Cuttin' Loose

"You look beautiful, Tina," I said quickly. "I was just looking forward to waiting while you finished getting dressed. You know, that way I could sneak little peaks of you while you get dressed."

"You! You!" she repeated as she tried to analyze my comment, and then just slipped her arm inside mine. "I'm ready. Let's go!"

I couldn't keep my eyes off of her as we swept out the door and I escorted her down to my car. She walked so free and easy with a delightful spring in her step. She had come a long way in the weeks since that balmy spring evening when we took our shopping trip. I had followed her as she drove out to one of the large suburban malls. En route I had kept thinking about the challenges of the assignment. Once there, I had let her pick the first store but was surprised when she selected one of those glittery stores with lots of lights and flashy graphics, where the clothes looked cheap and slutty.

"Are you sure this is what you're interested in?" I asked.

"You agree I need to change my look, right?"

"Yes, but I don't think you want to dress cheaply."

She wandered through the store for a few minutes browsing through the racks. She pulled out a couple of outfits, but I guess my look told her to keep moving. We moved on to another store with pretty much the same result.

"What about this?" she asked holding up a dark blue outfit.

"Let's look at the construction," I said fingering the seams along the shoulder. "This isn't all that well made and the color doesn't compliment you at all."

After browsing through another store I suggested we get a bite to eat before continuing. Maybe with a full stomach and a couple of beers, our shopping excursion might go better, and sure enough after dinner, Tina seemed a little looser as we wandered farther along the row of stores. Up ahead of us I saw the perfect shop, called Zwiebach's. The front of the store featured a classic design with touches of dark marble. The display windows featured some elegant evening and business wear.

"Let's go in here," I said, taking her arm and pulling her inside.

"This place is kind of expensive isn't it?" she protested.

"But you'll get what you pay for," I remarked. "And trust me the service is great."

The store was spacious and the clothes were well tailored. Even the sportswear was elegant and feminine. An attractive older woman approached, looking us over.

"Hello. I'm Therese," she said in a polite cultured voice. "How may I help you?"

Tina timidly looked around the store.

"Hello, Therese," I said. "This is Tina. She's here is looking for a couple of outfits, perhaps one for work and one for going out. Something more stylish than her current look."

"Hmm, let's start over here," Therese said to Tina, taking her by the arm. "I'd like to see you in better light."

She led us to a special section in the back of the store with a private fitting area behind a stand of curtained panels. I had a seat in a plush side chair while the clerk took Tina by the hand and led her over to a set of mirrors.

"The first we need to do is determine your coloring," she said, primping at Tina, pulling her hair back from her eyes. "My, but you have such nice skin tone, such a nice glowing olive color. Are you Italian?"

"My father is," Tina replied. "My mother is Hispanic."

"Oh, that makes for a very exotic combination, dear. And your bone structure is very classical. But I would recommend that you change your hairstyle to show off your pretty face."

Tina blushed while Therese walked over to a nearby rack and pulled out a couple of skirted suits in colors other than the drab colors she normally wore. One was purple, a dramatic departure from what I was used to seeing on her, and the other was a rich maroon.

"Here!" Therese said, holding one of them up to Tina. "I just want to see how the colors match up with you. Oh, yes, my dear. You're one of those lucky women who can wear exotic colors and get away with it. Let's see if I can find something in your size. I'll be right back."

Tina looked about helplessly, with just a trace of fear in her expression.

"So what do you think?" I asked.

"I don't know," she remarked in a shaky voice. "I've never been in here before."

"They'll take good care of you. Don't worry."

"Here," said Therese as she brought a couple of suits over. "Let's try this on."

They disappeared behind the curtained panels and I could see Therese set the old jacket and skirt off to the side followed by the stiff cotton blouse. I could hear them talking in quiet tones and was quite surprised by the next sight that greeted my eyes. Tina timidly stepped out from behind the curtains, smoothing the jacket out along her waist. She looked gorgeous. The jacket was slightly padded in the shoulders but trim at the waist. The skirt was shorter and showed off her legs which made them look longer. Tina nervously tried to hold the jacket lapels closer together, since without wearing a blouse, a lovely triangle of her flesh below the neck was showing. A little flash of the white lace of her bra showed as well.

