Sales Team

© MMV

A sincere thanks to LadyCibelle who helped me with this story. ***** It was a hot and muggy Atlanta summer day as I slowly walked to the second floor of my apartment complex. The morning had gone well; five sales calls and two of those turned out to be winners. My commission check would be a big one next month. It was a relatively new apartment complex—a lot of singles and parties—and I was glad I had decided to splurge and rent the two-bedroom model. I rationalized at the time that the second bedroom would be my office and vaguely I thought I might get a tax write-off also. The small gym and large pool made meeting other singles easy. In my first four months at the apartment it was relatively easy to get dates. All the single women wanted to test out the new tenant. However, from my view, none of the women seemed to be keepers, so I kept my options open and continued to party hard. I kept in shape at the gym and worked hard in my sales territory, which paid off both in money and attracted the attention of the regional sales manager who spotted my sales volume. Life was good and uncomplicated. My head was down as I daydreamed about spending my well earned money when I heard someone knocking on a door. At first I thought it was my apartment, but it was Carol's door, which was two apartments down from mine. A woman stood in front of Carol's door and knocked again. She was about five-foot seven-inches tall with dirty blond hair. She wore a somewhat heavy skirt and coat over a blouse that must have been warm in the summer heat. A small, black rolling suitcase was next to her. I walked up and said, "Hi." She jumped and turned towards me; I had surprised her. "Hey, I'm sorry I startled you. Are you looking for Carol?" She looked at me before answering. I could see her face clearly now. Along with the dirty blond hair she had blue eyes, high cheek bones and a pixy nose. Those attractive body parts were marred by the sweat on her face, hair in disarray that needed washing, and a body frame that suggested too skinny. She was obviously exhausted. She had a low, sexy-sounding voice as she answered, "I'm a friend of Carol's and came for the weekend to visit her, but she isn't home even though I told her when I would get here." I replied, "I'm a friend of Carol's and live two doors down. Carol's mom had a heart attack two days ago and Carol rushed home to Chicago to be with her. I guess she forgot to call you." "Oh shit," she whispered. Selling is my occupation and reading people comes with the job. I looked at this woman's face and saw disappointment turning into despair with a tinge of panic. I thought, "She's seconds away from tears or worse." Impulsively I blurted, "I'm Phil Stockton. Why don't you come to my place and have a cold drink?" She stared at my face, but it was obvious she hadn't heard me. Panic was now winning over despair. I grabbed her arm and suitcase and pulled her towards my apartment. She didn't resist. I sat her in a kitchen chair, turned down the thermostat to seventy, and filled a glass with ice and water. She took the glass and drained it. I refilled it and sat across from her. "It's none of my business, but my guess is that you need a friend right now." She stared at the tabletop and nodded her head. The first tears ran down her face. "Hey, my name is Phil; what's yours?" "Holly," she whispered. "Well Holly, things can't be that bad." She lifted her head and looked at me. The tears had highlighted her blue eyes. She blushed and stammered, "I've spent the last two days on five different buses. The only possessions I have are in my suitcase and I used the rest of my money to pay for the taxi to get here, and I look and feel like shit." I quickly said with a smile, "Holly, don't hold back. Just really tell me about your serious problems." I saw her first, brief smile, but then she lowered her face and stared again at the table. "Holly, look at me." She raised her head and stared at me. "This is not the time to make decisions or even talk about them. I have a sofa bed in my office. You're going to take the longest, hottest shower of your life and then take a nap. I'll get you some towels and a robe and there is a clean toothbrush and shampoo in the guest bathroom. By the time you get out of the shower, I'll be gone making some sales calls. I'll wake you when I get back and we'll have dinner here. Then with a glass of wine or two along with the food, you're going back to bed and sleep until morning. Then we'll talk about your minor problems." "I can't..." "Holly, you will. Now stand up and follow me." Like a little kid she stood up and followed me. I pointed out the office bedroom, the bathroom, and showed her the towels and robe. "Take your shower. When you're through, your bed will be open and made. I'm taking the phone off the hook and the front door will be locked. I'll wake you at dinner time." Without a word she walked into the bathroom and shut the door. I quickly opened the bed. The sheets were clean and I took two pillows and a light blanket from the closet and placed them on the bed. As I took her suitcase from the kitchen to the office, I heard the shower water start. I left the apartment and double locked the door. Holly must have been a lucky charm for me—three more sales calls and one more winner. This day had been the best sales day in my career. After the third sales call, I went to my local bar and sipped some beers waiting for the time to pass and wondering about my current situation. She was obviously in a tough spot with an unknown background. She wasn't skinny by choice; it was that she hadn't been eating much. I wondered if she was tough enough to rebound from whatever or whoever had slammed her. Eventually, I left the bar and went to the grocery store. Two huge steaks, baking potatoes, sour cream, butter, and the ingredients for a salad seemed to be the right combination. I quietly let myself into my apartment. In the kitchen I turned on the oven and popped in the baking potatoes. The door to the office was half open. I went to it and looked inside. Holly was sleeping with her back to the door. The sheet had fallen to below her waist; it was obvious she was sleeping nude. I stared at her naked back and then down to the swell of her bare hips and the top of her ass. Maybe it's just me but a female's bare back is an extremely erotic picture; nature has a way of taking over—my cock was hard and my thoughts were not pure. "You really are an asshole Phil," I thought to myself. I quietly shut the door and went back to the kitchen. One hour later the salad was made, the white wine chilled, the red wine open and breathing, and the charcoals in the barbecue were lit. I went to the office and knocked. "Holly, wake up," I yelled. Nothing. Twice more I tried with the same result. I opened the door and looked in. She had rolled over and was now on her side facing me. The sheet was still down by her waist and I saw her naked breasts. They were bigger than I had expected with small areolas and somewhat large nipples that were now soft. I walked up the bed and pulled the sheet up to her neck. Her face, without the stress of her problems, was relaxed and prettier than I first thought. I stepped back to the door and knocked loudly and yelled, "Holly, time to eat." Finally she stirred and muttered, "Wanna sleep." "Holly, open your eyes." Her eyes finally squinted open. I could tell she remembered me. I said, "I know you're tired, but you are hungry too. Go wash your face and come out to the kitchen. The steaks will be ready in twenty minutes. Are you going to get up?" "But I'm really sleepy," she whined. I repeated, "Dinner in twenty minutes. If I don't see you in the kitchen in five minutes, I'm going to find out how ticklish you are." He eyes popped open. "You wouldn't?" I grinned and replied, "I don't think you want to find out." I closed the door and went back to the kitchen. A minute later I heard her door open and she went into the bathroom. A few minutes later she entered the kitchen. She had brushed her hair that had regained some gloss from the shampoo. She was wearing a T-shirt with Daffy Duck on the front. The shirt was short exposing two inches of her flat stomach. I could tell she wasn't wearing a bra. She had jogging shorts on and was barefoot. She smiled shyly at me and said, "I really want to thank you..." "Holly," I interrupted, "No serious discussion tonight. Just relax and enjoy the food and we'll talk in the morning. Okay?" She nodded her understanding. I asked, "White wine, red wine, a drink, or just water?" "White wine please." As I poured her wine I asked, "Do you want your steak medium rare or medium; if past medium, you have to cook it yourself since that is a mortal sin?" She giggled, "Medium rare sir." "Butter or sour cream or both on your potato." She giggled again, "Both please, Mr. Boss." I poured a glass of white for myself and sat down. I said, "I want you to know that right now you are my good luck charm. I'm a salesman and today I made more sales than I've made in the last three weeks, which means one fat commission check a few weeks from now. So we're celebrating with good wine and steaks. "My name is Phil. I'm twenty-five; never married, but close twice before I got smart; I'm six-feet tall and tend to get fat when I don't work out in the gym. I barely got through college because I never saw a party I didn't like. "I fall in love often, but cupid only nicks me with the arrows since I fall out of love just as often. "I can tell a million jokes, but sometimes get tongue tied when asked serious things by pretty females." She giggled, "I'm twenty-three and..." I interrupted, "That's all I want to know tonight—you're twenty-three, pretty and female." "Not