[Sierra]

Failing to comprehend me the first time, I repeat for Tess to remove her underwear immediately, but she refuses. I remind her of the shoes incident from earlier, where she should have learned that I shall dress her the way I feel like tonight – and the alternative is ripping up this contract right here and now. I relax one hand on the sheets and wait. My date takes in her surroundings, looking nervously to the tables closest to ours. To the right is a young couple, very much in love, and the man has been fidgeting with a little black box underneath the table for a few minutes now. On the opposite side, an old woman is eating with a man in his 40’s, who I presume is her son.

Tess slides her hands off the table and down to her lap, leaning slightly into the edge. Her head is down in embarrassment. I calmly continue eating my food like nothing is happening, I’m sure she wouldn’t want me to draw attention to what she is doing, after all. She stops suddenly and turns her cheek, as if someone is watching, but then proceeds to shift in her chair and bend down to the floor in one swift motion. The scrunched up panties are finally on the table, but hidden under both of her hands. She goes through that awkward moment where you have to know, did anyone see me? She glances over at the mother/son and it doesn’t help her to stop obsessively playing with her hair.

I pull her hands away from the white clothing, they are lace boy shorts. With my thumb and index finger, they’re slowly dragged to my half of the table, I’m in no hurry. I take the time to neatly unfurl them on the contract in a symbolic nature.

“Now, turn your body to the right, with your legs open.”

Her jaw drops again upon this new demand, and she wants to know why. At the moment, her thighs are shut tight, and it’s spoiling the fun. I catch the edge of the contract and threaten to split it in two. She subtlety signals for me to stop and that she will do it. Tess reluctantly shifts in her chair and faces the elderly lady – but she is not the one I want her exposed to. A couple of guests have walked around in the last few moments, but it is one of those very polite waiters I’m delaying for. Fortuitously, it is our regular one this evening, James, or would that be Jacques here. I look over my shoulder and anticipate when he will reach our area. There has been a small spoon in my hand all this time, hanging over the edge of the table cloth. I toss it to the carpeted floor and it bounces exactly where it’s supposed to.

I excuse myself and ask him if he would mind retrieving it for me. He kneels down to grab the spoon and hesitates a moment. His reaction is hidden from me, but I have to cover my mouth to conceal my laughter, knowing he had a look up the pretty girl’s dress. He hands the utensil back to me and I thank him. Tess wastes no time in turning back to face me once he has left, including a quick stretch of the black dress over her knees.

“I’m jealous. He got to see you before me", I say with my tongue in my cheek.

We return to our meal but she only has one more bite and seems to have had enough. Perhaps it is cruel given how self-conscious she must be right now, but I pretend that she has some food on her mouth, pointing to the side of mine. She is fast to wipe around both lips, and when the imaginary sauce is still there, I lean over and swab it myself. I add more fingers to the job, eventually slowing down, and then using my palm to caress her entire cheek. She rejects my touch until she has freed herself. After the moment passes, I notice the smitten man to my right has finally worked up the courage to open that velvet box and get down on one knee.

“Tess, look.”


I hold up my hand to stop him ripping up the contract, and turn to my right, opening my legs, my face on fire. I can’t believe he is displaying me like this! I put my head down, and watch with amazement as he slides a spoon onto the floor in front of the waiter. Christian asks the waiter if he could get the spoon for him. I am paralyzed with shock as the waiter bends over to pick up the spoon. The waiter raises his head, freezes for a moment - nearly falling – and continues the motion, his face a blank. I am mortified as I realize what he has seen, and Christian seems to be choking with laughter. Furious, I turn back to face Christian and pull my skirt down over my knee!

Christian makes a comment about the waiter seeing me before him, but I am too humiliated to pay attention. I try to finish my meal, but I am far too aware of my nakedness and what the waiter saw. Christian points out some food on my face, and I hurriedly wipe it off, but he indicates that I haven’t finished the job and reaches over the table. I am repelled by his touch and sit frozen as he rubs my cheek.

Christian points out the couple to my left. The young man is down on one knee, asking the pretty girl to marry him. She starts to cry and says, “Oh, yes!!” He smiles a mile wide and kisses her. I can help but smile, reminded of Tom and what I should have been doing that night instead of living this nightmare.

“Do you know what Tommy’s surprise was going to be tonight?”

“No. How would I know?” I’m not about to give this man any information about me or Tom.

A waiter collects our plates and asks if we want dessert. Christian wants to share rhubarb, which I have never heard of, but when I refuse he starts to reel off all the menu items in an endless mode – all while the waiter keeps glancing at my white panties on the table. The waiter says he’ll give us a little time to decide. Christian keeps listing off dessert items from the menu until I think I am going to scream. I see a small group of waiters at the back near the kitchen, looking at us and laughing, including the one who had seen up my skirt. I can’t stand it any more!

“I’m full. Can we leave, please?”

"You read my mind."


