"Sweetness"
by I_Forgot
It was no mystery as to why Jane loved chocolate. The rush started before it ever touched her lips. The dark smell of a good piece of chocolate let the mouth know what was coming long before it opened. Every piece would start with a small bite, just enough to tempt her tongue. The cocoa butter would melt as it reached body temperature, and she would swirl it to coat the inside of her mouth. She would breathe in with her eyes closed, allowing no distraction from feeling of ecstasy. After a minute she would take a large bite, and slowly work it around. She let herself feel the texture, let the flavor overwhelm her. If the chocolate were particularly good she might sigh. She once even shed a tear for a pure Colombian so perfect that she did not mind being stood up.
But on days like today, when the chocolate was a sad conglomerate of stabilizers, wax, and beans so badly burned as to be unrecognizable she merely frowned and made a note in her journal.
“Beth’s recommendation was horrific. Tasted like the bastard child of Hershey’s and Turtle Wax. She may like to eat but she clearly is not picky about what.”
Jane chewed on her pen a bit. It helped make the waxy aftertaste go away.
“That’s a bit too mean, isn’t it?” She asked herself. She crossed out the last sentence and wrote:
“I should buy her a bag of Milky Ways by way of thanks.”
Jane put her pen down and got up to brush her teeth. It was stupid to let this get her down. But she only allowed herself one piece of chocolate a day, and she had spent the entire day looking forward to this one. She considered picking up a better piece from her stash, but she knew that the second piece would lead to the third. The third would bring the fourth and by the time she had eaten her fill she would have her old butt back. She spit the toothpaste out into the sink. One disappointing piece is all the day would offer.
She fell asleep dreaming of Ecuador’s finest.
Jane woke up groggy. It had not been a good night’s sleep. She suspected that her chocolate habit had made her dependent on the endorphin rush a good piece gave her. When the chocolate was subpar her brain never got the signals it needed. She’d have to make it up to herself tonight with some Callebaut she kept on hand for emergencies.
The train ride to work was miserable. It was crowded, so she had to stand the whole way. She kept her hand on the bar, swaying backing and forth between sleep and waking. When she got to her stop the train was so crowded she couldn’t get off. She was able to elbow her way out a block and a stop later. She knew she was going to be late, but she ran anyway.
Had she not been in such a hurry she would not have tripped over the sandwich board and ripped her hose. But she was in a hurry and didn’t even notice it until it tangled her up and took her down.
She was on her hands and knees, stunned, the sandwich board trapped underneath her.
“Son of a bitch” She muttered.
“My mother was a lovely woman, thank you very much.”
Jane looked up. “Pardon?”
A tall man with brown hair and green eyes stood over her, offering his hand.
“My mother was not a bitch.”
Jane looked at him blankly.
“I’m trying to be funny.” He said. His face took on a mock serious expression. “I’m failing.”
Jane took his hand. He pulled her up.
“I’m sorry. Normally I’m pretty quick. I think I’m just a bit out of it because of this stupid sandwich board.”
“And why is my sandwich board stupid?” He asked.
“It’s yours?” Jane cursed on the inside. Clearly anytime anyone good looking talked to her she had to put her foot in her mouth. It was how she was programmed.
“Yes.” He said. He didn’t see angry. More bemused.
“Well, it’s stupid for a couple of reasons. One: it was more than one foot from the place of business it represents. Two: it was positioned in such a way as to make it only visible to the street, and they’re designed to get foot traffic.” Jane stopped in horror. Did she actually just say that? Was her base instinct really to repel any man she met?
“Ahh. So you’re a lawyer?”
“At a marketing firm.” Her smile was feeble.
“So you aren’t the sue you kind of lawyer?”
“Every lawyer is a sue you kind of lawyer.” Pithy, but a bit too confrontational. Why did she always have to show her edges? Be soft.
“Perhaps we can arrange some sort of barter. Do you like chocolate?”
Jane ruffled. “How do you know that? Can you read my mind?”
“No. I sell chocolate. I’m Steve, of Stevie’s Sweeties. Didn’t you read the board you ran into?”
“No. No I did not.” She looked at the board on the ground. His name was on it clear as day.
“Well come on in, and I’ll see what I can do to make things right.”
“I can’t actually. I’m running a bit late.” She tried the hair flip. “I have people to sue, you see. How late are you open?”
