Silver Pt. 05

After crossing the light at Chestnut Street, we made a left and began the home stretch to Eighteenth Street. After crossing, I asked a person who was standing there, if they could let me know how far down it was to the building that I was looking for. As luck would have it, the policewoman to whom I was speaking, told us to follow her, telling me when to turn as we approached the store. I thanked the officer and told Misty to find the door. As we walked to the door, I heard the sound of it revolving. Fuck, a fricking revolving door, I thought. It wasn't one of Misty's strongest points, but as we got close to the entrance, the police officer told us when it was clear to go, and we did, entering the prestigious store where I planned to purchase my first, and hopefully last, fitted suit.

As Misty and I entered the huge lobby, a whiney voice began to approach. "Sir, sir..."

I stopped, knowing that he was following us as we continued to walk. I stopped and heard the man say, "Sir, you can't have that dog in here."

"Sure I can," I smiled, "She has the credit card."

"Sir, that dog is not allowed in this store," the effeminate voice stated.

"James," I began.

"Robert," he said in an insulted voice.

"Robert, this dog is certainly allowed in this store and any other store or public building."

"Sir, I am going to have to aske you to leave the premises immediately," he demanded.

"Mr. Robert, this is a guide dog, and you can not do any such thing," I politely said.

"Sir, I insist, you must leave right now," he replied.

"Robert, my friend, you are making a huge mistake and if you, your store, and your company want to be slapped with a fifty thousand dollar fine, I strongly suggest that you stop your whining and show us to the men's department."

"Security, security," Robert yelled in a tantrum.

I heard the sound of a security radio approaching as Misty laid calmly at my feet. The guard told me that I would have to leave the store after Robert discussed the issue that apparently was bunching his panties. "Sir, I'm going to have to escort you from the building," he apologetically stated. I pulled out the card that I carried in my wallet, stating that it was a federal and state law that a blind person and their guide dog were not to be denied access to any public building."Robert, you are asking for trouble," the security guard stated.

"Robert apparently pointed to the exit as the security guard gasped and asked me to follow him. "Call the police if you want me out of here," I said as I stood firmly with Misty still lying at my feet. "Robert, I'm trying to save you from getting yourself in a whole lot of shit."

"Call 911," Robert said in anger.

"There won't be any need to do that sir," a female voice said in a firm, aggrivated voice as it approached behind us.

"Officer, this man and this mutt refuse to leave the store," Robert said with a smile.

"That's because he's not leaving," the female officer stated. "Get your manager's ass down here right now," she ordered the security officer.

In minutes the manager of the store was standing before me, apologizing profusely and offering her personal assistance as my female police angel explained the circumstances that the store now faced. I accepted the straight laced manager's offer and asked her to lead the way to the men's department. I thanked the female officer once again and before we parted, she gave me her number and told me to have her paged when I was finished my shopping. I thanked her once again and parted with the manager, telling Misty to follow. She led us to an elevator and as we entered, she pushed the button to the men's department. "Your dog is beautiful," she said in a pleasant voice.

The change in her personality was instant as the elevator doors closed. "thank you, uh..."

"Stacey," she answered.

"Thank you, Stacey," I said.

"What brings you to our store today?" she asked.

"Well, I decided that I need to have a personally fitted suit," I said, explaining that I had a wedding to attend with a beautiful woman.

"Lucky woman," she said. "Every man should have a personally fitted suit at some point in his life and I'll be more than happy to have you looking your absolute best," she smiled, as her hand rested on my shoulder.

I could smell her perfume and the slight hint of cigarette on her breath as she continued to ask me questions about colors, styles, etc. I began to sweat as her flirtacious voice continued talking and her hand slid down to the back of my arm. The elevator came to a stop and as the doors opened, Stacey asked me to follow her. Her heels clicked on the marble floors of the store as she walked confidently in front of me. Misty was right on her tail as we followed her to the men's private collection.

"Hello, Mrs. Evans," I heard a man's voice say. "How can I help you?"

"I am personally handling this man's need for a suit," she said, "So I won't be needing you, David."

"Please come this way, sir," she stated.

"You can call me, Mike," I replied as we followed her back to the fitting room.

"OK, Mike, let's get started by measuring you. do you have an idea of your jacket size?"

"Thirty-eight regular," I answered, "but that was ten years ago and I've lost some weight since then."

