The Taboo Transformation Ch. 01

"If you don't want to be a part of this," she said, gathering her dignity around her and standing, "I will leave."

"No, No!" Valentina said quickly. "I am sorry, my friend. It was a bad joke, made in poor taste. Please, forgive me."

Jane looked at her narrowly, but the other woman appeared to be sincere. She slowly settled into the water again.

"But I am still a little unclear about why you want me to be a part of this experiment," Valentina said. "Or if I do understand, I am not sure I want to." She looked down at her body, seeming, for the first time, a little unsure of herself.

Jane softened her voice, remembering this woman was still, for all her experience, several years younger than herself. "You were chosen for your looks, yes," she said. "When I presented my proposal to the science advisory board, I had to be careful. It had to be something which was so spectacular they couldn't possibly deny its effectiveness. But at the same time it had to be something which would not cause adverse effects if it failed.

"I chose women's bodies. You know as well as I do how much women are willing to pay in order to try to reach some idealized pinnacle of feminine beauty."

"You got that right," Valentina said wryly. "When an actress has to insure her own tits like I do, you lose your illusions pretty quickly."

Jane nodded. "So that is what I chose. I am trying to collect genetic samples from over one hundred women. Women who fit the current standards of beauty.

"But not just attractive women," she stressed. "If I was just trying to do that, I could have hit up the strip clubs until I got what I wanted. What I am looking for," she continued, "are good people. Intelligent. Empathetic. Caring."

"Horny?" the woman across from her asked, her eyes glinting wickedly.

"A strong sex drive is one of the variables we filtered for, yes," Jane said primly. "But it's not just that. We studied the people we are asking to take part in this project. I know you, Valentina. How much time have you donated to charitable causes? How much money?"

To her surprise, the stunning woman across from her blushed, blood rising to darken her dusky skin. "Other people give to charity," she murmured softly. "I'm not special."

"You are." She waited until she raised her eyes. "There is more to beauty than the body. There is also the mind and the soul. And you are gorgeous clean through."

"Well." Valentina cleared her throat and blinked rapidly. Tears? "All I can say is that I am very flattered that you would consider me to a part of your project. And that I would be honored to participate."

It took a moment for the words to sink in. "You will? Oh. That's fantastic." She could barely keep an unprofessional grin from splitting her face.

Valentina stood, water cascading off her body in a golden sheet. With a lazy sway to her hips, she walked the few steps across the jacuzzi and sat down beside Jane. "And now that we have that taken care of," she said, drawing a finger up and down the skin of her upper arm, "I'm in a mood to celebrate. You do know what complimenting a woman does to her sex drive, don't you, Jane?" she asked.

Jane shivered, the skin of her upper body breaking out into goosebumps. "I...I can't," she said.

"Of course you can," Valentina said, slipping an arm around her and leaning in to nuzzle at her neck. "Your sister and I were lovers for a time," she whispered in her ear. "Those long legs," she said. "Lovely. I bet you're just as good in bed as she was."

"I'm not," Jane said harshly, drawing away. Valentina blinked at her in surprise. Her brows pinched down in a frown.

"What's the matter?"

She looked at her lap. "I can't...I can't get wet. Down there," she whispered. "There's something wrong with me. It takes me so long to get aroused or have an orgasm...most people lose patience."

"Hmmm." Valentina snuggled back in, her breath warm against her cheek. "I do love a challenge. Are you sure? We can go to bed, roll around for three or four hours, come out for supper, go back to bed, and I can send you on your way tomorrow morning." Her breast pressed into the flesh of her arm and side, and Jane had to shut her eyes against a sudden stab of longing. She had experimented with women occasionally, but considered herself more or less heterosexual. But Valentina affected her on a deep, primal level, and she was difficult to resist.

"No." She took a deep breath and repeated, more softly, "No. I'm a doctor. And I'm in charge of this project. I can't let even a whisper of possible conflict of interest take place. I'm sorry," she said to Valentina. "And I am flattered. Truly. But I think I should collect the sample and leave."

"Well, this is a hell of a thing." In spite of her fears, the woman who more than half the world lusted after seemed more amused than angry. "I can't remember the last time someone turned me down. Well, there was that one tennis pro in London at the premiere. But how was I to know he was gay?

"Anyway, how do you want to do this? The sample?"

