Just a Little Magic Ch. 04

"I don't know how to hypnotize anyone." I reminded her.

"No, but you can plant a minor suggestion. The principles are the same. Just read the room. Identify the possibilities. We'll take it from there."

The Magnet was not a place I'd ever expected to set foot in. It was pretentious, tasteless, and overbearingly loud - with an outrageous cover charge. On the plus side, it had an Olympic-sized bar, and excellent sight lines.

We settled at the end of the bar, and Janine began scoping out the local talent. She was more than a little familiar with the place. The bartender (female) greeted her by name. Janine ordered us drinks, and immediately began suggesting targets for my attention.

"By the big fern - the blonde."

I focused on the lady in question.

"Ouch." I said. "Issues."

"How about the brunette in black?"

I concentrated on her - a very pretty woman, who I suspected was way out of my league. She was, too. Wrong league altogether.

"She's with her girlfriend."

"That's a shame. What about the short girl? The one who's laughing - over there."

From what I could tell, the girl in question was here for a good time - not a long time.

To make a long story short, I approached her. She was willing to exchange pleasantries, but what she really wanted to do was dance - and no amount of training by Janine and Lillian was going to turn me into John Travolta.

My second approach was a dismal failure. I definitely saw this girl looking my way, and I was 100% sure that she was interested. She was even licking her lips.

Unfortunately, she'd been staring at a guy standing behind me - and she didn't appreciate it when I came close, blocking her view of the stud she'd been ogling.

I returned to my seat next to Janine.

"0 for 2." I said.

"It's not about percentages." she said.

"Hey Janine!" said a new voice. "And... Peter?"

"Hey Eva. "said Janine. It was indeed her friend from the poker games. Eva was a pretty brunette - she couldn't compete with Janine, of course, but she was very smart.

"First time you brought him here?" said Eva.

I should clarify that no one in the Magnet said anything. They shouted it, at the top of their lungs, into the ear of the person they were attempting to communicate with. Sometimes it took 2 or 3 tries.

That was one reason I wasn't all that optimistic about my chances of attracting a female. My appeal - if I had any - wasn't entirely visual.

Eva leaned over to shout in my ear.

"Nice to see you, Pete. Let me know if I can get you anything."

"Thanks, Eva."

Janine re-focused my attention once more, and I approached another girl. She didn't think that I was bad looking. She just thought that she could do better. 0-3.

I was rapidly losing my enthusiasm for the fine art of the pick-up. Janine reminded me of the stakes.

"Don't forget - you're on a 2 for 1 deal, here - and I'm the 2!"

I resumed my vigil, with Janine offering encouragement and suggestions.

"Far end of the bar. Brunette. Thin hair."

That wasn't especially complimentary, but it was accurate. I reached out to touch her mind, and found... sadness?

Now I was curious. Besides, I was striking out at a record pace - what did I have to lose? I walked towards the other end of the bar. She was a slender, blue-eyed brunette, and quite pretty.

Her thoughts were a mess. Best friend... boyfriend... oh dear. The pain wasn't fresh, but she was a long way from shedding it.

Luck was with me. Eva, Janine's friend, saw me. I pointed at the brunette's drink, and she understood me immediately.

I approached the brunette, rapidly revising my estimate. She was very attractive. I knew that she wasn't going to be bowled over by my scintillating good looks, or by my sparkling wit. I chose directness, and honesty.

"I'm sorry." I said, very loudly, close to her ear.

"Pardon?"

I repeated myself, a little louder.

"You're sorry?"

"You've been through a rough time, recently. I wish... that you hadn't had to experience that."

"What?"

Fortunately, Eva returned at just that moment, with a fresh drink for the brunette - and for me. I thanked her.

The brunette was surprised - but the ghost of a smile teased her lips, and she mouthed the words 'thank you'. I nodded. I touched my chest, and mouthed my name: Peter.

She nodded, and then leaned over, to speak directly into my ear: "Dana."

I nodded in return, and leaned close to her.

"You're very pretty, Dana. But you seem sad. How can I help?"

She smiled at me. It wasn't your typical pick-up line. My heart was going out to this poor girl, the same way I'd felt about Lynn on the bus. I wanted to help her.

Okay, she was attractive. And if I was able to seduce her, I could have sex with Janine again. But those thoughts were secondary. I really just wanted to help Dana.

