A few disclaimers:
- My stories tend to have buildup and character development to them, at least I like to think so. Either way, you have to read a bit before the "action" starts.
- The BKP stories were written in an order but they don't directly tie into one another; some characters repeat but rarely main characters. You don't have to read them in a particular order, in other words.
Comments and ratings are appreciated.
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Yolanda Smith stopped her rented car in front of the ludicrously large house in California. The drive up to it had literally been up. Yolanda, a Michigan native, had wondered in horror what the drive would be like in the winter before remembering California didn't have such problems. She flipped the visor mirror down and a few of her stray hairs back, though most of her huge mane of black hair was captured in the braid that stopped down around the middle of her back. Her oval face was blemishless thanks to some quick work with concealer earlier when she'd noticed a telltale red spot, and her blue eyeshadow and upswept liner were still in place, enhancing her brown eyes. She supposed the makeup was attractive enough.
Of course, her sorority roommate had joked that Yolanda could wear a loose pajama onesie and still turn heads. Yolanda's mother's family was full of curvy black women going back generations, and her father was a wiry Latino man. Now 25, Yolanda was saddled with the fruits of their union; she was 5'5" with caramel skin, wavy rather than curly hair, and curves that warranted road signs. She'd been teased or worshipped for her round ass and hips ever since puberty, and when her chest finally stopped growing the letter on her bras was a G. They were still perky enough that they stayed on her chest without a bra, and her attention to her meals and gym schedule meant she still had a waist that pulled in enough to make a damn fine hourglass, as her mother put it, but she always wondered how long she had before her stomach caught up to her hips and her boobs made a run for her knees. Right now everything was nicely buttoned up in her tan business skirt suit. She debated undoing a few buttons on her blouse, but she knew Crystal didn't approve of that kind of attitude.
"Ninety five percent of our clients are medical professionals or those suffering from ailments, some of them permanent. The other five percent of the clients both don't want and won't appreciate our company's image being anything other than that of a fully above-board physical therapy device manufacturer. Make sure you keep it that way."
Remembering the training from years ago reminded Yolanda that Crystal wanted a phone call when Yolanda arrived. She pulled out her phone and contacted the imposing head of BKP Devices' marketing department. When answered, the camera seemed to be sitting on Crystal Zapata's desk. It showed the woman in profile. She had a wraparound top on, or perhaps a full dress, that bulged elegantly at the chest as the strips of fabric wrapped around the woman's breasts. Her neck looked oddly long, an effect perhaps enhanced by the silver choker she wore. Her tan skin contrasted with her black hair, gathered at her neck with a wide silver clasp that complemented it and the fuchsia streaks quite well. After a moment, Crystal turned and her deep red lips and piercing hazel eyes focused on the camera, sending a bit of a shiver up Yolanda's spine. Despite working with her for years, Crystal was still able to overwhelm Yolanda with her personality, even over video, and Yolanda knew she wasn't alone.
"Did you find the Omerta's home all right Miss Smith?" Crystal asked.
"Yeah, it's...well it's in a really nice neighborhood," Yolanda said, looking out her driver's side window at the sloping stretch of land and the expanse of the Pacific ocean she was sure could be seen from most of the house's windows.
"I should think so," Crystal replied with a chuckle, "You're giving them assistance with possibly our most expensive product. Usually the Cloudrester models are only bought with a lot of insurance subsidies but the Omertas paid out of pocket for it and the personal demo, which is where you come in."
"Right, um...Miss Zapata?" she asked hesitantly, drawing a raised eyebrow from her manager, "What...model number is on it?"
Yolanda winced even before finishing the question. She thought she saw Crystal's eyes narrow a bit but with the lighting and the small screen it was hard to tell.
"It's a Cloudrester 100, Miss Smith. Fully rated and approved for medical support and therapy, and
not
part of our exclusive specialty line. Of course, the premise of that line is that most of our machines have multiple potential applications for creative users. However, let me reiterate that you are not expected or encouraged to draw attention to those. If the clients bring it up then you can answer truthfully, but you should not be encouraging or suggesting thinking along those lines on your own initiative. I believe we've had this conversation before, have we not?"
"Yes, Miss Zapata. Sorry. I'll get to the demonstration," Yolanda said. She desperately wanted to disconnect but she waited for her manager's nod before actually ending the call.
She walked up the wide stone walkway to the multi-tiered white stone house and rang the bell. She expected some kind of servant to answer the door, but based on the picture she'd been given with the client profile paperwork, Mrs. Omerta herself answered.
