My face burned. “I don’t want to be like that.”
“What you want and what you are may not align, Valerie.” Mrs. Chen’s voice was matter-of-fact. “The question is whether you’re going to accept your nature or continue fighting it.”
“I can’t just—” I stopped, not knowing how to finish the sentence.
Mrs. Chen reached for her phone. “I’m going to call your husband.”
“What? No!” I half-rose from my chair. “Please don’t?—”
“Sit down,” Mrs. Chen said, and something in her tone made me obey instantly. She dialed a number and waited.
“Mr. Pelletier? This is Mrs. Chen from the New Modesty Authority. Your wife is in my office… Yes, she’s fine. But I think she needs some additional guidance. I’d like your permission to provide her with a tutorial on accepting her body’s needs… I see… Yes, that would be appropriate… Thank you.”
She hung up and looked at me. “Your husband has given me permission to work with you.”
“What does that mean?” My voice came out as barely a whisper.
Mrs. Chen stood and walked to a filing cabinet. She opened a drawer and pulled out a small box. When she returned to her desk and opened it, I saw what looked like a pair of lacy white panties. Mrs. Chen picked them up in both hands and held the little garment above her desk, displaying it to me.
My jaw went slack and my heart raced as I saw the panties’ most obvious feature: they had a pretty front, made completely of lace, but they had no back at all.
“Go ahead and take off your clothes for me, Valerie,” Mrs. Chen said. “With the help of these panties I’m going to teach you some important things about your body’s needs.”