"Excuse me, Stacey, but do you have a chair available in this room?" I asked.

"Sure, let me bring it over to you," she flustered.

"No, please; I just want to place Misty out of our way," I explained.

Stacey guided me to the chair and I quickly had Misty lying underneath of it, giving her the command to rest. I took Stacey's hand and she led me back to where I was ready to get measured. "Your dog is unbelievable," Stacey began, "She is lying there with her head between her outstretched legs, not taking her eyes off of you."

I was always proud to hear compliments about my Misty-girl. She was a great dog and it never took people long to fall in love with her, except for poor Robert, who was probably going to get his ass chewed out later, and not the way that he may have wanted!

Stacey started at my neck, working to the center of my back and measuring down to my wrist next and marking the numbers down. she told me to relax as she wrapped the cloth tape measure around my waist. "Thirty-one waist," she said to herself before kneeling on the floor and measuring my inseem. I was wearing a nice pair of Dockers but wore sneakers because I was going to be doing a lot of walking through the city. She reached the tape up into my crotch and hesitated as her hand brushed against my cock which I was desperately trying to keep under control in my pants. There was a fifty- fifty chance that she would choose the side that it was hanging and as misfortune would have it, she picked the side where my good old boy was beginning to grow. What can I say, when a woman's hand is reaching between your legs, there's a pretty damn good chance that this is going to happen.

"Oh my..." I heard her whisper as she stretched the tape down my leg to the top of my sneak. "You're not going to be wearing these to the wedding, are you?" Stacey laughed.

"No, I'm sorry, I wore them because I have a lot of walking to do today," I answered with a laugh.

Stacey asked me if I had any particular color suit in mind as she took some more measurements around my body. "Whatever looks best to you," I replied. "I'll trust your judgement with that," I smiled.

"Do you have a price range in mind?" she asked next.

"Oh, I don't know... This is the first, and most likely last, high end suit that I will ever purchase," I said in an embarrassed tone.

"Well, we have suits that range from five hundred to nine thousand dollars," she explained as if we were sitting down and talking over a cup of coffee.

I coughed out loud and placed my hand on my chest. "Say that again," I said in a squeaky voice as if she had grabbed my balls and gave them a good squeeze. "Well, I think that I'll skip the nine thousand dollar one; I don't want to stand out in the crowd," I sarcastically said.

"Mike, you'll be standing out in the five hundred dollar one," she said with a smile. don't worry, I'll fix you up with the price since Robert put you through such a hassle already."

"Don't be too hard on him," I said, "He was probably worried that Misty would get hair on his lizard shoes."

"You mean alligator shoes?" she laughed.

"Yeah, I guess... Aligator, lizard, snake skin; they're all the same to me," I laughed.

"Actually, they're not," she said as she backed me into the chair and lifted her foot onto my crotch. "Here, give me your hand and I'll show you," she said. I was dumbfounded as I sat there with a woman's shoe pressing into my lap. She took my hands and placed them on her calves. I felt the silky stockings that graced Stacey's toned leg. She slid them down to a pair of soft, high heel shoes and said, "These my handsome friend, are snakeskin pumps; they'll set you back around seven hundred and fifty dollars in case you're interested."

As she leaned down, guiding my hand to her shoes, the heel pressed onto my cock. She moved it around the slightest bit and seductively said, "Feel how soft they are?"

"Very nice," I stammered. I wasn't going to do this, especially when this pretentious bitch was playing with me, but more than that, I was in love with my Marlene. I wasn't getting myself into any trouble and I was wishing that Marlene was here with me. "They're very nice Stacey, but can you help finalize my choice for a suit? I'm meeting my beautiful girlfriend for lunch."

"Sure Mike, we can...finish up," she teasingly said. "Does your...um, girlfriend work here in the city?"

"Yes, she works at a law firm on Market Street," I said with a proud smile.

"Oh, that's nice... What is she, a secretary or something?"

As I stood up from the chair and looked at her, I simply said, "No, she's a partner in the firm."

"Oh, I see," Stacey said, changing the tone of her voice.

"Maybe I'll send her in for a couple pair of those shoes that you so elequently showed me," I sarcastically stated.

"Yes, that would be nice," she responded in a smug tone. "Well then, let's get you fixed up so you can be on your way."

