Athena's Story Ch 4

Athena takes a deep breath. “Well, I got laid off from my job in a market that’s tightening insanely fast, and I am not that competitive, nor am I a very special candidate in any way, and what I do can be done by AI, so what used to be a huge part of how I saw myself and my value is exposed to be total bullshit. So, I have to accept never being able to make as much as I did before, or I have to find a whole new career, and I guess get some new credentialing or something. And a new identity. And I have to deal with the fact that part of the vibe used to be that I was the successful one, but that was never real. And my wife is on an insane, once in a generation run of hilarious success, and she’s traveling the world and being treated like a queen, and I’m pretty sure she has a hot young assistant now, too.”

Tracy takes that in. “Oh, honey.”

ATHENA

The quiet of the rooftop bar communicates more about how upscale it is than the décor and the view. Sal wouldn’t mind seeing a little more of Glasgow, but it’s been a full day. Beside her, Dulcita oozes relaxation in a fabulous, clinging dress with a saucy neckline. Annette has let her hair down as well.

Dulcita’s eyes sparkle. “That is the most insane thing I have ever heard.”

Annette looks more thoughtful. “It might be genius. I’ll have to think about it. But bringing it back down to earth, Sal. Give me your thoughts.”

Sal considers her whiskey. She doesn’t like whiskey, but it’s Scotland. What’s she going to do? Not drink Scotch? She sips and makes a face, then takes a deep breath. “Sometimes less is more, but it’s tricky. It’s subjective. Look.” She pulls up photos on her phone. “Sexy thong. Normal panties. Which is more stimulating? Depends on who you ask. But there will definitely be some who tell you it’s the normal panties. Why? It’s easy to understand, but hard to put into words. The imagination is always the most sensitive erotic organ, right? Look at this. Check me out in my bikini.” She puts the phone on the table.

Annette raises an eyebrow, and Dulcita seems amused.

“How humble you are,” she says.

“Shush. Now look.” Sal uses her fingers to cover any trace of the swimsuit. “Now your brain is telling you that I’m naked because you can’t see the suit.”

“How professional,” Annette says.

“I’m making a point.”

Annette takes a drink of her cocktail. “It’s made. We get the concept. Where are you going with it?”

“I don’t want to rule out shamelessly sexy uniforms, but FUTA Tennis might need to take a different approach. I think your audience wants to see butts, but if you just put them out there, it’s not interesting anymore. You watch the skirt because you’re hoping for a glimpse.”

“You sound as though you understand this so well,” Dulcita purrs.

Sal shrugs modestly. “Back in my sorority days, I had a friend who was—let’s just say she was very online. I think instead of making these uniforms skimpy, we keep them more or less the same size and length as what the pros wear. But we use color, lines, and optical illusion to make it sexier. Emphasize and accentuate the female form. But then we design around it—look at how pro beach volleyball does camera work for their matches. They do everything they can to not be creepy with the camera in terms of positions and shot angles. We go the other way with it. I want Riley Jameson as a model.”

“That’s cheating,” Annette says. “And she’s part of the soccer brand.”

“I don’t need her face. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to call my wife.” Sal finishes her drink.

Dulcita seems disappointed. “You don’t want to have another drink?”

“Lots of work to do tomorrow.” Sal heads for the elevator. The doors open, revealing Mia. “Hot date?” Sal asks, looking her up and down. The assistant has put on a little dress and some heels. She seems self-conscious.

“Ms. Dupont?” she says uncertainly.

“I’ve told you, it’s past five. You’re off. Stop working.” Sal waves a hand and bumps past her into the elevator, hitting the button.

Back in her room, she rips her polo off and ditches her bra, then helps herself to a root beer from the minibar before flopping on the bed with her phone.

Athena picks up quickly. It looks like she’s on the sofa in the living room. Her hair’s damp, and Sal sees a hint of her gray robe. She just showered.

“Hey, babe.”

“Hi,” Athena replies. “How are you?”

“Good. Busy. How was pickleball? How are the people?”

Athena sighs. “It was good. I’m not sure they actually care about pickleball, but they enjoy it.”

“What do you mean?”

“I think they just get off on all the young guys watching them play.”

“Was it like that? I bet they were all looking at you.”

“As if. There’s a redhead named Mary. They’re all looking at her. Bounce bounce bounce.”

Sal lowers her voice huskily. “Tell me more about that.”

“What’s to tell?”

“I can’t wait to get back so I can meet this hot MILF.”

“Her daughter is famous.”

“How famous?”

“FUTA. Riley Jameson.”

“Shut up! No way! I’m gonna meet her. And her hot mom. Fuck yeah. Hey, show me some boobies.”

Athena’s mouth drops open. “Inappropriate!”

“What? How?”

“Like I would ever do that.”

“Shit, mine are right here. Check it out.” She angles the phone down.

Athena gasps. “Babe! Why are you naked?”

“I wore that bra for 12 hours today. Why are you not naked when we’re supposed to be having FaceTime sex?”

A blushing Athena glares. “Please be an adult.”

“You’re the one telling me about humongous MILF titties and how you want to suck on them and put your face in there and call her mommy. That’s what you said. Direct quote,” Sal says.

ATHENA

Athena gives in and laughs, lying down on the couch and crossing her feet at the ankles. “Alexa, what is ‘projecting?’ and since when do you have this boob fetish?”

Sal shrugs. “Probably since I started working with Dulcita. I’ll take a picture for you sometime. You’ll understand.”

“Your boss?”

“For now,” Sal says, giving Athena that jock look that she does sometimes.

“What are you doing?”

“I’m taking my pants off. You’re too sexy, babe. I can’t help it. I’m only human.”

Athena swallows; all she can see are little movements and Sal’s facial expression. She can’t help but feel something, yet the idea of doing this stuff with a device is uncomfortable.

Should Athena take off her robe and show Sal something?

Or keep it on?