Gallery Owner (closed)

[MisterY77]

Michael McNally stacked the piles that his new assistant curator would need to start working on today. The last girl left quite a few loose ends to be cleaned up. Then again, Kelly had been fulfilling her role as assistant curator of Sensation Art in other ways, to Michael and his clients' great pleasure. Buy sadly, she was moving onto greener pastures. Hopefully her lessons learned would serve her well.

The gallery specialized in pop and comic art. One large studio room on the bottom floor of a two story shop on "Main Street" downtown. Prints from comics, vintage ads, and even photographs adorned the walls, along with a smattering of paintings by local artists. On the end opposite the front door was a small office, partitioned by short walls. From the office the electric tea kettle screeched.

He poured the water into the French Press on his desk and placed two almond croissants on a tray along with two coffee cups, cream, and sugar. He placed the tray on a small table opposite his desk. Two chairs sat on either side of the table.

It was 8:40 and the new girl was instructed to arrive at 8:45. He checked his (mostly) dark black hair in the mirror. His beard was neatly trimmed and he felt went well with his black suit, white shirt, and deep red tie. At 41, his 6'1 frame was in pretty good shape, he admired. Hitting the gym 4 times a week was not time wasted.

8:44, time to unlock the door and let the new girl in.

 

[wideeyedone]

Abby Wellington frowned when she checked her appearance in her car's rear view mirror. Her dark hair was swept up in a ponytail, and she pushed up her dark rimmed glasses. She swiped on a light pink lipgloss and then grabbed her bag. She wanted to be on time and she wanted to make a good impression on her new boss.

She got out of the car and smoothed her skirt. She wore a simple black shift dress with black tights and a pair of red ankle boots. She took a few deep breaths and then headed to the gallery. She arrived at the door just as her employer was unlocking the door.

At just 5'2", she had to look up at him. She found herself a little nervous as she offered him her hand.

"I am Abby Wellington. Professor Martin recommended me for the assistant curator position." Her voice was soft and girlish, and she nervously tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear.

 

[MisterY77]

"Michael McNally. Nice to meet you, Abby. Welcome to Sensation," he said, taking her hand and gently squeezing it. He smiled slightly and looked deep into her eyes.

"Oh, this one is cute," he thought to himself as he took in her form. He liked how she was dressed, her hair, her height, her voice... "Yes, she could work out splendidly. "

"Come with me," he said in a friendly yet authoritative tone. He turned and walked toward the office, assuming that she would follow. "This, as you can doubtlessly surmise, is the gallery. Humidity controlled, non fading lights. Highlights are that section in the corner of original drafts by Aaron East, and that wall of 50s cola art. The pieces with the blue frames are by local artists. They set the price and we get a small cut. And this is the office. Have a seat, coffee and an almond croissant." He pulled a chair out for her to sit in and pushed it in for her. He sat on the other side of the table and faced her.

He placed one of the napkins on his lap, sipped his coffee and took a bite of his croissant. "I am so pleased to have you join Sensation Art. Your job will be to learn about the kind of art tar gallery sells. Then you will acquire pieces for me to display. Eventually. At present, I will need administrative tasks done. My last girl- I believe you know Kelly- became too busy to finish everything before she left and I need some paperwork done," he said, gesturing to the stack of papers on his desk. "Bills, artist contracts, and leads, mostly. Will starting on simple administration be a problem for you?"

He continued eating, then said, "you will find that I am a rather strict and particular boss. I like things done my way because my way is my way for a reason. You will get great experience and will be well paid, but you will certainly earn it. Understood?"

"I have owned this gallery for almost 12 years and thoroughly enjoy it, from the art to the people I am in regular contact with. This is a unique place and I hope you'll love it."

"So now that you've had a chance to eat, please tell me about yourself, Miss Wellington. "

 

[wideeyedone]

Abby followed him into the gallery and to the office. She took the proffered chair. She wasn’t much of a coffee drinker, but she didn’t want to be rude, so she stirred in some cream and sugar until the black coffee was more palatable. She pulled out her notebook and took notes as he went over his expectations. Her handwriting was neat, but feminine with lots of curves. She nodded as he spoke and when she finished taking notes, she reached down to twist her engagement ring. As her fingers touched her bare skin, she
was reminded that she had returned her engagement ring to Erik. For a moment she bit her lip. But she looked up at Mr. McNally.

