Life after the Lottery Ch. 73

"There is one in the showroom."

They took off running toward the showroom. I walked to the building and went in. Dave was opening the door to the red Vette so Amy could sit in it. I walked up and watched.

"I think the red one is better!" Samantha exclaimed.

"Me too!" Amy said.

"Your choice," I replied.

They looked over the car for a while.

"Is this the fast one?" Samantha asked Dave.

"This is the LT1, the base model. The Z06 and the ZR1 are the loaded sports models."

"You two better stick with the base model. You don't need to spend $85,000," I said.

"This one has a lot of options," Dave said. "The Z06 and ZR1 don't stay long when we get them."

The girls kept looking as Dave walked up to me.

"How much is this one?" I asked.

"This one is $62,000."

"Let's go talk."

I walked back to Dave's office, and we got some coffee.

"I am hoping to get a little bit of a break on the price," I said.

"Dr. Smith, we sell them as fast as we can get them."

"I know. This car will be sitting in a large department store until the end of the year. It is an incentive for the sales staff. It may become an annual thing. What if we put a nice big sign on it that says it's from your dealership? It will be good advertising."

"I don't know. I would have to talk to the boss."

"Okay, but tell him this is a high-end store that sells expensive ladies' clothing. There will be a lot of people in it that can afford Corvettes."

"Let me go talk to him. Are you going to be trading yours in anytime soon?" Dave asked with a smile.

"This fall. I want next year's loaded ZR1."

He walked out, and I went back to the showroom.

"We want this one," Amy said.

"It is $62,000," Samantha said.

"I'm working on the price. This will take all the profit from about $350,000 in sales."

"They better sale a lot so we get our money back," Amy said.

I waited as they looked some more. Dave came walking back to me.

"The boss said for you, $57,000. Best I can do."

"Okay. I need a few other things. Let's go to your office."

We walked back to his office and sat down.

"I need it delivered in the morning. Put it on a flatbed, and I will give you the address. Make sure it is spotless, Dave."

"I will. Anything else?"

"Have you got a car cover for it in stock?"

"Sure."

"I need one of them. Have them take it with the car in the morning."

"Okay. Anything else?"

"Write it up."

"Okay. Who will it be made out to? One of the young ladies?"

"Dave, they are two of my wives. It will be made out to the store."

"Oh...okay..."

He left his office, and I went back to the girls.

"He is writing it up. They will deliver it in the morning."

"What time? We have to be at school by 10:00," Amy said.

"What time do you want it there?"

"By 8:00!" Samantha exclaimed. "We want to be there too!"

Dave came out to see us.

"They are ready for you," he said.

"Talk to him about the delivery," I said.

I walked back to the business office and sat down. They made out the sale to Allure Holdings, and I wrote them a check. They finished the paperwork, and I took it all and walked out to find Dave. He was talking to the girls.

"Did you tell him what time to deliver it?" I asked.

"We need it delivered by 8:00," Samantha promptly told him.

"Can you do that, Dave?"

"Sure."

"I left the address in the business office. It is that large building with the smaller stores on each side out by the new mall," I told Dave.

"I'll have them pick it up about 7:00 and bring it to you."

"Thanks, Dave."

"Thanks, you three!"

We all went back to the Escalade.

"That was the fastest $57,000 you two ever spent," I said.

"I think it will help," Amy said.

Linda is getting a Ferrari to give away to a customer. She bought an Escalade to give away to her staff and the staff in the outlying stores."

"Dang!" Came from Samantha. "I'll have to buy plenty of clothes!"

"You two are not eligible..."

"Bummer!" Samantha said, and they laughed.

*****

The girls were up at 5:00 Tuesday morning getting ready. Dawn and I also got ready.

After we all ate, we left the house about 7:00 and headed to the store. We pulled up and parked, and sat outside to wait. Right at 8:00, we saw the flatbed pull up.

"Go tell him where to take it," I said to them.

They jumped out and ran to the truck. He pulled off and headed around the building. Dawn and I got out and walked to the door, and unlocked it. They ran to the back of the store.

When we went out the big back door, and he was lowering it down. Samantha and Amy supervised until he got it off the truck.

"Now what?" Amy asked.

"I'll open the garage door, and one of you drive it in."

