Amorous Goods: the Victrola

Prologue:

A lifelong collector of goods and objects from far and wide has passed and left the entire collection and the business built around them to the only remaining relative, a niece on a career path of her own. Vikki has taken on the task of administering the estate and liquidating the business and collection. However, she has come to find out that many of the goods have been cursed or enchanted with amorous powers that affect those who encounter them. These are the stories of some of those encounters with objects found at Amorous Goods.

...

My work day had just ended and I was on my way to the restaurant where Terri, my wife of 16 years, said I should meet her and our two teenage children, April and Robert. Today was my 40

th

birthday and I wondered what she had in store for me. That morning, she woke me up with a toe-curling blowjob and said that was just the beginning. Naturally, that was all I thought about that day, especially since she had never done anything quite like that before.

"See ya, Jack," my secretary, er, personal assistant, said as I walked out my door. That's me, by the way -- Jack Thornton -- and I work as the chief financial officer for a manufacturing company that makes specialized equipment for other manufacturers. I won't get into all the details, because they can be rather boring. Suffice it to say, we make things other factories use to make things. Hopefully, that makes sense. We do good quality work, make lots of money and employ a lot of people. My job is to make sure we keep making lots of money.

Earlier that day, the office held a little celebration. Not much, really, but I appreciated the effort and the thought behind it. They all meant well, and we had a good time. Alan Charles, our CEO, had bought a nice cake and everyone else pitched in to provide snacks and drinks. There was, of course, light-hearted banter at the expense of my age. Someone gave me a cane, for example. Another person handed me a jar of dirt with a note that read, "Scientist found the one thing older than Jack Thornton." I got a good laugh out of that.

Everyone there knows my love of antiques, and much to my surprise, they had pitched in and bought an old Victrola. I saw it was an authentic hand-crank Victor with an external horn and knew it had to easily cost north of $5000.

"Guys, this is too much," I said. "You really shouldn't have done this."

"Nonsense," Alan said. "Where do you think your year-end bonus went?" We all had a good laugh at that. After the party, I rearranged the credenza in my office and set the old record player right in the middle, surrounding it with birthday cards. I wanted everyone in the office to know how much I really appreciated the gift.

Alan came into my office and looked at the display on my credenza. He smiled as I arranged the cards around it.

"I hope you like it," he said. "We all know your fondness of antiques."

"I love it," I said. "But seriously, you guys spent way too much money. An original hand-crank Victrola in that condition normally costs several thousands of dollars, and there's not that many left. This thing looks almost brand new."

"Actually, it didn't cost much at all," he said. "I was pretty surprised about it myself." He handed me a business card with the name and address of a shop that had just recently opened up. "The lady who runs the place, I think she said her name was Vikki, was apparently contracted to sell off a collection of artifacts from a collector who passed away. She said she has some old records that would work on that thing if you're interested."

"Of course I'm interested," I said, taking the card. "Thanks." He smiled and nodded his head as he began to leave the office.

"You're welcome," he said. "And enjoy." When he left, I called the number on the card and spoke to Vikki.

"Yes, I remember selling that old Victrola," she said. "It was part of a collection an uncle had and I was tasked with selling it after he died."

"I was told you have some records that would work on it," I said. "Do you still have those?"

"Yes, I do," she said. "I have about 10 of them, and you can have them all if you want."

"How much would you want for the lot of them?" I asked.

"Well, since you already have the Victrola, I'll let you have them cheap, say $20?" Twenty dollars for a collection of old wax 78 RPM records? Hell yeah, I thought to myself.

"I'll take them," I said. "Can you hold them for me, please?"

"I'll be happy to," she said. I gave her my name and phone number and arranged to stop by in the morning on my way to work. But as for right now, I had other priorities.

When the work day was over, I set off to see what surprises my wife and children had up their collective sleeves. Terri was wonderful about things like this. I already figured she would get something to add to my antique collection. But what, exactly? A sword? An old rifle?

I had lots of those already, including a sword stamped, "Republic of Texas." I also had a number of antique long guns I hung on the wall. A couple of them -- .75 caliber smooth-bore Brown Bess muskets, complete with bayonets -- dated to the Revolutionary War. Of course, I never fired them, but I had fired replicas.

