Though we may not talk about it often, sex work is a very common profession all over the world. Some folks are totally fine with the concept; others are a little prudish about it. Either way, it does go on - and probably a lot more than you think.
What surprises a lot of people, too, is that women are not the only people to engage in sex work. In fact, men have been involved in prostitution for thousands of years and, when there's so much money to be made from the practice, there's no real reason why it wouldn't still be going on today.
Ryan James, a 31-year-old man from Sydney, Australia, recently went on The Morning Show in order to discuss his life as an escort, and revealed which of his "services" is most popular amongst his female clientele.
James, who used to work in finance, said that he got into the industry through a girlfriend who engaged in sex work. Though he adapted pretty quickly, it took his family a while to adjust to the idea.
"I didn't tell them [my family] at first. When I did get started I told my friends pretty quickly. My family found out a little later," he said. "It was a bit of a mixed reaction. They don't treat me any differently because of it. It's probably not the kind of thing parents would choose for their children but they still treat me well."
His clients, meanwhile, are more than happy that James provides the services he does, with the most popular option being his "dinner dates".
James charges between $400 and $6,000 for various options, with the dinner date coming with a hefty price tag of $3,500 - $4,500.
For that price, James treats his companion to a luxurious meal in a date setting, followed by a trip to a hotel. For the lower price tag, women can expect six hours of "pampering and pleasure", but the extra grand gets them an overnight stay (*wink wink*) followed by breakfast in the morning.
But, according to the escort, it isn't all about sex.
"Pretty much every single client that I see there's some companionship element to the booking," he said in an interview with Femail. "From what I see, men are more focused on the sexual side of things. Women are focused on the sex too, they wouldn't come to see me without it, but we spend a lot of time talking as well."
He continued:
"Many of the women I see could easily go to a bar and pick a guy up and have sex that way. But they want a different experience.
"Sometimes it's that they've been recently divorced, or they're still married but haven't been intimate in a long time. I've had clients who are couples who want a threesome and women who are virgins."
As it turns out, then, there's a lot more to sex work than many might think. It's not the sleazy business it's often painted as, but rather a service provided by one person to another - just like eating at a restaurant, or taking the car to be cleaned.
Of course, every escort provides a different experience for their clients, but James, at least, really seems to care about his.
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