Trevor really loved his job.
Now in his early thirties, Trevor had received rigorous training as a licensed massage therapist, and had quickly found a place in one of the many massage parlors in Seattle. It seems that the tightly wound techies of that metropolis needed a lot of unwinding! He had become a popular and sought-after masseur, several clients asking for him by name or doing all manner of contortions in their schedule to set up a session with him.
Things took an interesting turn when a woman in her forties named Caitlin had asked him to do some "extra work" for a substantial cash bonusâliterally under the table, of course. Caitlin was a strikingly attractive, well-toned female; it was obvious she was quite fit, probably doing a lot of aerobics or jogging in what little spare time she had. Trevor had been a bit hesitant to comply with her unorthodox request; if this irregular behavior became known, he'd not only be fired at once but perhaps blackballed throughout the entire massage community. But the size of the "tip" she was offering was too good to pass up. After all, Trevor still had college loansânot to mention the cost of the massage training lessonsâto pay off!
So he had gone ahead and satisfied Caitlin. And she had professed herself thoroughly happy with his work, and also promised to spread the word (quietly, of course) about his unusual gifts.
In a surprisingly short period of time, Trevor had been able to leave the massage parlor and go into business for himself.
He had found a nice, if quite small, office in an industrial park in one of the few areas of Seattle that hadn't already been overdeveloped, and the clients had come rushing in. He was delighted to keep
all
the proceeds of his work, not just a small percentage of it; and it also gratified him immensely that he could provide such comfort to his clients.
Of course, all his clients were female.
Trevor had, perhaps, a somewhat old-fashioned view of women. Not that he believed them to be "the weaker sex" or anything silly like that; he had known any number of strong, dynamic women who could stand toe to toe with any man in just about any field of endeavor. But he recognized that even in the most aggressive woman there was a gentler side that wrung his heart. Women were so much more in touch with their feelings, both physical and emotional, than men were; and that fact alone, in Trevor's opinion, confirmed their fundamental superiority to the male of the species. He loved to tend to those feelingsâand found that
he
was thoroughly satisfied when he could satisfy his clients in whatever way they chose.
Right now he was waiting for his 4 o'clock appointment.
For certain obvious reasons, he didn't schedule more than three sessions a day, and preferred it if he only had one or two. This one would be his second, following oneâa scrumptious young woman a few years younger than heâwho had come in at 10 that morning. The long gap between appointments was just what he needed to recharge his own batteries.
The woman arrived, not entirely unexpectedly, a few minutes late.
She was a new client, and Trevor could tell immediately that she was dubious about the whole business. Whether she was a friend of Caitlin or of some other client, he didn't know; in her brief and rather breathless telephone call setting up the appointment earlier that week she had pointedly told him little about herself. And now that he got a look at her, he realized that an extremely tender approach would be needed to fulfill her objectives and keep her coming back for more.
She entered the office with a spooked expression on her face, holding the door partly open as if ready to bolt at the earliest opportunity. Trevor greeted her with a warm smile.
"Are you Annette?" he said.
The mere mention of her name made her blush a little, and all she could do was nod.
"Come on in," he said, getting up from the tiny desk where he had been seated. But when he put a hand gently on her back to usher her into the office, she seemed to give a little shudder.
"Just relax, dear," he said in his most reassuring voice, "everything will be fine."
Trevor took her to be about fifty, perhaps a little more; but there was nothing frumpish or matronly about her, even though he quickly noticed a large engagement ring on the ring finger of her left hand.
Ah, a married woman,
he reflected. Sometimes they could be trouble. He recalled one instance about a year ago when a woman in her late thirties had actually leaped up from the massage table, quickly grabbed her clothes, and fled to the minuscule bathroom at the back of the office, even though Trevor had done nothing more than begin a routine massage. She dressed in haste, came out of the bathroom, gave Trevor a guilty look, and quite literally threw his fee at him (in cash) and fled from the place, never to return.
He hoped Annette wouldn't be so shy, for the more he examined her the more he liked what he saw.
She was quite tallâabout five foot eightâand fairly slender, although with perhaps just a little bit of extra weight at the hips. (Had she borne children?) As a result of her blushing, she displayed a rosy complexionâhigh cheekbones, bright green eyes, fleshy lips, and a gently curving jawline, all framed by lustrous auburn hair. As for the rest of her: even clothed, Trevor could detect ample curves at bust and bottom in spite of her svelte frame.
He really hoped he could have a good session with her.
He was about to lead her into the massage room when she held back and gave him a startled look.
"Um, do I pay first?" she said.
"Afterwards," he said calmly. "Right now, all we're concerned about is that you have a nice time."
Even that mildest of
double entendres
made her flush even more crimson than before, and she walked stiffly ahead into the massage room without looking at him.