Free The Gigolo by Isabella King

didn’t know what was going on but she knew she had to get on top of it before anyone else arrived on the scene.
    ‘Get your fucking feet off my table unless you want to join the unemployment queue behind Granger .’ She picked on the weakest link, hoping that Halfpenny would back down and that Granger might follow once he realised he was on his own. Her pulse was thumping at her temple. She was a little unnerved by this strange turn of events. She really could have done without dissent in the ranks today.
    Neither of them moved .
    ‘Sit down , Kara, we’ve got a rather special promotional video for you to watch,’ Luke Granger announced smugly.
    ‘You might want to shut the door,’ Tom added with a grin.
    Kara pushed the door to and then swung around to look at the wall mounted TV screen as Granger pointed the remote and she came face to face with a three foot tall naked image of herself in freeze frame.
    She froze. This was her worst nightmare coming true before her eyes. She couldn’t understand what was happening. How had they got this picture? Was it out of the morning paper? Had a rogue paparazzi climbed up the Virginia creeper that clung to the front of William’s house, and taken these shots through the window. But she wasn’t exactly that important.
    Granger flicked a switch on the remote and the frozen frame came to life.
    ‘No,’ she whispered as she took in the shameful tableau. ‘No,’ she said again as she stared at her own flushed face, mouth stretched wide in the throes of a scream as William held the belt above his head ready to thrash her again. ‘No! No! No!’ she cried. She could hardly deny it was her. Her cheeks were flushed, her pupils dilated and her breasts hanging below her as her restraints forced her to lean forwards, and the ring – William’s ring that she loved so much – was clearly visible between her spread legs.
    ‘No! This can’t be happening. Turn it off.’
    No one moved or said a word for what seemed an eternity and then Granger piped up:
    ‘So, did you have a good weekend , Kara?’ The pair of them collapsed in a fit of hysterical, raucous laughter like naughty school boys.
    Kara felt sick. She swallowed back the bitter tasting bile that had appeared in her throat.
    ‘How did you get this?’ She couldn’t bear the thou ght that William had set her up – that he was not a property developer at all but an undercover reporter looking for a salacious front page story. It was unthinkable. There had to be another explanation.
    ‘I bought it,’ Granger said.
    ‘Who from?’ She was still holding out hope that a sleazy newspaper was somehow involved.
    ‘Your man whore of course.’ Granger pointed at the screen and Kara looked up just as William raised his belt to strike her. Kara closed her eyes and looked away but the sound of her scream filled the room and echoed in her head.
    ‘Oh! Don’t tell me you actually thought he wanted you?’ Luke taunted. ‘I had to pay him to take you to bed.’
    Kara felt as if she was sinking in quick sand. It was constricting her breathing. Her head was throbbing. She needed to get out of here. She looked towards the door but Granger was ahead of her. He got up from his chair and turned the key in the lock.
    The bastard had her well and truly stitched up and he knew it. All she could do now was front it out. If it was money they were after she’d pay whatever it took to get out of this mess before anyone else found out. She couldn’t let Jack find out – or her parents. The shame would kill them if this ever became public? Kara shivered as if someone had just walked over her grave. She tried to engage her business head. She needed to close this thing down. She needed to contain the problem and make a damage limitation plan. She had to treat it like any other problem that presented itself, or risk losing her mind as well as her job and her reputation in one fell swoop.
    ‘How much do you want?’ She tried to keep her voice