I walked over to the big rollup and turned it on. Once it was up, Amy drove into the building.

"Follow me."

I walked to the huge freight elevator and lifted the gate.

"Will it hold it?" Dawn asked.

"Up to 12,000 pounds. It better."

Amy drove slowly into the tight elevator. Dawn and Samantha got on with us, and I pushed the button for the second floor, and we rode up. I lifted the gate, and Amy slowly backed it out of the elevator.

We had to move some boxes to get it through the doors to the place they were going to park it. Amy let Samantha drive it onto the floor of the store where they had made room.

"This is going to look good sitting here," Amy said.

Samantha got out and came to me.

"Is that okay?" She asked.

"Yes."

I took the keys and opened the passenger door, and got out the cover.

"Put this on it."

"We want them to see it," Samantha said.

"Not until you announce the contest."

Amy and Samantha spent about 15 minutes putting the cover over the car. By 9:00, we had finished.

"Is that it?" I heard Sherri ask as she walked up.

"That is it. We thought we would cover it until the contest is announced."

"What if the staff ask what it is when they come for training?"

I grabbed the sign from the dealership and sat it on top of the car.

"Tell them we are giving the dealer some free publicity," I said, and Sherri laughed.

"Thanks, you two," Sherri said to Amy and Samantha.

"When will all the staff be here at one time?" Dawn asked.

"They will be here this evening at 6:00," Sherri said.

"If everyone will be here and you and Brenda will be here, we will come by and tell them about the giveaway," I said.

"Sounds good," Sherri said.

"We better get our money back," Amy added.

"I am sure you will," Sherri said.

We walked around and looked at everything. They were still putting some things out and had boxes sitting around. We went around the second floor and looked at all the large prints I had made.

"Those look good," Dawn said.

We looked around some more.

"It's 9:15. We need to go," Dawn said.

"Sherri, we will see you later," I said.

We went down to the first floor and out the front door and got in the Escalade, and headed to the school.

"What time will I need to pick you up?" I asked.

"2:30," Amy said.

"At the end of the year, you two will deduct the price of the car from your profit, so you save on taxes," I told them.

"James, there will be a lot of taxes on that car for the winner," Dawn said.

"That is why you two are also adding enough money to cover the taxes."

"How much will that be?" Samantha asked.

"I will have to check, but probably about $12,000."

"Dang! I didn't know about that," Samantha said.

"You two own a business now. You will need to learn about those things. Also, when you get your next dividend check from your trust in April, you will have to start paying income taxes on the part that is not tax-free."

"How much will that be?"

"About 25%."

"Dang!"

"Not on all of it. Just some it. You two need to talk to our broker. You won't be spending all the money you get each year. You need to invest what you don't use."

I drove to the university and let them out.

"I'll see you two about 2:30."

Dawn and I drove off and went back to the house.

"We are going to have to make sure those two learn how to manage their money," Dawn said as we walked into the house.

"I think they will be okay, but we will."

*****

I was happy to have some downtime Tuesday afternoon. All I needed to do now was get ready for the fashion show. I was in my study cleaning all my camera gear and getting it all straightened out and organized.

"What are you doing?" Dawn said as she walked in and sat down.

"Getting everything cleaned and organized."

"You have been taking a lot of photos. I guess you are tired of that."

"Not really. I was sitting here thinking about something I have wanted to do."

"What?" Dawn asked.

"I want to do some art photos."

"What kind of art?"

"Nudes."

"What are you going to do with them?"

"Just have some fun taking them."

"How do you do art nudes?"

"Come with me, and I will show you," I told Dawn.

I grabbed my medium-format camera and some film and took Dawn down to the basement.

"Take your clothes off."

Dawn took off all her clothes and stood. I moved my flashes around so I could do some low-key back-lighting and checked them with my flash meter.

"Stand right there and put your arms over your head."

Dawn put her arms up. I had a long lens on the camera so I could just take some close-ups of different parts of Dawn's body. The strobes were just lighting the edge of her body from behind. I put the Polaroid back on it and snapped a few shots, and showed them to Dawn.

"Oh, I like that lighting. I see what you are doing," Dawn said as she looked at the partial silhouettes.

