Maybe it was because they had no other choice. Maybe it was because that was how they were born and that was what they were raised to become. These women are not prostitutes -- and should never be mistaken as such. Rather they are escorts. Although I believe that prostitution is the oldest occupation in the world, "escort services" are as old as most civilizations.
The need to correct other people's misconceptions about paid escorts and high class hookers stems from prejudice against women who are trying to earn a decent living. Hiring an escort does not necessarily mean that men just want to have sex with them.
Paying a prostitute in return for an hour's pleasure does not constitute companionship. To clear things up, the Merriam-Webster's dictionary defines an escort as a person accompanying another for whatever purpose, usually for protection or courtesy. Examples could be bodyguards, medical assistants and temporary secretaries.
One more meaning of an escort would be a person going out on a date with another -- just like prom escorts. Then why is it that when people refer to escort services, it is commonly assumed that sex is involved?
Escort services bear much of the blame. By this I mean especially those who offer more than an hour's company as part of the company's offering. They are a reason why many people now associate prostitutes with escorts. For companies who offer decent and straightforward services, escorts usually stay for an hour or two in a client's home or hotel room to help entertain guests.
I have heard of wedding escorts, funeral escorts, business escorts as well as holiday escorts. The escorts get paid a fee and all their expenses are shouldered by the clients. Even if intercourse happens between escorts and clients, it is really based on the discretion of the escort and not because it is part of the "package".
To point out a further difference between prostitutes and escorts, here is a good example. Cindy works for an escort agency. She is studying to become a lawyer and needs extra money to pay off her tuition fees. Since she is smart, most of her clients opt to take her to business functions to help entertain corporate heads and foreign diplomats.
Pam also works for an escort agency, but her clients mostly stay in cheap hotels and do not need her social skills to help accommodate investors, relatives or college buddies. She just has sex with them, gets paid and then leaves. Although both the ladies work for an escort service agency, their "job descriptions" are totally different from each other.
Prostitutes get paid to have sex with their customers, while escorts get paid to act as temporary companions to clients.