Ethan had made an uneasy peace with Mia's job as the months passed. The wedding loomed ahead, and the costs kept piling up. He combed over the growing list of expenses: venue deposit, catering quotes, that dress she'd been eyeing, trying to figure out how they were going to pull this off. Mia's job was helping, but the wedding costs stretched their finances right as it looked like they might catch up. The pressure was a constant strain on his fragile mental state.
He buried himself in freelance gigs, fretting over minor details in front of his computer screen for peanuts, designing logos for dive bars and hole-in-the-wall vape shops. Each job was a small victory, both for their finances and his flailing sense of masculinity.
Wedding plans became his lifeline. As long as he filled his days with work, wedding plans, and haggling with vendors, the reality of Mia's shifts at Eden's Edge couldn't seep into his thoughts.
Nights were another story. He'd watch the feed as she primed the crew in that back room. Her body convulsed with each climax as her touch worked its "magic" on them. It was his only sexual connection to her now, a twisted lifeline he clung to despite the fact that it tore him up inside. The celibacy pact he'd hoped would save their relationship had become his prison. He'd try to make a move occasionally, running his hands down her hips or kissing her a bit too long. She'd swat him away with a playful laugh. "Not till the wedding, Ethan, remember?" Her words stung, his own desperate plan to pull her back from Eden's Edge only made it worse.
She'd stumble in late nearly every night, looking exhausted. The app showed the other side of her. Her days were filled with earth-shaking orgasms as she prepped the crew, but she'd still look him in the eye and swear it wasn't sex, or anything inappropriate.
He'd lie awake beside her, staring at the ceiling with her recorded moans from hours earlier playing in his head on loop. Sleep didn't come easy these days.
One Friday night, he lay sprawled out on the couch, sketching table layouts on his notepad when the door creaked open. Mia stepped inside slowly and cautiously, hours earlier than she usually got home. She didn't look Ethan directly in the eyes, and her hands twisted together nervously. She crossed the room tentatively and sank onto the couch beside him.
"Ethan, I need to talk to you, but can you promise you won't freak out?" she said, her voice low and trembling.
Ethan tried to put on a brave face but he recognized this song and dance. "Uhh, I don't know, what's going on?" he said cautiously.
Mia picked at a loose thread on her sleeve, avoiding his eyes. "It's about Jess. And a big client she had lined up."
Ethan's stomach twisted, a knot forming deep in his gut. Jess, Mia's college friend who was "in the business." The one who'd dragged her into this mess at Eden's Edge. The same Jess Mia swore she'd never turn into. He tossed the notepad onto the coffee table, the pencil rolling off with a faint clatter. He gave a curt nod. "What happened?"
She paused a beat too long and drew a shaky breath before speaking. "Jess had a VIP booked. It was big money, thousands. This guy just likes to watch apparently. It was supposed to be a private show with her and two guys. But yesterday, her grandmother had a stroke and she had to fly home on a red-eye." She studied his expression before continuing. "She was wrecked, Ethan. She called me crying and begged me to cover for her just this one time, just for the private show. She said the payout would easily cover our wedding fund shortfall. I just couldn't let Jess down."
Her words landed like a slow, freezing wave, pulling him under. His pulse pounded in his ears, drowning out the fridge's hum. He swallowed hard, the implication sinking in. "Cover for her?" His voice came out rough, cracked. "What does that mean, Mia?"
She shrank back hunching her shoulders as her eyes dropped to the floor. "I did it," she said, so quiet he almost missed it.
Time stretched those seconds into an eternity.
"I did my prep stuff for the crew in the back," she continued, still not looking up. "Then we did the show for this guy. But it was a one-time thing. I knew you'd hate it, but Jess needed help." She closed her eyes, taking a breath to steady herself. "And the money covers the rest of the wedding. It was for us, Ethan. Please don't be upset, okay?"
He stared at her, hands trembling in his lap. "You put on a show?" The words tore out of him, sharp and jagged. "I don't understand, Mia. What the fuck do you mean?"
She fidgeted, picking at her nails now. "Well," she said, voice shaky, "it's not all that different from regular prep duties. Except... no condoms."
His head felt like it might explode, his face turned red-hot. "You fucked them, Mia? For real fucked them? Raw?"
Her head snapped up, eyes locking onto his with a defensive glare. "I told you, it was just a show!" She softened, her voice dropping again. "Yeah, I mean, part of it was no condoms, but it's not so different from my normal duties. It's not like what Jess does. The guy didn't touch me, I didn't touch him. He only watched." She searched his face, desperation creeping in. "It was one time, for Jess. And to help with the wedding. I'm done, Ethan. I promise."
The air felt suffocating. No client contact, sure, but she'd still been fucked raw by two guys for some rich bastard's entertainment. Ethan leaned forward with an ice cold stare, elbows digging into his knees. "How long?" he said slowly and deliberately.
She shrank under his stare. "He paid for two hours," she muttered. "But it's over, and it was a one-time thing. I know this probably hurts to hear, but I don't want you to think I'm keeping anything from you. I'm sorry."
Ethan stood abruptly and stormed out the door. He traced a familiar path through the city, the same one he walked every time Eden's Edge ripped his world apart. He knew it by heart. His steps eventually began to dull the fire in his chest. Hours passed before he made his way back home.