He hadn’t even had to say what he wanted it was as if the woman already knew and she was already pouring two glasses. “Thank you.” He said accepting the stem glass from the woman’s hand. “What would I do without you?”

She just smiled at him lovingly, but it was a motherly sort of look, and Brianna wondered just how close he was with his staff. She then tussled Eliza’s dark hair. “Hurry up Chica, and I’ll run you some bubbles in your bath.” The prospect of bubbles made Eliza eat with haste.

“Slow down and taste your food.” Her uncle scolded. “The bath will still be there when you’re done.” Eliza stuffed the last of the garlic potatoes into her mouth and then she jumped down from her seat and chased after the maid. Mr. Cooper cleared his throat as she reached the exit of the room and the little girl turned around, ran back, and gave him a big hug and a kiss on the cheek. Then she said good-night to Brianna and rushed out of the room.

Brianna smiled at the man seated with her and reached for the wine on the table. “She’s a sweet kid. You’ve raised her alone?”

“Esmerelda and Chino help a lot.”

“Well, you’ve done a good job with her.”

“I strive to give her a better life then I had.”

“Yes, that brings me to my first question.” She said putting the glass on the table. “I can start asking questions now right; she’s not coming back?”

“Ask away.”

“Fantastic.” She said taking her voice recorder out of her pocket to record the interview. “Do you mind if I record our conversation?”

“By all means.” He agreed to sip his wine.

Brianna set up the small device and turned it on. “I suppose my first question is this place is incredible how do you afford it? I mean does gigolo work pay that well?”

He took another sip of his wine and then placed it on the table. “It’s more work than you would imagine. It eats up a lot of my time. I put in just as many hours into my lifestyle as most men do with two or three jobs.”

“But it’s not a job it’s dating. You chill and use women. How exactly does it work? Do you get extra for sleeping with them? How does that not make you a prostitute?”

He just looked at her and then sighed. “I’m sorry this was a bad Idea I’ll have Chino show you out.”

Brianna’s heart almost stopped. Was he pulling the plug? “What? No. Why?”

“My friends had me believing this would be a non-biased article, but you seem to have already made up your mind about me, and I have no interest of being run through the wringer because you don’t agree with my life choices. So, you can leave.”

“No please I’ll rephrase my questions. I was sincere about the non-biased part it’s just that your life is so unusual it’s hard to wrap my head around it. Give me a second chance? I promised nothing insulting.” She had to get this interview. “I already think way more about you have learnt that you are raising your sister’s child alone. I mean its things like that the people want to know. The man behind the scandal.”

“I don’t want my niece exploited for sales either.”

“Of course not. I wouldn’t dream of it. Please don’t kick me out.”

He looked at her thoughtfully for a long moment and then he sighed. “Ok but if I feel this is going to come out bad, I will sue you and the publication you work for.”

“Deal. Ok, um, first question; why don’t you tell me in your words what it is you do?”

“I’m essentially entertainment and a promoter of self-worth and self-esteem. I Find women who have been beaten down emotionally by their lives. Women who feel betrayed by their husbands and unfulfilled by their lives and I make them feel better about who they are. Women who had sacrificed their youth on building their husbands’ careers only to be cast aside or right out replaced by a younger model so to speak. I make them feel valued and beautiful, and I make them realize they’re not used up and forgotten. That they can still be vibrant, powerful independent women.” Then he smiled wickedly. “I’m also a good way to get back at their cheating husbands.”

“And for this service, you get paid?”

“It’s not paid. It’s not like I have an hourly rate. I give these women something they’re missing, and they give me gifts in return. It can be in the form of things, vacations, paying my bills, and yes quite often they give spending cash.”

“How many women do you empower at a time?”

“As many as I can juggle. Usually three or four at a time but I have seen as many as six at one point.”

“Do they know about each other?”

He nodded. “I don’t hide it. They all know about each other, and it works. Sometimes they compete for my time which often works out to my benefit.”

“How do you divide up your time?”

“The highest bidder gets my time.”

“How do you stop seeing them?”