Jane stood, aware of the hungry eyes on her body. "We can do several ways. A tongue swab. Or skin scrapings. But I would prefer a blood sample. They last longer and are more stable."

*****

After that, the visit was strangely anticlimactic. With Valentina's assistance, she took five separate blood samples, drawing the fluid with professional skill, labeling the vials and stowing them in her portable case.

Just before she left, Valentina pressed a card into her hand. "Here," she said. "My private number is on this. The one I only give out to family, friends, and lovers." A smile danced across her lips. "Though I guess we know which one you are now, don't we?" She leaned in, her lips brushing her cheek. "If you ever change your mind, call me."

*****

After injecting herself with Valentina's sample, Jane expected to toss and turn all night, plagued by second thoughts about what she had done. Instead, she slept deep and dreamlessly, waking late the following morning, feeling more relaxed than she had in months. She wandered downstairs, dressed in a ratty, comfortable bathrobe which was at least ten years old, to find the kids awake before her and preparing a breakfast of heroic proportions. She smiled as she watched them scurry around the kitchen. It was one of the things she had put in place when they had first moved in with her to draw them closer together as a family. A big shared breakfast, late on Saturday mornings, after they had watched their fill of cartoons.

"Good morning!" she said, entering the room.

"Morning, Aunt Jane," replied Colleen from her spot at the stove. On the griddle in the middle of the stove, Jane could see the golden round shapes of pancakes. From a large, cast-iron skillet, she could smell the tantalizing aroma of bacon and sausage. A second burner was occupied with a huge batch of hash browns. In another corner of the kitchen, Zach was tending the toaster. Meanwhile, Lillian was hurrying back and forth from the kitchen to the dining room, setting the table.

"You've used your usual cunning in waking up just in time for breakfast," Colleen smiled. "I was about to send Lily up to wake you."

"No need," Jane said. Her stomach grumbled agreement, and she realized she was ravenously hungry. "I'm starving."

In a few minutes, Jane sat down to eat, joined by Lillian and Zach. Colleen stayed at the stove to keep the flow of food coming. After a quick moment to say grace, Jane forked three pancakes onto her plate, followed by slices of bacon and a couple of sausage links. She hesitated a moment, then spooned a heaping helping of hash browns onto the side of her plate, ignoring a curious look from Lillian.

For some time there was little conversation, but the sound of chewing and contented sighs filled the silence. Colleen drifted in from time to time, munching on slices of toast. A member of the swim team at Minnesota, following in Jane's own footsteps, she had to watch her weight. In Jane's opinion, she didn't have anything to worry about. The high metabolism which kept all the members of their family slim and trim had not bypassed her niece. A thought occurred to her, and she noted it for later use. Was this something which could be used in later genetic therapies? Christ. Guaranteed weight loss. One shot and watch the pounds just walk away, borne on the back of a genetic legacy which has a higher metabolism than yours.

"So what are your plans for the day?" she asked Zach and Lillian.

"I'm golfing with Ray and Rob and Eric," Zach said, wiping maple syrup off his mouth. He finished the last bite of his pancakes and sighed, leaning back in his chair. "Damn, that was good. They don't have food like that in the dorm back in Madison."

"Your own fault, going to a school like Wisconsin," Lillian teased. "You should have been cool like me, and gone to a good school like the University of Illinois." Lillian's mind, unlike her brother's, ran more to math and science, and she was already making plans for a future as an engineer. And Illinois had one of the best engineering schools in the country.

"Really?" her twin said with a grin. "When was the last time the U of I beat Wisconsin in anything?"

"Last year, in basketball," Lillian smirked. "Twice."

"Hush," Jane commanded. "You're both wrong. The University of Iowa is obviously the best school in the Big Ten." As the twins made exaggerated gagging sounds, she forked another stack of pancakes onto her plate, mildly surprised at her own appetite.

"How about you, Colleen?" she asked.

"I'm going out shopping," her blond niece replied. She looked at her half-sister. "You can come along, if you like."

"I suppose I should," Lillian said. She looked down at her chest sadly. "Since it looks like the Boobie Fairy is never going to be giving me more than what I have now, I need to get some new bras. At least they will show off what I do have."

"Your mother didn't have a big bust," Jane said. "It never did her any harm."