"So what do you think?" asked Therese.

"That looks very nice," I remarked, but I'm sure the look on my face told the complete story.

"Here, dear," said the clerk brushing Tina's hand away from the jacket. "Please stand still and straight."

The clerk straightened the jacket and pulled it into place, which again revealed the lovely stretch of flesh below Tina's neck and a fleeting glimpse of her bra. Therese also pulled off her glasses and had her tilt her head up slightly. "Look up dear," she said.

"You look great," I said as Tina looked over at me nervously.

"I feel kind of funny," Tina said, placing her hand on her chest. "Like I'm naked or something. Shouldn't I being wearing a blouse with this?"

"This is a great look for you, dear," said Therese. "Very sleek and modern, subtly sexy, and yet professional. What do you think, sir?"

"I like it very much," I said. "She was looking to make a change and this does very well."

"But I feel funny," Tina complained. "My underwear shows."

"Of course, you'll need a lingerie ensemble that matches in color and style," Therese said with an elegant smile. "Although, these days, that little flash of matching lace is considered stylish. Let's see, you're probably what, a 34B or so?"

"Yes," said Tina with her cheeks now fully flushed with embarrassment.

"What do you think, Greg?" Tina asked me as Therese went over to a rack of lingerie.

"You look great," I remarked.

"This isn't too revealing, is it?"

"You look great!"

Therese returned with an armload of lingerie that matched the outfits she had selected and they disappeared again behind the curtain for several minutes. Therese emerged for a moment to fetch a pair of heels. Finally Tina emerged wearing the maroon suit, similar in cut to the previous one. It fit just as well, and she looked fabulous. I figured that she had changed into the matching lingerie as well and the whole package just came together. Her breasts looked fuller, her waist trimmer, and as she turned around, her butt looked fantastic. There was a little slit up the back of her skirt that further showed off her legs. Tina eyed herself in the bank of mirrors as she turned first one way then the other. Then she laughed out loud.

"I feel so strange," she blurted out. "I mean in a sexy kind of way." She stepped over closer to me and leaned up to my ear and whispered in a cute little girl voice, "I'm wearing thong panties and these are real stockings."

"Very nice," I remarked taking in the sight as she slowly spun around. "That is a very nice color on you. Very dramatic. You look beautiful, Tina."

"So what do you think, sir?" Therese asked. "It's not often that the jacket fits so well right off the rack without alterations."

"I never thought I'd wear something like this," she said showing off a pretty smile and toying with the buttons on the jacket. "I mean look how sexy this is!" She flicked her fingers at the buttons and held open the jacket to show off the little maroon bra that so seductively cupped her breasts and pushed them upward. I smiled and nodded to acknowledge how great she looked, the round curves of her breasts jiggling upward from the cups of the tiny brassiere. With a sensuous smile, she closed the up jacket.

Therese brought over a new line of dresses that they had just received and Tina tried one on in a royal blue with gold trim. I wasn't sure about the color until I saw her step out for a look in the mirrors. With a pair of black heels and the sheer black stockings she looked terrific.

"What do you think?" she asked, giving me a little twirl before she picked up the same dress in a light green. "This or the green?"

"That one," I said.

"I thought so," she replied with a big smile.

By then Therese had brought over a couple of black cocktail dresses to show her.

"Is this what you had in mind?" she asked.

"Oh, I don't know," Tina replied, looking them over thoroughly. "They look sort of skimpy."

"Try this one on," Therese said, holding one out from the hanger. "I think you'll like it!"

Tina did and she looked marvelous. With the thinnest of shoulder straps, it was cut low in the back, low enough that she wouldn't be able to wear a bra. That made her a bit self-conscious as she stepped out from behind the curtained dividers. She kept pulling at the front of the dress as if to make it billow out from her breasts, but to no avail. When she stood up straight it fit the trim curves of her breasts wonderfully. The dress came with a little jacket that Therese helped her slip into. Although it covered up her bare shoulders and back, it only served to accentuate the low cut neckline.

"This isn't too revealing?" she asked me.

I shook my head since she looked so great.

"I'll take it," she announced to Therese. Then she turned to me with a sexy little smile, "But I won't need any special underwear with this."