She called David from the floor to assist her in choosing a proper suit and after fourty-five minutes of finding the right style, color, and discounted price for the suit, shirt, tie, and yes, snakeskin belt, Misty and I were escorted down to the front door where we met the female police officer. Stacey surprisingly slipped her card into the pocket of my dockers, telling me that her personal number was on it if I needed any more help. I shook her hand, and thanked her for her help and for the generous discount that she provided me, saying that I would see her next week when I returned to pick up my suit.

"Wow, what did you do to her?" the officer asked as we stood outside of the building.

"I don't know, officer; I just told her how it was," I chuckled. I took the business card from my pocket, handed it to the officer, and asked her if she could throw it in the trash for me. She laughed, saying, "Mike, you don't put up with that high society lifestyle, do you? And please call me, Judy."

"Nope, I hate that shit, Judy," I stated, "I just needed a real nice suit for the love of my life."

I told officer Judy that I was headed to Sixteenth and Market and she said that she would accompany me. I also asked her if there was a flower shop along the way. She pulled out her radio and told her dispatch where she was heading as we began the three block walk. We stopped into a flower shop after turning the corner at Sixteenth Street, where I purchased a dozen red longstemmed roses. Judy walked behind Misty and me as we weaved our way between people, crossed streets and stepped onto the sixteen hundred block of Market Street. I told her the number of the building that I was looking for, and she guided us inside, leading us to the elevator and stepped in with us. "That dog of yours is unbelievable," she said, after asking me what floor I was going to. "You should have seen those people stepping out of the way as you walked up the street."

"Are you sure it wasn't because you were walking behind us?" I asked.

"Oh no, honey, they weren't looking at me; they saw that black dog and jumped out of the way," she laughed.

"Her name is Misty," I said to Judy.

"Well, Misty here, is the shit," she laughed.

As the elevator stopped at the eighteenth floor, I thanked Judy for her help and kindness, telling her that I would be back in the city next week. "It was a pleasure, Mr. Mike, and if you ever need anything, you let me know," she said with a smile. She handed me a card and told me that it had her name and precinct number on it. I thanked her again, stepped from the elevator and onto the floor of "Hartgrove, Cassidy, and O'Niel."

I could hear the sound of the busy phone ringing directly in front of me, so I told Misty to go forward. We took about ten steps before Misty stopped in front of a desk, where I heard a pleasant female voice answering each call, "Hartgrove, Cassidy, and O'Niel; how may I direct your call? One moment please..."

I stood in front of the desk with a box filled with a dozen red roses in my hand, waiting for the woman to greet me. The female voice finally said, "Can I help you sir?"

"Hi, Marlene Cassidy please," I answered.

"I believe that she's busy, may I ask you if you have an appointment?"

Misty shook her body and the sound of her leash rang out loud. "Can you please tell her that Michael is here to see her?" I asked.

"Oh," the woman said as she stood up and looked over her desk. "Oh, oh, Michael... her Michael," she said in a surprised voice. She came around the desk and hugged me. "Hi Michael, I'm Margie. Oh, she is going to be so surprised. And this must be the imfamous Misty!"

"Hi Margie, I've heard a lot about you," I said as I stood there blushing before her. "And yes, this is Misty."

"I know that I'm not supposed to, but can I give her a scratch on the head?"

"Sure, let me sit her down first, then you can say hello to her."

Misty sat and wagged her tail as Margie knelt down and scratched her face. "You are so precious," she said in a sweet voice. She raised up and ran around to her phone, saying, "Oh, she is going to be so, so happy to see you."

Margie picked up the phone and tapped a couple of numbers. "Mrs. Cassidy, there is an incredibly handsome man and a gorgeous dog here to see you."

I think the door to Marlene's office opened before Margie hung the phone up. "Oh my god, what are you doing here, Michael?"

She ran into my arms, squishing the box against my chest and hugged me tightly. "What are you doing here?" she asked.

"Well, I had some errands to run in the city, so I thought that I would stop in and see if you were available for lunch," I said with a smile.

"What kind of errands?" she asked in a high pitched, surprised voice.

"I had to pick up roses for my girlfriend, so I thought what place better than Philadelphia," I grinned, pulling the long box from between us and handing it to her.

She placed the box on Margie's desk and opened it. "Oh my God, Michael, they're gorgeous," she said, holding her hand to her mouth. "Margie, can you help me grab a vase and some water?"