“Until seven, will I see you then?” The flip seemed to work, as he kept his eyes on her.
“I’m a lawyer. I’m working until ten.”
“Ten P.M. Got it. I’ll leave the door unlocked. ” He smiled his brilliant smile. “It’s a date.”
Jane straightened out her skirt, and looked away so he couldn’t see her happy face.
“It’s an appointment.”
Jane found her work day far less tedious than normal. Twelve hours proofing contracts never went by so fast. By the time she was done it was long dark outside. But not quite ten. So she headed on over to Stevie’s Sweeties.
When she got there all the lights were out. She looked through the clear glass door and saw a boutique style chocolate shop, with silk and dark wood setting a classy mood. She knocked on the door lightly, to see if he would come. After a couple second wait she pulled open the door and walked in. A soft tinkle from the bell over the door let anyone who might be in know she had arrived.
On the inside the store was even more impressive. Clearly he had spent a bundle to create the old world charm the store radiated. A pair of comfortable leather seats were around the only table in the shop space, and the display counters were empty, with just the names of the chocolates remaining. With no prices posted this was clearly the kind of place you ordered knowing it was going to set you back. As she walked around the shop Steve came out from the back.
“I was hoping you’d come.” He said with a genuine smile on his face.
“I had to. Subpoenas don’t serve themselves.”
“Is that a lawyer joke? I hope it’s a lawyer joke.”
“It is. Lawyers are renowned humorists.” Jane flattened out her jacket. Flirting always made her nervous.
“Chocolatiers are not. Though we try. So what do you think of the place?”
“It looks like I couldn’t afford the wrappers.”
“Not a problem, we serve all our chocolate naked” His eyes glimmered. No matter how slow Jane felt today there was no way she was missing that double entendre.
She took a deep breath.
“So you mentioned that you might have some sort of peace offering chocolate?”
“I do. I put together a tray of that will change everything you knew about chocolate.”
“I’m afraid I can only do one tonight.”
“Just one? Why is that?”
“Because if I had more than one I’d never want to stop.”
“If you have one of mine you will never stop.”
“I’m willing to take that chance.” She said.
“To the back?” He asked, gesturing to the back room.
“I’d love too.”
“After you.”
When Jane entered the back room she let out a gasp. It was unlike anything she had ever seen. There was a roaster, a conching machine and four running temperers. Every wall had beautiful chocolate in clear bins against the walls. White chocolate with an ivory tinge, chocolate as black as coal, and every shade in between. And on a giant marble slab in the middle of the room lay a golden tray, with four chocolates on it. Each was gorgeous, made with an eye towards sculpture and a beauty that seemed impossible to coax out of chocolate. A milk chocolate rose with gilt petals, a Moebius strip with white chocolate on one side and dark chocolate the other, a tiny birdcage with a ganache bird in the middle, and a simple peasant truffle rolled in cocoa.
She got on her knees and stared at them. The details were amazing. Stray pieces of pollen on the rose, a lock on the birdcage, and no clear beginning or end of the colors on the strip. It was a masterwork.
“How?” She asked.
“Patience and practice. You need a lot of the first to do a lot of the second.”
“How do they stay together? They don’t even look real.”
“They are entirely custom. That is why I make my own chocolate. Every piece has to be just right.”
“And people eat these? It’d be like burning a Picasso for heat.”
“I assure you that people eat them. And that they’re excellent. Are you sure you just want one?”
“I think so.” She stood up again, suddenly nervous. “Which one, do you think?”
He thought for a minute, biting his nails as he concentrated. He looked at each in turn, and considered them equally.
“The classic. Everything else builds off of that.”
“The classic. Right.” She picked up the cocoa covered truffle.
“How should I eat it?”
“That one? Just do it in one bite. Let the whole thing hit you at once.”
Jane looked at Steve nervously. He had a look of excitement on his face, as if he could not wait to see her reaction.
“I don’t normally eat chocolate in front of people.”
“I don’t normally watch people eat. Now go on, try it. I’m dying to hear what you think.”
Jane closed her eyes and held the truffle up to her nose. She inhaled. It was earthy and powerful. Her eyelashes fluttered. She opened her mouth and put it in. As she bit into it she felt a rush to her head that put the perfect Colombian to shame. She dropped to her knees as she let the flavor fill her mouth. Everything about this truffle was perfect. She sat back on her heals and felt the truffle melt. She rolled the remains around with her tongue slowly, trying to make it last forever. Even after she dissolved it the aftertaste was so heavenly she dared not move, lest it fade. When there was nothing left of the truffle but a memory she sighed.
