Ruffles and Lace

Erica nodded and sat there; her eyes sparkled in the light. Then she hugged him. "Oh Jodi, you are SO not gay, believe me."

"How do you know?" He followed her eyes down to his crotch, now bulging in his excitement. "Oh." He moved his hands to cover his embarrassment leaving the bumps on his chest exposed.

She leaned back and looked into his eyes with a welcoming smile. "Would you show me?"

"What? My breasts?"

She nodded.

He hesitated. "I'm trying to find a reason why I shouldn't, but at this point I guess I can't find one. You already know they're there and even then you didn't freak out, like I did." He blushed bright crimson and slowly removed his shirt.

She was amazed at how beautiful he was. His breasts were full and almost defied gravity. The little areolas sprouted proud nipples that sprung out now that he removed his shirt; she gauged them to be a full size 'C', a pleasant size for his body shape.

She studied him and a thought began to blossom. He was slender, maybe a size ten, if that, perhaps closer to an eight. His mannerisms were indeed more feminine than masculine. She wondered if he ever wore heels? Wait, he might have mentioned wearing them with his former girlfriend. His hair needed a new cut, but she could see a few possibilities, even without a stylist.

"They look funny, don't they?"

His question brought her out of her thoughts. "No, no, they look beautiful. You are beautiful." She leaned forward and kissed him on the cheek. "I knew the moment I saw you that you were someone I wanted to know. There is a sense of fragility about you, yet beneath it all there's such amazing beauty and strength. You seem to be more a woman than a man, Jodi. In fact, I suspect you've always been more feminine than masculine."

"How could you see that?"

"I could see it in your eyes. Each day when you walked onto the bus and the other day when you walked through my shop, I saw it. A haunting beauty...I was captivated by it."

He blushed again, lowering his eyes.

She fell back against the back of the couch draping her arm across her face and sighed. "When I was in college, I used to hang out with a group of girls who were rather wild and willful. We would party and drink, then head to the clubs to tease guys and girls alike."

"There was this one guy who we met one night at a popular club. He was sitting alone at the bar looking rather forlorn. The girls started to tease him. It started out rather innocently, a little trash talk and a little frisky rubbing up against the poor guy. He was embarrassed to say the least. But the group took it the wrong way and started to accuse him of being gay. Being gay in those days was still taboo.

He claimed that he wasn't gay, but that didn't seem to matter to them. Before long they'd brought him up onto the stage to stand next to the DJ and then they told everyone he was a sissy and that they were going to make him their bitch, pouring beers over his head, holding out panties and trying to paint lipstick on his lips. It really turned ugly after that. I left, disgusted, and never hung out with any of them again."

She turned to Jodi. "I heard a couple of weeks later that the guy slashed his wrists in a dorm bathtub late one night. None of those bitches ever said a word. He didn't deserve that. So what if he was shy and effeminate? Did it challenge their sense of self? Were they afraid that he might have made a better woman than they did? I never understood them, nor did they understand me...nor did I want them too."

She tilted her head with an enigmatic smile. "Would you ever want to wear one of the dresses in my shop? It would be alright with me if you did."

His face burned brightly red. "Not in public, I couldn't."

"Perhaps." She paused a moment in thought. "Why don't you come by my place tomorrow morning early, say seven o'clock."

"Why?"

Erica offered him a winsome smile. "Look, I'm not a person who is going to dominate you like Lana did. She pushed you into doing some things you might have, in hindsight, been reluctant to do. Your breasts for example, they are lovely, but you have to admit they do get in the way of being a man. Did she make you take HRT?"

He looked up, confused by the term. "What's that?"

"Hormone Replacement Therapy, hormones, estrogen. It will modify everything, even the way you think. Your breasts are a side effect, along with your hips, complexion, hair, well, just about everything. Even your penis."

His hands involuntarily covered his crotch. "What about my penis?"

"Over time it would shrink and so would your libido. Even the thought of penetrating a woman would seem unthinkable for you."

"Oh...she didn't do that. My breasts came from a cream she found on a website. It's from South America or Indonesia or someplace, we couldn't afford surgery."

"So, no implants?"

"We talked about that, she wanted them bigger, but she left before we could do anything about it."

