Copyright 2013 Jasmine
Haynes
She certainly couldn’t look for
what she wanted in Willoughby. Not that she thought she’d find it, but just
asking would set the town tongues wagging. This might be California, but small
towns were small towns with everybody’s business being everybody else’s.
She’d have to drive into Saint
Lucia, which wasn’t much larger than Willoughby, but it wasn’t her town. Besides, she’d heard about
that new shop, everyone had heard about it. Surely she’d find what she wanted,
no, needed. And she had until two-thirty when she had to pick up Rina.
“Shop till you drop,” she quipped,
parking the station wagon in the next block over from the store. The engine
knocked and pinged for fifteen seconds after she shut it off. She really had to
convince Mitch they needed a replacement.
The store wasn’t obtrusive or
garish. Its window displayed a tasteful arrangement of feather masks, which could be used at Halloween two and a
half months away, assorted beauty products like lotions and soaps, and a
mannequin in a pretty, gauzy summer skirt and spaghetti-strap camisole. Up and Coming, the shop’s name arched in
gold letters across the window and front door.
Up
and Coming. Connie snickered. It was quite a play on words considering what
the shop stocked in the back room.
A bell tinkled overhead as she
opened the door. The interior looked like any old Victoria’s Secret at the
mall. Lace, satin, and silk hung on gold racks, lotions and sprays sat on glass
shelves along the wall, a selection of makeup beneath a counter, flowered
curtains adorning dressing rooms. Candles burned, scenting the air with...well,
what was that smell?
“Oleander,” came a voice from
behind her.
Connie realized she must have been
sniffing the aroma.
“It’s good for relaxing all the
muscles.”
Gorgeous red hair flowed over the
sales woman’s shoulders. Geez, why couldn’t she have hair like that? It didn’t
look dyed, with shades of gold and strawberry glittering through it. Her makeup
was lightly yet expertly applied, which enhanced the disgustingly perfect
features God had given her. Sparkling green eyes, plump, red lips, which
weren’t all bubbly with collagen, and full breasts that fit her Marilyn Monroe
hourglass figure. Silver ankle bracelets jingled as she crossed the tasteful
rose-hued carpet. With the grace of a voluptuous fifties beauty queen, she was
no skinny-minnie by any means, but why couldn’t Connie’s pounds fall into
perfect place like that?
“Can I help you find something? We
have some lovely lingerie.”
Lingerie had not worked, and Connie would have felt inferior with this perfect
woman enticing her to buy more frilly stuff that wouldn’t work.
“I’m more interested in what you
have in the back room.”
The woman smiled like Eve picking
the apple off the tree. “We don’t call it the back room. It’s the boudoir.”
Who was this “we” anyway? There
were only the two of them. “The boudoir would be fine.”
The woman held out her hand,
indicating the way through a doorway decked with pink and blue beads acting as
a curtain.
“May I ask how you heard about us?
Since we’re fairly new, I like to get an idea of which promotion worked.”
Connie laughed. “You’re kidding,
right? This place is the talk of the area. Everybody’s heard about Up and Coming.” Following the woman
through the beads, she added, “Did you really intend the name to mean what it
sounds like it means?”
The proprietress had a very sexy
laugh. Connie wondered if she could imitate it without sounding like a braying
donkey. Besides, dealing in...the things she dealt in, the woman probably
practiced her walk, her laugh, even her speech modulation. The impression given
when a customer entered was everything.
“This isn’t a sex shop you’d find
down some filthy big city alley. Up and
Coming celebrates femininity in all its forms.”
“But you do have sex toys, right?”
She smiled. “Of course. Quite a
variety. My name’s Jensen, by the way.”
Connie gaped. She didn’t have to
give her name, did she?
“It’s all right. We don’t deal in
brown paper bags here, but everything is confidential.”
Geez, it wasn’t as if she were
visiting the doctor for some female complaint. What harm could giving her first
name do?
“I’m Connie.”
Jensen lightly touched her arm,
subtly directing her deeper into the “boudoir.”
“Do you have a specific toy in
mind?”
“Not really. I was just sort of
wanting to look around.” She hadn’t been expecting a guided tour, which might
end up being a bit embarrassing. But after looking at the sizes, shapes, and
colors ornamenting the walls, countertops, and display stands, Connie did need
a little explanation. “What’s that?”