"Will there be anything else?" Therese asked her.

"Well, yes," she said in a near whisper as her cheeks began to blush. "I do some more undies."

I took a seat again as the two ladies stepped over to the racks of lingerie and began picking out some ensembles. I could hear them talking but not what they were saying. At one point I heard Therese say something and Tina laughed out loud, then covered her mouth before shooting me a look and looking down with her cheeks quite flushed.

"Make sure they fit, dear," Therese said when they returned.

Tina disappeared for several minutes, apparently checking the fit. I nearly fell off the chair when she stepped out from behind the dividers wearing one of the sexiest outfits I had ever seen. I didn't think that checking the fit meant putting on a show for me, but who was I to complain. The outfit was made from sheer black lace and started with a tiny bra and panties with a matching garter belt holding up some sheer lace top stockings. She had set her glasses down somewhere and stepped out with her arms up, holding her hair up and away from her face. I felt my jaw drop and a twinge down below when I saw her.

"Wow," was all I could say at first. After I had a moment to recover, I could only smile and say, "You look hot!"

Tina let her hair fall back to her shoulders and tilted her head back slightly. She set her hands on her hips and looked me in the eye with a deep sexy look that rivaled what lingerie models wear in their catalogs. Her body was slim with just the right amount of curve in the hips. Her breasts were nearly visible in the small cups of the bra. I could easily see the outline of her dark pubic hair through the sheer lace of the panties. She turned around again to show off the cheeks of her butt framed so sexily by the little thong back.

"What do you think, Greg?" she asked.

I could only silently nod.

"I think he likes it," Therese said in her even, elegant voice.

Tina strolled back behind the curtains. I was glad I was sitting down so that my growing hard-on wasn't so noticeable. She re-emerged wearing the royal blue dress.

"I think I want to wear this one home," she said.

Before leaving the mall, she insisted on treating me to dinner. After the waitress took our orders and brought out our cocktails, Tina slipped her glasses off from her face.

"I don't know how to thank you for your support, Greg," she said flipping her hair back.

"Just trying to help you come out of your shell a little bit," I said, sipping my bourbon. "You're really a pretty young woman who maybe just needed a little confidence boost. Therese had a lot to do with it too."

"Maybe," she said, sipping from her vodka Martini. "You know it was her idea that I model that little outfit for you. You know, she thought you were my sugar daddy."

We both laughed.

"I still have it on, you know. It certainly did make me feel good about myself when I saw your jaw fall open. I felt so free and sexy seeing you gape at me. But it's a little scary too. I always felt safe, but now, when I hear what men can say, it'll be frightening."

"I know. Some men are uncivilized jerks. I've always thought that it was one thing to give a woman a compliment and quite another to threaten her. You know what I mean? The 'You look great in that outfit!' versus the 'Hey, Baby! Wanna fuck?' sort of thing."

"It's not just that," she went on. "I don't want to send out the wrong signals. I'm not a slut. I'm not cheap. I don't want to screw on the first date. Well, unless it's absolutely the right guy."

"You're a smart girl, Tina. Just keep being you. Be careful, don't be afraid to do what you think is right."

Tina looked over at me with her big dark eyes unencumbered by her glasses. They truly did look like deep dark pools of emotion and I was being drawn toward them. What a place to take a midnight swim, I thought to myself.

"I feel really safe with you, Greg. It's like you're not just some guy after me, but a friend, too."

"Well, despite what you've heard it is possible for men and women to be friends," I said, leaning forward in my chair and setting my elbows on the table. "But you do have to keep in mind, that no matter how good they are at being friends, theirs will always that threat that they might get involved."

"So what about you, Greg? Do you see that threat with us?"

"Absolutely," I said looking at her directly. "It's always there. You're a lovely young woman who's just realizing how beautiful she can be, and I'm just an older divorced man who's a fool for beauty."

Tina simply looked back at me silently. There seemed to be a question in her eyes and a smile on her lips. I've never been able to project much of a poker face and was sure that she could see right through it even if I had. Maybe she could see the feelings that were beginning to develop inside me; maybe she could see just an older guy, slowly losing his hair, trying to hang onto the last vestiges of his youth. Fortunately, before I went ahead and said something totally ridiculous, the waitress brought our orders and we attended to our meals. As we got up to leave, I stepped over to hold her chair for her so she could get up. The skirt of her dress opened up and I was treated to a juicy glimpse of her slender legs and stockings.

