Honeysuckle Lingerie Ch. 01

1. A Very Particular Shop

Abigail swept her chestnut hair away from her damp forehead and fanned herself with her handy, fold-out underground map as the train rumbled through the dark tunnels of the central line. The walk from her flat to the station had been enjoyably warm in the early summer sunshine, and it was even warmer down here beneath the city in the airless, tightly-packed carriages. She was pretty confident she knew which station to get off at, and how to find the little shopping area her friend had described, but she hadn't been in the city long enough to leave her map at home, even though carrying it made her feel like one of the tourists.

She'd been here nearly two months now after passing her law degree with flying colours and getting a position as a trainee at one of the city's leading law firms, and she was still a little dazzled by the bright lights of the big city. There seemed to be so much to see and do, a huge variety of sights and theatres and trendy pubs and restaurants. Such a different world to the small provincial town where she'd spent the previous twenty-one years of her life.

She'd been lucky that Sarah, an old school-friend of hers, had recently moved here too. Sarah had been here just over a year and never seemed to tire of taking Abigail out to some newly-discovered bar or hot new nightclub. She never seemed to tire of trying to find a boyfriend for her either! Abigail had already been talked into dates with Brad (tall and quite good-looking but a little too self-obsessed) and Joseph (quite sweet and polite, but not really her type).

In fact, none of the men she'd met recently seemed to be her type. Perhaps it was because she'd been to a series of all-girl schools, or maybe she was what her mother called a 'late developer' but the fact was she'd never had what Sarah would describe as a 'real' boyfriend.

Anyway, somehow her friend had talked her into another blind date with a guy called Robert, who Sarah had described a 'real hotty', although Abigail seemed to remember her saying something similar about Brad and Joseph.

It was the date with 'hotty' Robert which had prompted this shopping trip.

Abigail smiled as she recalled the scene. It was her fault really; she should never have asked Sarah's opinion on what to wear, especially after a couple of glasses of wine. They had very different styles. Her friend's philosophy was 'if you've got it, flaunt it' which she demonstrated by wearing a wide variety of short skirts, tight dresses and clingy, low-cut tops. Although Abigail had to concede that her friend had the curvy figure to carry it off.

Abigail on the other hand, preferred less provocative clothes, and she often found herself almost apologising to Sarah about her typical, practical choice of either jeans or sensible knee-length skirts with tights coupled with a casual long-sleeved t-shirt or blouse.

"But you've got such great legs, Abby! Why are you hiding them?" her friend would complain, causing Abigail to roll her eyes.

Things had gotten even worse when Sarah had insisted to see what underwear she was planning to wear.

"Come on, it's a first date, I seriously doubt we're going to get that far," Abigail said, leaning back on her bed.

"Come on, that's not the attitude! What if you really hit it off? What if he's the man of your dreams?" she asked as she rooted through Abigail's underwear drawer.

"Sure, the man of my dreams," Abigail said despairingly, as she finished her white wine."Oh, I don't know. Maybe the white ones?"

"These old things? You could hardly call these white any more. How long have you had these?" Sarah said, extracting a pair of cotton panties and matching bra between her thumb and forefinger.

"Okay then, maybe the red set, they're kind of sexy."

"Oh, come on, you can do better than this," Sarah said, grimacing theatrically as she held up a rather tired-looking burgundy bra.

"Well, I don't know, I've had other priorities you know. What with finding the flat and the new job and everything," Abigail said, throwing up her hands. "Sexy underwear has hardly been number one on my list of things to do."

"But you got such a sexy little body, Abby, I just don't understand why you don't get some slinky undies to go with it. For special occasions, like all these hot dates I keep organising for you."

"Alright, alright, I promise I'll get something a bit sexier in time for my next date, okay?" she replied, holding up her hands in a gesture of surrender.

"Well, good. I know just the place to go as well."

So Abigail had agreed to take a day off work and visit the little shopping district Sarah had recommended just to end the argument, although now she was here she found herself looking forward to having a whole day with nothing to do except a little casual shopping, buying some unnecessarily expensive cappuccinos and perhaps even take the long scenic route home through the park.

-

Sarah might be annoying at times and she wasn't always the most reliable in her judgement of 'hot' men, but Abigail had to admit she was something of an expert when it came to shopping. The little area she'd recommended was vibrant and colourful and full of interesting-looking shops and intriguing little cafes.

