She slid her hands down the client's back and focused all of her attention on projecting a completely calm aura. The minutes ticked away as Susan continued projecting that image of calm into each and every muscle on her client. Little by little, the woman under her hands relaxed, the tension sliding out of her with every stroke of the massage.
"You look beat," Bridgett, the receptionist commented as Susan closed the door to the massage room behind her.
"Tough customer," Susan made a face, "Some sort of executive, unless I miss my guess, and struggling to stay at the top."
"Could also be her husband forgot what day it is and she's pissed at him," Bridgett suggested in a teasing tone, knowing full well Susan's guesses could more be called fact.
"What?" Susan stared blankly,, "Today?"
"You forgot?" Bridget was amazed, "It's Valentine's Day!" she gestured to the bouquet on her desk sent by her most recent boyfriend, "That's why it's been so slow!"
"Oh, wow, yeah, I completely forgot," Susan blinked in surprise, "I just figured it was another slow day. We get those during the week."
"Tomorrow will be busy for me," Bridgett predicted brightly, tossing her hair over her shoulder, "Everyone calling to use their Valentine's gift cards."
"I'm guessing you have a hot day with Mister dozen red roses there," Susan nodded to the flowers.
"Yep!" Bridgett squirmed in her chair a second before blurting out, "Do you think I could leave, like, a little early?"
"How early?" Susan frowned, "And why aren't you asking Glo?"
"Glo's gone for the day, left at noon," Bridgett stated about the clinic's owner, "You've got one more today, right before closing, and it's a gift card so no need for him to pay after you're done, so I could close after he gets here even."
Susan thought it through. She knew the plan would work and that they were unlikely to really have any calls that the machine couldn't take between her last appointment and official close time. "Okay, but you owe me. Just be sure to set the phone to after hours, set the sign, and lock the door."
"No problem!" Bridgett grinned, obviously excited about her date.
"I'm going to have some tea," Susan moved back to the break room, "Let me know when the next client is here."
"Sure thing," Bridget waved her off as the phone rang.
Susan signed and sipped her tea, letting the fragrant brew wash over her and re-instill her calm. Nope, she was alone today. Her last boyfriend had moved two states away for his job and she'd discovered she just didn't love him enough to uproot and follow him. No romantic fairy tales for her, that was sure!
A knock on the door interrupted her inner reverie, "Susan, your client is here."
She finished off the cup of tea before stepping out.
"Hi," she smiled at the man waiting on her, "I'm Susan and I'll be your masseuse today."
"I'm Joe," he smiled back. He has a nice smile, she decided.
"If you'll follow me," she turned and walked down to the room that had been prepared.
He followed and listened as she explained the standard undressing "to your level of comfort," then getting face down on the table under the covers. She left and saw Bridgett off before heading back to the room, giving Joe plenty of time to get ready. She did make sure to knock and check before opening the door, another standard practice drilled into her early on in her career.
As always, she started with pulling the blankets back, placing one hand on the back of his neck, the other on the base of his spine, and focusing.
Stress, tension... normal to feel in her line of work. His neck was a complete jumble; he had to be suffering a headache. She drew a mental line from his head to his feet and then began working.
She'd barely started un-knotting his neck when she caught her thoughts drifting. Maybe it had been talking to Bridgett, maybe it was having her hands on an attractive man, maybe it was knowing they were locked in together alone. Somehow sexual thoughts were entering her mind and she found herself not projecting the calm she had intended to project, but a sexual heat. She quickly pulled her hands back, on the excuse of getting more lotion from her belt, to refocus. For the rest of the knots in his neck, she managed to stay on track, projecting calm into him, getting him to relax. She relaxed her shoulders as he let out a sigh of relief as she finished his neck and then she moved on to his back. Stroke up and down the spine, connecting base to tip.
"I'd swear you're some sort of physic," he commented out of the blue, "My neck's been tight for weeks, one of the reasons I made this appointment."
She jumped at his voice; usually she had her clients in a state of near sleep and didn't talk to them at all. "Oh," she responded, "Just years of training. Why, you have a hot date tonight you need that headache gone for?"
He laughed, "No date for me tonight. My last girlfriend decided my wallet wasn't big enough to satisfy her lifestyle. She left a few months ago."
"Oh?" Susan responded in surprise, "I'm surprised you didn't find someone else quickly enough."
He raised his head to look at her and laughed, "I think that was a compliment, so thank you. What about you? Any hot dates after you get done here? With those hands, I'm surprised they don't line the street."
She actually blushed and then pushed at his shoulders to get him back down, "No, broke up with a guy a couple months back when he had to leave state for a new job."
"And you didn't follow him?"
"I'm not that kind of girl," she grinned, moving her hands in patterns down his back, "Besides, I love working here. One of the most relaxed studios I've worked for."
"Mmmm," he said noncommittally, "That's a good spot. You really do know what you're doing."