even curious?" she asked. "Oh very curious, but now it's time to cook and eat. We talk tomorrow. I'll be out with the steaks. You set the table, get out the salad and dressing. Take the potatoes out of the oven in five minutes and get the sour cream and butter out of the frig." She laughed and gave me a mock salute, "Yes Boss." "And when you're done, join me on the balcony with the wine bottle. My glass will be very empty by then." She grinned and went to work as I took the steaks to the barbecue. The balcony looked out over the Buckhead area and as the steaks were cooking I watched the traffic converging to the restaurants and shows in Buckhead. It was the beginning of the weekend, and people were starting early. I felt her presence behind me and turned. "Your servant with more wine," she deadpanned. "About time." She poured the wine into my glass and then poured the rest of the white wine into her glass. She looked at me, but said nothing at first. Then, "I really..." "Tomorrow Holly. Tonight your job is to eat a lot, get slightly drunk...no tipsy is the right word, and then catch up on your sleep." She answered, "Okay, but I just want to say your bark and bite are nothing—you're a nice person." The steaks were done and we went to the kitchen. I poured the first of the red wine into a clean wine glass for Holly and we ate. I purposely bought very large steaks. Holly had said they were way too big for her, but once she started eating, she never stopped. Her steak, potato and salad with more red wine all disappeared. I thought, "She hasn't eaten in days." Finally the meal was done. She looked at me embarrassed and said, "I made a pig out of myself. The steak was wonderful, but I didn't even try to talk to you." I reached for the wine and poured each of us a half glass which killed the bottle. I made a mock toast with my glass held high, "To a great steak dinner, cooked by an expert, and assisted by a person of beauty." She giggled and then her eyes filled with tears. "Phil, that was a wonderful meal and I really want to..." and she yawned. "Oh shit; I'm sorry to yawn at you," she slightly slurred. "Am I still the boss?" I asked. "Yep," she giggled. "Stand up, go to the bathroom, and go to bed." She stood, looked at me with teary eyes, and walked to the bathroom. Minutes later I heard her go to the office. I stood up and found the door open and looked in. Her shirt and shorts were lying next to the bed and she was on her side with her back to me. The sheet was down to her knees as I once again saw her nakedness. I could hear her quiet snores. I pulled the sheet up to her shoulders and quietly closed the door, cleaned up the kitchen, had two healthy drinks and went to bed. I thought, "Tomorrow should be interesting." I'm an early morning person no matter when I go to bed, so I woke at sunrise, unsuccessfully tried to go back to sleep, and finally got up. My master bedroom has its own bath so I did my morning things, put on a clean shirt and shorts and went to the kitchen. The office door was still closed so I stalled for about an hour sipping black coffee, reading the morning paper and then started organizing breakfast. I went to the office door and knocked. Nothing. "Holly, wake up." I knocked again hard and opened the door. She was on her side facing me with the sheet up to her neck. Her eyes were full of sleep, but open and watching me. I said, "In twenty minutes breakfast will be ready so you better get your butt out of bed, clean up and meet me in the kitchen." "Are you always this bossy?" I pretended to look stern and answered, "Twenty minutes." I walked away leaving the door open. Minutes later I heard the door to the bathroom close, and then the toilet flushed. Almost twenty minutes later she walked into the kitchen wearing the same T-shirt and shorts. I noticed this time she was wearing a bra. She sat down without talking. A large glass of milk and another of orange juice was in front of her. I put down a plate with three pieces of toast each topped with two poached eggs accompanied by about eight slices of bacon. I put a couple of bagels on a side plate with cream cheese next to her. She said, "This is way too much food for me." Fifteen minutes later the food was gone. She looked embarrassed. "I ate like a pig again." "You ate like someone who hasn't eaten right for a while." She blushed again. "Phil, I want to thank you..." I interrupted, "There's a great park four blocks from here. I'll clean up the kitchen and let's walk to the park and then have our talk. It's cool right now but later it's going to be really hot, so let's enjoy the morning." We walked to the park in comfortable silence. I'd point out something interesting every now and then, but I could tell she was getting nervous. We circled the park once along the bike path and then sat down at a picnic table in front of a large pond; ducks were swimming in the water. It was obvious she didn't know what to say. I asked, "What's your most serious problem?" "I'm broke with no job." I continued, "What's your second most serious problem?" "I have no place to live in a strange town and have no friends." "Do you have cancer or a serious illness?" "No." "Are you wanted by the police?" "No." "Well then," I concluded, "You have a serious short term problem, but will be fine in the long term, and you don't consider me a friend yet." She grabbed my hand and blurted, "Shit, that was stupid of me. You saved my life yesterday; I was desperate and you took me in. I won't ever forget your kindness." I covered her hand with mine and quietly asked, "If it will make you feel better, why don't you tell me how you ended up at my doorstep." She talked for an hour. The first few minutes were stumbling and then everything poured out. She had grown up in a suburb of Chicago. Her father bailed out even before she was born, so she was raised by her mother. They were very poor, but her mom got her through high school and started her into junior college. During her second year of junior college, her mom had a heart attack and died. Her emphasis in junior college was business and she quickly got a job working for a small business in Chicago. Two years and two promotions later she was starting to make it in the real business world when she met Jim. After three months Jim moved into her apartment. The plan was that they would get married as soon as they had enough money to feel comfortable. Three months after Jim moved in he lost his job; he had been an alcoholic and had fallen off the wagon. He didn't look very hard for a new job and the small savings they had built up started to disappear. His drinking got worse; he abused her when drunk and their sex life became more like multiple rapes. Jim came to her office drunk a week ago and demanded money in front of her coworkers and boss. They made him leave, but he yelled he would come back and kill everybody. He had so frightened her company that they told her she was fired. She received a week's severance. When she got home that afternoon she found the apartment had been torn apart in one of Jim's rages. The furniture was destroyed, all her clothes had been ripped apart, and there was an eviction notice on the door. Jim had taken the checks for rent, but never mailed them in for the last two months. When she went to her bank to get the past due rent money, she found out that Jim had cleaned out their account. The only favor the bank did was to cash her severance check. She had met Carol at a charity party about the same time she met Jim and had kept lightly in touch with her even after Carol had moved to Atlanta. She called Carol to see if she could stay with her a few days and start a new life. When she arrived in Atlanta, Carol wasn't there; I was. Holly sat across from me at the park sobbing as she finished her story. The look of desperation had come back as she realized again the mess she was in. Other then touching her hand, I had done nothing during her story. I wasn't sure what to do. I felt if I hugged her she would completely fall apart and be even more of an emotional cripple, but I had to give her some hope; and I was not unaware that even at this moment, I was attracted to her. I said, "Holly, you have a big short term problem, but that's all it is. Here's what we're going to do. "For the first week you have to get back on your feet, and in the second week we start working on finding you a job. Let's go back to the apartment and I want you to write a list of the clothes you need to buy along with other stuff that will get you through one week. "Do you cook?" She nodded yes. "Fair cook or pretty good?" "I'm pretty good," she admitted "That makes it easy," I said. You'll stay with me for the first week. You're the official apartment cleaner and cook, except that Wednesday and Saturday we go out to eat. I'll loan you the money for what you need to buy, and you can pay me back once you start making some money." "Why are you being so nice to me?" she asked. "You're my lucky charm so far on my selling, and I think behind those tears I see a good person who got unlucky," I answered. We walked back to the apartment and she started writing her list of clothes and things. When she was done I checked the list. "I don't see a dress for the restaurant tonight," I teased. "Restaurant?" "It's Saturday. We go out to eat on Wednesday and Saturday. Don't you remember?" She added a dress to her list. I continued, "Put down a swimming suit." "I really don't need a swimming suit," she said. "Well when we go down to the pool this weekend you are either going to be skinny dipping or wearing a suit...it's up to you." She added a swimming suit to her list. "Now make up a list of the meals you are going to cook during the week," I suggested.

