The Mask

Before Kerry knew it, she was in a bridesmaid dress at the center of the dressing room with Deanna and the rest of her friends in the middle of the usual wedding chaos. It was her fifth time as bridesmaid, so she knew the drill. She waited out the pre-ceremony crisis, paraded down the aisle, smiled, cried and got shuffled off to the reception

Now Kerry's plans for the reception were to eat, go give Deanna a big hug and kiss, then sneak out before the serious drinking and dancing started. She was seated at a table close to the dais with a few of the groomsmen. Kelly's influence had forced her to be situated with young men who were single and eligible. Two of which, seated on either side of her, talked football with each other as if she was a foreigner who couldn't speak Sports. That didn't bother Kerry in the least, but there was on guy sitting across the large round table more than merely glancing in her direction.

Being in the wedding party as a bridesmaid, Kerry looked rather fine, far different from her normal plain appearance. Her auburn hair was styled with cascading waves over one shoulder. Her make-up was polished and date-worthy thanks to Kelly who had scheduled time to do hers after she had worked on the bride. Her dress was peach taffeta, off-shoulder, sweetheart neckline and floor-length with a removable bow at the waist. She wasn't the sexiest woman at the affair, but she did merit a few looks in her direction. Since her day at Babe-a-lon, Kerry knew that it was possible to look quite stunning. So when a man with slightly better than ordinary looks focused attention on her, it didn't totally seem strange. And then, the obviously dateless guy came over to her side of the table after the jocks got up to get more drinks. Kerry was more pleased than shocked at the attention.

"Hi. I hope that I'm not being too forward." he said with an endearing catch in his throat. "My name is Stan Belcher. I work with Deanna at Low Carb Fuels. I believe that you're Kerry Watson with Klein Schulmann."

"Yes, I am. You're one of our newer clients." Kerry found herself lighting up with a smile for Stan who had just made what was likely an out-of-character, bold move.

"Yes. We're very happy with your services. I should have waited for Deanna to introduce us, but it is her day, so I didn't feel that I should impose."

"Not at all. Would you like to sit down? I don't think that those two are coming back, soon."

"Thank you." Stan said while settling in. "I thought that they were awfully rude to ignore you like that. You look stunning in that dress, by the way."

"Thanks." Kerry smiled and adjusted herself in the chair to be facing Stan. There might have been a need for an icebreaker if there hadn't been an announcement from the band about the father/bride dance. The couple turned and watched for a minute. Then Kerry leaned to Stan and said, "Doesn't Deanna look great? She was so sick the last couple of days."

"Yeah, but she's glowing now...Would you care to dance? I'm not very good, but I can keep my feet from off my partner's."

"I'm really horrible myself. But we could give it a try." There was an empty corner on the large dance floor where Kerry found herself with Stan, a guy she just met, making an attempt to waltz. Later, they ended up with her arms around his neck and his hands respectfully on her waist. The champagne Kerry had must have been a factor in her pulling Stan closer at the final bars of the slow dance number. It felt good to lean into his warmth. He had just the right amount of cologne which made Kerry regret not using some perfume offer by Kelly earlier.

When they pulled away to applaud the band, Kerry felt a bit dizzy. So she asked Stan to get her something to drink. She meant to say "water." So when he grabbed her a glass of champagne, "Oh thanks, but I'd better not. I should be going. I've got a lot of catching up to do at work."

"But, it's Saturday night."

"Yeah, but I've had all last week off, so knowing my office, the work has really piled up. I've got to go in tomorrow in order to hit the ground running on Monday. Thank you for the dance. It was lovely." Kerry turned to go grab her purse and nearly tumbled. She had forgotten her 4" heels that were still a struggle for her to be graceful in.

Stan was right there to catch Kerry. "Maybe you should sit down for a bit."

"Oh no, I'm fine. I'll just take these shoes off and use the slippers in my purse."

"Well, I'm going to insist that you let me walk you to your car, just for me. I want to be certain that you'll be safe."

"Well, okay." Kerry said as she replaced the fashionable heels with her utility slippers. Then she smiled at Stan, got up and walked with him to the front entrance to the community center. They walked out the doors and into a group of teen-age boys who were smoking and sliding down the handrail of the stairs leading out of the center. Some instinct made Kerry grab Stan's arm as they tried to get past the rowdies.