"Well, yeah, but Mom was a model," Lillian protested. "There's a huge difference between an A-cup on her and an A-cup on me."

"Count your blessings," Jane said wryly. "Some of us don't have that much." Lillian colored as she looked at her apologetically.

"Stop being dumb," Zach said. "You're all gorgeous. So you don't have big boobs. So what? Any guy who looks at you and thinks you're unattractive is an idiot. Most men I know would be thrilled to go to bed with any of you." He blushed fiercely and looked down at his plate. "Just sayin'."

Colleen and Lillian locked eyes, and grins spread over a pair of faces. "Awww, isn't he sweet?" Colleen trilled. She sat down beside Zach, pulling him close. Lilian did the same from the other side. "Aunt Jane, can we keep him?" she begged. "I know he isn't housebroken yet, but we can keep him in the back yard."

"We promise to take him for a walk every day. And we'll feed him and clean up his poop and everything," Lillian said. In unison, the girls kissed Zach on the cheeks and hugged him, making him red from embarrassment.

"God, leave me alone," he protested, trying to fend them off with his hands. His head came up as a low whine entered the room from outside. "What, already?" he complained.

In response the girls ran to the front door, sighing in unison as they watched the man outside mowing his well-tended lawn.

"Shoot," Lillian said. "He's got his shirt on."

Jane smiled as she watched the two young women. They had been fascinated with their neighbor, Jeff Sanders, ever since he had moved in next door nine years ago. Still adjusting to America after their mother's death, the two girls had latched onto him as a surrogate father. For his part, he had treated them as the daughters he had never had. When Jeff had married, they had gone to the wedding, and each had claimed a dance with the smiling groom.

And when Bonnie, Jeff's sweet, gentle bride, had died from breast cancer two years ago, they had wept at the funeral.

"He needs a woman," Colleen said, eying their handsome neighbor hungrily. She slanted a look at her aunt. "One his own age. Someone he has known for a long time."

Jane's eyes widened as she caught the hint. "Come on, Colleen. It's too soon. And Jeff has never even looked at me."

"Bonnie's been gone for two years, Aunt Jane," Lillian replied. "What's wrong with Jeff? He's hot, smart, funny-"

"Hot," added Colleen.

"-has a good job, is good with kids-"

"Hot."

"-And is apparently hot," Lillian said, with an exasperated look at her older sister. "Plus, if you don't think Jeff's interested in you, well, you don't know men very well."

"Maybe I don't," Jane said uncomfortably. She tried to change the subject, as she did whenever the subject of her love life was brought up. "I'm going upstairs to change."

"So what are you going to be doing all day while we're out?" Zach asked pointedly.

"Me?" Jane pretended to ponder the question. "I'm going to take a swim and work off some of these pancakes. Then I'll read for a while out in the sun. I've gotten too pale lately. After that, who knows? This is a vacation. I intend to enjoy it."

*****

A few hours later, Jane was beginning to wonder if she had made a mistake. She had taken a long swim, her body slicing through the warm water with practiced ease. Despite her youth, she had been a member of the varsity swim team at the University of Iowa, earning several all-conference trophies. She had been careful not to let her skills atrophy in the intervening years, and the large outdoor pool had been her one indulgent concession when she bought the house.

Afterward, she had lain out in the sun for a few hours, her body covered with a glistening layer of suntan oil. She had read, napped, and read some more, interrupted only by a large lunch of leftovers from the previous evening.

I never thought day-old kung pao chicken could taste so good, she thought as she tossed the empty carton into the recycling bin and burped daintily.

But by the early afternoon, she was feeling restless. She wandered through the house, jittery and unfocused. She turned on the TV, then turned it off even more quickly. Her new novel couldn't hold her interest. Nor could the professional research magazines she picked up in a desperate attempt to distract herself.

So when the knock came at the front door, it was a welcome respite. But she was surprised when she opened it to see Jeff Sanders.

"Jeff," she said, suddenly wishing she had changed into something less revealing. Her swimsuit was by no means risqué, but it made unhappily clear just how much she was lacking when it came to female endowments. "What can I do for you?" She paused, and added with a smile. "And what are you all dressed up for?" Her neighbor was nattily dressed in a charcoal-gray suit with a dark blue tie. Jane thought he looked good enough to eat.