"What do you like to eat?" she asked.

"Everything."

Thirty minutes later we were ready to go shopping. We drove to the plaza and walked into the first clothing store. At first Holly was embarrassed as she bought panties, bras and other clothes, but then she wanted me to tell her what dress she should buy and what was my favorite color on her. It was kind of fun to watch Holly forget her problems for a while and enjoy herself. From the clothes she picked out I could see she had good taste.

When it came time to buy her swimming suit she timidly asked me what kind she should buy.

I said, "Holly, you have a nice body; don't hide it."

She beamed at the compliment. A not-too-conservative black bikini went into the shopping bag.

Four hours later we were done. She asked me how much she had spent. I ignored the question and lied, "I'm keeping track of every penny, so don't worry about it now."

We then went to the food stores. It was obvious she knew what she wanted. I was going to eat very well the first week.

By the time we returned home and put all the food away it was late afternoon. I told her we were going to a casual, but nice local Italian restaurant.

I was dressed in slacks and a shirt waiting for her to come out of her bedroom. She walked out and stood in front of me nervously. The light summer dress she was wearing highlighted her figure as the front displayed her shoulders and the beginning of the slope of her breasts. Her hair was arranged differently and was glossy from combing. Her light makeup accentuated her high cheek bones. I could smell the fragrance of her perfume. She was beautiful.

I teased, "I know you're beautiful, but where's Holly? She's my dinner companion for tonight."

She giggled and blushed with the compliment.

The dinner was fun. I asked her about her old job. It set her off talking and it was obvious to me that she had loved her job. The business emphasis she had taken in junior college along with three year's work experience convinced me we would have no trouble finding her a job.

For the first time she ate a normal size meal. "I'm not always a pig," she explained.

We returned home; it was obvious the day had caught up to her. She yawned as I gave her a glass of white wine.

I said, "One glass and you're history. You need sleep."

She sipped her wine. It was comfortably silent, but then I noticed she was starting to become nervous. I guessed what was coming.

She finished her drink and stared at the floor for a moment and then stood up and said, "Phil, you have been wonderful to me. I owe you so much."

She reached behind to unbutton her dress. I quickly stood up and grabbed her shoulders. She looked up at me.

"Holly," I said gently, "You're the apartment cleaner and cook until you get back on your feet, but that's all. I don't want your thanks this way. Let's stay friends for a week and then see where we are."

She looked surprised.

"I'd make love to you in a second; it's hard for me not to touch your body, but if we do have sex, I want it to be because we're attracted to each other and not as a thank you. Can you understand that?"

Her eyes filled with tears and she stood on her toes and kissed me gently on the cheek. She walked into her bedroom.

I went to bed shortly and masturbated wondering why I had become so noble—I really lusted over her body.

When I woke the next morning, Holly was already up. When she heard me she yelled, "Fifteen minutes and the pancakes and sausage will be ready."

It was a lazy Sunday. We walked about three miles around the city for exercise and then after a late lunch I took her to the swimming pool. When she took off her light swim robe I saw her new swimming suit. Her broad shoulders and bare chest highlighted her breasts, which were barely concealed by her black top. Her stomach was flat. Her suit bottom showed a lot of her ass, which was very tight and her long slim legs were sexy. Her skin was pasty white from lack of sun.

She looked at me for approval, but then noticed my erection pushing out my suit and giggled.

"I'm speechless," I stammered.

She grinned again and sat on the lounge chair.

She put on some sun lotion and we sat there for thirty minutes or so. It was getting warm so we played in the water for a while. That is, Holly swam some laps while I sat on the steps and watched Holly. We went back to the chairs and she lay on her stomach. She asked, "Would you put lotion on my back Phil?"

I started on her neck and when I got to her shoulders she reached behind and untied the string to her top. As I continued down her back I could see and touched the edge of her breasts. When I got to her ass she opened her legs so that I could get to the inside of her thighs. I heard her sigh once, but the rest of the time I was trying to avoid my now fully erect cock from pushing into her. Finally I was done.

"Thanks Phil," she innocently said, "That really felt good."

Another forty-five minutes later we went back to the apartment. Holly needed time to prepare her first meal. She served Beef Wellington and it was fantastic. She was more than just a good cook!

After dinner we sat in front of the television. I was on my laptop researching the companies I was going to call on the next day trying to decide the best way to present my product. A few hours later Holly said she was tired and went to bed.

When she went to bed I stared at the closed bedroom door. It had been a lazy, nothing weekend, and yet, it had been one of my more enjoyable weekends since I moved to Atlanta. With that thought I went to bed.

I got up early Monday morning and drank coffee as I read the paper. Thirty minutes later Holly came into the kitchen.

"Good morning. Can I make you breakfast?" she asked.

"Nope, just coffee for me. Breakfast during the week makes me feel too full when I go to the first calls. I only eat breakfast on weekends.

"How did you sleep Holly?"

"I slept great. When I woke up I thought for the first time in a week that I might have a chance at a life after all.

"Phil," she timidly asked, "can I have money for cleaning supplies? I looked around and if you want this apartment really clean, I need some stuff."

I handed her sixty dollars.

"I don't need that much," she protested.

"I wasn't thinking Holly. You need some walking-around money in case you need to buy something or for an emergency. I'll give you more money later."

Holly protested, "I really feel like a shit spending all your money..."

I grinned. "It's week one and I'm the boss and we have a deal. Right?"

She nodded.

"Then have a great day and wish me luck selling," I said as I got up to leave.

"Good luck Phil" was the last thing I heard as I left.

I returned to the apartment about five. As I opened the door I could smell something good cooking. Holly was in the living room reading a magazine. Her hair was wet and it was obvious she just got out of the shower. I looked around and the apartment was shining. Now I'm not a slob, but some things like dusting and polishing the furniture is just not my thing. Holly had attacked the apartment with a vengeance.

"Wow, what a great job," I said.

She grinned at me. "I'm only half done. Tomorrow is the kitchen and floor and I didn't want to go into your bedroom unless I asked you first."

"I have no secrets Holly. Go and clean everywhere. What's for dinner?"

"Osso Buco."

"What's that?" I asked.

She laughed. "It's a veal shank in a heavy gravy sauce served with saffron risotto."

I asked, "Are you a cook or a secret chef?"

She grinned at my compliment.

Tuesday was a repeat of Monday and now the apartment was really clean. I had belatedly thought about the dozen condoms in my bedside table, but then thought maybe that wasn't a bad thing for her to find. The dinner Tuesday was Chicken Cacciatore, green beans, garlic bread and a Caesar's salad. It was as good as the Osso Buco.

"What are you going to do tomorrow, since the place is absolutely clean now?" I asked.

Holly replied, "I was going to ask you where the library was and do a little reading, and maybe look in the newspaper and see what jobs are out there."

I thought for a few seconds and then asked, "Do you know how to use a laptop?"

She smiled, "Of course. I used one in high school and then took computer courses in junior college. I was on and off the computer all day for the three years I worked."

I suggested, "Then why don't you put off the library for a day and spend tomorrow with my extra laptop putting together a resume. It shouldn't be more than two pages, but be sure it includes all your computer and business experience. Once I see your resume I can start going to the companies I call on and see if they have a fit for you."

"But the newspaper has jobs advertised," she said.

"The newspaper has some legit jobs, but there are scams by headhunters and companies often lie about what the job really is. My customers won't lie to me."

She stared at me a second and then grinned. "Okay, for a second there I forgot that you're the boss this week. Right?"

I smiled and nodded.

Before I left the next morning I set up the extra laptop and connected the low speed printer to it. That night when I returned I found a two page resume on the kitchen table. I could hear Holly's shower going. It was Wednesday and that meant eating out night.

I made a drink and sat down on the couch with the resume. I skimmed the two page resume first and then went back and read it again slowly. I was flabbergasted. Holly had come to me as a low self-esteem, desperate person who grew up poor and had a terrible one year relationship with a bum. What she forgot to say was that she was a straight A student who had excellent computer experience and three years of business that emphasized her computer expertise.