I worked with Dawn and had her move around so I could get some close-ups of the side of her hips and ass and then the sides of her tits. I had her lie on the black backdrop and moved my strobes, so they just lit the edges of her body. I got on the floor and made some close up of her stomach and some across her hips.

"Honey put your hand up on the top of your stomach. I want to be able to see your wedding ring."

"Why?"

"So if anyone ever sees these, they will know the woman in the photos is married."

"I'll spin it around so only the band shows. My ring is sort of unique."

Dawn put her hand up there and moved it around. I shot across the top of her mound and thigh and got her hand in the picture. The dark contrast from the backlight was going to look great.

I spent about an hour or more taking close-ups of different parts of Dawn's body in low light.

"I'll have to see how these come out," I said as Dawn sat up.

"Are those color or black and white?"

"Black and white."

"Some like that of the girls would be great in color."

Dawn and I experimented until almost 2:00.

"I'll have to build a table. Lying on the floor is to hard," I said.

"You need to go get the girls," Dawn said.

"Okay. I'll be right back."

I left Dawn and drove to the university, and picked up the girls. We drove back to the house.

Dawn was walking around the den naked.

"What were you two doing?" Samantha asked.

"Having some fun taking some art photos," I said.

"What about us?" Amy asked.

"You two take your clothes off and come with me to the basement."

They got naked and followed me to the basement.

I shot similar shots of each of their bodies in color. I got Samantha to stand with her side to me, and I shot some close-ups of the edges of her large tits in the low light. Her large nipples were silhouetted by the flash.

"Amy, stand up here," I said.

She turned with her side to me. I wanted to try something since she had bigger nipples. I zoomed in the long lens and took some nice close-ups of her big nipple sticking out. The light was just barely highlighting it, and it filled the entire frame of the viewfinder.

I then had Amy lie on her back, and I shot some across her mound, so her small tuft of red hair was barely highlighted. I took some more of the edges of her thighs and then had her roll over on her stomach. I made some shots of her ass, backlit by the strobes.

"Hey, honey. I have an idea," Dawn said. "Amy, stand up."

Amy stood, and Dawn pulled Samantha onto the black backdrop.

"You two face each other and push your tits together slightly," Dawn told them.

She got them where she wanted. I moved the strobes around behind them. Dawn had them hold each other on their hips. I looked and knew where Dawn was going. She moved them around some more.

"How about that?" Dawn asked.

"Perfect."

I shot several rolls of film of the two of them. Some very close up, others just capturing their torso. After that, Dawn moved them around, and I took more of the two of them holding each other in different positions.

"Hold on a minute," I said.

I loaded more color film and made some photos of each of them, just getting the edges of their body and their red hair in the shots. Dawn kept moving them around, and I took more.

"I think these will be hot," Dawn said.

"I hope so. Maybe I can sell some."

"Not with us in them!" Samantha exclaimed.

"Honey, they are only close-ups of your body. There are no shots of anyone's face in them," I said.

"Okay, then."

I got Dawn to move the two of them together so that their nipples were just touching each other's. I had zoomed in close on them.

I kept experimenting with the backlighting, hoping the lighting would highlight their white skin and red hair. I got some close-ups of their pink nipples and some of Amy's red bush. I had Amy lay on the floor and shot across her mound. The strobes were just barely highlighting her red bush from behind.

"That should be enough to start," I said.

The three of them headed back upstairs while I gathered up all the film.

"It's almost 4:30. Can we head out now so I can drop off the film then head to the store?" I asked.

"Sure. Let us get dressed," Dawn said.

I grabbed all the color film from my art photos, and we headed to the camera store to drop it off before he closed. When I got there, I told Bob to have all the film proofed.

After I dropped off the film, we headed to the store. We pulled up right at 5:30 and went inside. Sherri and Brenda were talking to several of their new sales staff. By 6:00, there were a lot of pretty young ladies waiting.

"Everyone! Some of you have met the Smiths. This is Dr. James Smith and his wives Dawn, Samantha, and Amy," Brenda said.

They all mumbled, "hi."

"They wanted to come by and meet everyone before we started our training."

"Hello, everyone," I said. "I hope all of you are excited about the store opening."

"We are!"

"Ms. Williams and my family are hoping this is going to be a huge success. All of the marketing research is telling us we are in the right place at the right time. We hope all of you make lots of commission!"