“So you liked it?”
Jane nodded a little, then stretched out her arms and sighed a happy sigh.
“Jesus. Wow. Jesus.” She scratched the back of her neck. “You made that?”
“With these two hands. You ready for the next one?”
“Only one. But you can walk me to the train.” Jane felt confident. And oddly sexy. She pushed her hair back and licked her lips to see if there was any truffle left.
Steve looked disappointed. “You have to go? I was hoping you might stay for a bit.”
Jane moved close to Steve and straightened out his apron. “I’ll be back tomorrow, if you’ll have me.”
“I would love to. Let me grab my coat.” He pulled himself away, leaving a hand on her hip a bit longer than he needed.
On the way to the train stop Jane turned up the physical flirting. Her walk became a sway, and she touched Steve’s shoulder or hand whenever she made a point. At the train stop she held his hand as she walked away, until she held just his rough fingers, then nothing. As the train pulled away she watched him stand on the platform until he disappeared in the distance.
On the train home she laid back and remembered the truffle, the way it tasted and the way it felt. The way her entire body had reacted to it. It wasn’t chocolate, it was ambrosia. She looked down at herself and saw that her silk blouse was giving away every secret her breasts might keep. Her legs were uncrossed because her panties were a bit too sticky. She spent the train ride pressing her thighs together, then softly releasing them. When she got to her stop she stood up and flattened her skirt, she found unexpected wet spot on the back. She had never been so hot.
When she got into her apartment she hurried down her hall, opened her door, then closed it behind her. She had wanted to get to her bed, but she couldn’t wait any longer. She pulled her skirt up to her waist, pinned it beneath her forearm, and started rubbing her palm against her panties. The soaking wet cotton bunched up against her clit, surrounding it, crushing it, driving her crazy. As her palm traced frantic circles the heat from between her legs grew overpowering. She bit her lip hard enough to taste blood and felt herself go over the edge. Her legs weakened beneath her, and she slid down to door until she landed on her ass. For what seemed like an eternity she just lay there, panting. After the truffle she thought she would never feel so good again. But bringing herself off was even better. Eventually she dragged herself back up, peeled off her clothes and hopped in the bed. Normally she would wear flannel, but tonight she did not have the energy to do anything but sleep.
The coming of the morning saw a happy Jane. She whistled in the shower. She whistled as she got dressed. She even whistled on the train to work. But quietly, so that only she could hear. Jane was certain that there could be no better day than today. She was so wrapped up in whistling that she missed her stop again. She dutifully got off at the next. And, since she was in the neighborhood anyway, she decided to stop by Stevie’s Sweeties.
Steve was stocking the chocolate into the display boxes when she arrived.
“I trust this is a good time?” She asked.
“You trust too easily.” Steve said with a smile. “What brings you here?”
“After last night I thought I might stop by and tell you how much I loved that chocolate. I really have never had anything like it before.”
“Not many people have.”
“So why are these all just ordinary truffles” asked Jane, waving towards the display case.
“Ordinary?” Steve sounded peeved. “If you had any idea the hours I spend making them you would not call them ordinary. It’s a lot of effort to make what I consider to be extraordinary truffles.”
Jane smiled and laid her hand on his. “You know what I mean. These look great. I bet they taste great too. But why not any like the ones from last night?”
“Those were special for you. I can tell when someone really likes chocolate, so I go a bit out of my way for them.” His eyes sparkled. “Especially when they might sue the pants off me”
Jane blushed and wondered what motion she’d have to file to get his pants off. Something to look up back at the office, perhaps.
“I just wanted to stop by for minute. While I’m here do you mind if I take one of the chocolates with me now. I’m expecting a late night tonight.”
“Not a problem. I know just the one you want.” Steve walked into the back room, and returned a minute later with the gilt rose.
“This one is entirely different, and after last night…”
“You’re going to tell me to sit down.” Jane waited for him to finish, then supplied her own conclusion. “Before I eat it. So I do not sue you.”
“Just trying to cover my ass” Steve replied
“I’d like to uncover it.”
“Pardon?” He started.
“Cover it, with a wrapper or something.”