"Good, because they are perfect just the way they are, they seem so natural."

Jodi blushed again as he began to pull his polo shirt back over his head.

"You have great potential, but, from now on, things between us will only work if you truly want to do it, do you understand what I'm asking? I'll offer things or make suggestions to you and it's going to be your choice to accept them or not. I may push a bit, but I need you to tell me when I've pushed too far, or not far enough. We will become partners in this. That's the only way it will work for both of us, okay?" she offered her hand to him. "Deal?"

He shook it solemnly and smiled. "Deal, I guess. So what do you have planned?"

"If you'll let me, I want to dress you in one or two of my nicest gowns." She held up her hands apologetically as he started to protest. "Purely for promotion, you'll be the perfect model for me."

He still was unconvinced. "You're sure? I don't have to parade around in front of customers, do I?"

She flashed a grin. "Never, I want you to be my model for a photo shoot."

"But Erica, I look terrible in a dress, I tried it once with Lana. We ended up going with a wig and some heels. It was her compromise, but I still felt stupid."

"That may have been then, but this is now," she said tilting her head coquettishly. "You have no idea how beautiful you are, Jodi. As a man you're okay. But as a woman, with a little makeup, a proper dress and shoes, you're a knock out. Trust me. And I can manipulate the image on the computer so that you look even more provocative. Okay?"

He nodded slowly, smiling meekly. "Okay, we can at least try. But I have my doubts." He sat quietly for a moment then looked into her eyes. "What if I change my mind?"

"That'll be fine, but I'll bet you, you won't."

"You're sure?"

She nodded and kissed him on the cheek. "You'll see."

It was just after seven on Friday when he walked into her store. The same tiny bell announced his arrival.

"Come to the back, Jodi," she said almost lyrically as she peeked around a tall set of frames covered in black paper.

When Jodi arrived in the back of her store she stood outside a dressing room holding a beautiful vintage cut-lace gown. It was black and nearly floor length with a high collar. The bodice was cut away and revealed the wearer's shoulders and part of their breasts. "I want you to try this on," she said holding it out to him.

He glanced around frantically. "What? Here?"

"Of course, there's no one here but us, and you can use the dressing room behind me. I promise I wont peek," she giggled and then she gestured towards a table. "I've laid out some accessories for you that I think will work well with it. What shoe size are you?"

He stood there puzzled, looking over the accessories. He responded almost automatically. "A woman's size 10 and a half. I have small feet and hands for my height."

"Perfect, I have just the pair for you. Put this stuff on while I get them off the rack."

He shouted to her as she moved quickly through her garment racks to the shoe display. "I won't wear a wig!"

"You don't have to! All I want you to do is model some dresses for me; you have the perfect body for it."

She returned holding a pair of black stiletto-heeled sandals.

He stood holding the dress against his body and looking into a floor-length mirror. "Erica, I can't get photographed in a dress like this! I'd look stupid. I only ever dressed in girls' clothes with Lana, they were short and skimpy and looked stupid, but she didn't care. We only went to special clubs, late at night, where nobody knew me."

"You won't look silly, sweetie. I want to post the photos on my webpage or make posters for promotion of the store." Erica stood behind him and looked at his image in the mirror. "I can even obscure your head if that makes you feel better but with a little makeup no one will ever take you for an accountant, I'm sure of it. You'll look spectacular! You have beautiful features. You've got kind of this tom-boy thing going that is all the craze right now."

"But..."

She nudged him towards the dressing room. "Come on, hurry up before any customers arrive."

He turned back to her and poked his head through the dressing room curtain. "Erica, you're sure about this?"

She grinned. "More so every minute I look at you. Now scoot, the store opens at nine."

He dressed quickly and, of course, looked stunning, just like she imagined. She gave him black lace panties and a matching demi-cup bra to wear under the dress. The jewelry she added was a soft gold chain adorned with white cut-glass crystals set in a spray of stones similar to the stars in the sky. The shoes he put on were elegant and fit him like a glove. He walked well in them, obviously practiced.

She took him to a dressing table and did his makeup, which was mostly around the eyes. She put some hair product in his hair and spiked part of it out. Then she pulled him over to several large white-framed paper panels.

