Marisol: Passion in Bloom

Dead silence.

That dumbfounded look again crossed Tom's face, and he again sat at rigid attention. His eyes were wide as saucers and he blinked, a totally stupid look on his face. Mari wasn't sure how he took the question, but she feared the worst. In her mind, she called herself "dumb" at least a dozen times.

Then Tom seemed to relax. He shrugged his shoulders as if he realized that the cat was out of the bag, and whatever he said didn't matter now, anyway. He laughed, looking at his coffee at first, then making tentative eye contact with Mari. She looked like she'd seen a ghost. She was deathly afraid that her faux pas had quite definitely ruined what could've been a wonderful evening.

But, Tom just chuckled. "Was I THAT obvious? Damn, and I always thought I was so slick and suave." While it was a little disconcerting to finally hear verbalized what both he and Mari already knew, it wasn't as devastating as Tom thought it would be. So, Mari knew his deep, dark secret, and now openly expressed her knowledge. There was nothing he could do to change that, and he knew full well that trying to lie about it wouldn't work, so he decided to just admit to it and hopefully move on.

Mari still didn't reply. She was biting her lower lip, still waiting for the hammer to drop. Tom SEEMED to be okay with her social blunder, but she felt that it being said so bluntly and cruelly HAD to hurt. She felt sorry that she might have opened up some long-scarred wound, and here he'd been so understanding with her problems. Her eyes showed her fears and regret.

"Oh, don't worry," Tom soothed her, "it's no big deal. Yeah, I do have a fondness for a woman's...well...feet. I don't know why. I just do. But, hey, that's not ALL I like about a woman. I mean, it's ALL good. Like... well...female feet are just so cute...sexy even. I just think they're adorable. But, believe me, if I saw you totally naked, I wouldn't dive for your feet. Well, I MIGHT...but then I'd dive at every other part of you, too."

He realized he'd started babbling. He put his hand over his mouth, and just started laughing. Mari burst into laughter, too, a nervous laughter that exploded from her unbidden, but not unwelcome.

"Oh, my God," she said, "I'm so sorry I asked that. I had no right to..."

"No, no, it's all right," Tom waved his hands at her, "I must've looked like a real idiot at the mall for you to pick up on that. I'm the one who should apologize. I must've looked exactly like that very pervert you're so worried that I might be. Wow. No wonder you think I'm going to Jack the Ripper you!"

Both of them started stammering apologies, neither of them even coming close to finishing a single sentence. They both babbled at the same time, neither particularly coherent. But that didn't matter. They were so busy apologizing back and forth, that neither heard the other's apologies anyway.

Then, for several minutes, they simply sat there laughing. It was a combination laugh...part nervousness, part tension release, and part of it was the type of laugh that accompanies a sexual discovery...the titter of private confession...for both of them. Mari laughed because her own desire to meet a man who'd pamper and soothe her feet somehow jumped from her subconscious and bounded boldly to the surface. Tom laughed because his secret had been discovered...and this lovely woman STILL was willing to have a drink and a civil conversation with him. She knew of his fetish, and didn't treat him like a leper. Why that made him laugh was beyond him.

After the laughing ended, Tom made a bold statement. "I hope my fetish doesn't bother you too much. Mari, I honestly do think you're a beautiful, sexy woman, and I'd hate for you to think I only asked you to have coffee with me because I wanted to...well...you know. I swear, I didn't. There's something about you that I really, truly like. You're amazingly easy to talk to."

"Tom," Mari replied, feeling compelled to somehow make things right again, "I have a confession to make. When I caught you looking at my feet at the mall, I wasn't offended in the least. Actually, I was...well...thrilled by it."

Tom's face immediately adopted that by now patented dumb look again. "Huh? I hope you're not being sarcastic." Mari wasn't sure if she saw doubt or pain in those eyes, but one thing was certain. She NEVER wanted to see pain in those gorgeous blue eyes.

"No," she laughed, "not at all. You see, my feet are very sensitive. In fact, I'd have to say they're the most sensitive part of on my body. Well...let's make that SECOND most sensitive part," she laughed again. "I've always had this fantasy that some man would climb the highest mountain and swim the deepest ocean, just to give me a foot rub! Isn't that a riot?"

Tom just sat there, silently at first, with a fantasizing look on his face. "God," he finally said softly, "I'd be happy to climb a mountain or swim an ocean to rub YOUR feet. In fact, I'd consider myself lucky for the chance. I think ANY man would feel lucky for a privilege like that. A beautiful woman like you, so cute and sexy. I mean, could it get any better than that? Your feet are just soooooo beautiful, Mari. Really, they are." He spoke the words dreamily, the candlelight sparkling in his eyes, the parade of wistful thoughts ending in a long sigh that hissed slowly from between his smiling lips.

