The small space contained floating shelves along all the walls filled with artfully displayed jewelry. A very pretty young woman with auburn hair and dark blue eyes was behind the glass-topped counter at the back, arranging pieces on velvet-lined trays. She wore a beautiful collar of deep red leather around her neck, a rose gold padlock in the shape of a heart dangling from its center. Her leather bustier was dyed the same rich burgundy.
She looked up as they came in, her face lighting in a smile of recognition. “Adam Hawk,” she said, coming from around the counter as he set Shani’s box down. “It’s been too long. It’s so great to see you again.”
After they embraced, Adam said, “Allie, this is Shani Youngblood, the jewelry artisan I was telling you about.”
Allie took Shani’s hand in hers, her expression warm and kind. “It’s great to meet you, Shani. I can’t wait to see your work.”
“Oh,” Shani said embarrassed. “I just do it for fun. I’ve never actually sold anything.”
Allie shrugged, smiling. “It started as a hobby for me, too. I got some great help and advice along the way, and I’d be more than happy to share what I’ve learned with you. Let’s see what you’ve got.”
“If you girls will excuse me,” Adam interjected. “I’m going to go set up my stuff. I’ll leave a space on the end of the table for you, Shani.”
“Okay, thanks,” Shani said, feeling a little overwhelmed, but also excited.
After Adam had disappeared, Allie said, “I hope I’m not overstepping to say this, but I’ve known Adam for a few years and I’ve never, ever seen him look at someone the way he looks at you. Could it be someone has finally stolen that guy’s heart?”
Shani’s entire body flushed with pleasure. “We’ve only known each other a few weeks, but in some ways I feel like I’ve always known him. Like he’s the missing piece in my heart.” Realizing how corny she sounded, Shani made a face, offering a small, embarrassed laugh. “Listen to me. I sound like something out of a romance novel.”
Allie grinned. “You act like that’s a bad thing. I think it’s wonderful. Someday I’ll have to tell you the crazy story of how Sir Liam—that’s my husband and Master—and I connected. Talk about a romance novel…” Her face softened, her eyes sparkling as she stared into the distance.
Coming back to herself, she asked, “So, where did you and Adam meet?”
“We met on Desire Island. It’s a BDSM resort in the Outer Banks. I’m a staff slave there.”
“Oooh, I’ve heard about that place,” Allie said excitedly. “We can’t wait to go there, once the baby has weaned herself.”
“You have a baby?”
“Well,” Allie replied with a grin. “I guess she’s not technically a baby anymore. Ciara is fourteen months old. I’ll bore you to death with baby pics on my phone when we have time. And I want to hear every detail about what it’s like to be a staff slave. It sounds so sexy and intense! But for now, let’s see what you’ve got.”
Allie opened Shani’s box and lifted out one of her beaded necklaces. “This is beautiful,” she breathed. “The detail is exquisite and the design is so original. This’ll sell in a heartbeat. Where’s your studio?”
Shani shook her head. “No studio. I have a bag of tools, a soldering kit and a torch. My grandmother taught me when I was a little girl. I’ve been doing it all my life.”
“It shows,” Allie said approvingly, warming Shani to her bones. “You’re a real artist, Shani.”
They spent the next twenty minutes or so pricing the pieces. Shani was dubious at first, protesting, “Are you sure we should price them so high? None of this has any precious stones or gold. It’s not my best stuff.”
“Are you kidding? I’m pricing it low because you’re new. Once we get you established, you’ll be able to charge a lot more. And when you turn your mind to BDSM-themed pieces, the sky’s the limit. People will pay a lot for D/s jewelry they can also wear out in the vanilla world. The demand is huge and there are very few really good artisans out there doing it.”
Shani looked around, entranced and inspired by Allie’s work. She picked up a pair of silver barbells, each with a delicate hanging chain strung with a tiny garnet heart. Her nipples tingled as she imagined being pierced and fitted with the pretty jewelry.
There were so many beautiful pieces, including tiny handcuff earrings with delicate gemstones, necklaces that could be worn as slave collars, and an assortment of bracelets in silver, gold and leather that could also serve as restraining cuffs. As she looked around, her mind was teeming with ideas of her own, her fingers itching to create.
She was drawn to the leather collars on another shelf, many of them with tiny precious and semi-precious stones embedded in the leather. “These are gorgeous,” Shani exclaimed.