Brain Development Enterprises Ch. 09

"Mr. King," I said, smiling. My eyes flicked around the screen. It looked like he was outside, and in the background I could see a golden, sandy beach and turquoise ocean water.

"I'm so pleased to meet you," he said. "And I'm looking forward to answering any questions you might have about Brain Development Enterprises." His voice was warm, and I recognized it from the hours I'd spent listening to it via his self-hypnosis recordings.

I nodded. "I'm happy to meet you as well," I said. "In fact," I admitted, "I was surprised when my routine customer service email was answered by the founder of the whole company."

But the man nodded seriously. "I firmly believe that our customers are our number one priority," he said. "Any time I can, I want to interact with you directly. After all," and he gave a hearty chuckle. "Without you, I wouldn't be able to do what I do." He spread his hands, a white sleeve flashing across the edge of the screen as his gesture encompassed the beach paradise around him

"Where are you, if I can ask?" I said.

His smile broadened, and I could tell he was excited. "Thailand!" he exclaimed. "I've always dreamed of coming here, and now that we've had our first successful launch I've been lucky enough to visit for some R&R." He lifted his own laptop and spun it around, showing me the view.

Mr. Silver Fox was sitting on the deck of what looked like a beachside mansion, a white, multi-story villa by the ocean. Beach extended in both directions, and I didn't see a single umbrella, towel or another home through the, admittedly grainy, footage. Apparently he had this stretch of beachfront all to himself.

The man settled the laptop in front of him again and leaned forward, eyebrows coming together. "But it's not all about me and my success," he said earnestly. "Tell me, John. What questions can I answer about my products? Your email said you've been experiencing..." and here he grinned mischievously, "side effects?"

I could already tell that I liked this man. He had an easy charm about him, likely the result of self-experimentation with his own products, and he seemed open and willing to tell me whatever I might ask.

"Well..." I paused slightly, calling to mind my questions. "The first thing I wanted to ask about were the things I mentioned in my email. My natural body scent seems to have changed to mimic your cologne. And I've developed this..." I struggled for a moment, not sure how to phrase it. "This ability to influence other peoples' actions with just my voice and words..." I trailed off. Saying them aloud, I knew I probably sounded crazy.

But Mr. King's eyes simply widened and he nodded excitedly. "Excellent, John," he beamed. "I'm happy to tell you all about the changes you've been experiencing." He paused for a moment, stroking his chin with a long, darkly-tanned hand.

"If you'll allow me," he said, "I'll start from the top and explain what BDE is and what we're doing. I think some context will help you understand where my answers are coming from."

I nodded. His obvious passion for his company and product was infectious, and I could feel a matching excitement in my chest.

"Very good," he said, smiling. "Well, then, to begin...

"I've always wondered a lot about evolution, about the human mind, and about how we've developed these brains of ours to get what we want. A long time ago, when we humans started evolving and wandering around the planet, we congregated into tribes around leaders who were pillars of powerful charisma and strength and intelligence. And I've often wondered about the modern CEO, Wall Street tycoon, president... Could they just be modern men who've unlocked that same primal potential?"

He paused and glanced into my face, but I silently gestured for him to continue.

"Not too long ago," he said, "I was at a very low point in my life. Nothing was going as I expected, but I still believed that I had boundless potential. Look around! Humans are excelling at the highest levels of achievement in all areas, and I knew that if it was possible for others, it had to be possible for me." He nodded to himself before going on, obviously swept up by his own narrative. "I started using self-hypnosis to try and unlock my own potential, and I started to see results. I experimented and researched, trying to find out how I could reach the deepest depths of myself and transform my mind into a tool that I could use to change my life. What I discovered, John..." he leaned forward again and I leaned forward too, drawn in by his story and his resonant, orator's voice. "I discovered that inside every man there is something lying dormant. It's like a jacket or cloak, cast aside by our modern society but just waiting to be picked up and worn again. When you uncover it and put it on, your whole life starts to change. You realize that you deserve success, and that you can achieve it. Others recognize it and begin to be swayed by your passion and energy. I've started to think that our ancient instincts, the potential to be a primal, powerful alpha, is hidden inside each of us, but since we no longer need it to survive we've developed society in such a way that this potential hibernates."