“I’ve got a box. It should fit.” He said.
Jane bit back the cheesy line that escaped from her hindbrain and thanked him. She didn’t quite skip out the door, but she didn’t quite walk either.
At work Jane worked as hard and fast as she could. She had to. Whenever she slowed down she reached between her legs for her purse and got out her box. Then she’d open it up and stare at the chocolate rose. Knowing she’d have to wait was agony, so she threw herself into work with a feverish passion to distract herself from the chocolate’s existence.
Ten O’clock had never arrived so soon. Jane hopped the train and rushed back to her apartment. She undressed, then lay on the bed with the chocolate open in its box, resting on her chest. She stared at all the details on the rose. The impossibly thin veins on the petals, traced in gold leaf. Hints of dew on the edges of the petals. It looked as real as a rose could be.
Jane pulled a petal off.
“He loves me.”
She put the petal on her tongue, and let it melt. She felt her tensions melt along with it. The muscles in her face relaxed. Her legs loosened. She hadn’t even realized they’d been tight. Instead of the intensity of the earthy truffle the rose brought tranquility. She ran her hands along her sides. They felt soft and warm. She traced last circles across her chest with the tips of her fingers, awakening her skin with her touch. She took another petal.
“He loves me”
She felt around her breasts, marveling at their perfect smoothness. She remembered something about stretch marks and the seventh grade, but they seemed gone now, replaced with a touch that was electric. As her hands reached her nipples she arched her back and curled her toes. Who knew that was how they could feel? She wondered why she had never paid attention to them before. They were almost as powerful as her clit. She cut off her exploration to take another petal.
“He loves me.”
She ran her hands down her stomach, which was a bit flatter then she remembered. She let her fingers roam over her navel, her hips, her soft flank. She had prided herself on her discipline in not eating the chocolate during the day, and now she was getting her reward. Beneath her hands the soft and curly hair between her legs parted. Tonight she was in no hurry. She rubbed the lips, slick with wetness. She slowly explored her folds, finding nerve endings that had long lain dormant. Her thumb brushed against her clit every few minutes, just to keep her on the edge. She reached a wet hand for the rest of the chocolate rose.
“He loves me.” She said, and pushed the rose into her mouth. Her hands went back to their business as she slowly worked her pussy with her fingers. She built herself up with long slow strokes, holding off until the chocolate was entirely melted. As the last petals faded away she slowly pushed three fingers deep within her, while the other brought her home with delicate brushes. The night before was a shipwreck, totally overcoming her. Tonight was a gentle drift to shore.
The morning moved slowly. Jane took a long warm shower. She painted her nails for the first time in months. She skipped the pony tail and spent twenty minutes getting her hair just right. She chose a smart business suit with a skirt just a bit too short. She wasn’t planning to be late to work, but she certainly did not feel the need to get there early.
She got off the train at her normal stop, at precisely eight fifty five am. She was at her desk at nine. She worked through the day without any distractions and had all her work done at five. In days past she’d have stayed late for the look of the thing. But today she had somewhere to be. She was in front of Stevie’s Sweeties at five fifteen.
Steve was mobbed with customers. Young and old, men and women, they lined up outside the door. Jane, who often felt like she had spent most of her life in line, decided to walk right in.
Steve looked up and smiled. “I’ve been hoping to see you. If you want to wait in back I close at six.”
Jane walked behind the counter and pulled on a pair of plastic gloves. “No sense in waiting when there is work to be done.”
Jane spent the rest of the hour putting together boxes of chocolates for the never ending stream of customers while Steve rang them up. She had had miserable counter jobs as a teenager, but this was completely unlike them. Almost everyone who came to counter had a smile, and absolutely no one left without one. She saw more happy people in one hour at a candy store than she had in any number of years at the firm.
Her hands kept brushing Steve’s when she gave him the boxes, when she reached for ribbon, and sometimes for no reason at all. When she was working on a particularly large order he stood behind her with his hand on her hip, complementing her on her neatness. It was a silly, girlish, thing to find exciting, but the part of Jane that hated being thirteen was finding out why so many girls had enjoyed it. She had had well thought out and reasonable relationships with men before. But this had a spark to it, an energy that she had not felt before.
They stayed open until seven, because Steve could not bear to turn anyone away. When they finally closed the doors, pulled down the shades, and packed up the remaining stock it was eight. Jane was tired, but happy.