The resume was technically perfect and I could see subtle little things she did in printing the resume that only someone with a great deal of skill could pull off. It was a creative and professional document.

I was lost in thought when I heard a little cough. It was Holly presenting herself to me. It was the same dress that she wore on the previous Saturday, but she was even more beautiful wearing it. I thought that it probably was the five or six pounds that she had gained since we met. She had gone from skinny to slim and I would swear her breasts had gone up a size.

"What do you think?" she asked looking at me.

"They're perfect," I replied without thinking.

She stared at me and then blushed red and finally giggled. "I was talking about the resume."

It was my turn to blush. I tried to recover. "The resume is extremely professional and I like it a lot. Can I get you a drink before we go; I'd like to ask you some questions about your business background?"

"A light drink would be nice," she answered.

We spent twenty minutes talking and in the first five minutes I already knew what I was going to do, but I didn't want to excite Holly so I kept my thoughts unsaid.

We had a great dinner. Holly's personality appeared. From a dirty, beat-up desperate person on the edge of despair, she had become a beautiful, witty person with a great personality. She reversed the tables on me and got me talking about my background and family. Any time I slowed down talking she nudged me with a word or grin and I was off babbling again. I thought to myself that maybe cupid had sunk the arrow in a lot deeper this time.

We were back at the apartment having a nightcap. As we sipped I said, "I'd like you to do something for me. I sell a somewhat complicated software package for small businesses. I get a good commission when I sell and install it, and if they ever upgrade to the medium size package I get a second commission. The problem is that the operating manual is big and I get a lot of complaints that it isn't clear, so I have to make a lot of come back calls so that I keep the sale. For the rest of the week would you read the manual and play with the program and tell me how my company can make it easier."

I could see I sparked her interest. She said, "Sure I'll read the manual. Is the program on the laptop I'm using?"

"Yes, it's on the computer and you can print out the examples if you want."

Holly grinned, "I'll start first thing tomorrow."

I got the manual down and laid it on the coffee table. "Here it is—all five hundred pages of it."

I finished my drink and stood up. She looked at me as I said, "I really enjoyed dinner tonight; you got me talking like a little kid and that's normally my trick.

"It's time for me to go to bed though. I have six calls tomorrow and it's going to be a long day."

Holly put her drink down and stood up next to me. She stared at me and quietly said, "You're my best and only friend Phil. I can never pay you back."

I started to say, "Holly, you're a wonderful..." but her lips covered mine and she pulled me into her. I could feel her breasts pushing against my chest as her tongue pressed against my mouth. My tongue met hers as my cock pushed into her. Holly's hands slid down my back to my ass and pulled me into her groin. The kiss lasted a minute. When it ended I was breathless, horny, and shocked.

She grinned at me and said, "That's not a thank you. That's because I like you. Okay?"

I nodded yes.

"Go to bed Phil. Sleep good and dream of me."

I nodded again and went to my bedroom, but sleep didn't come easy. Holly was getting to me. I finally fell asleep and woke about midnight to go to the bathroom. When I went back to bed I could see under the bedroom door that the lights were on in the living room. Holly was still awake.

This time I fell into a hard sleep for the rest of the night.

I woke up Thursday morning feeling great. I made coffee and had just finished the paper when Holly came into the kitchen.

"Are you sure you don't want me to make you something?"

"No Holly. Six calls today and I need to be at full speed at the first one. Thanks for asking."

A few minutes later I wished her a good day and left. In the afternoon I called her and said I was running late and would be home at least an hour later than normal. She told me the dinner would be ready whenever I was ready, and wished me luck for the rest of the day.

I walked into the apartment at seven that night. Holly was watching television news and smiled at me as I walked up to her.

I grinned, "Two sales today means I get a big commission check next month. You're still a lucky charm for me."

She grinned back. "Maybe it's because you're a good salesman Phil."

I asked, "How about a drink before dinner so I can come down a little bit from my high?"

She nodded yes and I made the drinks. I toasted her, "To my good luck charm."

She giggled.

We sipped for a few minutes and then I asked, "Are you making much progress with the operations manual?"

"Yes." she replied. "In fact, I'm done with it."

"Holly, no one can get through those five hundred pages in a day and understand it. It just can't be done."

She smirked as she said, "Wanna bet?"

I replied, "A bet wouldn't be fair. You can't win."

She answered with a challenge in her voice. "Okay Phil, make up a list of questions or give me reports to edit or change using your software package. If I do them right by the time you get home tomorrow, you have to wash the dishes tomorrow. And I'm warning you that what I'm making is going to be super messy."

I was actually surprised and delighted with her challenge. After dinner I went through a list of the most common call back problems I had with my new customers for the last four months and chose the ten toughest and wrote them out. I showed them to Holly who asked a couple of clarification questions.

As I went to bed that night, Holly called after me in a mocking voice, "I hope you know how to wash dishes Phil."

I woke up at one in the morning for a bathroom trip and saw that the living room lights were still on. I grinned to myself and thought that if she got five of the ten correct, I would call it a success.

She came into the kitchen the next morning. I teased, "Late night for you?"

She smiled, "Not real bad."

I only had three sales calls that day and came back at about four. Holly was in the kitchen cooking. She yelled, "Hi, I'll be right out."

She walked into the living room. A smudge of flour was on her forehead and nose. "I haven't made this in a long time, and it's really messy in there."

"Who's going to clean it up?" I asked.

"Why you, of course," she smirked. "But there is one problem we have to talk about first."

"What?"

"One of the test questions couldn't be done right because there is an error in the software."

"Impossible," I said.

"Wanna bet?"

"Sure," I answered.

Holly giggled, "If I'm right that there is a software error, you wash the dishes tonight and Sunday night too."

"Deal," I agreed not realizing I didn't even ask what I would win if Holly was wrong.

Short story: She nailed the first nine examples perfectly showing me what she did and printing out the final products. On the tenth problem she showed me where the software forgot to carry over a column, but then she showed me how to get around the problem.

I was amazed and delighted, and made no effort to conceal my surprise. She relished in my praise. It was obvious that my happiness in her getting the problems correct was a huge upper for her.

I asked, "How late were you up last night?"

She looked a little sheepish and muttered, "Maybe about five this morning."

"Holly..."

She interrupted, "I hate to lose a bet. You didn't say I had to sleep last night."

I just grinned and shook my head.

Holly took mercy on me and helped me clean up after dinner. Thank god for little favors—she used more dishes than I knew I owned. However, the meal was one of her best. Shortly later she decided to crash and recover from no sleep the previous night.

She cooked breakfast the next morning and after the kitchen was clean I suggested we walk to the park. We circled it once and found ourselves at the same table that we sat at a week earlier. Probably the ducks swimming in the pond were the same too.

"Don't you think week one went well?" I asked.

"It was perfect," she said.

Want to know about week two?"

She nodded watching me, but then put her hand on top of mine and said, "Before you start I have to tell you something. Wednesday morning I saw Carol. She got back late Tuesday night, and her mom is going to live. She was really embarrassed that she forgot about me, and asked if I would stay with her now.

"I said no."

Holly stared at me waiting to see me reaction.

"Good answer," I replied watching her grin with relief.

"Now first of all," I continued, "This is another shopping day." At a minimum you need to buy another summer dress, and something appropriate for business calls."

"I have a dress," countered Holly.

"Holly, you have one dress and you look beautiful in it, but you wore it twice now and I think it would be nice to see you in a different dress tonight.

"And you forgot; who's the boss?"

"You," she grinned.

"But what about the business clothes?" she continued.

"Well, that's week two," I said. Week one you were apartment cleaner and cook. Week two we share cooking because you're going to be working a little."

"Doing what?" she asked.

"Holly, I've been thinking about this since the moment I saw your resume. I make money by selling the software package, but selling the product involves two things. The first is the actual sale and I can do that with one or two calls on the customer. The second is getting the customer on board to use it. He has sixty days to reject the product and if he does, I lose the commission. So I have to go back five or six times to show them how to install it and use it correctly. A lot of times the employees haven't even read the manual.