My mouth was set in a thoughtful line. "Even by myself," I said, feeling almost guilty to interrupt, "I started to have inklings of what you're saying, Mr. King." I waved my hand vaguely. "An idea that the changes in my life were the result of some deep instinct rising up and coming alive. I've been calling it my inner Alpha Male."

Mr. King clapped his hands together approvingly. "Exactly, John!" he exclaimed. "That's exactly it. Your inner Alpha Male is being unlocked!" He laughed quietly at himself and then scratched his cheek before continuing at a more reasonable volume. "I apologize. I'm still so excited by my discovery, and the fact that I've had the chance to help a few men like you to use it themselves."

I shook my head, "No Mr. King," I told him. "Believe me, I'm just as excited as you are." And I was. His energy was infectious, and I felt like I was only just now beginning to realize how impactful Brain Development Enterprises was going to be. It was like I was on the edge of a cliff, and spread out before me was the rest of my life, completely altered by the man sitting in front of his screen thousands of miles away.

"Thank you, John," the man said, nodding. "But, now, to your questions. I'll address them in reverse order, if you don't mind, first your voice and next your scent." He snorted again, chuckling, and said. "Once I would have laughed at the idea of talking to another man about how he smelled, but now it fascinates me just as much as the rest of it."

I quirked a smile of my own.

"Well," Mr. Silver Fox went on. "I'll begin with a question of my own. I want you to think back and ask yourself whether you've ever seen or interacted with someone who had a certain draw or pull to them. They might have said anything, but you felt that you could believe them, that they were trustworthy, and that you would be wise to do what they suggested. You've met people like this, yes?"

"Of course," I nodded. I was listening to a man like that right now.

"Of course you have," he agreed. "And it's my hypothesis that these people are accidentally tapping into a fraction of the power that BDE attempts to fully unleash. When you focus and use this ability, this voice, you are utilizing the full power of your inner Alpha. And centuries of evolutionary development compel us, as humans, to listen to and obey individuals who have that particular voice and tone. It's almost a survival instinct. Our most primal selves recognize that the person with this alpha voice is most likely to have other alpha traits: the charisma to build a strong tribe, the intelligence to find shelter and develop better technology, and so on."

"Go on..." I said. If I had been in a chair, I would have been on the edge of my seat. As it was, I leaned forward on the bed and focused intently, intending not to miss a single word.

Mr. King scratched jaw. "Another interesting fact," he continued. "Most people have heard at some point or another that somewhere between 70 and 90 percent of human communication is nonverbal. That generally means things like body language, voice, eye contact, et cetera. But what a lot of people gloss over is olfactory communication."

I raised my eyebrows and shook my head. "What?"

"Let me explain," the man smiled. "To be clear, humans have a terrible sense of smell compared to most animals. But we also smell a lot more than we realize, and scents can often have a powerful subconscious impact on the mind. Plenty of research has shown, for example, that our sense of smell is linked to the part of our brain that has to do with memory. That's why the smell of chocolate chip cookies might make you remember grandma's house from when you were a kid. Or why a certain perfume will always remind you of your high school sweetheart."

I nodded along now. I was sure I'd heard that before.

"Our BDE cologne is a potent blend of scents and chemicals that, at least at first, simply act as a potent aphrodisiac."

I smirked, thinking back to McKenzie and Barbara's initial reactions to the scent. Potent aphrodisiac indeed, I thought.

"But," Mr. Silver Fox went on, "After frequent application, the chemicals in the spray are absorbed through your skin and into your bloodstream. They travel through your body, activating various hormones and what I like to think of as 'scent-factories', since I'm not completely up on the science of it. They bond with your sweat glands and begin to change them, altering the chemical makeup of your sweat. Even if you stopped using my product, after going through a full bottle your body chemistry is altered to the point that your natural scent is a powerful hormone cocktail. When your scent is picked up by women," he grinned and winked at me, "it has similar effects to the original cologne, only now it's been tailored to your own natural biology. Tests have shown that, for whatever reason, this is far more powerful."

I nodded in agreement. If the women I'd been with had been horny and submissive after smelling the cologne, they had gone wild for the scent of my sweat. As weird as that was, it was also, I had to admit, pretty damn cool.

"When you interact with other men," Mr. King continued, "they can smell your alpha scent and, without really thinking about it, they defer to you and look to you for leadership."