"Stand there," she said, pointing to the little 'X' on the floor. She moved behind a camera and began to take some photos. Large lamps, placed strategically around the area, flashed with each click of her camera.

She looked at the tiny image that flashed on the camera's LCD screen. It was small but the image didn't lie, there was a haunting seduction to him that drew the camera into his beauty. A few more shots and she was finished with this part. It all went flawlessly.

She walked over and pulled out another dress, white lace this time, and then she set out the necessary accessories for him. He quickly changed again, going from black undergarments to white. The necklace was changed to white gold with tiny cut-red glass set in a chain around the center. While she waited Erica flipped the background screens around to black and another round of photographs were shot once he changed, some close, some full length.

When they were done he changed back into his street clothes while she disappeared into her office. She walked back out after reviewing the images on her computer and pulled him into a big hug. "They look amazing! I knew you would look wonderful."

He blushed and scoffed. "I don't, I bet I looked like a gorilla in drag."

She smirked. "You do not."

He stood there defiantly and frowned at her. "You're going to have to smudge everything on those photographs, Erica, I could never pass, especially with women, they are so hyper-critical; nothing gets past their eyes."

"Okay, you're right, you do need to practice a few things before you go out into the general public," Erica said, rising to the challenge. "But nothing that a photograph will reveal. However, - I'll bet you dinner tomorrow night that you will have every man in that bagel shop on Grove Street, the one near your office, checking you out when you walk in tomorrow morning. Every man will want to be with you and every woman will want to be you. Bet ya!"

He had to grin at her moxie. "And if I win and people snicker?"

"I'll pay and you'll never have to wear another dress in public ever again. Furthermore, to sweeten the bet, I will dance a jig in a jester's costume, quoting Shakespeare, in front of the whole crowd, in that shop, the next day. But I'm not going to lose," she said, with a wicked smile.

"Humpf."

The next morning, he arrived at her shop at 7am, groggy eyed and sleepy.

He walked to the back of the store and found her rummaging through a rack of blouses.

"Here, put this on," she said pulling a dark saffron colored blouse with a neckline that clearly would put his breasts on display.

"I can't..."

"A bet is a bet, I get to choose what you wear, and you have to agree to it."

He slumped his shoulders and took the blouse; it was a satin silk and the material felt delicious. She handed him a pair of tan slacks, a lacey cream-colored demi-bra and some matching panties to take into the dressing room. Secretly, he thought they were very pretty and he wanted to wear them, he just didn't want Erica to think that she'd won so easily.

"There should be some knee-high hose in a box by the dressing room door, use the tan ones," she shouted as she moved through the racks of clothes toward the front of her store. "I'll look for a pair of shoes while you change."

Moments later he stood outside of the dressing room, feeling anxious.

She laughed and shook her head. "You are so beautiful, and you don't even realize it. Turn around and look." She turned his shoulders so he could see himself in the mirror.

"I don't know, Erica, I just don't see it."

"Wait until I'm done." She handed him a pair of beige sandals with three-inch block heels. "Here, put these on."

He sat down on a bench while she opened up her makeup case. Once he buckled the sandals he sat and she applied a foundation, followed by some eye shadow and lip-gloss. She trimmed and shaped his eyebrows then added color to help define them. She fussed with his hair for a few minutes until she managed to find a look that satisfied her. The final touch was a pair of false eyelashes; nothing fancy, just enough to enhance.

"There. Look at you now."

He turned to the mirror and stared at his image. Once again, she had transformed him, but in a different way. It was more informal, sort of business casual. Not quite so provocative as before.

She stood packing her camera in her purse. "Okay, when we get there, I want you to wait a moment until I'm set, then follow me in so that I can film the whole thing from start to finish. Trust me, before you leave you'll have neck-bones cracking left and right. Come on." She grabbed his hand and led a reluctant Jodi out of her store.

"One whisper of 'sissy' and I'm out of there," he grumbled as she pulled him to her car. No matter what she said, he was still a man in feminine clothing.

At the bagel shop, Erica went in first and positioned herself by the front window where she could capture all the action.

A few minutes later, Jodi entered the store. The conversation was lively but as she walked through the door and passed by each table, their voices grew silent. Everyone began to watch her.