Blue and rubbery, it looked like a
donut with nubs on it.
“That’s a pleasure ring. It’s
placed around a man’s penis. It enhances the man’s pleasure, allows him to
maintain an erection longer, and the nubs stimulate the woman’s clitoris during
intercourse.”
“Oh.” Connie didn’t have much more
to say on the subject.
“You’ll see these on the Internet,
but please, never buy stainless steel. Swelling can occur, making it impossible
to remove. A man once had to have it cut off with a diamond saw.”
“Umm, gee, guess I’ll skip that
then.”
“Perhaps you’d like to try a pair
of handcuffs. We carry an assortment from fur-lined to leather to a replica of
what the police would use.”
“My husband and I aren’t into
S&M.” Connie knew all the appropriate lingo.
“Not to worry, we entertain married
couples wanting to spice up their love lives. A little restraint and blindfold
can be quite enjoyable.”
Connie considered it. Seriously.
Would Mitch let her handcuff him to the brass rails of the headboard? She
thought about being handcuffed herself and having her eyes covered. She
couldn’t wriggle away when his tongue got too intense. The idea sent a thrill
between her legs. Which made her feel extremely uncomfortable with company
around.
“I’ll keep it in mind.”
“Perhaps you’d like to look at our
selection of vibrators?”
She shook her head. “I want
something we can use together.”
The woman laughed again, throaty.
“Vibrators aren’t simply a solitary tool. They can be put to good use by both
parties.”
“Oh?” Connie quickly held up a
hand. “Please don’t tell me. That would be too embarrassing.”
“In that case, we offer a very
useful instruction pamphlet to accompany the purchase.” She crinkled her nose.
“With some helpful hints for getting the maximum benefit.”
Connie found herself following
Jensen to the opposite wall as if she were the Pied Piper.
“This model has dual ends which can
be used...” Jensen glanced at Connie, obviously gauging her word choice. “It
has dual penetration capabilities.”
Leaning closer, Connie examined the
brown device. It was curved and had two heads. Mercy, they looked like penises.
Then it dawned on her exactly where one was supposed to insert the two heads.
Ewwe.
“No, I don’t think so.” She wasn’t
letting anyone use that thing on her, not even Mitch.
“How about something more
standard?” Jensen pulled a purple silicon penis-shape from the wall bracket.
“This particular model is equipped with three speeds and the ability to rotate
and vibrate at the same time. One partner can be in charge of the controls
while the other...submits.”
“You mean...” Oh my. She felt
another little thrill at the thought of Mitch putting it inside her
and...pumping it.
“I think you understand. Manual
stimulation can be used in conjunction.”
My. Oh my.
“Batteries are included, of
course.”
Connie just stared. She wasn’t a
prude. She and Mitch used to experiment with position and location and created
their fair share of interesting techniques. She’d read Cosmo magazine and
learned a few tricks Mitch found quite impressive. But she’d grown up with a
prudish mother, gotten married young, moved straight from her mother’s house to
Mitch’s apartment, and certainly, after looking around Jensen’s shop, her
education seemed a bit lacking now. She felt almost generic.
“How much is it?”
“It’s actually a mid-range since it
doesn’t have all the bells and whistles you find on some of the others you see
here.” Then she named an astronomical price.
Well, it wasn’t really all that bad
except when Connie considered how Mitch watched every penny. A few pieces of
lingerie stuffed in the drawer had cost more. But he made her feel terrified of
spending a dollar on a cup of coffee, for goodness sake.
“I’ll include the instruction
pamphlet for free.”
This was about their marriage.
About getting back the fire they’d lost. About not being afraid he might turn
to another woman because she didn’t satisfy him anymore.
Money was no object in light of her
plan’s importance.
“I’ll take it.”
Jensen smiled. “If you’re not happy
with it, please come back for a refund which can be used to purchase something
that might better meet your needs.”
“You mean I can return it?” No. No,
no, no. That seemed sort of disgusting.
Shaking her head as if she were
dealing with a child, Jensen carried Connie’s new vibrator to the register.
“Return, no, but I want my clients to be happy when they’ve taken my advice
about a purchase. If they’re not, it’s my obligation to fix that. You can pick
out something that will work better for you.”
Well, maybe the handcuffs. And the
blindfold.
Now, where was
she going to hide the purple monstrosity so the kids didn’t find it and ask
Mommy what it was?
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