Granted, there was a lot of money hanging on those walls, but my collection wasn't about money -- it was about touching history and knowing those items were once used in the everyday lives of people shaping what would become the future. I always had a love of history and sought to instill that in our children, telling them stories of bravery, sacrifice and courage in the days before modern conveniences like cell phones and the Internet.

I also had some pieces of antique furniture, including a rocking chair my great-great-great grandfather made for his wife. We never sat in the thing, but used it as a prop for one of my wife's afghans and a set of big flop-eared rabbits my daughter once made as an anniversary present. They were supposed to represent Terri and I, she said.

So I wondered what Terri and the kids had picked up when I parked in the lot and walked to the restaurant. I knew she was there as I saw her car when I pulled in. When I got inside the restaurant, I was escorted to the large booth already occupied by Terri and the kids. I gave my wife a big kiss and hugged the kids.

"So how was your day?" she asked.

"Very good, actually," I said. "The crew threw a party for me and they gave me an old Victrola. Can you believe it? I've always wanted one of those things."

"What's that, Dad," Robert asked.

"It's an old-time record player," I said. "This one has a hand crank and a big horn attached to the needle. No electronics or anything."

"How does it play records, then?" he asked. I laughed.

"Well, it doesn't play modern vinyl, for one thing," I said. "Back then all the records were made out of wax and they played at 78 RPM, a lot faster than today's records. Besides, the needle on that thing would destroy a modern album."

"Wow," he said. "Too bad they didn't have YouTube in those days." We chuckled at that. We ordered our dinner and afterward had a piece of cake and pie. I was surprised when the staff all came to our table and sang "Happy Birthday." Even Terri and the kids joined in. We all clapped afterward and April gave me a big hug.

"Happy birthday, Daddy," she said. "We love you." I hugged her back.

"I love you too," I said. I looked around at my family, my eyes watery. "I love all of you so much. Just being here with you all is the best birthday present ever."

"It's not over with yet," Terri said. "There's one more thing."

"What's that?" I asked. She pulled a small box out of her purse and set it on the table in front of me. "What's this?" I asked.

"Your present," she said. "From all of us." I opened the box and found a set of car keys. I looked at them, confused.

"You remember that old 1957 Chevy you saw a while back?" Terri asked. I nodded my head. It was a two-tone red and white Chevy coupe sitting next to an old house. It looked like it hadn't been run in ages.

"Well, I spoke to the people who lived there, and they said the car belonged to an old guy who recently passed away," she said. "It hadn't been run in years, so they let Robert come over and check it out. We had it towed to the house earlier today. You always said you wanted a project car that you and the kids could work on together, so we thought, what the hell, and bought it."

"It's not in bad shape at all, Dad," Robert said. "The interior looks almost new. It could use some engine work and a bit of paint, but the body is in excellent shape. Not a spot of rust anywhere."

"I don't know what to say, guys," I said, tears threatening to fall down my cheeks. "That sounds wonderful. Thank you so much. This is the best birthday ever." We had a group hug, then got ready to leave. Before we split to go to our separate cars, Terri came over to me and kissed me deeply.

"Your party's not over yet, sailor," she said with a sultry look on her face I knew all too well. "I'll give you my present later on tonight." I saw that gleam in her eye that meant tonight was going to be even more fun. I smiled and kissed her back.

"I can't wait," I said with a smile. I watched her walk back to her car, feeling a familiar stirring in my groin. It had been a while since we had made love. I don't know why that was, exactly. It just seemed that we were either too tired or something intervened to keep us apart. It wasn't my job -- I never went anywhere, and rarely did I go to the bar to drink with the guys.

As I drove home, it hit me that the real reason Terri and I hadn't been together as much lately was because of her schedule. She sells real estate and while she makes a good living at it, she's gone a lot more than I would like, sometimes on weekends and other times in the evenings.