She needed consolation. Her boyfriend had fucked her best friend - or vice versa. She was feeling alone, betrayed, and unwanted. She needed support - and affirmation.

"There's a quiet bar across the street." I suggested. "Would you like to talk about it?" I placed a minor suggestion with that.

"That would be nice." said Dana.

We left together. Janine had to scramble to follow us. She had no idea what was going on. This was far from standard operating procedure.

I offered Dana another drink, or a coffee. If she had chosen the latter, we might have ended up talking for hours. Okay, her talking, me listening. But she chose a drink.

Yes, I was reading her mind the whole time. Dana was thrilled that she'd found someone willing to listen to her troubles. But the story was quite simple. It didn't take long to relate. What she needed - besides an audience - was reassurance, for someone to remind her how attractive she was. How appealing, and desirable...

I didn't feel too bad about taking advantage of the inside knowledge I'd gained. Dana was a sweet girl, and she didn't deserve what had happened to her. She brightened up considerably as I reminded of how attractive she was. How kind, how hot...

"I'd like..." she began.

I knew exactly what she wanted. I leaned across the table, and kissed her. She immediately fixed on my lips like a drowning woman seizing hold of a life jacket.

"Could we... go to your place?" she asked. "My roommate is home."

"Of course." I excused myself, to go to the bathroom. I managed to catch Janine's eye. She followed me to the back of the bar, outside the washrooms.

"She wants to go home with me!" I told her. "What do I do?"

"No way! That's awesome! Here - take my key. Take her to our apartment."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes! Go. Go."

Half an hour later, I welcomed Dana into Lillian and Janine's apartment, pretending that it was my own. Dana was immediately intrigued by the place.

"You have a very unusual sense of decor. It's... very feminine."

"Oh, no - I... I share the apartment with... my aunt. That's her taste in... everything that you're seeing."

Even as I said that, I realized that I couldn't take her to Janine's bedroom - or Lillian's, for that matter. Dana was never going to believe that either one was my room.

Desperation is the mother of invention. Dana needed proof - immediate proof - that she was still desirable. I couldn't take her anywhere else than the living room.

I went down on her on the couch.

Dana was very, very happy about that. And very grateful. I brought her to orgasm in next to no time. Then I stripped her naked. She was very slender, with apple-sized tits, but her nipples were very interesting.

I ended up fucking her on Janine's couch (which was rapidly becoming my favorite couch of all time). Dana was... thrilled. I was confirming that she was still attractive, still hot.

"You are so hot." I breathed into her ear. That set her off.

She came a second time, when I took her from behind, with her leaning over the arm of the couch. She was, apparently, very proud of her ass (I was still reading her thoughts).

"You have the most amazing ass." I told her.

I really liked Dana. Not only was she my first (other than Janine), but she was really sweet - and her ass was very nice. I think that she underestimated her nipples - I just didn't know how to diplomatically let her know that.

The following night, Janine more than held up her end of the bargain. She insisted that I tell her every detail: what I said to Dana, what she said to me, and what we'd done here in the apartment. Janine especially liked it when I bent her over the arm of the couch, in the same spot where I'd had Dana.

A few days later, though, it was back to business. Janine wanted me to go out and seduce another girl. So the following weekend, she took me back to The Magnet.

I tried to explain to her that I wasn't all that comfortable in that environment.

"You scored, didn't you?" she said. "This is where girls go to meet guys and get picked up."

She wasn't about to take no for an answer, so I gave in. Maybe I would get lucky again.

Or not. The music was loud, and the place was full of hot women, but I began a new cold streak. I kept detecting interest, only to find that it had evaporated by the time I got close enough to talk to them - or to yell at them.

I was ready to give up at 0-6. Janine wasn't enjoying herself, either.

"One more try!" she tried to encourage me.

"That's what you said last time!"

"Fine! Just remember the deal - until you get some, you aren't getting any!"

With that, she stormed out of The Magnet. I sat there alone for a moment. I wasn't about to follow her outside - she wouldn't have appreciated that. Besides, I was still trying to figure out if what she'd said was an oxymoron, or some other figure of speech.

Then I heard a voice close to my ear.

"Trouble in Paradise?"

It was Eva, Janine's waitress friend. She had this knack - I suppose from long experience in The Magnet - of being able to pitch her voice so that I could hear her, without actually shouting. I heard her clearly; I just didn't know how to answer.