“Of course I am willing to do administrative tasks. Kelly was very clear that she was a general ‘Girl Friday’ in many ways.” Abby smiled shyly. “I am very excited about the opportunity. And I will do as you ask, Mr. McNally. This is your gallery and things should be done your way.”

She blushed when he asked her to tell him a little about herself. She took a deep breath, and found herself trying to twist her ring again.

“I just graduated with my bachelors in humanities. I have some design and art background, but I also studied literature and history. I have been here in the city for school, but I grew up all over. I was a military brat. I moved every two to three years growing up.” She tucked a loose strand of her hair behind her ear nervously. She looked up at him with her big, brown eyes. “I hope you are pleased with Kelly’s choice of a replacement.”

 

[MisterY77]

Michael watched with satisfaction as his new assistant curator took notes as he spoke. He was pleased that she was taking notes, and he was pleased with how she was dressed. In his opinion, she was a pretty little thing and dressed in a way that showed it without looking like a whore. He was worried that he would be stuck with a vapid body with no brain until he could get another girl. This one would do quite nicely.

He was also very pleased with her response to doing administrative tasks. "Very good. I like you already. And do not worry, I will bear in mind your education and skills and will be actively seeking ways to grow you as an art curator and as a person."

He saw her reach for her ring finger and noticed a thin strip of pale skin at its base. His heart sank for her and he put a hand on her shoulder. "Oh, Abby, I don't mean to pry, but what happened?" he asked sympathetically, looking into her big, sad brown eyes. "You can talk to me about anything and it will stay between us." Though quite sad for her, if she were single now, then maybe she would be open to fulfilling all of Kelly's duties. A glimmer of hope stirred in him. He really liked her so far.

 

[wideeyedone]

Abby flushed deeply, embarrassed that she wore her sorrow so openly.

"I was engaged. I used to toy with my ring when I was nervous. But I returned it, and now..." She allowed her voice to trail off. She took another sip of coffee.

"Should I get started on organizing the paperwork? I can get that monster under control and then perhaps, you can teach me about some of the artwork?" She didn't want to tell him that Erik had fallen in love with someone else. That heartache and shame was still so very raw.

She stood up and smoothed the skirt of her dress.

She went over to his desk and began sorting the papers into piles. Next, she categorized them by type and date. She worked steadily and silently, determined to impress.

 

[MisterY77]

Michael placed his other hand on her other shoulder and squeezed her in a kind of hand-hug before releasing her. He looked into her lovely brown eyes with sympathy and compassion, but not pity, saying, "That is terrible. I am so sorry to hear that. Be absolutely sure to tell me if there is anything I can do."

He turned and walked to his desk. "Yes, let's put you to work. This pile on the left is payables. They are piled in order by date. Oldest on top. Pay as many as you can in that order until you hit this month's budget of fifteen thousand dollars," he said, motioning for her to come sit at the desk. He couldn't help but glance at her as she smoothed her dress. "Checks are here, ACH info is here. And the AmEx is here," he said, handing it to her. "Use it as much as you can." He launched into a detailed explanation of how she should pay the payables and scan the paperwork before shredding it. "Any questions so far?"

"Let me know when you're done with payables and I'll show you receivables," he said, gesturing at a pile of unopened mail. "And yes, I believe I will be very pleased with Kelly's choice of replacement. Did she tell you much about the job?"

Michael stepped away to help a customer and was pleased to see how she had organized everything. "Great job, Abby," he said, putting a hand gently on her shoulder. "I like paperwork tidy and orderly."

 

[wideeyedone]

Abby couldn't help but smile up at him shyly when he complimented her and placed his warm, strong hand on her shoulder. It was in her nature to please and to respond to authority.

She had followed his instructions and inscribed his instructions into her notebook, so she would have them for future reference. She fixed herself a cup of tea and stirred in just a hint of sugar.

"Can I get you anything?" She offered softly as she walked onto the gallery floor. She stopped and stared at the framed piece before her. It was the cover from a confessions magazine from the 1950s. A very respectable looking coed with her dark hair in a high ponytail was tied up, the rope framing her breasts. It was entitled, "He explored my dark desires."

Abby felt quite taken with the image. The play of innocence and sexuality, the woman was dressed like a girl, but had the body of a vixen.

 

[MisterY77]

Michael returned Abby's warm gaze and stroked her shoulder once with his thumb before leaving her to her work.