"Oh, my," I said in surprise.

When she realized the cause of my comment, her hand fell instinctively to her lap to pull the dress together as she rose up from the chair.

"I don't know if I'll ever get used to this," she said with a fresh blush filling her cheeks.

"Well, I could," I laughed as she took my arm as we walked from the restaurant.

Anyone could see the difference in Tina's step as we strolled out through the parking lot. It had stopped raining, the spring night air was balmy, and she practically danced toward her car.

"Why do I keep hearing the song "I Feel Pretty" as we walk along?" I asked.

"And you've been really nice about it all," she said. "Not many men would have been willing to go shopping like this, and been so helpful at the same time. I trust you and am grateful for your help."

"I told you that you were a beautiful woman, Tina," I said as we stepped up to her car.

"Before you said attractive, and now I'm beautiful?"

"Yes, because you are and now you believe it."

"Thank you, Greg," she smiled broadly. "My good friend, Greg!"

Over the next weeks, everyone could see the changes coming over Tina. Piece by piece she began to show off her new wardrobe. Gone were the bulky full cut suits and the big eyeglasses to be replaced by the breezier, sexy suits, dresses, and of course a set of contact lenses. Each morning was an adventure seeing what she'd wear. She had even begun dating couple of guys who had picked up on the makeover. I was glad to see her cut loose and explore a new, exciting lifestyle. And now here we were, motoring out through the warm spring evening air, ready to celebrate her birthday. As we turned out onto the main street, she settled back into the soft leather seat of my old Cadillac.

"This is nice," she remarked running her hand over the fresh leather. "You said you had some old cars, but this feels new."

"I restored it last year and couldn't resist taking it out tonight, being such a special occasion and all."

"Where are we headed, or is that a surprise?" she asked anxiously.

"No surprises," I said. "I couldn't get an early reservation at Kiernan's so I thought we could stop by Miller's Bar for a drink."

"Okay," she said.

Miller's Bar is a loud boisterous place on a Friday evening. Although it serves up legendary hamburgers, a group of friends and I often stop by in the early evenings for drinks before heading out elsewhere. Tonight was no exception. There were several familiar faces crowed together up at the bar.

"Hey, Greg Boy!" called out my buddy Glenn.

"How's it going?" asked my older buddy Johnny.

I shook hands and slapped backs with them and a couple other friends. Jack Wilson had a date in tow, a lovely tall girl I remembered as Nikki. Robby Scott had his lovely wife Brooke along.

"Hey, everybody" I announced, as a bourbon and water was pressed into my hand. "I'd like you all to meet Tina. We're heading out to celebrate her birthday tonight, so I want you to be on your best behavior."

Tina was greeted by a collection of warm 'Helloes' and 'How are you's.' I introduced the group individually and she smiled as the introductions were passed around. I could tell by the appreciative nods and looks, that she had certainly passed their impromptu inspection. Jack and Robby and their ladies were headed off to the baseball game while the others had stopped on the way home from work. One of the girls handed Tina a glass of blush wine. After an off-key rendition of 'Happy Birthday', we settled into some excited chatter catching up on what everyone had been up to. Although, quiet and reserved at first, by the time her second glass of wine arrived, Tina was joining in and adding to the conversation freely. Unfortunately, I glanced at my watch and knew we had to leave soon.

"Hey, guys we're out of here!" I shouted above the din.

"Happy Birthday," some of them called out.

"Thanks," Tina said modestly as we ducked back outside.

"I like your friends," she said as we motored out onto Michigan Avenue. "They seem really nice, but I couldn't help thinking about something."

"What's that?"

"What was that all about? Were you trying to show me off or something?"

I snuck a look over at her before answering. There was concern on her face, but the look wasn't too severe.

"I thought it'd bee a nice place to start," I said looking back to the road. "Okay, so it is a hangout for some of my old friends, and maybe in a way, I wanted to show you off, but I hope it didn't bother you."