There were plenty of clothes shops: high street favourites like Marks and Spencers and Primark but also some smaller, independent boutiques. Full of the excitement of the novelty of having a whole day to herself, Abigail got a take-away coffee and wandered the streets, enjoying the rich taste and lingering by shop windows.

She could have just gone to Debenhams or Next but as she had plenty of time she decided to stroll around some of the smaller streets.

Sarah had told her that there were some interesting little speciality boutiques, so she happily drifted along the pavements, making the most of the sunshine as she randomly navigated the tight little streets, quickly losing track of time. After a while she realised she was completely lost but just then spotted an interesting-looking little shop. The sign above read "Honeysuckle Lingerie" in butterscotch-coloured letters against a lavender background.

She paused by the window, admiring the display of lacy little thongs and delicately-engineered brassieres in rich colours like crimson and emerald. Many of Abigail's friends like Sarah seemed born to shop for this sort of stuff but she was always a little nervous, a little intimidated by these more upmarket shops. She took a deep breath and pictured Sarah urging her to shun Primark and try something new as she boldly pushed the door open.

"Good morning!" the lady behind the counter said with a friendly smile.

"Oh, good morning," Abigail mumbled.

"Do take your time, let me know if you need any help," the woman added cheerfully.

The shop, which had appeared so small on the outside, turned out to be much larger inside.

There were aisles and aisles of expensive-looking underwear stretching back towards the rear of the store. She meandered around feeling a little lost, dizzy at the bewildering variety of styles and colours and materials.

Abigail had never been one for exotic, racy underwear, preferring to stick with safe, white cotton Marks and Sparks briefs and as she shuffled past rows of from primary-coloured cotton bikini-style briefs, silky grey French knickers and trendy-looking boy shorts, she quickly realised that she had no clue what she actually wanted. She began to wish that she'd dragged Sarah along to give her some advice.

She paused by a row of slinky teddies running a finger over the silky material, then blanched when she looked at the price tag.

"Can I take that?"

It was the woman from behind the counter; she'd suddenly appeared beside Abigail as if by magic. She looked to be in her mid-twenties, her platinum blonde hair scraped back off her face and held in a tight, neat bun, the trim curves of her slim figure emphasized by her perfectly fitting dove-grey suit, the jacket cinched neatly at the waist, the trousers clinging snugly to her hips and long legs. She seemed a little taller than Abigail, although that was probably the result of her perilously high black heels.

"I'm sorry?" Abigail said, feeling confused.

"Your coffee cup, have you finished with it?"

"Oh yes, please do, sorry," Abigail said, suddenly realising she'd been walking around clutching it to her chest.

"My name's Stacy. You look a little lost, can I help at all?" the woman, still smiling as she took the cup.

"I'm Abby. Oh, yes, I guess. You have so many different styles here, I'm not really sure where to start," she said, with a little nervous laugh.

"We have changing rooms at the back, why don't we select a few things and see what works on you?"

"Oh okay, yeah, that sounds good."

"Hmm," Stacy said thoughtfully as she took grasped Abigail's shoulders, holding her at arm's length as she looked her up and down.

Abigail stood still, caught under her intense gaze as the woman's cool, slate grey eyes thoroughly examined her from head to toe. Standing there in a pair of worn jeans and an old t-shirt, she suddenly felt under-dressed, and felt herself blushing, only just resisting the urge to run out of the shop to the safety of the large, anonymous Debenhams she passed earlier.

"So let me guess: your bra size is 34C?"

"Close, 32C."

"And you're a twenty-four inch waist, thirty-five at the hips? Size ten?"

"Exactly!"

"Good. Well there are plenty of things we could do with you," she said as she set off towards a distant corner of the store, her heels clopping against the hardwood floor.

"Oh, um, good," Abigail said, following her.

The lady moved quickly around the confusing maze of shelves and racks. Every now and then, she would stop, pick up a seemingly random piece of clothing and hold it up against Abigail, pausing while she silently assessed how it might look, then either returned it or added to the growing pile of underwear in Abigail's arms.

"Good, let's give these a try, shall we?" Stacy said, adding one more item to the pile and heading towards the back of the store, where they met another young woman coming the other way.

"Ah Casey, would you mind watching the front desk?" Stacy asked.

"No that's fine," the other woman said, smiling politely at Abigail.

