Are You Busy?
by Matthew © 2009
Part I
“Excuse me, are you busy?”
I turned, expecting to see a woman holding a clipboard- those mall survey people can be very persistent. Instead I saw a woman burdened down with shopping bags. She was about my age, and while she was not supermodel pretty (Who is? Well, besides supermodels) or a bikini contest contestant (ditto), she was very pleasant looking, and exuded an air of…well, I guess you could say confidence. And authority.
“Um, no, not really…”
“I guess I went a bit overboard with my shopping…these are starting to get heavy…”
I am still not entirely sure why, but I felt like I needed to help her. So I offered to carry her bags. “Here, let me help.”
“Thank you. I just need to make one more stop, to buy some pantyhose. I hope you don’t mind…”
Actually I had been just wandering the mall and I really did not have any plans. “It’s okay, I’m not in a hurry…”
“Good. It’s just over here.” She set off with me in tow. Carrying all her bags. We ended up in front of a store, the kind that guys wistfully pass but rarely ever go in. Especially on their own. She marched right in but I hesitated on the threshold of this unknown territory. She noticed.
“C’mon, it’s okay. You’re with me.”
So I followed her past racks and displays of lingerie and other mysterious things until we reached the hosiery display.
“I’m starting a new job, you see. And I want to look professional. To make the right impression.”
You would think that I would be feeling very self-conscious by now, standing in a Lingerie store, by a hosiery rack holding the shopping bags of a woman I did not even know. Well, you’re right. I didn’t sign up to be a pack animal. I felt foolish, but…at the same time I felt something else; it felt kind of nice to be able to help her, she was after all counting on me now to carry her bags. And I was being given a peek into a world I knew little about.
“…Now nude of course, and black. Off black?…or Charcoal…or this?”
Huh? Was she asking me?
She was holding up some samples of gauzy material. “What do you think? Which color says ‘The Boss’ to you?”
Something was wrong with the stores heating system, all of the sudden it was very hot. “I, uh, well, they’re all black…they all look the same to me. I really…”
“Oh, you’re blushing!” She interrupted. “I’m sorry. I didn’t realize it would affect you so much. I just wanted a male opinion.”
“No, it’s okay! I’m not…bothered, I like them…” I tried to save face.
“You like pantyhose?” She gave me an impish grin.
“Well, that is on women…you know…it makes their legs look nice…and…” This is not going well.
“So, which are your favorite colors?”
“Ah, well, you know…colors… I like, well…” I tried to remember what little I had seen in fashion magazines. “I like when women wear colors that match their outfits…”
“Go on.” She pressed. Boy, they really need to fix the heat in here…
“And fishnets are nice…”
“All guys LIKE it when we wear fishnets. But they don’t really ‘go’ for the office.”
“Yeah…I mean, no. You’re right.” Great. Now she must think I’m a pervert sex maniac.
“Well, I think I’ll get these, for now.” She decided. “I’ve taken up too much of your time already. I shouldn’t keep you from what you were doing.”
“No, really, it’s okay. I had nothing to do.”
We went to check out.
Now I’m not a mind reader, but I knew exactly what the sales clerk was thinking. Seeing me burdened down with shopping bags, standing by as ’she’ made her purchase the clerk thought: “My what a well-trained guy he is.” I just know it. And, part of me was offended. But, part of me sort of liked it…
Finally we left the mall, and found her car, which, of course, was at the opposite end of the parking lot from mine. She opened the trunk and I put her bags in. It felt good to finally put them down. It felt good to have done my ‘good deed’ for the day. And, it actually felt bad that it was now over.
“Oh, where are my manners.” She extended her hand. “I’m Susan.” Her hand was soft and warm and her grip was firm. It felt nice.
“Oh, right! I’m Matthew.”
“Listen, you’ve been a big help to me. But I feel really awful taking up so much of your time. You probably had plans and I ruined them…”
“No, really…it’s okay. I really had nothing planned.”
“You sure? It must have been quite a shock to have someone approach you ‘out of the blue’ and ask for help…”
“Well, yes.” I laughed. “I certainly don’t get random women come up to me every day and ask for my help. But…to tell you the truth, I kind of liked it…um…you know, being able to be a ‘good Samaritan’, and all…”
“Uh huh…” She cocked her head quizzically.