Margie was one step ahead of her as she took the roses, unwrapped them from the tissue paper,, and began snipping the ends before handing them to Marlene to place them one at a time in the vase. "Michael, these are going to look beautiful on my desk," she exclaimed as she continued to fill the vase. After adjusting the last one, she turned to me and with tears beginning to run down her face, said, "Michael, they are absolutely gorgeous."

She took my face into her hands and kissed me softly. "How did you get here?"

"We took a taxi to the train station, hopped off at Sixteenth and Locust Street, and walked up to your building," I calmly said, not telling her about our little detour to the store.

"You said that you had errands to run though."

"I did; I stopped and picked up flowers!" I grinned.

"I know by that face, Michael... You're up to something," she giggled.

"Margie, look at this face... Don't you think that he's up to no good?" she asked her beautiful assistant.

"Yeah, he kind of has that sheepish look about him," she mused.

I held my hand up in innocence. "C'mon Handsome, I want to introduce you to some people," she excitedly said.

I held onto Misty's leash as Marlene took my other hand into hers and we walked down a hallway. She stopped and knocked on a door before peeking her head inside and asked, "Do you have a minute?"

She opened the door the rest of the way and we stepped inside an office. "Ed, I want to introduce you to my Michael. Michael, this is one of the firm's original founders, Ed O'Niel."

I heard a very deep voice say, "Oh my," before coming around to greet me. "Michael, Ed O'Niel; it's a pleasure to meet you. I've heard so much about you."

The voice towered over me. He had to stand well over six foot I thought. "It's very nice to meet you, Mr. O'Niel," I said as I shook the man's hand. It encumbered my own as we firmly shook hands.

"Call me Ed," Mr. O'Niel said

"Please, Mr. O'Niel, I wasn't raised that way," I said as the large man kept a firm hold on my hand.

"Ed," Marlene interjected, "Don't waste your breath; he's not going to call you by your first name. It didn't work with mom either," she laughed.

"OK, but I wish that you would call me Ed," he said in a booming voice. "And this must be Misty," he boasted. "May I say hello to her?"

I sat Misty down as her tail wagged wildly as Mr. O'Niel knelt on the floor and gave Misty a good old fashioned scratch. "What a beautiful pup you are," he said to Misty in a higher pitched voice. Misty sat proudly in front of him, sucking in all of the attention that she could muster. Marlene laughed at the sight and asked him to stay there while she ran and grabbed her smart phone for a picture. She was back in a flash and took pictures of Misty and Mr. O'Niel as they stared at each other.

"What's all of the commotion about?" a female voice asked.

"Janet, we were just going to visit you next," Marlene said in an estatic voice. "This is my Michael, and Misty is the one entertaining Ed on the floor. Michael, this is Janet Hartgrove."

"Hello, Mrs. Hartgrove," I said as I held my hand out.

"Hi Michael, nice to meet you. Call me..." she began before being interupted by Marlene.

"Don't bother Janet; he's not going to call you by your first name," she said with a big smile to her voice. "Don't feel bad, it didn't work for Ed, or my mom either," she laughed.

I shook hands with Mrs. Hartgrove, telling her that it was a pleasure to meet her. Her hand was small, but a bit on the plump side; not thin like Marlene's. We stood and talked for awhile; Marlene explaining that Mrs. Hartgrove was the other founder of the law firm. "Both Ed and Janet graduated with my dad from the University of Penn," she said. "They all decided to start the firm after they and my dad met at a convention," she continued. "And well, when dad died, they created the firm, and held the Cassidy name for me hoping that I would follow in my father's footsteps. They saved my life," she tearfully said.

"Oh Marlene, Sweetheart," Mrs. Hartgrove said, "You were the one who worked so hard to become the successful woman that you are today. We just gave you a little guidance."

"That's right, Marlene, you are the bright one, and the future of the firm," Mr. O'Niel stated from the fllor. "Janet and I aren't getting any younger," he said.

"Speak for yourself, Ed," Mrs. Hartgrove laughed.

Marlene took a few more pictures of me and Mrs. Hartgrove, with Misty and Mr. O'Niel on the floor in front of us. "Oh my god, that is a great picture," she exclaimed. "I'm going to get this framed for all of us!"