"That's my younger sister Casey, she helps out here part-time," Stacy explained as she lead Abby past some smaller changing rooms to a large pair of red velvet curtains at the end.

"Stacy and Casey," Abigail said as she was ushered inside. "What nice names."

"Thanks. So you haven't been in here before have you Abby?" Stacy said, taking the pile of underwear and placing it on a chair.

"No, I've not lived in the city for very long actually," Abigail said, looking around.

Like the store, the dressing room was larger than Abigail had anticipated. It was a large well-lit area with some chairs, a free-standing rail full of hangers and a large floor-to-ceiling mirror. One corner was dominated by a large red velvet sofa.

"So how did you find us?"

"My friend Sarah recommended this area, she said this would be best for someone like me. I think she comes here a lot."

"Oh, I see. I shall have to look out for your friend."

"Anyway, thanks for your help," Abigail said as she pulled her t-shirt up over her head.

"No problem," Stacy said pleasantly as she sat down.

"Oh, haven't you got to get back to the shop?" Abigail said as she placed the folded t-shirt over the back of the chair.

"No, that's fine, Casey can manage."

"Oh, okay," Abigail said as she sat down an unfastened her trainers. She'd both expected and hoped the woman would leave her to it, but it would seem rude to ask her to leave now. She felt herself blushing again as she performed an impromptu strip tease, pulling off her socks and wriggling her jeans down over her thighs, acutely aware of how plain and conventional her cotton undies must look.

"We like to provide a personal service here" Stacy explained as she watched Abigail slide her white bra down over her arms and slip out of her matching panties. "It helps differentiate us from the big chain stores. We like to make sure our customers have a very personalised, pleasurable shopping experience."

"Oh I see," Abigail said. Although she'd been to an all-girls school, it still felt odd to be undressing in front of a woman. Not that she was ashamed of her body. Of course, sometimes, she longed for her breasts to be a little larger like Sarah's or her legs to be as long and shapely as Stacy's looked, but overall she was happy with her appearance. All those late evenings and early mornings spent at the gym had left her body toned and firm despite all of the take-aways and convenience food she'd been surviving on recently.

I haven't got anything this woman hasn't seen hundreds of times before she reassured herself, resisting the urge to slide an arm across her pert breasts and a hand over the narrow strip of freshly-shaved chestnut brown pubic hair nestling in the valley between her bare thighs.

"Here, we'll start with some basic styles and move onto the more exotic lingerie later," Stacy said holding out a bra and pants set made of mint-green cotton that didn't look too different to the ones she'd just removed.

Abigail quickly slipped them on, surprised at how well they fitted and relieved at no longer being completely naked. She twisted left and right as she examined herself in the mirror. The bra had looked similar to the one she'd just taken off so she was surprised to see how much difference it made.

The material felt different too, the soft, silky material clinging to her intimate parts, caressing her like a lover's fingers.

"Oh!" she exclaimed, pleasantly surprised at how full and perky it made her boobs look.

"You like it?" Stacy said standing behind her, adjusting the straps until they were just right.

"Yes, it looks great! Makes it look like I've got a cleavage!" Abigail said happily.

"Yes, this style's got some under-wiring so it gives a little lift and support," Stacy said, demonstrating by sliding her hands beneath Abigail breasts, cupping and lifting them a little.

"Oh! Um, yes, I see," Abigail squeaked, feeling her cheeks redden as the blonde gave her breasts a friendly squeeze making them bulge against the brassiere.

"And the panties, you like them?" Stacy said as he slid her hands down the girl's sides and tugged the waistband a little higher.

"Yes, they're nice, I like the, um, colour," Abigail said as she felt the material move snugly against her pussy.

"Yes, I think this cut looks good on you too," the blonde said as she ran her fingers down over the taut material, her soft fingers tracing the edge along her inner thighs.

Abby wasn't used to such a 'hands-on' experience. "Are all boutiques like this?" she wondered as the blonde's restless fingers caused little fiery tingles to dance over her skin.

"Um, I think they're definitely a 'maybe', perhaps we should try the next set now," Abigail said, squirming a little as the assistant's slender fingers slid up and down the thin cotton of the panties.

"Of course, plenty to try on yet," Stacy said brightly, stepping across to the little pile of frothy lace and silk and extracting another set.

"Ah now, I think you'll like these," she continued, holding up a two tiny scraps of violet lace as Abigail quickly slipped the underwear off.