"Excuse us, guys!" Stan said with authority.

As the couple passed, one of the wasted youths shouted back, "Hey Pops, ya gonna nail her in the parking lot? Or can you hold off until you get her home?" There was an explosion of laughter from his "gang."

Stan backed the pimple-faced jerk in to a corner and said calmly, "Listen, Dog. This is a lady. Someday, you will wish that you had manners to show a person like this. So, let's pretend that you didn't just say something crude, just now. Okay?"

"Whatever, Dude." the kid said with a roll of his eyes while mugging for his buddies.

Stan took another step towards his target. He towered over him by almost a full head.

"Why don't you just wish the lady a good evening, like you should have?"

The kid looked directly up into Stan's face. Kerry thought that he was ready to turn the youth into dust. The other half dozen, early teens had backed far away from their companion. So, the cornered one smiled, poked his head towards Kerry and said, "Uh, have a nice evening, Ma'am." Stan stepped aside, and the kid bolted to his friends who were cowering under an oak tree. From relative safety, a few obscenities were hurled, but Stan ignored them as he continued his journey with Kerry to the parking lot.

The incident gave Kerry a shot of adrenaline to counter the haze from the champagne. She then worried that Stan would try to stop her from driving home and, perhaps, put a move on her. But he merely stopped and made a nice comment about her Prius when they got to her vehicle. She was then torn between throwing her arms around him in appreciation or ending the evening with a quick goodbye before zipping into her car. She swallowed and said, "I've been to a few weddings lately, and I think that meeting you here has made this one my favorite."

"I was just going to say that I usually despise weddings. Having to get dressed up and go out on a rare day that I get to relax is no fun. But meeting you here has made this a night to remember, in a good way...So Kerry, you could make these next few hours easy or very hard on me,"

"Oh. Did you need some help handling the account?"

"No. Actually, I was referring to how hard it would be on me attempting to get your phone number. I mean, I'd really like to see you again...soon, if possible."

Kerry blushed and suppressed the grin that was about to accompany the redness on her face. "I'd like that, too." They exchanged business cards. Then came an urge that she couldn't suppress. With her car door open for a quick getaway, Kerry threw herself around Stan for a quick hug. She felt his lips peck her on the cheek. The timing of the hug had lasted a moment longer than her comfort level for contact with anyone. But she didn't want to flee. To satisfy an urge that hadn't even been there hours before, she slid her lips to his. The kiss was as passionate as it was brief. Stan's relaxed arms allowed her to slip directly out of his grasp and into her Prius.

Seconds later, Kerry was out of the parking lot looking in the rear view mirror. Stan was a statue getting smaller until she turned to get on the main arterial. She bit her lip hard. Then came that darned wetness, again. Out of necessity, she pulled over and grabbed a towel from her gym bag that was nearly always in the back seat. The towel saved her dress from any visible sign of wetness. This was getting rather annoying.

The drive home took Kerry past Babe-a-lon. That presented an opportunity to perhaps speak to Mary, in person. With the parking lot nearly empty, she pulled in. Boldly, she entered the shop to find her confidant, Mary, behind the counter with no one else around. The older woman's face gave Kerry a smile of recognition which allowed her to blurt out the latest episode of her problem. Mary merely nodded, patted the hands that Kerry had reached over the counter for contact and escorted her to the back of the store.

Babe-a-lon's variety of vibrators and other sex toys was quite vast, but Mary was able to narrow down the choices for Kerry to ones that were least intimidating. Ultimately, she selected one that had multiple functions and fit her hand well.

Then came a moment that Kerry from a week ago could never have even conceived. She was distracted on her way back to the counter by an outfit on one of a dozen mannequins in Babe-a-lon. It made her think of Catwoman on a night off. There was a simple, black lace, bra and panty set with a sheer black short robe. The bra had ribbon ties to open the cups as did the panties to convert to crotch-less. Mary noticed Kerry's pause and interest in the outfit, and she offered it up to her customer, at cost, as her intended purchase was one of Babe-a-lon's big ticket items. Kerry was visibly delighted but wondered, "I don't know. What occasion would allow me to wear anything like that?"