"So instead of making new sales, the majority of my time is spent holding on to the sales I've made. So my brainstorm is to have you follow up on some of the installations and call backs, which will give me more time to sell and make money."

"Do you think I can do that?" asked Holly with a nervous frown on her face.

"I'm positive you can," I answered. "Monday morning I'm taking you to an old customer of mine. He bought the product a year ago, but just lost two key employees and they're having trouble with the new employees getting comfortable with the software.

"He's a really good guy and I would do it anyway since his company is growing fast and a year or two from now he might buy the upgraded version, so it's good business to help him anyway."

"Will you be with me?" she asked.

"I'll introduce you to the owner and hang around for a few minutes. When it feels right, I'll take off and make a couple of sales calls and pick you up at noon."

"Are you sure I can do it?" insisted Holly.

"Absolutely," I replied, and to repeat, who's the boss?"

"You are," she answered.

"Bosses are never wrong, even when they are wrong. It's rule number one in business,"

I concluded, "Let's go shopping."

We went back to the Plaza and started looking at dresses and work clothes. She found another nice summer dress that showed a little more skin than the first one. I was all for it. For her business call on Monday she bought a silk blouse, blended jacket and a blended cotton skirt. It was the perfect professional outfit for her.

The rest of the day went by quickly. The dinner in the Plaza was great and Holly held my hand as we walked home.

Sunday was a repeat of the previous Sunday; a great breakfast and then pool time. As I rubbed the lotion into Holly's naked back and legs I could feel her body tremble with pleasure.

Sunday dinner was a prime rib roast cooked medium rare. We had an excellent meal and once again Holly took mercy on me and helped with the clean up.

As we watched television later that night she was again becoming nervous about her first business call the next morning.

"Do the best you can, and everything will be fine," I told her.

I didn't tell her that the owner of the company and I had become good friends after I sold him the software package. I told him that I was bringing a rookie over so he shouldn't be too tough on her, but that I wanted his opinion on how she handled herself. I assured him that whatever she didn't cover, I would do a follow up and get his people on board.

Monday morning I drove Holly over to the company. She looked professional, but she was nervous. We were shown into the owner's office where I introduced Holly to him. We talked for a few minutes and then he called two people into his office and said, "This is Holly McDaniels. She's going to show you how to solve the problems you're having with the business software."

Holly greeted them warmly, gave me a quick, nervous look and followed them out of the office.

The owner looked at me after she left and said, "Phil, I don't know if she knows shit about your product, but she is one hot looking lady. Have you known her long?"

"Just met her a week ago," I answered. "She seems to be smart and I guess you could call her pretty."

He rolled his eyes and snorted. "You need glasses."

I left shortly afterward and made two comeback calls for sales I had made the previous month. Both companies were having trouble learning the software and I knew I had to work with them or lose my commission.

I returned to Holly's company a little before noon. I walked into the owner's office and asked about his impression of Holly.

"You sandbagged me Phil. She knows more about the product than you do and can she teach. My people love her. She isn't going to take over your sales territory or something like that, is she?

I grinned in relief. "So she did well?"

"That isn't the word for it...she was great. And if this was a sneaky way to try to get me to buy the upgrade, it won't work. We're a year away at least if we keep growing like we've been."

I replied, "No, I wouldn't do that to you. I really did want to see how she handled herself in the field."

He snorted, "Don't turn your back on her—she might end up selling more than you in a couple of years."

We were in the car driving to a restaurant for a sandwich. I asked, "How did it go?"

She grinned and said, "I think it went really good. Both those people wanted to learn and as soon as I showed them how to get through the manual, they picked up things easy.

"They asked for my phone number in case they got stuck, but I doubt they will. It was fun.

"What did the owner think of me?"

I teased, "The owner told me you're going to sell more than me in a year or two. He thinks you're fantastic.

"Oh I almost forgot, he thinks you're pretty too."

She leaned back in her seat and closed her eyes for a second and then laughed. She quietly said, "I really think I can help you."

I answered, "I think you can too. How serious do you want to be about this?"

She looked at me with a hard look on her face and said, "I owe you a fortune, I'm broke, and the only fun in my life for the last three years was my job that I lost. I want to start my life again, and I think I can help you."

At lunch I called two more customers on my comeback list and got Holly an appointment for one in early afternoon and the other later. Luckily they were only a block from each other. I gave Holly the contact person at each company and their address. After a quick lunch I dropped her off at the first place and pointed out a bar were we would meet after her second appointment.

I sat at a table in the bar where Holly would meet me. I had just called the first afternoon customer that she went to. They thought she was fantastic and all of their problems had been cleaned up in the first hour. The contact person said that he was glad to see that my company had got smart by having a support person paired with a sales person.

I called the second company. Holly had just left. If anything they were more enthusiastic about Holly. She had to research one of their problems and get back to them, but all the rest were resolved.

Holly walked in the bar and squinted trying to see if I were there. She spotted me and grinned as she walked up to the table.

"Thirsty?" I asked.

"Dying for anything cold," she answered.

We settled on a light beer.

How do you think it went this afternoon?" I asked.

"It went good," she gushed. "Everybody was nice to me and they really appreciated that you sent me there to help them. I have to research one problem, but I think I already figured it out."

"It went better than good," I laughed. "I just talked to both companies and they loved you. You're more welcome than I am now."

She beamed at the compliment.

"Do you want to go full time as my support person?" I asked.

She nodded enthusiastically.

"I can't pay you much..."

"Phil," she interrupted. "Walking here I knew I really wanted to do this. It's a good product and I'm a good teacher. The problem is that before I can make you any money, you're going to have to spend even more on me."

"On what?"

"First, clothes. Maybe I can wear this outfit two days in a row, but that's the limit, so I have to get more business clothes and you know I'm broke. Then I'm going to need a cell phone. All three customers wanted my phone number and I didn't have one. Finally, we're going to waste a lot of time if you have to drive me to every customer, so either it's MARTA, a cab, or a car. My car was repossessed in Chicago."

I thought for a few moments and then said, "Tomorrow afternoon we'll buy you more work clothes, and get you a cell phone. I have to think about the transportation angle for a while."

We started talking about her day. Her enthusiasm was catching and we decided that after dinner we would get a list of customers that she would visit for the rest of the week, and in the morning I would call and start making appointments for her.

There was one downside however. Instead of going to the apartment for a fantastic meal, we picked up a pizza. You can't have everything.

That night and the next morning we set up her schedule as well as mine. I was making sales calls the rest of the week, and she was going to the call backs and the new customer installations.

As an experiment and for experience I took her to the first sales call the next morning. I did all the talking until the buyer said, "Who's going to teach my people how to make this thing work?"

"That's my job," said Holly. "And I'm pretty good at it."

I made the sale.

I arrived back at the apartment late afternoon on Friday. I had stopped and bought steaks, wine and other stuff. The week had gone by quickly and the obvious conclusion was that it was wildly successful. Holly was a natural and her self-confidence increased each day.

I heard the door open and she walked in.

"I would have been back sooner," she said, "But Marta was really crowded and I had to let a few trains go by they were so full.

"I did get to see the four customers on the list and they're all happy."

I grinned at her. She grinned back. I could see she was excited about something.

"Okay, what is it Holly?"

She asked, "Did you make a sale today?"

I answered, "I'm close on one, but need to see him again next week. The rest didn't work out, so no sales today."

"Wrong," she gushed.

"What do you mean wrong?"

"You made a sale today," she teased. "I was with a customer when his friend walked in and one thing led to another and he wanted me to demo the product. I did and he said to send him the contract. He wants it."

I was shocked and then overwhelmed. I stood up and hugged her to me. "Congratulations...you're a real winner. She looked up at me with her eyes sparkling with happiness, and I kissed her. It just seemed the right thing to do. She must have thought so too, as she returned the kiss enthusiastically.

We opened the wine and I cooked the steaks while she made a salad and baked some pre-made onion rings. We had a nice dinner.

