"Frederika?"
I looked up from my computer screen. It was Carla, standing in the doorway of my downtown Seattle office with a gilt-edged envelope in her hand.
"Yes?"
"I'm such a dork this week. I got an invitation from a friend of a friend to check out the grand opening of this new jewelry store in Capitol Hill. But I just realized I can't go. I totally forgot I have yoga tonight. I know this is late notice, but would you like to go instead?"
"Oh sure, that sounds like fun. But what time is it?"
"It's from 6 to 9. The address is on the invitation." I took the envelope from her, opened it, and scanned the details. "Delilah's Treasures...one-of-a-kind creations in gold, silver, and copper for the woman who knows what she wants...canapes and wine." Well, that sounded all right.
"Hmm. I'm having dinner at my sister's place tonight, but you know, I should be able to pop in on the way home. Thanks, Carla."
At 8:30, I parked the car on East Mercer and walked about a block north. At first I wasn't sure if I'd found the right address: the sign on the ground-floor location was very discreet, and although lit up, the place appeared to be empty. But then I spotted two women hovering around a table of half-devoured hors-d'oeuvres at the back. I stepped down off the curb and opened the door.
Inside the intimately lit store, Thievery Corporation's "Until the Morning" throbbed softly in the background. I scanned the gleaming display cases that ringed the walls as the taller of the two women - curvy, late 40's, and wearing a black St. John Collection pant suit - came over toward me. She flicked a lock of her long, black curly hair off her square-framed eye glasses and extended her hand.
"I'm Delilah Cohen," she said with a smile. "Welcome to Delilah's Treasures."
"Oh hi, I'm Frederika, and I'm just here for your grand opening," I said. Her fingers were long and deliciously cool, and we both held on a trace longer than we needed to.
"Namaste," Delilah said. "It's an honour to have you with us, Frederika. As you can see, most of our guests left earlier, but we'd love to show you around. This is my partner, Julie Latendresse."
Julie finished tidying up the hors-d'oeuvres and hurried over to be introduced. Wearing a short blue silk party dress, she sported a blonde ponytail and her cheeks had a girlish, pink flush. "Can I please get you a glass of Merlot or Chardonnay?" she asked with a French-Canadian accent.
"I'll take a Merlot," I said, before turning my attention back to Delilah. "I love the way you've laid out the display cases. Wasn't this a little contemporary art gallery before?"
"They closed back in May," explained Delilah. "We spent the last two months renovating and just put the finishing touches on."
"So how long have you two been working together?" I asked, accepting my wine from Julie and taking a long sip.
"Well, we actually met in Montreal about eight years ago, and we moved out here in 2009," Deborah said. "You see, Julie is my life partner. This is the very first time we've gone into business together, but so far, it's working out just as well as I anticipated."
"You have exquisite taste," I said, which brought a little more colour to Julie's cheeks. "I like that silver collar Julie has on. Did you design that?"
"Everything you see in here is my handiwork," Delilah stated. "My original background was interior decorating, but I love the powerful effect that beautifully designed jewelry can have on women."
"She is incredibly talented," Julie said, squeezing Delilah's hand. "What I do is take care of the bookkeeping, the inventory, the ad sales...I do whatever Delilah needs done to make sure that she is always free to create."
"That sounds like a wonderful working arrangement," I said in a low voice. What I was beginning to discern about the relationship between these two openly lesbian women was turning me on. Not to mention the hot, insistent eye contact between Delilah and me, which, frankly, had me throbbing with excitement.
"Would you like a tour of the store?" Delilah inquired.
"I'd like nothing better," I replied, finishing off my wine.
"Over here, we have my signature amethyst pendant," Delilah said, placing her hand on my waist and guiding me toward the nearest display case. Julie unlocked it and brought out a pendant with a glistening, light purple gem.
"The gemstone is mined in Senegal, and I've set it centrally in a 24-karat gold lotus flower pattern," Delilah explained. "It's a visual metaphor for the liberation of a woman's latent sensuality. Do you like it?"
"It's gorgeous," I said. "Let me try it on."
Julie unclipped the pendant and handed it to Delilah, who stood close behind me as she hung it around my neck. I could feel her soft breath on my skin, and her nipples felt deliciously hard as they brushed up against my back.
"It goes perfectly with that outfit of yours," said Julie, who watched us with a shy smile. "C'est magnifique."
"How much is it?" I inquired.
"Two hundred dollars," said Delilah.