Author's Notes: This story is deliberately short. The title refers to the style as much as to the "conventional" sex described . . .
Vanilla is a flavor derived from orchids of the genus Vanilla, primarily from the Mexican species, flat-leaved vanilla (V.
planifolia
). It is the second most expensive spice after saffron, because growing the vanilla seed pods is labor-intensive. Despite the expense, vanilla is highly valued for its flavor.
Vanilla sex
is what a culture regards as standard sexual behavior. Different cultures, subcultures, and individuals have different ideas about what constitutes this type of sex. Often, it is interpreted as sex which does not involve such elements as BDSM, kink, or fetish activities, and is therefore considered plain or conventional.
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Lily's mother sipped her coffee while admiring her beautiful red-headed 21-year-old daughter across the dinner table. Carol loved her with every breath in her body, but she worried about her.
Lily was the proverbial "love child"—the unexpected result of a passionate affair Carol had had late in life. She'd never had any intention of getting together with the father, even when he left his wife, so Lily had grown up without one. Carol worried constantly that the lack of a male presence in the house had made her daughter skittish of men. Lily rarely brought boyfriends home, and never seemed to be that interested in the ones she did. She seemed more excited about her schoolwork than anything else.
Carol hoped that Lily would meet someone, but then again, she often thought, who would be good enough for her? The young boys she had brought home had been so agog at her beauty they could barely speak, and had not seemed nearly interesting enough.
Lately, however, she had noticed a change in her. Something, a small incident, had made her wonder, but if Lily didn't want to tell her . . . "So what are your plans for the summer? Any dates lined up, dear?"
Lily smiled. "No, not yet . . ."
"What about your friends? I haven't seen them around lately."
"They're off with their boyfriends. No time."
"You should try and meet someone. Have some fun! Go out!"
Lily walked over and wrapped her arms around her from behind, while Carol reached up and held onto them. "I will, Mother, I promise."
"So, are you off to the store?"
"Yes, I'll close up tonight. Don't worry about anything." Lily kissed her on the cheek.
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As Lily sped up the freeway from Orange County in the opposite direction of where she was supposed to be going, she cringed once again from the guilt of having lied to her mother. She hated it, but she was in the middle of something she knew she would not understand.
She had left someone else in charge at the store, and was on her way to see her lover. He had a little painting studio in Venice on the canals, their favorite place to meet. As she thought of Robert waiting for her, she pressed on the gas and forgot about her mother. Opening the window to inhale the scent of the eucalyptus trees lining the freeways, Lily's body ached with anticipation.
The desert night air of Southern California swirled around her like a hot liquid bath. Los Angeles was a foul pit during the day, but the most erotic city on earth at night. The endless strip mall landscape clogged with cars disappeared when the sun went down, and a magical world took its place. Misted blue hills dotted with twinkling white lights emerged as a ring on the horizon to frame the star-filled sky. The glimmering ocean turned into a gigantic mirror reflecting the moon and clouds, the lights from the hills, and the lazily spinning carnival rides lining the boardwalk piers. A heavy scent of ocean mixed with jasmine seeped into every house. The city became softer and more primitive as nature reasserted its power. Bears, wolves, and coyotes wandered down from the hills. And everywhere was the promise of something secret, sexy, and seductive going on.
As long as she lived, Lily would never forget these nights.
She pulled up to Robert's pink bungalow. Seeing a light on in the back, she walked around to the side door.
He met her there, opened the door, and pulled her in. In seconds he had her petite, voluptuous body pushed up against the wall, his massive arms pinning her as he kissed her mouth and fisted her thick russet ringlets with his paint-splattered hands. "What took you so long?"
Closing her eyes, Lily smiled and leaned against the wall like a rag doll, passive and weak as she sunk into a thick languor. She luxuriated in it as if she had just jumped into a deep pool.