He was a little surprised when she came onto the gallery door. "You've completed payables already? That was much quicker than I had expected. Well done," he said, eyebrows raised. He stole a glimpse of her figure before looking into her eyes. Her appearance made his heart quicken. "It's not quite lunch time and I expected that to take the better part of the day. Speaking of lunch, I'll be placing an order from the Thai restaurant, what would you like?"

"That is a lovely photo, is it not? This was an enlarged copy of the cover. There had been speculation about whether this photo was staged or this was a photo of part of a real play session. Some say her outfit and hair looks a little too perfect. But look at the clutter. And look at her," he said, pointing to the girl's breasts. He stepped closer to her so that their arms were almost touching. "Her nipples are very hard snd obvious even though her sweater. Set up or true, she clearly enjoys being tied up. It was very forward thinking for a 50s magazine." He watched her view the print, trying to read her face.

"This was one of the earliest portrayals in our modern society of a dominant-submissive relationship. Note the shadows everywhere, symbolizing a lifestyle that is desperate not to stay hidden. What are your thoughts and observations on this piece?"

"Tomorrow you will become more familiar with the art."

 

[wideeyedone]

Abby looked at the photograph thoughtfully. “I think it may be authentic. Look at the way her eyes are dilated. And her cheeks and chest look like they may be flushed.” She tilted her head to the side for a moment.

“I do look forward to getting to know the artwork. And I’d like to study up on the clientele when you are ready for me to do so. I want to know their preferences so that I can anticipate their wants.” She took another sip of her tea.

“I am going to tidy up the kitchenette unless you have any other tasks for me.” She offered with a smile. She headed back to the little kitchen area and wiped out the microwave, and wiped down the counter. She swept up the floor and stowed away the coffee cups drying in the dish rack. She hummed softly while she worked. Her ponytail swayed back and forth as she worked.

 

[MisterY77]

Michael smiled a knowing smile as Abby made her observations. "Good eye. I'm going to tell you something about that photo that stays between us. I knew that woman. Her name was Jean and she told me about that shoot. She was a model, hired to pose for that shoot. She said that the scene was set up for something a little more risqué than usual for that edition. However, she found that to her surprise, it was an incredible turn on to be tied up like that and that from then on she was hooked on kink. Can you imagine how surprising it would be to discover that you like bondage in the middle of your work day?"

When Abby turned to go to the office, Michael was about to redirect her to payables when a customer entered the gallery. He enjoyed watching her walk away for a moment before helping the customer. The customer browsed for a while before finally settling on a piece of art by a local artist. It was of a rag doll with its throat slit and blood gushing out. "That piece," Michael explained, "was done by a young lady with a psychological disorder. It is one of 50 nearly identical pieces. We have photographed all of them and placed them in a flip book. When flipped, the book depicts the doll having the gash slowly appear and blood begin to spirt out. She says that her episodes make her feel like that doll. The paintings differ only in the size of the slash and amount of blood, and in background color. When flipped, the background has a flashing effect. A portion of the proceeds go to research for her issue. Flip books are Twenty Five and the painting is 500."

The customer bought the painting and the book. After the transaction, Michael went back to the kitchenette to give Abby her next orders. When he saw her ponytail bouncing as she worked, he chose to take a moment to watch her and listen to her lovely humming. And admire her figure in that dress as she put things away. His heartbeat quickened slightly and the back of his neck felt hot as he observed her. He walked over to her and put a hand on her shoulder. "Thank you for cleaning up in here. A painting just sold and the wall behind it needs to be cleaned while there's nothing there. I assume you heard me tell the gentleman about that series of artworks. We will put the next one up tomorrow."

"After that," he said, keeping a firm hand on her upper arm, "you can spend the rest of the day on receivables. You may leave at 3:00 today because you have really impressed me with your handling of the paperwork. I will need you to pick up whatever kind of teas you like and bring them in tomorrow. Bring something for breakfast as well. Be here at 8:15 so that there will be enough time for you to make breakfast and for us to eat together. You will make me coffee but you will also make me a cup of tea the way you like it." He handed her an envelope. "This is the cash you will need, be sure to get receipts. If you need anything else to do your job, get it."

He gave her arm a light squeeze and turned to leave. He turned back, looked into her eyes warmly and said, "I am confident that we will very much enjoy you working for me."

 

[wideeyedone]

Abby found herself filled with compassion for the woman that created the ragdoll pictures. She could see pain and trauma in the artwork.

She finished up her paper work and at 3 pm, she headed out the door. She was smiling and she felt confident as she left. It had been a while since she had felt this confident. Erik sleeping with another woman behind her back, had rattled her.