“So are you ready for another chocolate?” Steve asked.
“I’m ready for bed, but I can be convinced.” She answered.
“Then I’ll be right back”.
Jane settled down in one of the big leather chairs in the front of the store and waited. Steve was back in a minute with the Moebius strip with no clear beginning between white and dark. Jane’s eyes were fixed to it as it crossed the room. It was more perfect than she had remembered. He stopped in front of her.
“Ready?”
“I think so.”
She took the chocolate in her mouth, and waited for the magic.
But the Chocolate, while excellent, did not hit her like the others. No heat, not fury. Just a vague sense of disappointment.
Steve watched her with a look of concern.
“Is it not good?”
“No. It is good. It’s just not enough. You know?”
“I think I do.”
Steve glided in and gave her a soft kiss. Jane was a bit confused at first, but leaned into the kiss and parted her lips.
That was when the chocolate took her. She reached around him and pulled him in tight. The kiss became more than a gentle exploration, instead becoming naked hunger. She started ripping at his buttons on his shirt, launching them one at a time. He pulled off her blouse and pulled her up out of the chair. Jane ran her nails down his back so hard he gasped.
She pushed him down into the chair and pulled down her panties. He struggled out of his pants. She hiked up her skirt and straddled him, forcing herself down on his ready cock. She pushed against him with all the force she could muster, forcing him in as deep as she could. It wasn’t the faint and reserved sex she had allowed herself a few times before. Every movement slammed herself against him. Both of them made subhuman growls and groans. Steve grabbed her hips to pull her even tighter against him, and she buried his face in her chest. She sunk her teeth into him, so hard that he yelped. He tightened his hands against her hips and she felt bruises form from his fingers. They slammed their mouths together to hold the screams in. He pushed harder and Jane felt her insides give and stretch with each thrust. They both had tears in their eyes from pain and relief. Jane had been in fights that hadn’t hurt this much. He reached behind her head and crushed her face into his. She trapped his lower lip in her teeth. She felt him jerk wildly inside her, and gave in to her own orgasm, then collapsed against him.
They lay still for what felt like hours, both taking ragged breaths while he was trapped inside her. After catching her breath Jane pulled off her torn bra. She lifted herself off him with a sticky slide. She dropped down to her knees in front of him and slowly started to work him clean with her tongue. First she circled the soft base, teasing it stiff. She worked her way up until it shook wherever her tongue touched it. She rolled the head into her mouth and slowly slid her lips down the shaft. She took her free hand and circled the base, moving it in time with her mouth. She loosened her lips, letting the slurping noises that had always grossed her out escape.
This was all Steve could stand, and he came on her downstroke.
Jane swallowed, wiped off her lips, and smiled. She slid next to him on the chair and rested her head on his chest, and they both fell asleep.
In the morning the last chocolate was waiting for Jane when she awoke, although Steve was not. She stretched and felt herself stick to the leather chair. With an audible ripping noise she stood up. She saw her clothes piled neatly on the other chair, but they were pretty clearly lost causes. Steve had apparently recognized that because he also left a black t-shirt and a pair of shorts next to them. She quickly dressed herself, and then walked to the noise in the kitchen.
“Ahh. You’re awake. Sorry I couldn’t wake with you, but Saturday is my busiest day. I’ve been dipping for the last few hours.”
“It’s Ok. I think I needed the rest.” Jane took a deep breath. “Steve, what’s in the chocolates? Really in them, I me”
Steve put down the roller and looked up at her.
“I don’t really know. I’d like to think it’s magic. But it probably isn’t. I think its hope, hope that I could find someone who likes what I do as much as I like doing it.” He picked the roller up, started to roll again, then put it down.
“I thought it might be you.” He said quietly.
“It’s not?”
“There’s one chocolate left.”
Jane looked at the birdcage sitting on the tray. The bird inside looked beautiful, poised for flight. But the bars would never let it free. She picked it up, opened her mouth, and put it in. The bars melted against her tongue, and the bird was the most amazing thing she had ever tasted, smooth, and rich and faintly salty.
“So are you going to go now? You’re always leaving.” Steve didn’t look up. Jane wasn’t sure, but she thought he might be scared.
She turned around and walked to the door. Then she pulled an apron off the hook and pulled it over her head.
“No.” She said softly. “I think I’ll stay.”