If you haven't read parts 1-5, you might want to. This part will (hopefully) make a lot more sense that way. As always, this is fiction, and all characters are of legal age. Please comment with constructive criticism or suggestions for future installments.
As we approached the door, I could see that Aspen was still manning the hostess station. She greeted us with, "Welcome back from your adventure. Krystal said that she hoped we'd see y'all again today. I already let her know you were here when I saw y'all getting out of the car. Who's our new friend?"
"That's Bethany. We met her while we were shopping, and we hit it off really quickly. She's joining us for some drinks and whatever." I replied.
Just then, Krystal came out of what I must assume was her office. "Hi there! I am certainly glad to see y'all again. And you seem to have gained a member of your group."
She extended her hand to Bethany, who shook it, saying, "I'm Bethany. I met them at The Body Shoppe at the mall. They seemed like
really
fun people, so I thought I'd hang with them for a while. I've never been in here before; it looks like a cool place."
"Thanks. Let me show you around." Krystal took Bethany by the hand and led us out to the deck, which overlooked the marina. "I love the view from here. Sometimes, late at night, you can see some very interesting things. It's amazing what people will do out in public when the circumstances are right." She looked around at all four of us and winked. "Let me show you the rest."
As we walked around, she pointed out some memorabilia from some of the celebrities who had stopped in. She also told us a few stories about funny things that had happened over the years that she'd owned the place. As we walked and talked, I turned the girls vibrators back on to about 20%. They tried to listen, but were obviously having a hard time of it. By the time we made it back around to Krystal's office door, the girls were both looking a bit unsteady, flushed, and glassy-eyed.
Krystal said, "Since y'all are the only ones here, how about I close for an hour or so of 'maintenance' and we get to know each other better? A
lot
better." "Aspen, put out the 'Back in an hour' sign and meet us in my private office."
Krystal opened the door to her office and ushered us in. Aspen caught the door just as it was closing and followed us in. For all we could see, this was just an ordinary pub office. Then Krystal reached under her desk and must have pressed a button, because one of the wall panels silently slid aside and revealed a staircase leading upward. She led the way, followed by Bethany, Hanna, Lana, me, and Aspen.
At the top of the stairs was a modest-sized room with two black brick walls, black carpet, a black ceiling, and two long walls covered in black draperies. There was very dim lighting coming from the edges of the ceiling, but our eyes were not accustomed to the darkness, so it just appeared to be a very dark, empty room. As our eyes got used to the dark, details of the furnishings started to come into focus: a dark wooden wet bar along one of the brick walls; a large, black sectional sofa, which surrounded a low, black bench with very sturdy legs; several oddly shaped, cushioned, black benches; and a small, wooden platform with a wooden box in the center, positioned in the middle of one of the curtained walls.
Krystal turned and said, "This is my
private
office. We (she nodded toward Aspen)
come
up here to relax after work sometimes. Aspen, would you be a dear and bring up the new bottle of Don Roberto Extra Anejo and glasses for us all?"
Aspen nodded and headed back down the stairs.
"Why don't y'all make yourself comfortable on the sofa? Or at least as comfortable as you can!"
I positioned myself in the middle of the longer section of the sectional; Lana took my right side, and Hanna took the left. Bethany took her place on an adjacent section that was at a right angle to the longer one. As we got settled, Krystal walked over to the bar and flicked a switch. The wall of curtains in front of us began to part, revealing a wall of plate-glass windows facing the harbor and the condos on the opposite side.
"Beautiful view, isn't it? The coolest thing is, we can see out, but unless I turn up the lights in here, no one can see in." Krystal asked.
I spoke first, "From where I'm sitting, it is most
definitely
a fabulous view!" and motioned at all the women.
Aspen came to the top of the stairs and said, "I've got tequila!" That garnered a round of applause. "I'll pour the first round. After that, you're on your own." She then poured six small portions of the sweet, brown liquor and gave one to each of us.
Krystal spoke up next: "I know this is a sipping tequila, but I say we do the first one as a shot. Bottoms up." She tilted her head back and downed the Mexican liquor.