“Just drop the robe for me,” Arthur urged in a casual tone.
Janessa felt like she was auditioning all of a sudden. Only this was far from a normal acting audition and she suddenly felt faint. She felt a tad sleazy, too, as though this was a porno film call or something. Her eyes darted around the room in search of a camera.
Her stunned expression and sudden mistrust clearly surprised Arthur.
“What’s wrong?” he asked. “Does that embarrass you?”
“Well, no…I mean, yes,” Janessa stammered. “I, I suddenly feel weird, like I’m at an audition or something!”
“Don’t make her feel weird, Art,” Tasha chimed in.
“I don’t want to make her feel weird. I hate auditions, believe me, babe. Look, I don’t want to make you feel weird, Janessa, but if we’re going to work together down the line, you have to go with me. You’ve got to be willing to reveal yourself to me. That’s just the way it is. Look at Tasha—she’s open. She’s proud of who she is.”
“I—I guess I’m not used to it like Tasha is,” Janessa persisted. “I guess I’ve never had anyone just ask me to do this, like this, before.”
“All right, that’s okay,” Arthur said in a soothing voice. “But, listen, you’re a beautiful woman. I want to see who you are. So just do this for me. Just open up your robe and slip it down.”
He paused and waited. Janessa trembled.
“Go ahead,” he continued in a quiet, seductive voice.
Don’t blow it now, Jergen, Janessa told herself. She wanted to cry, however, since she felt so odd about exposing herself this way. While the alcohol had numbed her sensations to a certain degree, she wished she’d gotten drunker. She glanced at the uninhibited Tasha, laying there, touching herself all over. Why couldn’t she be more like her?
“Slip your robe down, kochanie,” Tasha said. “Let’s play!”
Her enthusiastic invitation to play served to lighten Janessa’s mood. Without further thought, she reached down, loosened the tie around her waist, and slipped off the top part of her robe. She felt it slide down her shoulders and shimmied a bit to jiggle it off her breasts. When it fell down around her elbows, the upper half of her torso had been exposed. She swallowed hard.
Tasha smiled. “You have beautiful breasts. So beautiful…” She caressed her own, tweaking her nipples between her own fingertips.
“Very beautiful,” Arthur agreed. “Come on now. Keep going. Let’s see the rest of that magnificent body.”
Janessa felt torn. She wanted to play, but, at the same time, felt pressured. She had taken the first step, but still wanted to cry from the frustration of having no control over what was going on. Maybe she should forget this whole idea, turn, and run. Now! Run for the hills, girl—it’s now or never!