"Why not just for yourself?" Mary replied. Kerry took another look at the outfit and pictured it as an alternative to wearing the costume multiple times before the party. She nodded to Mary and within a minute she was out the door with a purchase from a sex shop, just for herself.

Kerry couldn't stop smiling, humming and even singing out loud to the car radio on the way home from Babe-a-lon. Then, her cellphone rang from inside her purse. Being only a minute or so from her apartment, she didn't answer it or even look to see who was calling. The excitement of her purchase pushed the call to the back of her mind. There was a tossing of her coat and purse onto the bed before a dash into the bathroom with her new outfit in tow. After a shower minus washing of her hair, Kerry tried on the new lingerie. It fit nicely doing it's job much like the costume to enhance her normally mundane features. She loved the effect of the short sheer robe as well as it's comfort.

Before going to bed, there was one last matter for Kerry to attend, her phone message. She rarely got anything important from work on the weekend and she was still on her vacation, so with a mixture of irritation and curiosity, she opened her voicemail. To her delight, it was Stan. He called to thank her for the evening and to ask when she was free for dinner, lunch or whatever. It was odd and endearing to Kerry that he sounded flustered in the voicemail. It was the first time that anyone had ever been nervous about approaching her.

Despite being solidly booked for the next week with two potential Halloween parties and catch-up at work. Kerry decided to return Stan's voicemail and, at least, thank him for his interest. Something about being in sexy lingerie for the call seemed too risque, so she threw on her old teri-cloth robe over the outfit from Babe-a-lon before dialing Stan's number. It was late enough that she was sure to get his voicemail, but she heard, "This is Stan. Please leave your mes...Hello?"

Oh my god! Kerry didn't feel ready to talk with Stan directly so soon. But with her ID on his phone, she had little choice. "Uh, hi. Stan?"

"Yes. Who's calling, please?"

Damn! She might have gotten away with hanging up, but now he had heard her voice. "It's Kerry...From the Dave and Deanna's wedding."

"Well, hi Kerry! I didn't expect you to respond so soon. But it's really great to hear you...I hope that you got home okay and you're feeling well."

"Yes, thanks to you, I did and I am...How are you?"

"Much better, now that you called. I know that I've said this before, but I had the most amazing time at the wedding. It went by so fast. I really want to see you again, soon."

"Well, I had a great time, too. It's just that I'm going to be so busy this week with catching up at work and Halloween."

"Oh? Are you going to a party?"

"Yeah. I've been invited to two, including Kelly's on Friday. Are you going?"

"Well, I didn't exactly get an invitation...There is one that our industry association puts on every year on Saturday. Would that be something that you would be interested in?"

"Wow. That would be three parties in three days for me. Honestly, I don't think that I'd be up for that...You could come with me to Kelly's, as my date. How about it?"

"So you're asking me on a date before I ask you. Is that it?"

"Yeah, I guess I am! But...If you don't want to, that's fine."

"Oh, I accept. But that's almost a week away. Is there any way to see you before then? Are you free for dinner at all this week?"

"Oh, no. If only I hadn't taken time off this last week. I'll be working late nearly every day. I don't see how I could."

"What about tomorrow? It's Sunday. We could meet for brunch...Please?"

"Well, okay. I could do that." After Kelly's acceptance, she could hear nothing but the thrill in Stan's voice. There were details to be worked out, but he merely said that he would text her those before giving a quick good night. The phone call had raised Kerry's heart rate, made her fully awake and brought back the redness to her face. And sure enough, she was wet between her legs.

At that moment, Kerry didn't really mind her condition. And Mary was right, the wetness was less than last time. She was suddenly anxious to try out her new vibrator. So in preparation, she lit a candle on her night stand, turned off the bedroom lights and tore off her old bathrobe. She lay back on top of her comforter propped up by a couple of pillows and grabbed the vibrator. Desire subsided at bit as what she was about to attempt seemed...clinical.