“It happens for many different reasons. They rekindle the flame with their husbands, they get over the need for the boost I give them, or if they start getting possessive, I just cut them off completely. It doesn’t happen often, but it does happen from time to time. I try to leave them in a better place than where I found emotionally.”

“Have you ever had to deal with jealous husbands?”

“That does happen yes.” He smiled awkwardly. “I’m a lover, not a fighter. I tend to back down when men with guns appear on my doorstep.”

“Does that happen often?”

“It’s happened twice in seventeen years. But I’ve been confronted by husbands numerous times they usually piss and moan like Divas, and I go about my business. Let’s face it I’m giving their wives something they can’t, and men don’t like that.”

“So, does it ever bother you that you’re breaking up marriages?”

“No, if they were happy they wouldn’t be seeing me. I don’t feel bad inserting myself in something already broken. Sometimes knowing about me fixes marriages. The men get jealous and realize they’ve been neglecting the woman they love and try harder to fix what they broke in the first place. When the woman tells me, she doesn’t need me anymore I bow out. I don’t take it personally.”

“How did you get into this business? I mean did you wake up one day and say I’m going to be a gigolo?” Brianna’s smiled faded quickly and replaced by concern. “I’m sorry is gigolo a derogatory term? How do you like to refer to yourself?”

“I suppose gigolo is the correct term, but I don’t like it. It makes me sound shady. I prefer sugar baby, but traditionally that is usually a woman. I suppose gigolo is what I am.” He sighed. “I suppose I’m ok with a gigolo. For lack of a better term. Maybe companion is a better term.” He said thoughtfully. “Yeah, I like that, I’m a companion.”

“Are you not afraid that sleeping with so many women that you might catch something?”

“It is a concern, yes, but I get tested regularly. I’m also well stocked on condoms.”

“So, is it all s*x?”

“No, not all the time. It is a factor but not a must. Some women need some flattery and a confidence boost. We go out together; shopping, clubbing, dinners, some business vacations.” He reached for his wine and looked like he wanted to propose something. “So, this article it’s not about my women it’s about me, no names will be published, right? You want to see how I live my life and I make all this happen?”

“Yes, where you came from and where you are now, and where you see yourself in ten years from now.”

“Well, I think those are questions left for a later date. I am granting you an invitation to stay here with us for a few days discreetly, and you can see firsthand what my life is truly about.” He offered. “I have a guest room already made up if you’d like to stay.”

Brianna was not sure what to say. It was a great chance to get a better insight into this man and his life. She found his confidence staggering that he would make up a room before even asking her if she felt comfortable enough to stay. They were total strangers after all. “I would love to do that, but I didn’t bring anything else to change in to.”

“Well, you can leave and come back.” He offered. “Don’t feel pressured to stay; either way is fine with me.” Chino appeared in the room and came over to whisper in Mr. Cooper’s ear, and Brianna saw a nasty scowl claim his face. He gave an exasperated sigh, drained his glass in one shot and stood up. “Please excuse me, Miss. Parker, I’ll be right back.”

***

Zachary made his way to the lobby with Chino where he found his sister Addie and her latest scuzzy boyfriend. He didn’t think it possible, but Addie looked worse than she had the last time he’d seen her three months ago. She was overly thin just skin and bones. It was unhealthy and unattractive. Her dark eyes were sunken and shadowed. She had sores on her face, and her chocolate hair was greasy and stringy. Her bony arms covered in tracks. She was hugging herself and trembling violently. Her eyes were not dilated so he was sure she must be dry at the moment judging from how bad she was shaking.

Zachary looked his sister over. He hated to see her like this, but she was always like this. He looked past her at the boyfriend who was ticking like he was tweaked out of his skull. He didn’t look any better than her. He was paying a lot of attention to the things in the room that would be easy to pinch, but Chino was paying extra close attention to everything. It wouldn’t have been the first time one of Addie’s boyfriends would have tried to rob Zachary.

When Zachary came to stand in front of Addie, she tried to smile at him. “Hey, you look good.”