Mari nearly passed out. As she looked at Tom, his features became hazy, his face melting and wavering in her foggy vision. Did he actually say what she just thought he said? For a moment, she entered his dream world, her expression becoming equally wistful, her lips sighing along with his. They had the same photographs clicking by in their heads. They were on the same wavelength. For a brief instant, they both zoned out into the same fantasy.

"Mari, are you all right?" Tom finally asked, noting her look of disorientation, but not realizing it was the same look he himself had had only moments ago.

"I'm fine," she said, forcing the words from her mouth. She was picturing Tom rubbing her feet in his strong hands, fingers kneading away the day's aches, soothing her soles and toes with loving attention. She was sitting there, sighing and dreaming, when Tom spoke again.

"I'm sorry I stared at your feet, Mari. I know I must've seemed like a total pervert. I'm not, really. I like to think I'm very sensual about things. I mean, I don't jump women and tear off their shoes or anything..."

"Tom...Tom..." Mari interrupted him, "you don't have to apologize. It was my fault, really. I was deliberately teasing you. I knew you were looking at my feet, that you were interested in them, so I purposely let my shoe drop. Well, the second time, anyway. Who knows, maybe the first time, too. And I purposely wiggled my toes and such. I was DELIGHTED that you liked my feet. I mean, I wasn't out to seduce you with my feet or anything, but, like I said, I've had fantasies about men pampering them, and when I noticed your interest, well, I confess I laid it on a little thick. I guess I was kind of...cruel even...teasing you like that."

Tom was smiling now. His eyes were shining both happily and mischievously. Mari stopped babbling her confession, looking at him with her own piqued interest. "What?" she asked, a slow smile brightening her face.

Tom's smile mirrored hers. "I was just thinking..."

"Thinking what?" Mari asked, her spine again tingling expectantly.

"Mari," Tom asked, somewhat nervously, "how would you like me to give you my very best foot massage?"

Mari nearly knocked over her root beer. It was her turn to blink at Tom with saucer-shaped eyes. "What?" she asked. "How? Where? Oh, no, really, that's okay." She deliberately bit down on her lip to keep from screaming "Yes! Yes! YES!!"

"Seriously," Tom said, "I can do it right here. It's dark enough, private enough. I can order you a sinfully delicious ice cream dessert, and while you enjoy it immensely, you can slip off your shoes, plop your feet up on my lap, and I can give your lovely feet the attention they deserve. I know it might sound kind of odd, but why not? Believe me, I'd love to make you feel wonderful. And I do give a really good foot massage, I swear."

"Oh, my," she said, "Oh my, oh my, oh my..." She was staring at him, sipping her soft drink, but with her eyes locked onto his. "Are you serious...really serious?"

"I've never been more serious," he replied. He was chewing his own lower lip, too, half expecting her to laugh at him, despite her recent confession. Or maybe storm out of the restaurant calling him unsavory names.

"You mean, I get to sit here and eat my fill of chocolate ice cream, while you sit there rubbing my feet?" An expression of total incredulousness literally radiated from her face. Hope glowed in there as well. Tom was able to read both glows and grinned a happy grin. Mari's lungs suddenly stopped working, holding her last breath captive as they waited for his reply. Her toes were already squirming around in her shoes, hoping against hope that they might soon be pampered by Tom's attentive fingers.

"Yup, that's the plan. If it meets with your approval, of course." He added with a sly smile, "Keep in mind, that you owe me for that cruel teasing at the mall. It's your own fault I feel compelled to pamper your feet. YOU did this to me." His smile was wicked now. He wasn't serious about playing the guilt card - and he knew Mari knew this as well - but, somehow, it just felt like the right thing to say.

"Well, I guess I WAS rather evil, wasn't I? And here, you being such a gentleman and all. I suppose I DO owe you the chance to show off your massaging skills, don't I?" She shuddered with growing desire as each word danced playfully from between her lips.

"You most certainly do. You have to give your knight a chance to show how his only concern is for your personal comfort and pleasure. And that's my plan...to make you feel so scrumptious that you squeal like a little girl. So, what do you think of my plan, Milady?"

"Oh, my...I LOVE that plan!" She looked almost giddy, barely able to contain her nterest. "That is one FINE plan, if you ask me! Chocolate and a foot rub? Oh, my...I'll either fall asleep and drool chocolate all over myself, or I'll hop over this table and kiss you so hard your face'll break!"

