Amy was a gorgeous, who knows how old, mixed Asian beauty. Even my wife could not take her eyes off our guest. Pip, our daughter, appeared completely unaffected by Amy's beauty. They actually seemed more like best friends than what the boss/employee relationship would normally call for.
Pip, short for Pipsqueak, had decided she wanted to work in a massage parlour to pay her way through college. We reluctantly agreed and, after much pressure, I'd become her guinea pig or more specifically, the one she practiced "happy endings" on. It had been a month since she'd been certified by the state and it was now time for her to begin taking on clients. To date, she'd been working as a receptionist at the establishment where she was going to practice her craft. Amy owned the massage parlour.
Pip, or Mindy to everyone but my wife and I, had asked if she could bring Amy to dinner so we could meet her. Pip thought most of our apprehension would vanish if we met this new friend/employer and we agreed. I think we still had hope that Pip would change her mind and that we might be able to show her, through our conversation with Amy, that the "life" was not really as glamorous as Pip thought it was going to be. But such was not going to be the case, and I realized it as soon as this stunningly beautiful woman entered our house. Glamorous does not even come close to describing the smoldering beauty of the woman. And she was smart to boot.
Amy was very open about her work, her life and what our daughter had in store for her own career if she kept a level head.
My wife asked her if we could talk openly. Amy smiled and nodded her head in assent.
My wife asked her about what she allowed her employees to do with customers. Amy answered in a very frank and descriptive way.
"I don't let my customers do anything kinky. No rough stuff, no water-sports and no drugs of any kind are allowed in my establishment. The girls can use their hands, their mouths, or their privates, I even let some do anal if I know in advance that is what the client wants. But it is solely at the discretion of the masseuse."
"Pip," I said, "I mean Mindy, told us she only wants to use her hands."
"She's practiced on you right?"
I thought of not answering, but looked at Pip who nodded yes, so I confirmed the answer to Amy's question.
"Well she's a beautiful girl and if that's what she wants to set as her working limits, I'm happy with that. I'll make sure all of her clients understand the limits too. But I don't usually worry too much about it because I know every client will want oral relief sooner or later. Then, Mindy either provides it, or she'll begin to lose customers."
"I know that," Pip acknowledged. "But since this is a part time job, and not a career, I think I can get by with less income. But there are other ways to keep clients without having to give in to demands or requests I'm uncomfortable with and Amy knows my feelings"
"That's fine with me. In fact," Amy continued, "if you ever have a problem with any of your clients, I'll speak to them. If they persist, I'll invite them not to come back."
"How did you get into the business," my wife asked?
"Oh my mother and her mother and probably a few generations before that were in the business."
"Don't you wish you could do something else," I asked?
"Dad. That's almost rude," Pip scolded. "For one thing, you don't even know if Amy likes her work or not."
"You're right." Turning to Amy, I apologized and told her I knew that somewhere in my curiosity was a question I could not articulate, but it was there none-the-less.
"It's okay and thanks for your courtesy and Mindy, thank you for sticking up for me. However, I would like to guess at the question you really want to ask."
"Okay," I said.
"I think, he wanted to know if you've become jaded," my wife offered.
"If I can be a bit more blunt, I think your husband," Amy said, turning to look me square in the eye, "wanted to know if I still enjoy sex. Well let me answer by first asking the question of you in a different way."
"Okay, shoot," I said.
"Do you enjoy sex?"
"Of course."
"Did you enjoy it more when you were first experimenting with it, or do you enjoy it more now?"
"Hmmm," I thought, "it is much different now than it was then? Now, I, we are very comfortable with each other. In fact, lately, the sex has been really first rate, at least for me it has been."
"Me too," my wife added.
"Okay, did you love woodworking when you took your first shop class?"
"Oh, absolutely. I knew immediately it was what I wanted to do the first time I finished a project and put a coat of lacquer on it."
"And how many projects have you completed since then?"
"Oh gosh, I don't know. Let's see an average of two, no make that three a week for the last twenty-five years. What's that, a couple thousand or so."
"Closer to four thousand," Pip said.
"Really," I asked?
"And do you enjoy each project as much now as you did in the beginning?"
"Well it's different of course," I said. "This is my work now and I take pride in my work...oh, I get it. After repeating the same thing for so long, you enjoy it in a different way."
"Pretty much," Amy agreed.
"Geez Dad. If you've done that many projects in twenty-five years, think how many bouquets and arrangements Mom has done." Turning to her mother she continued, "Mom, do you ever get tired of your job?"
"No sweetie I don't. I love my work and I can't imagine doing anything else. But the way society looks at what your father and I do, is way different from what Amy does and what you want to do."
"Yes it is," Amy interjected. "But it is what I do, and I enjoy almost all aspects of it, albeit in a different way now than when I was a young girl, but I still enjoy it."
"Do you have a pimp," I blurted out?
"DAD! God that was uncalled for."
I immediately felt ashamed.
Amy looked at me for a few seconds before she answered. Not to let me stew, but to gather her thoughts before she spoke.
"No. I do not, have not ever, and will never, let a man tell me what to do. I do not hate men nor resent their penis (Pip giggled) and actually love some of the men I give my body to. But know this; no man can use me for his own gain. Oh, and one more thing," she said, "I really think pimps are borderline homo-sexual and get their jollies through their girls activities in a vicarious manner."
"Goodness," my wife said. "You are very articulate and seem to be educated. This is not what I expected at all."
Amy named the Ivy League college and the year she graduated. Now I felt really outclassed.
"One more thing I'd like to explain. Maybe it will help you understand me and why I really like your daughter so much."
"Go ahead," my wife said.
"When I get up in the morning, I don't think 'Oh, today I'm going to have a man's penis in my mouth' or 'hmmm, I hope no fat men come in today'. No, I think about my daughter in school, the bills I have to pay, the lawyer's latest bill and so on. I get up to go to work, just like you do. Oh, I may put on a bit more make-up then the average carpenter (we laughed), but that's just part of my uniform. It's a profession, a job. But after awhile, it becomes a way of life."
"In a way," my wife interrupted, "it is a shame we, I mean our society, our heritage, frowns on your work. I, no, I mean we, have had a tough time coming to grips with Pip's, I mean Mindy's choice, but I think I have a more clear understanding of why she wants to do it, besides the money aspect. I think, to some extent, she looks up to you as a role model, in an odd sort of way."
"Oh, I do Mom. I think Amy is a really cool chick." We all laughed before Pip continued. "But, even though I respect Amy, this is not something I want for the rest of my life. Not even if I knew I could be as financially secure as you are," she said turning to Amy, "would I think about this as an end unto itself. For me, it is a means to an end, and that is why I seem to feel no trepidation whatsoever."
We were silent for a few minutes.
"So Amy," I finally said. "Why else did you come here this evening?"
"Your Dad is more perceptive than I first thought."
Pip grinned, got up from the table and walked around behind her mother. She put her hands on her shoulders and squeezed gently. The gesture was a bit puzzling until...
"I came to teach Mindy how to please a woman."