Chapter 19
“How is she coming along?”
I could hear the conversation from around the corner through the half open doorway. I'd crept in to make sure I could hear - I didn't suppose the words were intended for my ears.
“She makes good progress,” said Mrs Jones. “I'll turn her into what you want yet.”
“Good. Please keep me updated.”
“I will Mr Logan.”
The sound of his name sent a bolt of confusion through my body. It didn't sound like Kyle.
I quickly darted to the other side of the room and fell straight into a yoga pose on my mat just as Mrs Jones stepped back through the door. I looked up at her with a smile on my face.
“Who was it?” I asked, trying to sound indifferent.
“No one that concerns you Miss Newton.” She only called me Miss Newton when it was something of importance.
Of course I knew it did concern me, only she wasn't willing to tell me.
“Now, enough yoga. Let's get started.”
For the next hour we moved through our usual session. At first I'd felt overwhelmingly uncomfortable as she taught me various stripping techniques - moves that would 'bring a man to climax just at the sight of you,' as she'd said.
She was a very hands on teacher. 'You do as I do' was her mantra. That, of course, meant that she'd strip in front of me, slipping to her skin right there in the studio. The first time she did it I had no idea where to look.
“Look at me,” she'd said. “Watch me, and don't avert your eyes.”
I knew that her intentions were two-fold: teach me what to do and break down my prudishness at the same time. “Don't turn away,” she'd shout as her underwear fell to the floor. “You need to break free of your shackles Alice.”
Th first time it happened I had considered leaving right then and there and washing my hands of all of this. I never thought I'd witness the sight of a 40-odd year old women giving me a private dance. That one private dance turned to many, and I began to repay the favor in kind. Soon, I was desensitized to the whole thing - the sight of her stripping in front of me, of me stripping for her, nothing to batter an eyelid over.
As the session ended Mrs Jones asked me to sit down on a bench to the side of the studio. “You're making good progress Alice,” she said, a proud smile on her face. “You've come a long way over the last few weeks, I'm very impressed.”
“Thanks,” I said, still wondering exactly how my life had taken this turn. I was yet to strip for anyone, for a real client, and it had been weeks since I'd seen Kyle at the club. I'd gone down there a few times and talked to Lexi, but Kyle never seemed to be around. He'd told me he'd call me when he needed me, but that had been weeks ago.
Somehow I was yearning to get that first notch on my bed, to get it over and done with. I felt uncomfortable with the fact that Kyle was paying me and I wasn't even dancing for anyone, wasn't completing my end of the bargain. “You're in training,” Mrs Jones had assured me, “they're investing in you.”
I never asked, but the mention of 'they' always confused me. Kyle had told me that he was only the manager, and I was eager to find out who was pulling the strings behind the scenes.
“Now Alice, I've been told to tell you that you'll be performing this Saturday night. If you have any socials plans, make sure you cancel them.” She always called it 'performing' or 'dancing', never 'stripping'.
My heart jumped at her words. In the moment I couldn't quite work out whether it was nerves or excitement - probably a mixture of both.
“When? Where? At the club?”
“That's all I know Alice. They wanted you to know a couple of days in advance so that you can prepare yourself. They will call you with the details.” She smiled at me as a teacher would when talking to a star pupil. “Good luck Alice, blow him away.”