On her way home, she stopped at the grocery store. She picked up two types of tea she liked and then she picked up the ingredients for blueberry muffins. When she got home she took off her boots and then settled into the kitchen. She whipped up the muffins and smiled to herself, hoping that Micheal would be pleased.

The next morning, she dressed in her cobalt blue sheath dress, dark tights and her black high heeled mary janes. She packed up her tea and wrapped up the muffins and brought some butter along in case Micheal liked his muffins warmed up with butter. She found herself humming as she drove to the gallery. She was almost skipped up to the gallery. But the tip of her shoe caught the step and she fell up the stairs in a tumble, tearing open her tights and scraping her knee and bruising her elbows.

 

[MisterY77]

Michael went to unlock the door for Abby. As he approached, he saw her take a tumble and felt his adrenaline surge. He calmly strode to the door and pulled it open, barely keeping his panic in check. Without missing a beat he scooped Abby into his arms, as well as grabbing her bag. "You poor dear! Let me look at your scrapes," he said as he brought her to the office.

He kicked his desk chair out of the way and sat her on his desk. He turned and grabbed the first aid kit and sat in his chair in front of her. "Oh Abby, your tights are torn. And you've skinned your knee. Let me take care of it. This will sting," he said, opening an alcohol wipe, "but it will hurt less than an infection." He placed his right hand on her left thigh to steady her knee as he swabbed it with his other hand. As soon as he touched her thigh, his heart began pounding faster and he felt his face and neck heat up. He put triple antibiotic ointment on a large band aid and covered her wounded knee with it. He repeated the same process on her other knee.

Having touched both of Abby's thighs left Michael unable to stand without it becoming very awkward so he sat in his chair for a moment and grasped her hand. "Let me see those elbows." Simple bruising and didn't need bandages. His body finally came under control and he rose, putting an arm around her and pulling her close, comfortingly.

"Are you ok? Let me get you some ice packs. I'll be right back." He left and returned with four soft ice packs. "You hold this one on your elbow, and lean your other elbow on an ice pack on your knee, and I'll hold this one on that knee for you."

He held the pack to her knee and momentarily stroked her back, before realizing that she may not feel comfortable with that. He looked down at her kne. "Your poor tights! Do you want to go change, or are you OK without them?"

 

[wideeyedone]

Abby was deeply embarrassed about her tumble.

"I am so sorry about the fuss. I promise I am not always this clumsy." Abby offered softly as he tended to her scrapes and bruises. The ice packs helped and so did his calm manner.

"I was just excited. I baked us muffins for breakfast." She added with a watery smile.

Abby looked down at her ruined tights.
"In a bit, I will step into the ladies and take them off. I don't need to go home."

Abby couldn't help but smile as he tended her.

 

[MisterY77]

Michael stroked Abby's arm. "No fuss at all. I am touched that you were so excited about breakfast," he said with a squeeze.

"You baked muffins, now that's going above and beyond. I'm proud of you and proud to have you as my assistant curator." He opened the muffins. "Blueberry, my favorite muffin! Well, apart from chocolate chip but that is arguably a dessert."

He smiled st her and stroked her arm gently again. "How are you feeling? Would you like to go change?"

 

[wideeyedone]

Abby couldn’t help but blush and smile that he was pleased with her. She excused herself and went to the restroom. She removed and threw away her tights. She was glad her dress wasn’t overly short.

She smoothed her dress and then returned to the office area. She found her bag and put away the tea she had purchased.


“Thank you so much for taking care of me.” She took a deep breath. “It felt so very nice to be....” her voice trailed off. She had almost told him that she was craving touch.

 

[MisterY77]

Michael got the plates and butter knives our while Abby changed. All that contact with such a pretty young girl had really stirred him and he took a deep breath to settle himself. He started the electric tea kettle and sat at the table.

He turned in his chair to face Abby when she returned. "Let me see your knees." Her legs were gorgeous and this was the perfect excuse to look at them without seeming inappropriate. He really did like the look with tights but liked seeing her bare thighs as well. He tried not to have too desirous of an expression despite his feelings.

He leaned down to examine her bandaged knees to make sure that the scrapes were all covered. He looked up st her as she spoke, his dark brown eyes holding hers. He held his gaze for a moment when she trailed off. Then he raised his eyebrows and leaned closer to her. "To be..." he said. He assumed she was going to say taken care of or something like that but he wanted her to get into the habit of opening up to him, even in small ways.

