The continuous stimulation left Julianne nearly breathless.

Her breathing faltered for a moment, and the way her throat tightened instinctively almost made me lose control right there.

Just then, a familiar voice drifted down from upstairs. "Why's the power out?"

They were coming down.

I immediately pulled Julianne deeper into the shelves at the back of the store.

Boxes of silicone toys were stacked everywhere, and once we slipped between them, the two of us were almost impossible to notice unless someone searched carefully.

Her sloppy job left me struggling to calm the restless heat coursing through my body.

For a brief moment, I had the urge to simply take her right there, but I forced the thought aside.

Some things were better saved for later.

I held the back of her head, thrusting steadily until I came.

"Ding!"

A moment later, the lights flickered on overhead. Julianne was still kneeling on the floor. Her hair was messy, and her clothes were in disarray. She looked completely disheveled.

"I-I'm sorry…"

Her nervous apology almost made me laugh.

I gathered the torn pieces of clothing from the floor and handed them back to her. "Get dressed. I should go."

To my surprise, tears welled in her eyes. She quickly turned away as if trying to hide them.

For a moment, I considered comforting her, but if I stayed any longer, I would risk running into George. Fortunately, the storage room wasn't far from the entrance, so I quickly slipped out.

Just as I reached the front of the store, George happened to walk back inside. If I had come out even a second earlier, we would have collided face-to-face.

I immediately pretended I had just arrived.

"Hey, George," I said casually. "Is that custom mold I ordered ready yet? It's urgent."

George broke into a broad smile. "It just came in. I've got a brand-new batch, and it's even better than the last one."

He led me toward another display section, giving Julianne plenty of time to straighten herself out.

I grabbed a box at random and carried it to the register.

Right then, Julianne appeared behind the counter, now fully dressed. "Dad, the power went out just now. I was in the storage room organizing the inventory."

George nodded as if nothing unusual had happened.

Our eyes met briefly. Her hand trembled slightly as she handed me my card.

While George wasn't looking, I reached over and lightly pinched her waist. She flinched and quickly stepped aside, clearly too nervous to even look at me.

I felt guilty all of a sudden. I hadn't expected her to be so shaken.

However, before I could explain, Julianne had already disappeared into the back.

…

By the time I got home, it was nearly 2:00 am.

I stood under cold water in the shower for half an hour, but the heat in my body still refused to fade.

I shouldn't have let her go so easily.

As I lay in bed, I kept thinking about her.

I thought about the way her face looked in the dim light of the storage room. I remembered vividly the tears caught on her lashes, the way she bit her lip when she called my name, and how soaked she was.

After tossing and turning until 3:00 am, I finally opened the toy I had bought. It was imported from Jandor and advertised as 99% realistic.

Even with lubricant, the experience felt hollow.

The moment I tried using it, Julianne's face appeared in my mind. The more I thought about her, the more artificial the silicone felt.

Silicone was still silicone.

It had no warmth, reaction, or that softness the moment one touched it.

Cussing inwardly, I tossed the toy aside and leaned back against the headboard, lighting a cigarette.

It was already past 3:00 am.

Julianne was probably asleep by now. After everything that had happened earlier, she might not even want to see me again.

Still, a restless urge coursed through my body.

The adult store was open 24 hours a day.

When I returned, the door to the staff room was slightly ajar, and I could hear faint breathing coming from inside it.

Julianne was curled up on the narrow folding bed. A thin blanket was draped loosely over her body, outlining every curve.

I stood there, watching her for a moment, before quietly closing the door behind me and locking it.

The mattress dipped slightly as I sat down beside her. She shifted in her sleep but didn't wake. As the blanket slipped down, the faint hickeys I had left on her skin were revealed.

My hand moved almost of its own volition, tracing slowly along her body before landing on her voluptuous chest.

I lowered my head and took her breasts into my mouth as I greedily breathed in the scent of her skin. Eventually, I started slowly and gently stripping her.

Julianne's eyes flew open. When she saw me, confusion flashed across her face, followed quickly by a trace of fear.

I pressed her back down against the bed as my hands continued to roam across her body.

When my fingers reached the inside of her thigh, I suddenly realized she wasn't wearing any underwear. Moreover, she was soaked.