About once a month, she goes out to blow off steam with the girls from the office, and I never begrudged her that. I knew her job involved a lot of stress, so I actually preferred she not take it out on her family. But there have been a few times I thought she had just a bit too much to drink on those nights out, and more than once, I've detected the whiff of a man's cologne on her. I never thought she might be cheating because that was the one thing we both knew was a deal-breaker.

Not only that, but Terri was not one to flirt and never had been. She was friendly, polite and always professional in public, but never flirty, and she never came on to other men. I think that was one of the things that attracted me to her from the beginning.

Still, I couldn't help but wonder sometimes. She's a few years younger than me, and she still carries herself very well. When she dolls herself up for a night out, she can easily pass for someone much younger. Plus, her time at the gym has really helped keep her in good shape. But something kept niggling at the back of my mind. It had been nearly two months since we had done anything, and about three weeks since I had even seen her in the nude.

Worse yet, she almost seemed like two completely different people. I had no idea from one day to the next which Terri I would come home to -- the sweet, loving woman I married, or the distant, self-absorbed, short-tempered shrew she had recently been sometimes.

We pulled into our driveway and went into the garage. I grabbed my briefcase and got out the same time Terri and the kids did. Robert came right over to me.

"Did you see the car, Dad?" he asked. I had seen it, as it was sitting next to the garage under a tarp. We all went over to take a look and I was impressed at the shape it was in. Robert was right -- there wasn't a spot of rust on the body, which looked to be pristine. There were a few places where the paint was starting to fade, but I figured that could easily be taken care of. I looked under the car and saw no leaks -- an even better sign.

"What do you think, Dad," he asked me, excited. I nodded my head.

"Maybe this weekend we can start looking at the engine," I said. His smile broadened and I thought he was going to jump up and down, clapping. Terri came over to me as we walked around the thing.

"I hope you like it," she said.

"I love it, dear," I said. "We'll have this thing back on the road in no time and we can all go on a drive in it together. What do ya say?" She smiled and shook her head.

"Boys and their toys," she said. She turned and walked into the house and we followed close behind.

"You kids have any homework?" I asked.

"Nope," Robert said. "All done." April basically said the same thing. We had a hard and fast rule in the house -- homework was to be done before anything else. Tonight was a bit of an exception since they took me out to dinner and I was willing to let them slide, just this once. It was my birthday, after all.

"Okay," I said, heading upstairs to change. Terri had already gone up and she was in the bathroom when I entered the bedroom. I set my briefcase down and put on my sweats. We were all tired from the day's activities and I was looking forward to some alone time with Terri, something we haven't had much of lately.

As I was putting my sneakers on, Terri came out of the bathroom, wearing a pair of cutoffs and a t-shirt. She could rock a pair of cutoffs, and I loved looking at her smooth, toned legs. The t-shirt revealed just a bit of midriff and her B-cup breasts looked so inviting. She saw the look on my face, smiled and waved her finger.

"Not just yet," she said. "Kids are still up. Just wait."

"Aw, c'mon," I said, slapping her butt.

"Watch it, now," she said, laughing. We went back downstairs, grabbed a soda and plopped down on the couch. I grabbed the television remote as I always did and turned the TV on.

"Anything interesting happen in your world today?" I asked Terri.

"Not much," she said. "Just the same old, same old. I do have a potential buyer for the Parker place, though." I knew she had been trying to sell that old Victorian house for quite a while. The sellers wanted top dollar for it, but it was just too much house for most of the buyers who looked at it. At least, that's what Terri said.

"That's good news, isn't it?" I asked.

"Yeah," she said quietly. "It's been a thorn in my side for far too long. I may have to work a few evenings to get it sold, though, if this buyer doesn't take it." I knew what that meant -- I would have to play "Mr. Mom" while she showed the place off to people who actually work for a living. Some of those showings sometimes lasted until after 8:00 or 9:00 pm. I often wondered who went out looking at houses that late, anyway.

"Personally, I kinda hate being in that place alone, though," she said quietly. "It's so... big. And it just seems to have this strange atmosphere. I can't explain it."

"Are you saying it's haunted?" I asked. She laughed and shook her head.

"Haunted, I can handle," she said jokingly. "No, it's something... different. I can't quite explain it."