She approached the counter and ordered a mocha-latte with caramel in a soft voice. Several clerks behind the counter scrambled to fill her request, nearly running over one another. She handed the clerk at the register a five-dollar bill to pay for it and the clerk fumbled with her change as the coins fell to the floor.

"Keep the change," she said, adding another dollar to the glass jar by the register. She returned her wallet to her purse and picked up her coffee.

With coffee in hand, she turned and started to walk out. As she passed each table, the men looked off but quickly returned their stares as soon as she passed.

After she left, Erica continued to film, getting their responses. Comments like "Wow. Who was that? Where did she come from? Some guy is one lucky SOB to have her as a girlfriend. Did you see her ass? Amazing." Several men noticeably adjusted their pants.

Erica grinned. She had more than enough evidence and Jodi was buying dinner tonight, maybe dessert. She turned off her camera and slipped out the front door.

She opened her car door and sat behind the wheel. "Wait until you see this, sweetie," she said to Jodi in the passenger seat. Jodi scowled and shook his head, but deep inside he was so excited his heart was racing.

Erica just beamed. "You'll see, darling, and you will be paying tonight too."

"Humpf, you'd better get your jester costume out," he grumbled fastening his seatbelt. She laughed and drove out of the parking lot.

Back at Erica's store, they sat in the backroom and watched the video on a big screen TV. Jodi couldn't believe his eyes, or his ears. He was starting to believe that he could become a she.

"I told you, you're beautiful and all the men in that shop this morning confirmed it." She turned off the video and looked at Jodi. "Now will you stop fussing about being my model?"

Jodi nodded with a meek smile.

"Good. Pick me up at six at my place, and wear something nice, I want to go downtown, just us girls. Here's my address," she said handing him a note.

"But Erica, I have nothing appropriate to wear if you insist that I go as a girl."

"That's easy to fix," she said grabbing Jodi's hand and leading her out of the office and into the racks of clothing.

She began to rifle though several racks of blouses until she settled on a cream-colored silk one with a high collar. Next to it was a black satin blouse, she pulled that one out as well. She walked further towards the front and sorted through the women's slacks. A tan poly-knit caught her eye and next to it was a black poly-rayon pair of slacks that almost looked brand new. She selected both.

She grabbed Jodi's hand and pulled her to the shoe racks. "Ten and a half, right?"

Jodi nodded. Her eyes followed Erica's hands as they scanned the shoe rack. Her hand settled on a pair of flats and Jodi frowned.

"You like them high, don't you?"

Jodi offered her a subtle shrug.

"Typical male. Here," she said pulling a pair of stilettos and a pair of black flats off the rack, "you'll thank me later when your feet protest those vanity heels." "Take this all home, they're yours, consider them a down payment on what I owe you for yesterday's shoot." She grinned and turned towards the back of the store.

Jodi started to protest but Erica's finger shushed her on her lips as she finished with a wink. "A bet is a bet," she whispered sweetly.

Erica picked up a bag that contained what Jodi wore to her store that morning and laid it on top of the pile in her arms.

Jodi looked into Erica's green twinkling eyes, her lips curled up into a smile. She had won, and she was going to collect. Deep down inside Jodi was happy; she wasn't a sissy. She was a woman. Well, at least on the outside, on the inside she might need a little more convincing.

At a quarter to six, Jodi picked up Erica from the front door of her apartment wearing that cream-colored blouse with the black poly-knit slacks and the black heels Erica gave her.

"You look fantastic!" She said as Jodi took her hand.

"Thank you," Jodi replied sheepishly. "You look incredible yourself," she added as she handed her a small bouquet of roses.

She turned and stepped back inside. "Let me put these in water before we go." She paused a moment to admire them then dashed to her kitchen.

A minute later she returned to join Jodi at the top of her porch stairs.

Erica walked down the steps towards an unfamiliar car wearing a black silk blouse with a subtle-pattern and a full-length asymmetrical skirt over a pair of four-inch black heels. Her hair was pulled back and up with auburn ringlets framing her face. Around her neck she wore a simple gold necklace with a locket attached. Her nails were painted amber to match her hair and her makeup was smoky and sultry. She took Jodi's hand and looked into her eyes. She was smoking hot and Jodi's face felt warm.