She was a mature woman but good living and maybe cosmetics made it hard to pinpoint her age beyond "around 40." She was very slim and taller than Yolanda, wearing a simple black dress that stopped at mid-thigh. The pale legs and arms on display were muscular but not built; the woman just had so little body fat her natural musculature showed through. Her face didn't have the skeletal appearance of someone nearly starving, though it was narrow with a pointed chin. Her blue eyes seemed bright and excited when her curly dirty blonde hair wasn't falling forward around them.
"Come in! Come in! You're the girl from BKP, right?" she asked.
"Yes Ma'am," Yolanda said, stepping in, her low pumps echoing on the floor of the foyer, which at least looked like marble.
"Oh call me Shirley, please. Jim! The girl from the bed people is here, and she's
really
nice."
Yolanda thought the woman was overselling her charms a bit since they'd talked for all of four seconds. The foyer room was small as mansions went; only the size of a regular room, but Shirley dragged her through into the house. The room they were in now seemed modeled on a modern style, with nearly the whole floor visible. Different areas of the large room had clearly been made up as a living room, dining room, and of course the kitchen but there were no walls separating any of them. The furniture was all ultramodern as well, with white and blonde wood everywhere mixed with some red accents here and there.
Jim Omerta (short for Jaime, Yolanda knew from the paperwork) came down a wide spiral staircase in the center of the room. He wore a black turtleneck and grey slacks that were tight enough to show he had a build similar to his wife; trim and thin, though he had a little more muscle build than she did, at least visibly. His face was round but had smile lines around the eyes and mouth, only partially hidden by the short stubble he sported. His black hair was cut short and spiked on the top, and he had the tan skin of deep Hispanic roots she recognized from her paternal grandparents.
"Excellent! Come to show us how our new toy works?" he asked.
"Well...we don't like to suggest any of BKP's products are toys, Mister Omerta..." Yolanda said.
"Oh of course, obviously," he said. His English was impeccable but he had a very slight hint of a Spanish accent to his voice that gave him a fully exotic flair. She guessed Mrs. Omerta was either very tolerant or didn't have a jealous bone in her because Yolanda guessed Jim probably grabbed the attention of a good portion of the females wherever he went.
"Come on up," Shirley said, leading her toward the staircase as Jim ascended ahead of them, "How long have you been with BKP?"
"Oh, three years. I got recruited right out of college; my sorority does a lot of internships with them."
"Oh which one was that?" Jim asked ahead of her.
"Beta Kappa Pi?" Yolanda said.
"Ah yes," Jim said, "I was with Lambda Sigma Upsilon myself. We didn't do any partner events with your group but I know they were on my campus. I think one of the brothers was with a Beta Kappa girl for a bit. Nobody had to ask why, that was for sure."
"Jim, stop, you're embarrassing the poor girl," Shirley said, caressing Yolanda's forearm, which only made her blush more. There were times when she wished more of her mother's side had come through in her genetics; her skin was light enough that it still sometimes showed when she blushed.
They reached what was clearly the master bedroom, and Yolanda had to stop herself from commenting that it looked as large as her own apartment. A master bath with lots of white, gold metal, and mirrors was partially visible through a doorway off to their left, and the wall opposite the door was actually just windows looking out at the view Yolanda admired from the car. The middle of the room held the purpose of the visit.
Yolanda looked at the Omertas, who'd moved over to a corner of the bed and looked at her expectantly, so she started in on her spiel.
"So as you might remember, the Cloudrester 100 is the pinnacle of smart resting technology. It's slightly larger than a California king size bed to help in assuring each partner has the full experience of individual support and comfort. Behind the shell, over a thousand mechanical pistons connect to separate proprietary comfort foam columns that fit together almost seamlessly, allowing each inch of the bed to be contoured independently."
Yolanda used the app on the tablet she held to set the bed in a demo mode, which started by turning the top of it into a field of hills like moguls on a ski slope.
"The top of the bed has an integrated membrane made of our BKP branded Cradle Gel. It will expand to match any configuration the top of the bed is put into, and has thermal regulatory properties to ensure you stay as warm or as cool as you need to while using the Cloudrester. It's water resistant and can accommodate anything from basic cloth to imported silk bedding. BKP also sells some branded bedding with elastic properties to more accurately conform to the bed's configurations."
"Yes, we've got those sheets on the bed now," Shirley said. At this point the bed's demonstration mode had waves moving down from the head to the foot of the bed slowly.
"Excellent, we appreciate that," Yolanda said, "Because of the bed's structure, it's capable of creating surface height differences of up to three feet."
