While I didn't learn dance steps, I learned another type of erotic performance. I'd already worked for escort services and massage parlors, but those jobs were about touching. At the Lady, I studied the art of visual presentation and verbal stimulation. Since we were paid a flat wage, there was no reason not to experiment with different personas. I tried being a biker chick, a pigtailed country girl, a retro pinup doll, and, oh yeah—a bitchy dominatrix. Guess which one I decided I liked best?
It was training in speaking my sexual thoughts, too. One of the reasons women hesitate to mention edgy sexual fantasies is out of fear that men will think we're giving immediate, unequivocal consent to them. Safely behind glass, I gave myself permission to say any taboo sexual thing I thought of. Some of the kinky things that came out of my mouth surprised me, but I found I liked saying them, and I saw other people liked it, too.
From those experiments came pieces of a whole. It was in the laboratory of the Lusty Lady that I created many of the elements that would one day coalesce into "Mistress Matisse." I'll be sorry to see my old birthing place go. recommended