Tom laughed, completely delighted with both her enthusiasm for his idea and with her delicious sense of humor. "Well, if I get to vote," he grinned, "I'd have to vote for the table-hopping, face breaking myself. If my foot massage talents relaxed you to the point where you fell asleep...well...that would be a wonderful compliment... but I have to admit, a good, face-breaking kiss...well, that's hard to compete with."

"Well," she replied, lightly chewing her bottom lip again, "who knows? If you rub my feet really, really well, there just might be some table-hopping involved at some point." Her eyes twinkled at him, and he shivered inside at just the thought of kissing her. "After all," she continued, "a faithful knight's efforts SHOULD be rewarded." Then, like a thief in the night, she stole one of Kathryn's patented wicked winks and sent it flying at Tom. He caught it, gratefully embracing the promise that it held.

"Then, what do you say I call Kathryn over here and get you your ice cream so we can get started? How about it, Mari? You ready to have your feet soothed beyond your wildest dreams?"

"Oh, Tom, you bet I am. Sign me up! My feet are yours, my pampering knight!" Mari started squirming in her seat just thinking about it.

"Fantastic. You won't be disappointed, Mari. I promise." She had no doubt that he spoke the truth.

While Mari sat there glassy-eyed, staring at him, contemplating foot-spoilings to come, Tom called Kathryn over. Mari didn't even remember Kathryn coming to the table, nor did she recall ordering her ice cream. Her mind was in a misty fog of expectation. She could only clearly remember one thing. She remembered distinctly that she couldn't wait to kick off her shoes! Tom was as excited as Mari was when he motioned to Kathryn to come to their table. The irrepressible Kathryn came quickly, smiling broadly. "Yes, lovebirds, what can I do for you?"

Mari blushed at the "lovebirds" comment, but smiled through her redness. Somehow, Tom enjoyed her embarrassment, thinking she looked endearingly cute with rosy cheeks.

"The lady will have your finest chocolate ice cream," Tom announced.

"Ahh, you mean our world famous Woodkeeper's Knotty Chocolate?" Kathryn grinned. Looking at Mari, she added, "It's guaranteed to cure anyone's craving for chocolate and nuts. Thick, creamy chocolate and more nuts than you can shake a squirrel at! You're gonna love it, hon." When Tom indicated that he'd hold off on his own dessert for now, Kathryn whirled and glided off to the kitchen.

"I'm sure I will," Mari told her retreating form, getting antsier by the second. All she could think of was "Chocolate and a foot rub, chocolate and a foot rub, chocolate and a foot rub..." over and over.

"You're not having any ice cream? You raved about it earlier." Mari could almost predict Tom's answer.

Leaning forward and grinning widely, he said, "Oh, but, I'll be much too busy pampering Milady's feet for her. When will I have time to indulge in something as trivial as ice cream?"

Mari tried a return volley of something wonderfully witty, but found her tongue getting in its own way. After a couple of failed starts, her mouth finally mumbled a simple, "Oh, but of course. Silly me." Again her toes tingled.

By the time Kathryn returned, Mari had just about fantasized herself into an uncontrolled frenzy. And the purely evil sight of the heaping bowl of sinful chocolate, decadently lavished throughout with nuts, was making more than just her toes tingle. She licked her lips and looked over at Tom.

"You, sir, are definitely trying to sway me in some way. No man is this kind and generous without some kind of ulterior motive. What are your intentions, may I ask?" Her eyes twinkled, and his twinkled back. The look on his face was almost as if he'd been caught...caught plying her with chocolate and pampering, in a sinister, covert plot to eventually have his way with her. If this was his plan, she wasn't sure if she could resist it... or if she even wanted to.

"Why, I'm offended," Tom said with dramatic flair. "You wound me, Milady. I seek only to delight your senses, give you the best food and drink in the kingdom, and humbly massage your royal feet until you sigh and drool chocolate all over your sweet, lovely self."

"Oh, you're good," Mari grinned. "You know all the right buttons to push, don't you? Well, then, Sir Knight - or is it Sir Knave? - I allow you to spoil me for the time being. HOWEVER...at the first sign of some evil master plan on your part I will yank my feet away from you and run off with my chocolate. Is that understood?"

Tom had a good chuckle at that one. "Yes, Milady," he said, trying to reel in his laughter, "I promise I'll do naught but soothe thy aching tootsies. You have my word on't. I am here to please you, not beguile you."