Tess turns her head to see this young gentleman kneel down and propose to his girl. She can’t hold back the tears as she says yes to him. Almost the entire restaurant gives them applause, so we join in, and they make the most of their 15 seconds of fame with a kiss. I see Tess smiling at their happiness, despite the humiliation she undoubtedly feels. I ask if she knows what Tommy’s surprise is. She says no, I suppose it wouldn’t be a surprise if she did. I’ve already picked up the menu in anticipation of the waiter inquiring if we would like some dessert. Sure enough, he arrives moments later to take our plates, where Tess has left far more food behind than I. I am in the mood for some rhubarb, and I try to tempt her into sharing it with me. She can’t look either of us in the eyes with those panties still in plain sight.

“No, thank you.”

“Nougat Glacé, Bitter Chocolate, Candied Almond. Red Wine Poached Rhubarb Consommé, Passion Seeds, Chamomile….”, I continue.

“I will leave you some time to decide”, the waiter suggests, seeing my company’s uninterested posture. I glance up at him as he leaves; it was not James this time. Pity, I was hoping he could give me some sort of preview of tonight’s proceedings. I sip some of my wine and read the remainder of the list aloud but Tess waves me away a second time. She seems preoccupied with something else behind me and then suddenly asks if we may go now. My thoughts exactly.

“Check, please”

Our new waiter had only wandered off to a nearby table, so he responds in quick time. When he returns with the bill, I swipe my credit card into the wireless processor, signing the receipt that pops out. We thank each other and I tell Tess to bring the wine bottle with her, which has plenty left inside. She places her handbag on her shoulder and finds her free hand taken by mine. Seeing the underwear left behind, she reaches for it, but I joke that it is the tip, though I had already given mine. She scowls at the idea, pleading with me to take them away. Once I've had my fun teasing her, I pocket them, with the contract tucked under my arm, and we make our way out of the place. One of the staff pleasantly holds the door for us and we are met with the stuffy night outside. I lead the way, hearing Tess’ heels click on the footpath of this busy street.

“Christian, where are we going?”

Without replying, we continue walking past the parked cars and shops, many of which are closed. We swing around the corner into the first gap between the buildings, a small lane, about 50 feet from the nearest traffic lights. She stumbles and almost leaves a shoe behind, but suffers an even worse shock when I catch underneath both knees, carrying her towards the wall. She loses her breath, anxiously looking either side of us. We are alone in this long alley but pedestrians’ footsteps repeatedly become louder when they pass by.

“You accused me of me sleeping with other women, young women. 13 years I’ve been faithful. I’ve never cheated on my wife.”

“Christian, let me go…”

Her back is against the wall, in more ways than one. Her legs wrap around my hips for security, and barely gripping the expensive wine, she clutches my shoulders too. I breathe heavily on her, slightly leaning my face into her long hair where it hangs by her neck. She constantly looks back from me to the street in fear that we will be seen. It excites me to be fitted between her thighs, knowing she is naked underneath. I take a few steps back to the other side so that she now faces the wall. My right hand stops supporting the leg on the same side and slides down her lower back.

“I thought we had overcome your PDA issues in the restaurant.”


Christian pays the bill and asks me to bring the wine bottle. He takes my hand and pulls me to my feet. My white panties are still on the table and I reach over to pick them up, but he blocks my hand, saying the panties are a “tip”. I think about what I paid for them and I also remember the waiters laughing and pointing and can’t handle the idea of leaving them behind. Christian finally puts them in his pocket, grabs the contract, and leads me out of the restaurant.

I ask Christian where we are going, but he doesn’t answer. We walk quickly down the street, and when we come to an alleyway, he swings me around, put his hands under my knees and lifts me off the ground so that I am facing him. I am keenly away of my nakedness, and of the people who could walk by and see me. He backs me up against the wall, looks me in the face, and I hear his hoarse whisper.

“You accused me of me sleeping with other women, young women. For thirteen years I’ve been faithful. I’ve never cheated on my wife.”

“Christian, let me go…” I feel myself slipping and I’m forced to wrap my legs around him and hold his shoulders to keep from ending up on the filthy ground. I’m trying not to drop the wine bottle, and I feel his breath in my face. He turns slightly and drops one leg. I feel his hand fit into the small of my back. He whispers softly that he had thought the public display issues had already been solved.

“Christian, if you don’t let me go, I’ll scream. I swear to God I will scream.”

That evil whisper tells me he could be inside me in seconds. It takes me a minute to realize what he means, and when I do my blood runs cold.

He starts to lift my dress until I feel the cool evening air on my bottom. In a panic, I slap his hand away. The leg he has dropped scrapes against the wall, and my shoe comes off a little and dangles from my toes. I can imagine what we must look like to passersby. He had talked of being private, but here we are making a spectacle for all to see!

“Please…I’ll do anything…anything you like…but not here. Please…not here.” Holding me up, he tells me to take a drink of the wine. When I do, he lets me down, takes my arm, and we continue walking. We come to a large hotel, a very famous landmark in the city. We walk right past the reception desk to the elevator. He pulls out a room key and pushes the button for the 15th floor. He looks at me with a small grin and says, “How about going down while we go up?”

The elevator doors start to close, and I start to panic. A man’s hand appears between the two doors and stops them closing. Perhaps what appears to be inevitable will be delayed….?