Holly's adrenaline was still going full tilt; she wanted to talk about her calls and the sale she made. She suggested that I should give her the list of all the sales I had made since I got to Atlanta and she could call them and ask how things were going. If they needed help, she would go there. If they were happy she would suggest that any word of mouth help on the product would be appreciated by her and me.

I thought it was a good idea. I had already decided that Holly would make all comeback and installation calls, and I would spend all my time selling. She agreed.

It got late and the wine finally got to us. We stood up and she looked at me. I made a quick decision. It had been a long week, we were tired and grubby, and the weekend was ahead of us. I kissed her lightly on the lips and said good night. Lying in bed that night I remembered those moist lips and the light brush of her breasts as we hugged. If she felt like I felt, our relationship would be changing.

I woke up and turned the coffee on. When she came into the kitchen, I started making breakfast. After breakfast I said, "This is the end of week two. Let's go to the park and work on week three."

As we were walking to the park, she took my hand and squeezed it. She didn't let go.

We sat on the same park bench. I said, "You're not the same person I met two weeks ago. The one I'm looking at now is a winner; two weeks ago I wasn't sure."

She grinned but then turned serious and said, "I still owe you a ton of money and I'm still broke."

I ignored her comment and said, "This morning we're going to get you a car on a monthly rental. We're wasting a lot of time with you taking public transportation or me driving you."

"That's going to cost you even more money," she said.

"Who's the boss," I teased.

She smiled and pointed at me.

"And next," I continued, "You're going to the plaza and buy a classy dress for our dinner tonight. I'm talking you to a really nice French restaurant. Would it bother you if I took you there as our first date?"

"You don't have to..."

"Holly?" I interrupted.

She just grinned and touched my hand. "Yes, I would like to have a date with you tonight Phil."

For the classy dress Holly and the sales woman insisted that I disappear. They would choose the dress and Holly would surprise me that night.

I agreed, signed a blank credit card slip and left. I told Holly to meet me at a restaurant and bar in the Plaza—I would be sipping at the bar.

An hour later Holly joined me at the bar carrying a large box. "Do you like it?" I asked.

"I do," she replied, "but the real question is whether you do."

It was the early evening and I waited for Holly to come out of her bedroom. I had made drinks and waited for her so we could begin happy hour. The door opened and she walked into the living room and stood in front of me.

The dress was a striking arrangement of blends of blue silk which highlighted her eyes. Holly was bare to the slope of her breasts; you almost expected to see the edge of her areolas. Her broad shoulders, breasts and narrow hips accentuated her beautiful figure and when she turned, the slit of her dress showed her slim legs. I could smell her fragrance. I was half erect and I hadn't touched her yet.

I was awestruck with her beauty. "Holly," I blurted, "I've never had a woman as beautiful as you so close to me. I'm going to stare at you all night and I'm going to be hard all night too."

Holly had an impish grin and responded with one of my standard lines, "Come on Phil; tell me what you really think."

I stammered, "The day I met you was the luckiest day of my life."

Her grin faded and her eyes turned teary as she sobbed, "Don't do that to me Phil."

We hugged and kissed. After one drink she went to repair the make up that her tears had caused and we went to the restaurant. When we walked in I could hear the room quiet as all looked at this gorgeous woman entering.

The dinner was fantastic. Our waitress made everything perfect—she was an absolute riot. First she presented every dish and described it in perfect French, and then repeated the same thing in English with a Brooklyn accent. I asked her name.

"Marie," she replied. "Mary to youse guys."

We laughed and talked and touched each other. Everything was perfect. At the end of the meal when she presented the bill Mary looked at me and said, "She's not wearing a wedding ring, which means that you are dumber than you look."

I blushed and Holly started laughing uncontrollably.

We returned to the apartment and I made two drinks for us. Holly sat on the couch looking at me.

"Holly, that was a wonderful dinner; you were my dream date."

She responded, "It was the best night I've had in years. How can I ever thank you?"

I walked over to the couch and pulled her to her feet and we kissed. My tongue forced itself through her lips and our tongues played with each other. I was aroused and pulled her tighter and tighter into me and I could tell she liked it. My fingers groped for the buttons on the back of her dress and as I released each one she kissed me harder.

The dress fell to the floor and she picked it up and laid it on the couch. She stood before me in her bra and panties. Her face was flush with arousal, but there was a scared look on her face.

She looked at me without speaking for several moments. I was getting worried when she said, "Before I met my boyfriend I loved sex and the first three months with him were good, but then he changed.

"Sex with him became horrible. He hurt me. After the first three months I never had an orgasm—just pain. I want you badly, but I'm afraid my body won't respond. I'm embarrassed, but you don't know what you're getting into with this silly, immature girl."

She started to cry.

I hugged her to me and we clung to each other. I gently led her into my bedroom and we kissed again. My lips started to explore her ear lobes, neck and upper shoulders. I could smell her perfume and the slight tang of nervous sweat; it was like an aphrodisiac to me.

I took her bra off and saw her breasts up close for the first time. I fondled them and licked and sucked her nipples as she sighed with pleasure. Eventually, I sat her on the edge of the bed as I slipped off her panty hose and panties. She lifted her hips to help me. The musky smell of her sex filled the room.

I kissed her again and gently pushed her so she was on her back with her legs hanging over the edge of the bed. I knelt between her legs and pushed them apart. I knew I should be teasing her but my head just rested against her pussy hairs as I smelled her fragrance. My fingers gently combed her hairs some of which were already wet with her sexual moisture.

She lay still. I could hear her sigh in pleasure and yet I was doing nothing but smelling her fragrance and teasing her hairs. I knew there was no hurry.

Finally, I licked the inside of her thigh. She gasped with pleasure. "Yes," she whispered.

For twenty minutes I licked her. From her feet to her inner thighs to the back of her knees, nothing escaped my tongue. I was still dressed, but she didn't care and neither did I. My goal was to give her pleasure that she hadn't felt in a year.

Finally my fingers spread her already opened lips and my tongue stroked the wet, smooth inner sides of her vagina. She screamed with pleasure and anticipation. My tongue penetrated her as far as it could go and then I pushed one finger slowly into her. She groaned and then gasped as a second finger joined the first. She was now highly aroused and she spread her legs even wider begging me to make her come.

I continue to tease her until she stammered almost incoherently, "Don't do this to me; I can't stand it. Make me come...NOW!"

My hands were went to her breasts and I rubbed and squeezed her hard nipples as my mouth went to her clit and started lick and then suck it hard. It drove her over the edge.

She screamed my name and then came; she arched her back and pushed into my face crying for more. My face was covered with her juices and she still kept thrusting.

Over and over she screamed, "yes...yes...oh god yes."

She eventually quit convulsing and pulled me up to lay next to her. She kissed me hard and whispered, "Thank you."

A few moments later she kissed me again and giggled, "I taste myself. Do I taste good honey?"

"Better than any wine I've ever served you," I answered.

"Why do you have clothes on and I'm naked?" she asked.

"Why don't you do something about it?" I teased.

She quickly had me naked. As I lifted my hips so that she could pull off my shorts, my erection sprung free. She giggled and cupped me with both her hands as she licked the head free of its pre-cum. She slowly teased my cock with long stokes from her tongue and then I could feel the wetness as she took me into her mouth.

I finally pulled her to stop and kissed her. Her face was flush with sexual arousal and she looked at me with a question in her eyes. I said, "This is your night. It's the night to see if you can put behind you all the bad sex and pain you had and to just enjoy it. Tomorrow you can pleasure me."

She nodded her understanding and I kissed her; our tongues played with each other and then I kissed her neck and shoulders, slowly moving down her chest to her breasts. My hands had been squeezing her breasts softly and I lifted them as my tongued circled her areolas. Her eyes were closed, and her breathing became more rapid. I tongued her nipples and she gasped. Her moans became louder as I sucked each nipple and then lightly bit them.

Minutes late she wailed, "I want you in me."

My tongue licked her smooth stomach and played with her belly button. Her breathing increased and her stomach was rising and falling with her breaths. I licked and kissed her hips and then gently pulled her pussy hair with my teeth. She was gasping now; moaning that she needed me now and to stop teasing, but my tongue continued to manipulate her sexual arousal.