"Can I get you another?"

"Sure." I answered. If Janine was still outside, waiting for a taxi, I didn't want to run into her just yet.

Eva returned with a fresh drink for me. I thanked her.

"So... you and Janine? Not a couple?"

"Oh - no. We're just... good friends."

"With benefits?"

"Umm..." Damn - another question that could get me in trouble.

"So... were you two trying to set up another threesome?"

I nearly spit my drink across the bar. Eva laughed, enjoying my embarrassment.

"Where's your poker face now, Pete? C'mon, I saw you leave with that girl last weekend - and then Janine followed you out."

"I plead the Fifth." was the best I could come up. A threesome? Then again, the truth was equally weird. Or weirder?

She laughed again. "Hey - I don't have to close tonight. I'm done in... about 45 minutes. You want to grab a coffee and a bagel after I'm done?"

"That sounds great."

Eva nodded, and tapped my arm. Then she went back to work. That gave me a chance to think. What the hell was I supposed to say? A threesome? Or that Janine was training me, like some kind of hunting dog?

Eva was a good waitress. She was back around 20 minutes later, to see if I wanted another drink. I most certainly did. It must have helped, because I came up with a plan to save my ass.

When Eva returned, to tell me that her shift was over, she let me know that she needed a few minutes to cash out and changer her clothes.

"Okay." I said. "I'll wait for you outside. Do we need a cab to get to the place you have in mind?"

"Nah. It's just a couple of blocks away. See you in a bit."

I stepped outside, and immediately pulled out my phone, so that I could call Janine. I had to find out what she wanted me to say. My luck stayed the same: she didn't answer.

That left me alone with Eva - without an explanation that would float. A lie could turn out very badly; the truth might be even worse.

And there she was - ready to go.

"You didn't have to wait outside." she said.

"I just thought that you might prefer not to be seen leaving with a guy - just in case other guys saw us. Then you might start getting hit on even more often than you do now."

She turned to look at me. "Really? You were thinking of my reputation? That's... thank you. Nothing to worry about, though. I don't get hit on all that often."

"I find that hard to believe."

"Nah. Just the odd loser who's struck out with the hotties all night and wants to take one last kick at the can."

"Like me?"

"No! Hey - I was the one who came over to talk to you. Seriously, though? If Adonis himself was trying to pick me up in there, I'd have to think it over. I really don't want to go out with the type of guy who would hit on me at work, you know?"

The coffee and bagel place was exactly that: they only served two items. Mind you, there were 27 different types of bagels

We sat down at a little table for two. My first bite of my toasted sesame bagel was a revelation. Eva saw my eyes go wide.

"Good, right?"

"Holy mackerel! You're not kidding!"

"Going to get another one?"

"One? Two, at least. How about you? Can I get you another one?"

"Sure, why not?"

When I returned with the extra ammunition, Eva was ready with her question.

"So... a threesome?"

"I can't answer that, Eva. A gentleman doesn't kiss and tell."

"Come on, Pete - I'm not looking for a blow by blow description. Just... confirmation."

"I can't, Eva. There are ladies involved. If Janine wants to tell you about it... that would be up to her."

"Really? Nothing I can do to... loosen your tongue?"

Unless I was mistaken, that was her second double entendre. But I stuck to my guns. There was no way that I wanted to face the wrath of Janine.

"I dunno, Pete." said Eva. "I'm a little disappointed that you won't say anything. On the other hand... I'm kind of impressed. Discretion is so rare these days."

She gave me a good, long look. "See - I had a hard time figuring you out when we played poker, too. You seemed to have a really good read on all of us -"

"Not you. I had trouble reading you."

"The first time, maybe. But you took us all to the cleaners the second time."

"Luck."

"I don't think so." Eva was happy to reminisce, replaying some of the hands where we'd clashed. Her memory was better than mine, by far. We had a really good conversation and a second cup of coffee while I finished off my third bagel.

Eva had parked her car behind The Magnet. She was kind enough to offer me a ride home.

"You know," she said, "with two cups of coffee on board, I won't be getting to sleep any time soon. Want to come up to my place for a drink?" The look she gave me was one of frank appraisal. She was offering much more than a drink.

"That is... if you really are discreet."

"Janine?"