Mari picked up the spoon next to the bowl of ice cream and dug in. She watched in awe as the thick chocolate almost erotically caressed the spoon with its sticky sweetness. She brought the spoon slowly to her lips, savoring the moment just prior to filling her mouth with ecstasy. Then, unable to resist any longer, she plunged the spoon home, her taste buds instantly reveling in the combination of the sweet, sweet chocolate and the crunchy nuts. It was chocolate heaven. Kathryn had NOT been exaggerating.

"You like?" Tom asked, already knowing she did from the nearly orgasmic look on her face.

Mari didn't answer. Instead, she lifted the bowl of ice cream from the table and held it in her hand. Leaning back against the plush back of the booth's seat, she then spooned another mouthful of wicked chocolate between her lips and over her tongue. Her eyes fluttered. She sunk into the back of the seat. Then she looked at Tom and decided to give him his reply.

As Tom sat grinning at her, getting no end of enjoyment from her obvious worship of chocolate, he clearly heard two sounds - sounds quite familiar, even from the very recent past. "Clunk, clunk," he heard most distinctly, and knew instantly what it was. His heart skipped a beat as it was now his turn to anticipate.

Mari grinned a chocolate grin, sitting back like pampered royalty, and plopped her feet up on Tom's lap. He looked down, and saw those bare feet wiggling playfully - and expectantly - on his thighs, her heels mere inches from his crotch. Those impatient feet squirmed and flexed and stretched, obviously eager for their pampering to begin.

Tom looked up at Mari, seeing the candlelight sparkle in her eyes. From this particular angle, he could see how lovely those eyes were, with their predominance of green dotted with specks of yellow and amber. Such lovely eyes. He could easily have gotten lost in them.

"Yoo hoo," Mari sang, "isn't there something you're neglecting, Sir Knight?"

"Oh, sorry," Tom said softly, his eyes returning to the prancing toes. "One thing I would NEVER do, Mari, is neglect you - ANY part of you."

Just as Mari giggled into her next spoonful of ice cream, Tom sighed and grabbed her left foot in both of his strong hands. He started kneading the sole with his thumbs, working from the heel up to the toes, slowly, squeezing her foot from both sides as he pushed his thumbs into her sole flesh hard enough to do some good. Mari sighed, having to put the bowl of ice cream back down onto the table for fear of dropping it. Her treacherous hands - not to mention the rest of her body - had suddenly become dangerously rubbery.

Tom continued kneading, knowing he'd instantly struck a nerve. Mari seemed to sink into her seat, her hands lying limply on her lap. Her pupils rolled back in her head, the solid whites visible only for an instant before her fluttering eyelids dropped shut with finality. Her mouth fell open, the underside of her upper lip still glistening with melted chocolate dessert.

Mari, phasing in and out of reality, felt persistent thumbs begin in the center of her sole and then forcefully work their way out toward the sides of her foot, only to move quickly back to the center and begin the outward kneading all over again, moving inch by inch along the bottom of her foot. God, what a sensual treat! Such a relaxing - yet oh, so stimulating - way to finish a day of shopping! She almost felt as if she were committing some sort of unwritten sin!

After what seemed blissful eons of having her sole so completely relaxed, Mari noticed - in a far off way - that the hard-working thumbs had taken a break. In place of that brain-melting pleasure, eight mighty fingers now joined those very same thumbs in kneading and squeezing the sides of her feet, again from heel to toes. Her entire foot moved with the strength of those attentive fingers, and her mind again began to sail away. It felt as if every nerve ending in her foot was firing at once. They seemed to sigh their pleasure in unison, a sensual chorus of joy.

Next, those diligent fingers found a new area to soothe, though this time with much reduced force. While Tom's thumbs worked in circles on the ball of her foot, his fingers more lightly stimulated her instep, playing it like a flute from above, caressing it more gently between the stronger workings of his thumbs. Mari had sunk into the booth's seat as deeply as her body could go. Like a mannequin whose strings had been cut, she simply lay in the seat, as weak as a baby and as pliable as putty - the latter of which, in effect, she currently had become in Tom's hands.

Tom was immensely enjoying massaging Mari's foot. It was soft and smooth and lovely, like the woman herself. And seeing the look of pure ecstasy on her face gave him a great rush. He was melting her, body and soul, just by massaging her foot. He felt incredibly giddy that he could give her so much pleasure. The fact that her feet were quite sexy and a pure joy to touch didn't mar the moment, either. Sweeter feet in his lap he couldn't possibly imagine.