Finally I knelt between her legs and put her legs over my shoulders so that she was completely open for me to see and use. She was soaking wet and I could see more moisture seeping out of her vagina. I guided myself into her and pushed as I smoothly slid through her wet warmth until I was entirely in her.

I reached for her breasts and teased her nipples as I slowly pulled and pushed back into her warmth. Her eyes were closed and she was swinging her head back and forth with excitement. I knew that I couldn't last long, but I also knew that Holly was very close.

Our rhythm increased and I whispered; "Now Holly...you can feel me and I'm going to come. Come with me."

With a guttural, animal sound she lost control of her body as waves of sexual release caused her to convulse and arch her back into me; her body wanted all of me and frantically tried to get it. Her vagina muscles started to squeeze me and she screamed.

Her scream of lust made me come. I felt my liquid spurt into her warmth; filling her time after time. I had never come so hard before, or for so long. I kept pounding into her until I felt her come again. I didn't want to pull out even after I was done. I put my hands on her hips and pulled her into my now not-so-hard cock. There had never been a time that I had so lost control of my body and let the sexual animal in me want everything—no woman in my past had made me come close to this feeling. It was awesome; it scared me.

We rested. Her head was on my chest and I could feel the gentle motion of her shoulders as she softly cried. She finally looked at me and smiled through her tears, "I never thought I could go back to the pleasure of sex again; I thought I had lost it forever, and now you brought me to a sexual peak that I've never felt before. I owe you everything."

I kissed her forehead and soon she started to quietly snore. Hours later she woke me and we made love again. This time it was a quiet, deep orgasm that, although quite different, brought just as much pleasure.

I woke at sunrise, but not because of the sun—she had taken me into her mouth as she cupped my balls. I came and she swallowed.

We took a shower together and dried each other. She said, "I'll get my robe out of my bedroom and make you breakfast."

I smiled at her and said, "No."

She looked confused until I said, "You can get your robe out of the office. This is your bedroom."

She stared at me and her eyes became teary. Two hours later we left the bedroom and made breakfast. We never left the apartment that Sunday, and barely left the bed—we couldn't get enough of each other.

I will never forget the next three months of my life; it was a rollercoaster of selling, sex, and relationship growth.

I only sold now and she handled all installation and support. I had forgotten how much I loved to sell—to make that initial approach and convince my customer that what I had was a good product that worked for others and could work for him.

Holly loved her job and the customers loved Holly. A couple of times when Holly was overwhelmed I called the customer and suggested that I would come over. Inevitably they would say, "We'll wait for Holly."

I sat in the apartment on a late Saturday morning and Holly walked in. She grinned and said, "Hi."

"Hi yourself," I answered, "but no more working on weekends. That's our time."

"But it really was important. They needed..."

"Who's the boss?" I teased gently.

She grinned, stood at attention with her breasts thrust out and gave me a mock salute. Minutes later we were fucking.

Our sex life was beyond description. After her initial hesitation Holly never looked back. She would try anything and everything with me. She was a talker and a screamer—I always knew what gave her pleasure—and kinky in her own little way.

One day we were lying in our sweat after an intense session and she shyly asked, "Do you ever want to do it in my ass?"

I admitted, "Of course I've thought about it, but I've never done it before. Have you?"

She shook her head no and nothing more was said until the following Saturday. I walked into the apartment with some groceries and she greeted me with in shorts and a T-shirt. "How about a nooner," she teased.

"Why not."

She impishly grinned, "Meet you in the bedroom in five minutes."

Five minutes later I walked into the bedroom. She was naked and kneeling on the bed with her face to the sheet so her ass was in the air. She had drawn red concentric circles around her ass like a target. It was obvious what the center of the target was even if there wasn't a tube of lubricant laying on the bed. It was an interesting first attempt for both of us. Not without a little effort we both came.

We cleaned up afterward in the shower together and then headed for the bedroom for more sex. She was walking ahead of me and I started laughing. She asked, "What's so funny?"

I answered, "What did you use to draw the target on your butt?"

She replied, "The red ink pen in the office."

I started laughing harder. "You mean the indelible red ink pen in the office that will not come off."

She looked horrified and then started laughing hysterically. "Just please fuck me good for my attempt to be creative."

I did.

Holly's personality always kept me off balance. Most people have a business face and a personal face. Holly's was more than that. One day I bought three yellow roses from a peddler at a stoplight. When Holly came home the roses were in a small crystal vase on the kitchen table.

She stared at the flowers for a moment and then started crying. I hugged her until she stopped sobbing.

"You must think I'm crazy," she blurted afterward. "Maybe I should see a shrink."

"Maybe," I said, "but first describe yourself to me."

"Now?"

"Why not?"

"Well," she began. "Whenever you do something nice for me like the flowers I keep thinking about how much I owe you and that without you, I would be nothing. You don't know how desperate and depressed I was when we met. Except for my mom, nobody did anything for me, so I get emotional when you're nice."

"But you're not emotional in business. You're almost bossy." I countered.

"That's different, she replied. "I know I'm good at teaching people and I really like to work with them. It's almost like I'm the boss, so I act that way."

"And sex," I teased.

She blushed and said, "That's another different. With you I feel I can do anything. I know I'm a little kinky, but you go along with it and pleasure me. Having sex takes me out of the real world and into my own little fantasy land. When I feel you in me or when you tease me so that I'm begging you to let me come I surrender control of my body to you. And then when I come I can't describe how wonderful that is to me. I'm absolutely addicted to sex. Sometimes I feel guilty later that I was selfish and didn't make you come enough.

I smiled at her, "You don't need a shrink. What you just told me, the shrink would tell you. Don't change."

She hugged me and we cuddled for a while and then she reached for my belt buckle. She grinned impishly at me and said, "You told me not to change."

It was a month later on a late Thursday morning when my cell phone rang; it was my administrative boss. He told me that the regional sales manager had come into town and wanted to meet me at the office. We agreed that I would be there at thee o'clock.

I wasn't worried. Our sales—I considered Holly a partner on everything we did—were going through the roof and we were putting in a lot of hours. A month previous Holly had written up ten suggestions to change our software to meet customer requests. She told me that she asked each customer to give her a wish list of things they would like our program to do. When a pattern became established, she wrote it down for me to forward to our Development Division.

I walked into the office a few minutes before three and was told they were waiting for me in the conference room. In the conference room there were two men. Joe Woodward was the regional sales manager; I knew his name and had read his memos, but had never met him. We shook hands and he introduced me to Richard Belton. Richard was older and grinned warmly when he shook my hand. Joe said, "Richard is Vice-President of marketing for the company Phil. We both wanted to talk to you."

I was a little shook. I was ready to talk to Joe, but Richard was a real heavy weight in the company.

Joe started, "Phil, your sales have sky rocketed and we want to pick your brain on what you are doing that most of our other sales people aren't doing. We also wanted to thank you for the software error you spotted. You would think that a product that is three years old would be bug free, but you nailed it. Congratulations."

"Well actually," I replied, "Holly spotted that. She bet me it was a bug and she was right."

"Holly is an employee of ours?" asked Joe.

"Well not exactly," I hedged. "I was showing her the program and gave her some test problems to work on and she spotted it."

"Then she's a customer?" said Joe.

"No, she's a friend of mine that I was showing the program to," I answered.

"Oh," said Joe still obviously confused.

"In any case," he continued, "Development really liked those ten suggestions you sent us last month. They think it will help our product a lot."

I paused for a second and then thought, "What the hell...why not?"

I said, "Well actually, those were Holly's ideas that I sent you."

"Holly again," said Joe really confused now.

Richard interrupted and asked, "And if we got into why your sales took off, would we hear this name "Holly" again?"

"Yes you would," I answered.

Where is Holly now?" asked Joe.

"She's with one of my new customers. They were having some problems and Holly went over there to help them out. You see..."

Richard interrupted me and asked, "Is there any reason you can't call Holly now and have her meet us for dinner?"