"Yeah. We're friends, but... I'm not sure how she'd take it."

"She would have to hear it from you."

Eva grinned. "That's what I was hoping you'd say."

Her apartment was fairly modest. She sat me down in her kitchenette, where she fixed us both a drink. Then she excused herself.

She was gone a good five minutes. I had no reason for complaint, though, when she came back wearing only half a t-shirt and a pair of panties.

"Wow..." I breathed.

"No point pretending, right? You didn't think we'd come here to play poker, did you?"

Eva had a pretty face, but I was quite pleased by my first sight of her body. Ripe. That was the word that came to mind. There was a gentle swell to her belly, and to her waist and hips. She wasn't slender, but to call her plump, or even curvy would have been an overstatement. Ripe, I thought again. It fit.

She led me to her threadbare couch, inviting me to sit down. Then she climbed onto me, straddling my legs. Our first kiss was slow, and exploratory. By the third kiss, though, she was unbuttoning my shirt.

I really enjoyed getting my hands on her waist, and under her panties to squeeze her ass. Eva herself lifted her own t-shirt, drawing my attention to her fine breasts. They were shapely, and looked delectable, though I was surprised at how far apart they were. Every woman really is different, I thought.

Eva gradually became more and more impatient, until she had both of us mostly stripped. She'd been the initiator, to that point; she made a 'Gleep!" noise when I flipped her onto her back. I thought she was about to protest, until I started kissing the insides of her knees.

She let me go down on her, and bring her to a very satisfactory orgasm, if I do say so myself. But she almost immediately became the aggressor again, putting me back in a sitting position, putting a condom on me, and then straddling me as she had before - this time with my cock well inside her.

I enjoyed having my hands free, and I was able to last a long while in that position.

Eva took me to her bed, afterwards. She washed us both with a warm, wet cloth. Then she proceeded to take me into her mouth, until she'd rapidly produced a new erection.

"From behind." she insisted. "I love doggy."

It was a long night. The dawn probably came before I did, our last time.

* * * * *

I called Janine later that day. She was a little snippy until I apologized.

"Is that why you called me last night? To say you were sorry?"

"No. I was calling to warn you. Eva saw me leave with Dana last weekend. Then she saw you follow us out. She asked me about it - wanted to know if we'd had a threesome."

"What? Oh, shit - what did you say?"

"I told her that a gentleman doesn't discuss such things. But I wanted you to know - she may ask you about it."

"Fuck. Okay - thanks for the heads up. I'll... think of something." She hung up.

The next day, I got a call from a number I didn't recognize.

"Hey, Poker man." said Eva. "I hope you don't mind - I got your number from Janine."

"You did? Ah, no - I don't mind at all. How are you?"

"Good. Thought you might be interested: I had a talk with our mutual friend - you know, about the thing you weren't willing to confirm?"

"Oh?"

"She likes to watch? That's so kinky! I love it!" Eva chuckled. "Anyways, she told me about your rule."

"Our rule?"

"Yeah - her rule that you aren't totally exclusive, but you can only fuck somebody else once. No long-term engagements. That's... kind of cool."

"Ah - yes. Yes, it is." Especially since that was the first I'd ever heard of it.

"I have to say, I was also really impressed that you hadn't said a word to her about... us. You really are discreet. I mean 'I won't tell anybody' is usually right up there with 'the cheque is in the mail' and 'I promise not to come in your mouth'."

"Ah... thank you?"

"No, thank you. So... I asked Janine if... if she would mind if I - you know - 'went out' with you. And guess what she said?"

"Umm..."

"She gave me the green light. Of course... you would probably have to tell her about it afterwards, right? That's part of your rules?"

Eva had me. I couldn't very well admit that I'd already had sex with her. But if I refused now, and Eva told Janine... I didn't see a clear way out of this.

"Relax, Pete. You didn't tell on me - I won't tell on you either. I just had a great time the other night, and I'd really like a repeat performance."

"That sounds fantastic." Of course I wanted another night with Eva.

Just to be on the safe side, though, I called Janine again.

"Did you really tell Eva that you like to watch?" I asked first.

"I thought it was safer than getting a reputation for threesomes."

"And did she really ask you if -"

"If she could fuck you? Yes, she did. I made up some crap about us having special rules. One time only. I don't want you getting hung up on one chick. You need experience, and that means variety. The spice of life."