Jeff smiled, his teeth flashing in the light. "I've got a wedding to go to," he said. "A friend of mine from college is finally getting hitched. But I was walking by and noticed your lawn is looking a little shaggy. I'd be happy to take care of it for you tomorrow."

"That's very generous of you," she said gratefully. "Zach's supposed to do the mowing, but he's golfing with some friends today." She fought an internal struggle between her desire to see more of Jeff, who she had admired for years, and her own instinctive shyness. "If you don't mind, that would be great," she said at last. "And when you're done, you're more than welcome to have a dip in the pool afterward. We can hang out and have a drink and get caught up. It's been a while since we've had a talk.

"But not too early," she said with a smile. "The kids like to sleep in on Sundays."

"No problem," he replied. She was struck suddenly by just how good-looking he was. Of medium height, their faces were nearly on a level with each other. His black hair, neatly combed, glinted in the summer sunshine, throwing back highlights which were nearly blue. His gray eyes were deep-set, but the set of his mouth was firm and kind, bracketed by laugh lines in the corners.

Suddenly she wondered what his mouth would taste like. How the skin of his chest would feel beneath her hands. Whether he was as well-endowed as her seldom-indulged late-night fantasies suggested he might be.

All at once her swimsuit felt too tight, too confining. Her skin flushed, and she could feel her nipples slowly surge erect. She saw Jeff's glance flicker downward, and she knew he had seen them tenting the cloth of her bikini top. Yet for once she did not feel embarrassed or ashamed. Instead she felt pride. Pride in her power as a woman to make a man want her.

Jeff opened his mouth, but he was interrupted by a beep from his cell phone. He gave a quick half-smile.

"I've got to be going," he said. "But I'll see you tomorrow afternoon, okay?"

"Sure," she replied. Her voice was slightly hoarse. She watched him as he walked across the yard to his house and hopped into his car, her eyes devouring the way the cloth of his pants subtly hugged the tight curves of his ass.

She closed the door, fighting a wave of heat that seemed to be boiling through her, concentrated in her chest and belly and groin. What is going on? she thought dazedly. I've never felt this way before. It was so powerful!

"Holy crap," she whispered. "I'm horny!" She ran her hands from her chest to her belly, softly wondering at the new feelings within her body. It seemed incredible she had not recognized the signs. But her moments of sexual arousal had been so few, so fleeting, as to be almost nonexistent. Even on those occasions when she tried to arouse herself through masturbation, she failed more often than not to bring herself to climax. So to become horny simply through a conversation with a good-looking man was almost incomprehensible.

But it's true. I'm horny. Ready for sex. I want a man.

But a man, unfortunately, was nowhere to be found. Dammit.

Well. At least I know what to do next.

She quickly ran upstairs. Switching on the laptop, she set it to record.

"It is Saturday, June twenty-fifth," she said, trying to keep the note of triumph out of her voice. "The time is two thirty-seven in the afternoon. I am pleased to say one of the tertiary goals of this therapy has already been met. The subject, Jane Richardson, is reporting feelings of arousal while in the vicinity of a sexually mature male. These feelings are far in excess of those she has had previously experienced." She tugged down her bikini bottoms. "And one of the secondary goals has also been met." Coloring slightly, she ran a finger between the folds of her vulva and held it out so the camera could see. "Vaginal secretions have also increased. While the time-frame for these changes is somewhat quicker than what was anticipated, it is by no means impossible. It is the subject's opinion that masturbation will result in an easily-achievable orgasm. It is an opinion she is willing to test at this time."

She left the camera on as she climbed onto the bed. She smiled to herself as she untied her bikini top and dropped it aside. Before, she would have felt horrified by the idea of someone watching her masturbate. But now it made her feel deliciously naughty.

Lying on her back, she closed her eyes, remembering the way Jeff had looked at her, just before he left. The way his slightly wavy hair fell down across his forehead, making her fingers itch to brush it back. The way sweat gleamed on his arms when he mowed the yard. The sound of his voice, a clear tenor with hints of sadness. His deep gray eyes, calm and kind.

I could spend the rest of my life looking into those eyes, she thought suddenly.

And all the time, her hands were on her body, stroking, caressing, teasing. For the first time in her sexual life, her body was not an enemy. Not even a reluctant friend. It was a fully-fledged ally, and sweat broke out on her upper lip and in the taut curves of her belly as her arousal grew.