“I wish I could say the same,” Zachary said. He hated her visits.

“How’s Eliza?”

“Let’s not do this; you don’t give a damn about Eliza, just tell me what you want.”

She began to scratch and shuffled from one foot to the other. “I need money.” She stuttered.

“Of course, you do.” She never came over for any other reason. “I’m not paying for your drugs. You should be in rehab getting clean.”

“That s**t doesn’t work.” She snapped annoyed.

“That’s because you keep hooking up with assholes like this crack head.” He then pointed at the boyfriend who was picking up an art piece to get a better look at it. “Hey dipshit hands off or I’ll bust your head.” He put it back down and glared at Zachary. “Addie you can’t keep coming around like this. The courts say you can’t it confuses Eliza.”

“I’ll leave I promise, lend me a few bucks. I’ll pay it back.” That was bull she never paid him back. “Just a few dollars. You have lots.” She snapped. Her expression softened. “Zac please,” she pleaded, “it hurts so bad.”

“Go back to rehab. I’ll pay for the rehab.” He tried to negotiate with her.

“Just give her the damned money.” The boyfriend snapped.

“You stay out of this.” Zachary barked back. “Come on Addie you need to clean up before this stuff kills you.”

“Are you going to give me the money or not?” She snarled.

Zachary’s back stiffened, and his eyes narrowed in anger. “No. I’m done paying off your dealers. You want to live like this fine but don’t expect me to enable you. You go and overdose on that s**t again but stay off my doorstep. I’ll see you at your funeral.” He said. “Now get out.”

Addie snapped. “You think you’re so much better than us because you live in a fancy house, but you’re just as screwed up as the rest of us. You’re no better than Mom or me; you still w***e yourself out for money. You’re the same Zac, just another prostitute.”

Zachary pointed at the door. “Get out!” He yelled. Chino opened the door, and Addie shot Zac a hateful glare as she and the man she’d shown up with left. Chino followed them out to the gate to be sure they left the property without incident. Furious and annoyed Zachary adjusted his suit and then turned around to find Miss. Parker is standing a few feet behind him, and he wondered just how much of that ugly scene she’d seen.

“I’m sorry I didn’t mean to eavesdrop, but I heard yelling.” She said softly. “An ex?” She asked.

“Sister. She’s a junky. There you know. She drops in every few months looking for handouts.”

“You pay off your sister’s drug dealers?”

“Sometimes.” He said heading for the living room. “It’s hard to say no when she tells me they will kill her. But I’m so sick of it. She should be cleaning up, getting her life in order so she could be a mother but instead, she sits around all day shooting up.” He was so angry. “I was only supposed to take Eliza for a few months until Addie could get on her feet but she never does. That girl up there deserves a mother, and she’ll never have one.”

“She has you. Just because it’s not a conventional family doesn’t mean it’s bad. You take real good care of that girl, and she seems wonderful and well adjusted. You’ve done wonders.”

He sighed and sat down on the couch, and he dropped his head in his hands feeling stressed out about the recent events. He needed to unwind. He looked up at the beautiful woman standing a few feet from him and smiled. “What do you say we get out of here and hit the nightclubs? I could use a few dozen drinks.”

“You want to take the interview to a nightclub?” She asked confused.

“No, I want to take you to a nightclub. You know you have a little fun, chase a buzz, rock out to the music, fun stuff.”

Miss. Parker looked down at her clothes. “I’m not dressed for a nightclub.”

“We can swing by your place, and you can change.” He said getting up. “Just let me change, and we’ll go out.” He said and left Miss. Parker in the living room as he went upstairs to change into something more appropriate for their outing.

Zachary changed into a pair of fitted jeans and a black button-up shirt. He pushed the sleeves up his forearms and then ran a brush through his hair and added a little gel to get it looking the way he wanted it too. Then he took his wallet and counted how much cash he had on him. He had enough for his outing, so he stuffed his wallet in his back pocket and headed downstairs. He’d have Chino drop them off and take a taxi back. He was going to get drunk and stupid tonight. He took the night off he might as well enjoy it.