"We do too!" Someone exclaimed.

I walked over to the covered car.

"The stores here are going to be so popular that even one of the car dealers wants to display their Corvettes here."

I moved the sign off the Corvette and pulled the cover off.

"I made them a nice deal. I told them we would let them display a Corvette here under one condition. That condition was that if we did this...that they would sell me the Corvette and let Sherri and Brenda give it away to one of you at the end of the year."

"What? Really? Huh?" They were all mumbling.

"They said yes...so here is the deal. To make this fair for the part-time and the full-time staff, you will receive one raffle ticket for every $1,000 you sell." They were still mumbling. "Then, at the end of the year, we will have a drawing to see who wins it."

Their buzz got louder.

"How does that sound?"

"Great!" They cheered.

"You can thank Samantha and Amy. It was their idea."

"Thank you!"

"Ms. Williams liked the idea so much that she is giving away an Escalade to her staff and those in the surrounding stores."

"Cool!"

"We didn't want to leave all of your great customers out either. We are giving away a Ferrari to a lucky customer at the end of the year."

"What!"

"Same rules. We will track all sales, and each customer will have their name entered once in the drawing for each $1,000 they spend during the year. On New Year's Eve, we will have a big party for you and the customers that want to come. Then we will have the drawing."

Everyone clapped and cheered.

"Since we will be tracking customer information, each of you will have all the information you need to market to your customers. You can call them, mail them, email them, or whatever works to encourage them to come in and buy more."

They call cheered.

"Now...one more thing. If everyone makes the store a huge success...we may do this again next year."

More cheering.

"So, if you do not win the Corvette this year, you may next year. Any questions?"

"Mr. Smith? When I win the Corvette, what about the taxes on it?" Hannah asked.

"We are going to chip in $12,000 to the winner to help cover the taxes."

There was more applause.

Dawn stepped up.

"I just wanted to ask all of you how you feel about working in skimpy bikinis and lingerie?" She asked.

"Sounds cool! What about men coming in just to look?"

"We will have to monitor that. Unescorted men under 18, or so, will not be allowed on this floor unless they have a history of buying merchandise," I said.

"If any of you have any problems, you let Sherri and Brenda know immediately," Dawn said.

"That is one of the things we are going to discuss tonight," Sherri said.

"Will we get any push back from the locals or the police?" One of the ladies asked.

"We shouldn't," I said. "Your outfits should not be any more revealing than some of the thong bikinis I see. That means no wearing of the see-thru lingerie."

"Ahh!" Someone exclaimed, and they all laughed.

"We may have an invitation-only sale for that!" Brenda exclaimed.

"New Year's Eve!" Someone shouted.

"And to make sure we don't have any problems, everything will be respectable and on the up and up," I said.

"If any situation arises that one of us feel is a potential problem due to any one of your actions, you will be terminated and ineligible for the drawing," Brenda said.

"I don't think that is going to be a problem...just make sure you don't add any sales incentives," I said to some laughter.

"Does anyone else have anything they would like to ask the Smiths?" Sherri added.

"Thank you!"

"Just make sure we are successful, ladies!" I said.

"We will be!"

They all walked around and looked at the Corvette for a few minutes. Brenda came to me.

"James, since we are invitation only crowd this weekend...can they wear the more revealing items?"

"The see-thru items?"

"Yes. It would get us off to a good start."

"Leave it up to them. Don't make anyone do it."

"I won't."

Sherri and Brenda got down to business.

The four of us left and stopped for dinner.

When we got back to the house, Dawn had to work on her outline. Daryl showed up right after we pulled in. The girls got ready for their boxing lessons.

I took all my black and white film from earlier down to my darkroom and processed it. Time got away from me, and it was 11:00 before I headed up to bed.

*****

Wednesday morning, I got up early to go down to my darkroom and started cutting up all the black and white film I had stayed up and processed so that I could make some proofs. I started making the proof-sheets, and that took me until 7:30.

"Are you coming up to eat?" Dawn asked over the intercom.

"Be there in a minute."

I looked over the proof-sheets of the black and white photos as they dried. They looked great. I headed up to eat.

"Are you working on the photos of us?" Samantha asked as I sat down.

"I just got all the black and white proof-sheets done."