"No, I think she'll be free," I answered.

I called Holly's cell phone and she answered on the second ring. "Hi Holly, how's it going?

She started talking and I interrupted, "Holly, would you join me for a business dinner tonight with my boss?"

She was quiet for a second and then asked, "Big boss? Should I try to impress him?"

I answered enthusiastically, "That would be great! How about we meet you at the Plaza Steak Room at..."

"Six-thirty," said Richard.

"...at six-thirty."

Holly said, "Good. That gives me time to go to the apartment and clean up and put some good stuff on. Are we in trouble?"

"No." I said, not knowing if that was true or not. See you at six-thirty."

I hung up the phone and looked at them. Richard, clearly taking over the meeting, said, "Phil we have a couple of hours so there is no rush. I want to know why you are selling more than anyone else in the company, and I want to know exactly where this Holly fits into it."

So leaving out my original meeting with Holly and our relationship, I explained how over the months Holly and I become a selling team. Both of them had a lot of questions such as how many call backs per customer I or Holly made and how many hours we both put in a week.

At one point Richard asked, "Do you pay Holly a salary?"

"Well I pay for her monthly car rental, cell phone, clothes, expenses and stuff like that," I answered.

"How about cash?" pushed Richard.

"Sure, she always has plenty of cash," I hedged.

"Look, it's a little difficult to explain. Holly had some personal and financial problems a while back and I helped get her back on her feet. She won't take real money from me until she feels she's paid me back."

Richard dropped the subject and we went back to other areas. At six-thirty we were at the restaurant in a quiet corner. Holly walked in five minutes later and spotted us.

She was professionally dressed, but dressed to kill. She was wearing her best business outfit that accentuated her figure and complexion. Her smile lit up the room as if this dinner was the greatest event in her life. Joe actually stuttered when he shook her hand—probably because he was peeking at her breasts. Richard greeted her warmly.

Holly ordered a drink and then Richard said, "Phil has spent the last two hours telling us what a great job you have done for him and the company. He said you spotted the software bug, and it was your ten ideas that he sent to us a month ago."

"Phil probably exaggerated. After all, he taught me everything I know about the software and the company," Holly answered.

"I don't think so Holly," said Richard. "Did you really go through our five hundred page manual in twenty-four hours?"

"Yes," she admitted.

Richard changed subjects. "Holly, we just sent out a new release of the product with your ten suggestions and twelve more. Did you read about the twelve and do you think our customers will like them?"

Holly looked at me and I nodded encouragement. She said, "Two might be used, but the other ten are junk."

Joe was sipping his drink and started coughing.

I quickly joked, "Holly, tell us what you really think. Don't hold back because the big guns are here."

She blushed, but Richard said, "Phil, I want to know what Holly thinks. It's kind of refreshing in a perverse way to hear someone tell me that three months of development work has been wasted."

"Look," Holly said. "I'm not guessing. I went to eight of our best customers and showed them the twelve changes and asked them. They are the ones who told me they were junk and that they would never use them. That is, except for the two changes, and then only three customers said they might help them a little.

"The company is doing things backward. They are guessing what the customer wants and then they go to the customer and tell them this is what they want. If you went into the field with me for three days we could visit twenty or more customers and they would tell you what they really want.

"That's what Phil and I do."

Richard quit talking and the table was silent as we sipped our drinks. Holly gave me a quick, worried look that told me she felt she might have said too much.

Richard looked at Holly and asked, "I want to offer you a job in the company in sales. You would do exactly what Phil does, and you would be on both salary and commission. Atlanta is a huge market so there is plenty of room for both of you."

Joe was visibly surprised, but then smiled in agreement. Holy beamed at the offer and looked at me. The smile left her face and she said, "I really appreciate the offer, but I can't take it."

Richard was nonplussed. "Why not?"

Holly collected her thoughts for a few moments and then said, "There are a couple of reasons. First, I owe Phil everything. I don't know what he told you but I was down and he picked me up emotionally and financially. I haven't paid him back yet and until I do, I work only for him.

"Holly," I said...

"That's the most important reason," Holly interrupted. "But it would be dumb to make me a salesperson. Even if I was as good as Phil, and I'm not, and even if I liked selling as much as Phil, which I don't, the company would be making a mistake.

"The reason Phil sells so much is because he doesn't waste his time on installation and support. That's my job. If I left him, he would have to significantly reduce his sales calls to take care of his current customers. And the same for me; I would have to support my new customers instead of looking for new ones.

"If you think about it, a two person sales team is really the way you should go."

Richard nodded his head and was quiet as he thought about what Holly had said. After a few moments he suggested that we order dinner. The heavy part of the business dinner was over and Joe and I started telling our funny war stories about the goofy things that happen to you when you're a salesman. Each story was funnier. The food was good and the drinks mellowed us out.

Joe picked up the check at the end of the meal and we were waiting for his credit card to be run.

Richard looked at me and then Holly. "I've been thinking during dinner. Here's what I think we should do if Phil and you agree.

"When did you start working with Phil?"

"About four months ago," answered Holly.

"I'm going to check with our human resources department, but I'm pretty sure support an development employees make about twenty dollars and hour or more, which is about forty thousand per year. Will you join the company on straight salary and your job would be exactly what it is now—working exclusively for Phil?"

She looked at me and I nodded encouragement.

"Yes, I'd like that...no, I'd love that," said Holly.

Richard continued, "When you call human resources next Monday, I will have already talked with them. Your official hire date is going to be four months ago, so your first check is going to be a big one."

Holly smiled, "That's fantastic. How can..."

Richard interrupted and looked at me. "I can't cover Holly's clothes, but I want you to expense her car, cell phone, and any other legitimate business expenses you paid for since she started to work with you. Send the expense sheet directly to Joe for approval."

I just nodded—a little too stunned to speak.

Richard continued, "Phil, you're probably going to be our number one salesman of the year even if you don't sell another customer. In mid-January the top five salesmen in the company and top management are going to an all-expense paid week meeting to go over our plans for the future. This year it's in Maui. I expect to see you there, and I want Holly to come too. I want you to prepare a presentation on the concept of the two-person sales team and present it to the group. I want Holly to talk as much as you. Any problems with that?"

I stammered, "No."

Richard turned to Holly and said, "And don't be surprised if we ask you to come to headquarters every three months or so to talk about what your customers want. In addition, I think every now and then we'll send some people here, so they can visit and hear for themselves what your customers really want."

Richard and Joe stood up and Richard said, "I've enjoyed talking with both of you. Holly, welcome to the company. I suspect I'm going to hear a lot about you and Phil in the future."

They left and we looked at each other still somewhat in shock. I whispered, "Congratulations partner!"

One week later on a Saturday night we were back at the classy French restaurant. Mary was our waitress again—I had asked for her specifically. She brought over a bottle of Champaign when we sat down. I protested, "We didn't order that Mary."

She grinned, "Compliments of management for our regulars."

The meal was again fantastic. We had a million things to talk about. Holly had received her first salary check on Friday and it was huge representing over four months of salary. My expense check came in paying for everything that I had spent on Holly other than clothes and apartment food. We were swimming in money and it felt good.

Holly wanted to give me her check, but I told her that I had some ideas and we would discuss the whole money situation on Sunday. She reluctantly agreed to wait for Sunday for our money talk.

The meal was over and I told Holly, "I ordered a special desert for you. Mary will bring it to us whenever we want. Okay?"

Mary came to the table and I said, "Now's a good time for the surprise desert Mary."

She grinned and left. She quickly returned carrying a single round plate that held a dish of crème brulee. In the center of the dish sitting on top of the slightly-hardened custard was a disk of white chocolate the size of a half dollar. In the center of the white disk was a large diamond ring that sparkled and reflected off the table's candle.

Holly stared at it in surprise and disbelief, and then looked at me—the tears had already started. I reached for her hand and quietly asked, "Will you marry me?"

"Yes...oh god yes" she whispered as tears of joy ran down her face.

Mary's voice boomed over the two of us. "I guess this bozo isn't as dumb as he looks."