"Well, old Jonas Parker lived there a long time, didn't he?" I asked.

"I was told all his life," she said. "He was 93 when he died. Took the family a couple months just to get all of his stuff out of there. You wouldn't believe all the things they took out. Boxes and boxes full of trinkets and things."

"Was he some kind of a hoarder or something?" I asked.

"Not really," she said. "He was more like a collector. Had all kinds of crazy things. Old things. I heard a niece of his took over his business and is trying to sell it all off. Vikki somebody-or-other. I don't know. All I know is the place makes me feel... strange." I pulled out the card Alan gave me earlier.

"Is this the person selling all that stuff?" I asked, handing her the card.

"Yeah, I believe so," she said, handing it back to me.

"Maybe the kids and I can come with you if it'll help," I offered. "Maybe I'd finally get a chance to see my wife in action." She laughed nervously.

"No, but thanks for offering anyway," she said. "I can usually get someone from the office to come with me." I found her choice of words interesting. Not "one of the girls" from the office, but "someone" from the office. I filed that away in the back of my brain for the time being. "You wouldn't mind looking after the kids those evenings, would you?" she asked.

"Of course not," I said. "Maybe it'll give us a chance to research parts and things for the car. By the way, I'm curious. How much did you spend on that thing? I hope you didn't spend too much on me."

"I'm not telling," she said. "It's a gift from us to you, and it would be bad manners and bad luck to say. I will tell you, though, that it was very reasonably priced. A lot less than I first imagined."

"Well, I really do like it," I said. "I remember my grandfather had a car like that when I was a kid. He used to take us out in it all the time."

"Just do me a favor and don't put those dice things on the mirror," she said. "I'd die from embarrassment if anyone saw me in a car with dice." I laughed at that.

"Okay, it's a deal," I said. "Note to self," I said, pretending to write something on a piece of paper. "No dice on the mirror." She playfully slapped my arm with her right hand.

"You brat," she said jokingly. That's when I first noticed the ring she was wearing. I had never seen it before. It looked rather plain, but had a design I couldn't make out.

"What's this?" I asked. She looked down for a second before responding.

"Oh this?" she asked. "I found it in my jewelry box the other day and thought I'd wear it." Did she just lie to me? I had never seen this ring before, but then again, she had a lot of jewelry sitting around, so I decided to drop it for now. One more thing to file away in the back of my mind.

By then the kids had come into the front room and we spent the rest of the evening watching television and talking about the car. Soon enough, it was bed time, so we all headed upstairs.

"I'll be right back," she said, heading into the master bathroom. I had already done my business in the bathroom and wondered what she could be doing in there. I stripped down to my boxers and had just climbed under the covers when the door opened and she stepped out wearing a short, flimsy, see-through nightshirt and nothing else. I nearly stopped breathing when I saw her. She looked so damn sexy in that thing.

I could see absolutely everything through the nightshirt -- her perky breasts, her hard nipples begging to be licked and kissed, and something else... She had shaved her pussy completely bare. She usually kept it trimmed, so this was quite a surprise. I could feel my cock responding.

"You like what you see, sailor?" she asked in a husky voice dripping with desire, her hands traveling up and down her toned body.

"Oh my God, you're so beautiful," I said. "And sexy." She smiled and walked toward me, lifting the nightshirt over her head so she was completely naked. She dipped one finger inside her pussy and brought it to my lips.

"Can you taste me?" she asked.

"Mmmm," I replied as I sucked on her finger. She chuckled, then put one bare foot on the bed next to me. Taking my head in her hands, she guided my face to her bare female flesh and held me there.

"Then kiss me," she said. "Lick me. Eat me out. Make me cum with your tongue." I did as she asked, causing her to moan with pleasure. She pulled my head into her even harder and held me there as she breathed heavily. "Oh yes," she moaned. "Eat my pussy, lover. Taste me. Make me your dessert."

I continued licking her creamy center as she bucked against my face. Before long, I could feel her start to tremble and knew she was about to have an orgasm. She practically howled as she thrust her pussy in my face and I could feel her juice on my face. When she settled down a bit, she pulled back and looked at me with the wildest eyes I had ever seen.