Kerry lay still for a minute and thought of Stan. She recalled his voice, his smile, the chivalry on the way to the parking lot and his touch while they danced. The next thing she knew, her hands came up to her breasts and the lace bra. Her fingers slipped through the openings in the cups to find her nipples which were already hard. She imagined lips, tongue and teeth on them. Her tits were too small to bring to her own mouth, but her effort allowed a flick of her tongue to barely brush a nipple. It was enough of a stimulation to alert her to a throbbing of her nob on top of her pussy. One hand made it's way down to her panties which thanks to the open crotch were less than soaked. A finger found her nob and brought on a gasp. She wondered if Stan's touch would feel as good. Then she squeezed a nipple at the same time as her fingers pressed hard on her nob. She came. She came hard. Her spasms actually caused her bed to make noise. After the last of several waves of the orgasm crashed on her shore, she finally reached for the vibrator which had remarkably stayed on the bed.

In all her previous self-stimulation endeavors, she had never penetrated her hole with more than her own fingers. Her hymen had been lost to a bicycle accident as a child, but Kerry knew herself to be a virgin. But her pride in saving herself for a future husband evaporated into thoughts of a very specific man, Stan, penetrating her with his member. In lieu of that, she moved the vibrator to her pussy, easily found her hole and slid it inside.

The feeling that ensued far exceeded Kerry's imagination or expectations. She immediately started a natural stoking motion with the vibrator in and out of her opening. It was like she had been doing it her all her life. She couldn't believe that it took her this long to discover the extreme pleasure of simple penetration. While she continued the stroking of the vibrator, her free hand came up to her nob. In seconds, it felt like all her nerves fired pleasure waves to her brain at once. Kerry heard herself cry out, then she passed into oblivion.

Sometime in the middle of the night, Kerry woke with the vibrator still inside her. Her comforter was soaked so she took it off the bed, and after quickly freshening herself in the bathroom, she returned to bed. There was an attempt to touch herself as she had done earlier. However, the velvet grip of sleep was firm.

And what a sleep. Kerry woke to a blissful, calm, care-free sensation close to what she imagined a morning in heaven to be. Then she caught a glance at her clock. It was after 9 am, and she had a brunch date with Stan. Being up against deadlines at work, allowed her to move quickly beyond the panic stage and set priorities. Her hair had been made up for the wedding and there was no time to wash it. Fortunately, she was blessed with auburn hair as straight as the lines of books on her shelves. She brushed it until there was a presentable shine while she mentally went through her wardrobe.

Brunch at a trendy spot meant country-club casual. But Kerry's wardrobe was rather limited. There was a simple plaid skirt that came just above the knee. She paired that with a plain white blouse and topped it with a yellow, no blue, no a dark pink, nearly red sweater. Her outfit looked fine but her face was too plain. Damn, she had been wearing make-up at the wedding. Somehow, she remembered that Kelly had uploaded an app to her her phone with make-up tips, and it allowed her to do wonders with eyeliner and mascara. All she needed was some lipstick that she had rarely worn outside of a wedding venue. Kelly had some special for her to go with the bridesmaid dress. Shoot, it wasn't in her purse. Whew, it was under her toothpaste tube on the bathroom sink.

In just a few minutes, Kerry was as presentable as she was going to get. So she grabbed her purse and car keys and zipped out the door. Light traffic on Sunday morning enabled her to get to the trendy restaurant out by the golf course. Unlike her professional self, she was ten minutes late, and Stan was waiting for her in the lobby. He clearly beamed upon seeing her showing no irritation for her tardiness.

Brunch may not have been the traditional choice for a first date, but Kerry and Stan used the occasion to have the classic first date conversation. They learned about each other's pasts from childhood to the present. They described their work and where they saw themselves professionally in five years. They shared hopes and dreams, likes and dislikes, political stances and religion. The compatibility was remarkable. They genuinely laughed at each other's stories and truly enjoyed the company. In fact, they talked for hours until they noticed the restaurant staff preparing for dinner service. On the way out, the couple continued to talk as they strolled side by side to their cars. Kerry caught herself giggle. Something that she hadn't done since elementary school.

Stan broke with the comedy to say, "I'm really glad that you came. I had a good feeling from last night at the wedding that we might be pretty compatible."

"Me too. It's good to know just how much."

"Well, there is one critical area that we really haven't covered, except briefly."

"Oh?" Kerry was truly puzzled. "What exactly are you referring to, Stan?"

"That would be...physical."

"Oh. Okay..."

"Don't worry, Kerry. I won't rush you into anything. I only hope that you have, at least, a fraction of the curiosity that I have."