“No, really. It was my pleasure.” Why did I feel the need to defend myself? “I really didn’t have anything to do this afternoon…”
“Okay. Well, I’m glad I didn’t ruin your afternoon.” She thought for a moment. “If you’re still not busy…no, I couldn’t impose…”
“What is it?”
“Well, Matthew, I could really use your help…”
__________________________________________________________________________________
The directions she gave me were good ones. I made it to her house just a few minutes after she did. It wasn’t very far from the mall, and it’s not too far from my own home. She was new to the area, and was actually still in the process of moving in. The house was a neat bungalow, older, and well-kept.
“…a dear old couple, he kept a workshop of some kind in the garage…Unfortunately they left behind some, I don’t know what…and the trash men won’t take it from the garage. They say it needs to be on the curb. So if you could just move it from the garage out to the curb…”
I looked over the rusty bits of metal, dirty wood and barrels of, to put it in technical terms: ’stuff’. Man stuff. This is a job for a man. “Sure, no problem. I can do it for you.”
She smiled. “Wonderful! This will be a big help! I’ve got the movers coming next week with the rest of my things, and I need room to store them until I figure out where to put them in the house. Why don’t I let you get started and I’ll go make some tea…”
I suppose at this point I should have wondered just what I had got myself into and why. I just met her and now here I am moving this crap (another technical term) from out of her garage to the curb. She probably could have just bribed the trash guys to do it. Or paid some neighborhood kid. But I didn’t wonder about any of those things. I just thought about what a great smile she gave me when I offered to help her. I thought about how nice helping her makes me feel. And I thought about how pleased she will be when I am done. She will be pleased with ME. And that’s important, isn’t it? Besides, moving this stuff is really no big deal…
It actually didn’t take long. But it did make me sweaty. And very dirty. When I was done I walked from the garage to the back door of the house following where she had gone after she left me. I hesitated on the porch, I couldn’t just barge in, after all. So I knocked. After a bit the door opened and Susan was there.
“Um, I’m all done…”
“Great! I was just trying on a few things, to see what they look like together. give me a minute and I’ll come take a look…”
So I stood there on the porch while she got ready. Ready for her inspection.
In no time she was back, wearing a dress. A dress which was conservative yet feminine. Good for the office, I guess. And pumps with ankle straps, and it looked like she was even wearing some of the pantyhose I ‘helped’ her buy.
“You look nice.” I always know the right thing to say.
“Thanks. It’s hard to get that balance, you know. Between being feminine and business-like. You guys have it easy…”
“I dunno. I gave up the corporate rat race years ago. Now I work from home. Well, actually not my home, but my studio. It’s a whole separate building. I set my own hours and work when inspiration hits…”
“Leaving you plenty of free time for being helpful…”
A smarter man than I would have seen that coming.
“Let’s take a look at the garage.”
As I had hoped, she was quite pleased with my efforts, and I was quite pleased with her praise.
“Matthew, this is such a big help. Now when the movers come, there will be somewhere to put my things until I’m ready to move them into the house..”
“Glad I could help.”
“Now we can have that tea. Follow me…”
So I did. I followed behind as she lead the way back to her house. Her heels making a very pleasantly feminine ‘click’ on the walkway as we went. When we got to the porch, she opened the door and turned to let me in. Suddenly, a frown appeared on her face.
“Oh, dear. This won’t do. Your clothes are filthy.”
“Yeah, it was a bit dirty…”
“I can’t let you into the house like that. You’ll have to take them off.”
“What, here?”
“Of course. wait here. I’ll get you a robe…”
Susan went inside. I waited on the porch. She returned a few minutes later with a terrycloth robe. Naturally it was pink.
“You can wear this while I wash your clothes. They ought to be done by the time we finish our tea.”
Of course she expected me to strip right there on the porch. I hesitated.
“C’mon. no one is watching…”
That wasn’t entirely true. She was watching. But it was unlikely that anyone passing by would be able to see anything. So I took off my shirt and pants, put on the robe, and pulled off my shoes, socks and underwear. Susan took my clothes from me and finally let me inside. The house was as neat and well maintained on the inside as it was on the outside, but was sparsely decorated. In fact, it was mostly empty, not surprising since most of her belongings had yet to arrive.