Abby quickly stepped into the lace panties and drew them up over her legs then slid the bra up over her arms.

"Allow me," Stacy said, stepping behind and sweeping her chestnut-brown hair to one side before fastening the clasp.

"Oh, it's a lot more skimpy and transparent than I'd normally go for," Abby said as she examined herself in the mirror. The lacy bra was semi-transparent with little embroidered butterflies and she could see the dark smudges of her nipples beneath.

"This is stretchy lace, so the bra has a little less support but I think it looks great on you, it's very feminine. You're lucky to have such lovely pert boobs, they don't need much support," Stacy said, once again cupping Abby's boobs to illustrate how firm they were.

"It's quite a bright colour," Abby stammered, feeling her skin tingle and her nipples responding as the blonde slowly ran her fingers over the slope of her breasts.

"We call it vivid violet, I think it suits you," Stacy said, sliding a hand smoothly over her flat stomach then the sheer lace of the panties. "I think you look ever so sexy, what do you think?"

Abby stood frozen in front of the mirror, trying to sort through the confusing mix of thoughts, sensations and emotions as the blonde casually smoothed the skimpy material of the panties over her mound.

"Yes they're, um, very sexy," she murmured, unable to suppress a soft moan as the woman massaged one of her boobs through the skimpy lace.

"Mmm, you smell good, what's that perfume?" Stacy whispered, her glossy lips next to Abby's ear, her breath warm on her bare skin of her neck.

"Um, Chanel number nineteen," Abby moaned as she felt the woman's lips gently brushing her shoulder.

"You smell delicious. The panties fit nice and snugly, don't they?" Stacy said as she lightly ran a teasing finger along the thin lace, tracing the thin dark strip of her pubic hair beneath.

"Please," Abby moaned, feeling herself melting under the blonde's seductive touch.

"Mmm, they really suit you, you look good enough to eat," Stacy whispered, gently sucking Abby's earlobe as a manicured finger traced her moist folds through the thin lace.

"Yes," Abby heard herself gasp, feeling her body surrendering to the delicious sensations.

"So how are you ladies getting on?" they heard Casey's voice calling outside the curtain. "Everything okay?"

Abby jumped, the spell broken.

"Perhaps I should try on the next set," she said, as she turned and glanced at the curtains, feeling slightly embarrassed at how flushed she looked in the mirror.

"Why don't you come in? We might need a second opinion," Stacy called.

"What about the shop?" Abby said, reluctant for another person to see her naked. She took some deep breaths to compose herself as she reached behind and unfastened the bra.

"Oh, it's usually pretty quiet on Wednesday mornings, besides there's a little bell on the counter," Stacy said, a faint smile on her moist red lips as she watched Abby undress.

"Yes, a little bell," Casey repeated as she slipped between the curtains."So how are we getting on?"

"Oh, I think we're very close to finding exactly what Abigail wants," Stacy said.

It could have been her imagination but she thought she saw the two sisters exchanging wicked grins.

"Listen, you've been very helpful, but I think I've taken up enough of your time," Abby said, slipping off the panties and feeling a little embarrassed at more than a slight hint of dampness on the violet lace.

"Don't be silly, we're happy to help," Stacy said, hunting through the little pile of silk and lace until she drew forth a black set comprising of panties, bra, garter belt and some sheer stockings.

"Oh, I'm not really sure that's me," Abby said, watching the little scraps of lace swing from the blonde's outstretched fingers. She always thought of garters and stockings as underwear worn by other women. Elegant, classy ladies in fancy evening gowns and expensive jewellery.

"Nonsense, it's like a little black dress, every girl should have one," Stacy insisted.

"I'm really not sure," Abby insisted.

"Hmm, well okay, our motto is the customer's always right," she said, her lips stretching into a tight smile. "I think I saw something earlier that you really must try," she continued as she disappeared between the curtains and back towards the shop.

"My sister's right, black undies with stockings could look really good on someone like you. In fact I'm wearing something similar, want to see?" Casey said enthusiastically, and before Abby had a chance to stop her, the young woman had slipped off her fitting charcoal jacket and wriggled her tight, knee-length skirt up over her slender legs to expose a tiny pair of lacy, black panties framed by a matching garter belt and suspenders. "I love how smooth the stockings feel, it makes me feel super-sexy!"