Page 19 of The German's Guilty Pleasure
“Mine is a convertible. We are young, free, and good looking. We should show the world.”
She threw her head back on the headrest and laughed. I put it in gear and spun out of the parking lot onto the service road. I turned left onto North Miami Avenue, and she threw her hands up while her hair flew around her face. Her laughter filled my head, and it hit me square in the gut how she was so much more than I saw that first day. To have gone through what she had gone through and still be able to enjoy life was a definite plus mark on the side of humanity.
Maybe it canceled out my cynical side of humanity. I did not bounce back the way she did. I cannot laugh with abandon or throw my hands up in the air to enjoy the simple pleasure of the wind in my hair. I would study Serenity and hope she would teach me about living life the way it was meant to be lived, completely, and without regard for tomorrow.
She tapped me on the shoulder, and I flicked my eyes to her for a moment as I slowed for a light. “You’re lost in thought. Are you okay?”
I smiled and came to a complete stop. “Of course. I still have to concentrate on where I am going since I have not lived here long.”
“If you’d share the destination, I might be able to help with the navigating,” she said pointedly.
“What fun would that be?” I asked and slammed my foot down on the accelerator as soon as the light turned green.
She squealed, but it quickly turned to laughter. The sun was already setting, andMutterwould be here in a few hours, but this had to be done before she arrived. Not only for Serenity but for me. I slowed for a right turn and motored toward my destination, searching for a parking spot.
She tugged on my sleeve. “This isn’t a great part of town, Lars. We shouldn’t leave the car parked out here on the street. What are we doing down here anyway?”
I maneuvered the car into a spot at the curb and cut the engine, hitting the button to raise the convertible top. It wouldn’t deter thieves, but it would stop seagulls from pooping on my leather seats. “The car has an alarm and a locked steering wheel. No one is going to drive away with it. If they can figure out a way, more power to them,” I said, releasing my safety belt.
“Wait,” she grabbed my shirt sleeve, “are we going to Steely Dan’s?” Her sarcastic laughter was evident inside the now enclosed car.
“We are.”
“You know that Steely Dan’s is a sex shop, right?”
I nodded once. “I am aware, but I do have a question. Why does everyone here call themselves Steely Dan? Is that some kind of manly man name?”
She waved her hand in thehold upmotion. “You don’t know what Steely Dan is?”
“It is a band, is it not?”
“It is, but where did the band get the name from?”
“I have not the faintest clue.”
She sucked in a breath and closed her eyes, holding her hands to her chest in harmony. “Don’t mind me. I’m enjoying the fact that I know something about sex that you don’t. Give me a moment to revel in it, please.”
“Your moment is up,” I said sarcastically.
Her eyes popped open and she turned to me. “Steely Dan was the name of a steam-powered dildo from the book Naked Lunch by William Burroughs. The full name was Steely Dan III from Yokohama. I can’t believe you didn’t know that considering the business you’re in.”
“I have questions,” I said, ignoring her barb. “Why would you want to be named after a dildo, and why would you need a steam-powered one?”
She smacked herself in the forehead with the palm of her hand. “You have to be the biggest joy kill in the whole of the U.S. and Germany.” She patted my chest the way a mother would a child. “Just enjoy the story and stop overanalyzing it.”
I rubbed my jaw while I stared into her beautiful eyes. “We should name our next sensual aid Steely Dan. We could use stainless steel and give it a real industrial feel. Do you think it would sell?”
She rolled her eyes to the roof of the car. “I could sell that to a wide swath of the population without even trying. Add some diamond plating on the handle, and you’ve got a winner.”
I clapped my hands once and laughed. “Well, well, my littleblauer vogelis learning her lessons well! I do believe we have our first collaborative sensual aid. This will be our project. Just you and me making all the decisions, and …” I paused for effect, “testing.”
Her long and hard swallow told me the idea of how mind-blowing that testing could be had just crossed her mind. “Sure,” she squeaked before clearing her throat, “anything to further the company. Is that why we’re here? Checking out the competition?”
I opened my door and swiveled my legs out. “Hardly.” I waved my hand at the run-down building. “There is no competition here, but they will have that fifteen-dollar aid you insist is better than a Kontakt aid.” Before she could say anything more, I exited the car and jogged around to her side. I opened the door for her, and she remained in her seat, her arms folded across her chest with her jaw clenched together. “Serenity, are you coming?”
“No, I’m not. I’m not coming now or anytime in the future with either a fifteen-dollar vibrator or a fifteen-thousand-dollar vibrator.”
I leaned on the doorframe to angle in closer to her. “You are coming … into the store. What happens in private is none of my business. Well, it is my business, but one step at a time. You were the one to start this, and now it is up to you to prove yourself right and me wrong.”