I nodded. That made sense as well. I guess now I know why my team has been treating me more like their boss, recently, and less like a peer with a title.

The silver-haired man clapped his hands together on the other side of the screen. "So now you know," he said with a smile, and his eyes sparked with interest. "Now," and he leaned forward. "I want to hear your BDE story."

I took a deep breath. Here we go, I thought. And I told him.

It was only really intending to give the broad strokes, but as the words tumbled from my mouth I realized I was telling him everything. It was the first time I'd really gotten to share the full story of how my life had so radically changed. Even with McKenzie there were things I'd glossed over or skipped entirely. But before I knew it, I was telling Mr. King about my stepdaughter and my second wife, my seduction of McKenzie's good friend, even my conquest of Allison at the office. The only thing I left out were the deeper troubles between me and Barbara, and the fact that I had no idea whether I was going to be able to win her back.

Call me a liar: I shared my victories but didn't want to whine about the setbacks.

When I was done, Mr. King was looking at me with approval in his eyes. "I am so excited for you, John," he said. His voice had a respectful quality to it, and I felt myself relax and enjoy his praise. "You are, in fact, one of the best success stories I've heard. One of our most promising up-and-comers, I suppose you could say. It's surprising, since when I checked the records of your purchases you were actually one of the last customers to receive his shipments."

The praise, I'm not afraid to admit, went right to my head. "Any reason why that would be?" I asked. "I don't know what makes me so special."

The other man raised his eyebrows. "If I had to guess?" he said. "Hard work. It's obvious that you're serious about making a change. You've been listening to the recordings faithfully, and if you started exercising around the same time you got them it would make sense that the cologne and its chemicals would circulate more rapidly through your system."

I nodded in agreement. "I am serious about change, Mr. King. And I want to thank you again for your help. I wasn't sure if self-hypnosis would do anything for me. Maybe I suspected there could be a bit of a placebo effect, but I never would have imagined how impactful your products would be. Thank you, thank you and thank you again."

Mr. Silver Fox squinted at me thoughtfully, then his lips turned up in a smile. "I like you, John," he said after a moment's contemplation. "So I'll tell you what. My Thai vacation is coming to a close, and I'm going to be in the City this weekend at an event hosted by another client. He was actually one of the first men to receive our BDE shipments. If you're around, I'll look you up. We can get to know each other better and maybe," he shrugged, "I can bounce some ideas off you."

My eyes widened. "That would be awesome," I said quickly. "I'll definitely be around." I checked my watch and realized, suddenly, that we'd been speaking forth for more than half an hour. "I actually have to go," I added, lifting my eyes back up to the screen, "and I know your time is valuable. So thank you one last time, and I'll let you go."

"John," Mr. King responded, "it has been my absolute pleasure talking with you." The sincerity in his voice was warming.

I nodded as I prepared to sign off. But a last question tugged at my mind, and my curiosity got the better of me. "Who's the other client?" I asked, right before hitting the key to end our call.

I wondered how long ago this other man, a stranger to me, had gotten his shipment of BDE recordings and cologne. I wondered how much his life had changed since he started using them. Had it changed as much as mine had?

Mr. King frowned thoughtfully, searching his memory. "Hmm..." he muttered. "What is it? Mr. Bowman? No... Mr. Blaze?" He glanced down, eyebrows coming together. "He's one of the owners of this sales company... I'm coming into town on Friday and he invited me to their summer quarter kickoff event..."

I felt my heart thud once, loudly, in my chest and then drop right down through my stomach, through the bed, through the floor and then crash land into the unforgiving ground below. I swallowed, knowing before the other man spoke the name that was already springing to his mind.

"Ah, that's right!" Mr. Silver Fox said triumphantly, snapping his fingers together as he remembered. "His name is Aaron Burns."

* * *

Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed this chapter. If you did, please let me know, because your positive comments keep me going. If you want to read more of my works, you can follow me here on Literotica. Lastly, I couldn't do this without the help of a few generous readers, so a special shoutout to all of them. You know who you are.

Lots of love, and I'll see you soon for Chapter 10!! Chapter 10 will round out this arc of Brain Development Enterprises, after which I'll be taking a break from this series to work on other projects.

JC