Sasha White

Lush Gallery

From The Principles of Lust

At first glance it was rude. Yet, the longer Teal looked at it, the more details she noticed and the faster her pulse raced. The photograph shifted from rude to … raw, as she looked past the shadowed anus and the pouting pussy lips.
The strength of the hands caressing those curved hips., the water droplets scattered over taut skin of beautifully molded buttocks and firm thighs, as if recently washed, but not dried. The dark background and anonymous. bodies…there was nothing else to the photo. Erotic in its simplicity, the only thing that mattered was the touch of those hands and the sensations created.
The visible wetness that covered the woman’s swollen sex made it gleam lasciviously and Teal almost wished it were her that was bent over, being caressed, being prepared masterfully for a night of erotic attention. She swallowed and squeezed her thighs together as the photograph evolved from raw to…luscious.
It was in that moment that the idea came to her. She’d been feeling a little lost and alone, like she didn’t have a purpose. Her parents were happy in their corner of the world, and her brother had found a career he seemed to thrive in. Yet for her, jobs came and went, men came and went. Nothing seemed to challenge her anymore.
She knew there was more to life than partying and she wanted to have goals, she knew she could do anything if she put her mind to it. She’d just never had a clue what she’d wanted to do before. Other than be successful, be independent. But right then, when she looked at that photograph, a lightning bolt struck, and she knew.
She could use her ambition and drive, her salacious mind and her ability to think outside the box, and finally carve her own special niche in the world. A successful and unique place that would be all hers.
And it would be called… Lush.

Inspiration comes from all over. Music, people, energy. One of the things I’ve always had a fondness for is photography, and when I discovered Scott Murdoch’s work, my imagination was juiced. (Visit the Erotic Photography section of my site and see what I’m talking about) Shortly after I found him, I was asked by my editor at Kensington to do a single author anthology – the premise could be anything I wanted, so I stepped away from bars and casinos and my normal arena, and created LUSH, a fictional art gallery specializing in Erotic Art.You can also see The Sculpture I reference in a scene from The Principles of Lust.
From THE PRINCIPLES OF LUST:

A sudden thought had her spinning on her heel and heading out into the gallery. There, on the far wall behind the reception desk, was the photo that had started her on this path.
The whole gallery was painted a very light cream shade. A classy, yet neutral color that blended well with the natural wood shelves and display podiums Zach had built for her. Everything was set up to show all the pieces equally.

Except the wall behind the reception desk.

It was painted a rich deep burgundy that drew the eye.

Teal stepped closer and thought back to what had enthralled her so about that photograph. It was subtle, but it was there. Even when she’d used the word masterful in her mind before, it hadn’t clicked. But the position of the woman, bent over and exposed…and the way the hands were both gentle and commanding…

The photo had aroused her, but it wasn’t the explicit nature of it, or even the naughty details that had done it. It was the sense of complete openness.

The sense of complete trust.

From SEXUAL HEALING:

Caitlyn glanced around the crowded gallery and saw Teal and Zach, arm in arm as they chatted with an older couple. There was a bright yellow aura around the whole group, with tinges of purple and blue. Lot’s of love and happiness in that group.

She saw Dominick chatting animatedly with a tall lanky blond guy with arms covered in tattoos. There were people she didn’t know milling around and she tried not to be obvious in her search for Jack. She was surprised he was there.

Pleasantly surprised though, because it could mean that he’d decided it was time to get out of his loft just a bit. She looked at some of the displays as she wandered and stopped dead in front of Mia’s Jewelry.

The line was simply titled Mia. Each decoration was mounted onto a black card with a shaded image behind it. Caitlyn recognized herself in the shaded images, but she doubted anyone else would. The nipple piercings had a picture of her fingertip playing with her own barbell. The waist chains had the image of her waist on it, looking soft and feminine, but ultimately sexy and erotic.

There were earrings, finger rings and toe rings. There were even ankle bracelets, with the photos of hers behind them. But it was the big photo mounted on the wall behind the display that really shocked her. How she’d missed it when she first walked in she didn’t know.

It was all her.

Completely naked, she lounged on the pillows, hair spread out, eyelids at half-mast as she looked into the camera with seductive promise. One knee was bent at an angle so that her leg hid the hand that was tucked between her thighs. The other hand was curled under her chin.

There was an amazing combination of innocence and allure to the photo that made her breath catch in her throat.

“Beautiful isn’t she?”

Her heart pounded at the husky voice near her ear.

Jack.