“Why don’t you jump in the shower for a minute. It’s just down the hall. I’ll bring the tea into the living room and see about your clothes…”
I followed where she had indicated, found the bathroom and jumped in the shower. Soon I was clean, toweled off, and back in the pink robe. I made my way back towards the kitchen and found Susan in the living room.
“Everything OK? I started the washer when I heard the shower go off. it shouldn’t be long. Come sit down and have your tea.”
“Yeah, great.”
At this point there was only one chair in the room, and naturally Susan was in it. She had arranged some cushions on the floor for me to sit on. Which I did. We sat sipping our tea and eating cookies, her in her chair, and me sitting on a cushion on the floor at her feet. If this was a sign, I didn’t recognize it at the time.
“I guess you can’t wait for all your stuff to get here. So you can decorate.”
“Well, yes. But there’s so much to do beforehand. It’s kind of nice not having all those things in the way. For instance, there’s a couple of rooms that are totally empty.”
“I noticed.” I noticed.
“It would be really great to get those rooms painted before my things arrive.”
“That’s a good idea.” I noticed.
“I know exactly what I want done. It’s just a matter of doing the work. And with the rooms empty, it shouldn’t be too difficult.”
A buzzer from somewhere beyond the kitchen called for attention.
“Time for the dryer, be back in a sec.”
Susan got up, stepped over me and clicked out to the laundry. After a few minutes the click of her heels returned and she sat back in the chair. A look of pain briefly shot across her face.
“It’s not my clothes, is it?”
“No, it’s these heels. It’s going to take a while before they’re broken in.” She reached down and rubbed the toe area of her right foot.
“They look nice.”
“Thank you, they’re a bit higher than I normally wear for work, but I think they will give me some added authority.”
“Ah, for your new job”
“Yes, I transferred here to the home office. I’ll be heading my own department.”
She was still rubbing the toe of her shoe– and since she was still in some discomfort, and since I was closer…
“Here, let me help…”
“Oh, would you?”
I took her foot in my hands and she sank back into the chair. I unbuckled the ankle strap and slid her shoe off. Her toes wiggled gratefully after being freed from their confinement as I carefully laid her shoe off to the side. I repeated the procedure with her left shoe. My hands then began to rub and caress her silky soles and toes and all of the sudden the room became very quiet, the only sounds being the soft hissing of my hands working over her nylon covered feet. Everything else just faded away and became unimportant. Being here, dressed in her pink bathrobe, sitting at her feet, giving her a foot massage, it just seemed…right.
I was grateful for the generous folds of her bathrobe, because it hid my now throbbing erection. Or so I thought.
“Tell me what you’re thinking now.” Susan purred.
“I would like to kiss your foot.” Ha! I said that without thinking. Well, without using my brain.
“Go ahead. You have my permission.”
Something passed between us then, something powerful and permanent. It was as if we crossed some sort of boundary and we both knew there was no going back. There would be no question now who is in charge. Who would lead and who would follow. It was now fully out in the open and we– I, could never pretend otherwise.
I pressed my lips to the sole of her right foot and inhaled the musky sweetness. My head swam and a buzzing sound filled my ears.
My clothes were finally dry.
When I was dressed, Susan walked me out to the driveway, to my car. I got in, and rolled down the window.
“You were a big help today, I really appreciate it.”
“I–it was my pleasure. Anytime.”
“I’ll let you know about the painting project, it will probably be in a day or two. So keep your schedule open.” She laughed.
“Painting. I…Of course, I’d be happy to.”
“Good.” Susan then leaned in and kissed me on the cheek. She reached down to the erection tenting my pants and gave it a brief squeeze. “You’ll think about me when you get home, won’t you?”
“I will.” I groaned.
And I did.
*To be continued*

A really great start to this story ! I am really interested to see where it leads. Male in pink robe …lady taking a naturally dominant role….so much potential !!
great work, Matthew !
Thank you very much. I too am interested in seeing where it leads. I have an idea, but the story tends to go where it wants. As Susan tends to go where she wants…
Love Ladies like Susan and we need more just like her for sure. Now it is off to read part 2. Excellent story Matthew