 

[wideeyedone]

Abby looked at him shyly.

"I was going to say that it felt good to be touched and to be seen." Abby bit her lip and her cheeks flushed deeply.

She sliced her muffin in half and added just a hint of butter. She wanted to be more generous but being a petite girl with lots of curves, she had to work at being trim.

"Not to be melodramatic, but I have felt very invisible since the end of my engagement. He kept most of our circle of friends and besides, most of my friends give me sad smiles and ask me if I am okay."

 

[MisterY77]

Michael smiled warmly at Abby, hiding his surprise. His heart began to melt just a little as she bit her lip and blushed. There clearly was something between them and he would certainly pursue it. He stroked a bit of her dark hair out of her eyes, his knuckle tracing from her temple to her chin.

"I am glad you enjoyed it. I tend to be a tactile person. And I am certain that you are seen everywhere you go, as lovely as you are, if you don't mind my saying so," he responded. "I'll have one just like that too, a little butter."

"I'm sure they mean well. It is a hard thing to break off an engagement. I know. People treat you like you're made of porcelain. But your beautifully sculpted and painted porcelain covers a core of titanium. I can see it. But I imagine your friends have no idea how strong you are." He reached out and touched her arm. He just couldn't help it.

 

[wideeyedone]

She stirred her tea and had a few bites of breakfast.

"They do mean well. Everyone thought we were going to have a storybook wedding. I had designed the rings and the gown.... but it was just a facade I guess."

She paused for a moment and took a few sips of tea.

"What do you have in store for me today? I found myself thinking a great deal about the pieces we talked about yesterday."

 

[MisterY77]

He squeezed her hand gently as she spoke of her engagement. "Designed your rings and gown? How creative, you must show me! Some day, when you are ready." He looked thoughtfully at her. "You are going to heal. And you will be better off for this. I promise you that."

Michael sipped his tea and bit into his muffin. "This is very good. Thank you for baking them. And though I need the kick of coffee in the morning, I do like this tea. I'd like you to make me another cup at 11:00."

"First, it is Wednesday and that means dusting day. You will use the swiffer duster and the stepladder and get as much dust off of each piece as you can. I will join you and give you some interesting information about many of the pieces." His sensual side could hardly wait to see her on the stepladder in her cobalt sheath dress. "After that we will hang the next piece in the rag doll series since that one sold yesterday. And a photographer will be dropping off some prints. We will frame some of them."

 

[wideeyedone]

She tidied up their breakfast.

"I am trying to do things I enjoy, like baking," She wiped down the table and tucked away the items that they used. She got the swiffer and the step ladder. She started in front of confessions magazine cover.

She daintily stepped up on the stepladder and began carefully dusting off the frame. She made sure to get all of the creases and crevices of the frame.

 

[MisterY77]

He put his hand on the small of her back to steady her as she climbed the stepladder. " Be careful, Abby," he ordered.
"I see we find ourselves here at this picture again," he observed, keeping he's hand on the small of her back. "I told you about Jean, who was surprised to discover that she enjoyed being in these situations. Would photographs of this nature, but more graphic, offend you? Does this bother you - no problem if it does."

"Art is all about getting a response. How does this picture make you feel?"

 

[wideeyedone]

Abby blushed when he asked her about the photo.

"I won't be offended. I think sexuality needs to be discussed and explored. People might connect more if they could talk about things." She looked up at the photo again.

"This makes me wonder what it would feel like to be bound. To feel surrendered and powerless."

She let him guide her down the stepladder.

"What shall we see next?" She asked softly.

 

[MisterY77]

Michael guided Abby down and to the next piece. It was an old cola ad, painted in tin, cool and vintage but not terribly interesting.

"I'm glad you wouldn't be offended. The photos that are being delivered today are 10x24 photos like that one, but not appropriate for public consumption. Since you're ok with it, you can help me frame and hang them." He took a moment to appreciate her form as she dusted the dust cover over the cola ad. On the stepladder, she was just about as tall as he was.

As she shared her feelings about communicating and the painting, he put his hand on her lower back again and stopped her. His pulse raced just touching her. So lovely and vulnerable and possibly open... "Ok, let's talks about that for a moment. Close your eyes. Drop the swiffer and grab the bar on the stepladder. Imagine that someone who cares very much for you has tied your hands there. Don't think, just answer quickly. What comes to mind? What feelings arise?"