RISE OF EROS

Carmen was used to cleaning up Andrew and his wives' mess in their room every day, so she didn't even flinch when Andrew asked her to clean the office.

She was not new in this business, you have to remember that both she and the other older maids were already working in this place before Andrew bought it, of course, they were slaves before.

Andrew decided to go to the dance room to check on the dancers while Carmen cleaned the office. Although Andrew had forbidden the dancers to practice in the evening hours, these girls always met in the dance room to discuss the upcoming day or listen to Helena with any direction or comments.

When Andrew entered the dance room he could see the girls gathered together talking and laughing. They weren't talking about work or anything like that, they were just having an idle and carefree chat, they were just relaxing.

However, when they saw Andrew walk in, they immediately stopped talking and quickly organized themselves to greet Andrew. Seeing the change in the girls upon seeing him, a sour expression appeared on Andrew's face.

These girls were relatively new to the Heavenly Palace and as they had only been there a short time they were too serious when Andrew or some of his wives were present.

Despite the many times Andrew and the others had told them that they didn't need to be so rigid, the girls were reluctant to obey. So Andrew had approached Sonia who was currently the acknowledged leader among the courtesans and asked for her help, to relax the dancers' attitude, but to no avail.

Sonia had told him that he should not worry and give them time. According to Sonia, with time the girls would relax and leave that rigidity with which they treated him, so even though Andrew felt uncomfortable with the attitude of the dancers, he simply ignored it.

"Come on girls, you don't need to be so stiff, you can keep talking, I just wanted to know how you were, what do you think of the new job?" said Andrew trying to relax them.

"Well, it's fun and we make a lot of money," replied one of the girls who had an amused expression. "Yes, the young master is a genius to think of this idea," said another one of the girls.

After that, several of them spoke up giving praise about the dance room and Andrew, which was clearly unnecessary flattery. This was one of the reasons Andrew didn't like his girls being too formal with him.

The fact that they treat him like a strict boss generates that the girls always try to flatter him and never criticize him. For most company bosses this might be nice, but for an intelligent businessman, it was not.

What is the best source of information about your business, any businessman with an ounce of intelligence would say, "Your customers and your employees". Employees are a very valuable source of information because they are the ones who know the operation of the business best since they are the ones who do it.

That's why if the girls did not have the courage to tell him things clearly, was problematic, as there was no way to understand if the dance room was really good if the employees working there only had unwarranted praise.

When Andrew had a headache thinking he had a problem with the attitude of these girls, Sonia's voice was clearly heard, "Girls, stop licking the young master's ass, that's not what he wants."

After Sonia's scolding that appeared out of nowhere, all the girls became quiet and had an expression darkened by discomfort. Andrew who saw Sonia, could only smile at her in appreciation.

"Girls, you are misunderstanding things here," Sonia said again, and confused, one of the dancers stepped forward and asked, "What do you mean," to which Sonia replied giving a tired sigh.

"Girls, have you ever wondered, why the young master and the young ladies have asked you not to be so stiff when dealing with them?". Sonia's question took the dancers by surprise, who thought for a while, but couldn't seem to find the answer.

Andrew stood to the side, silent, as he watched Sonia's handling of the matter. He was not only evaluating the dancers, but Sonia. She was the oldest in age and reputation of all the courtesans in the Heavenly Palace and for some time now Andrew had been thinking of making her the new matron.

At the moment that position is held by Helena or at least that was the case before the expansion and remodeling of the Heavenly Palace. Now Helena is more like a staff manager and her activities are beyond just teaching the courtesans as she did before.

Helena had told Andrew of Sonia's progress, not only in her sexual skills but in managing the courtesans and so she had recommended her to become the new matron.

With everything that had happened, Andrew hadn't given that subject much thought, but now that he was watching her talk to the dancers, it was clear to Andrew, that Helena wasn't lying, Sonia was perfect for the job.

"Girls, they want you to be more relaxed and speak honestly, don't you realize that if all you do is flatter them, they won't know what's wrong and how to correct it," Sonia continued.

"You don't have to disrespect them but act naturally when there are no customers or people outside the Heavenly Palace. They only demand sincerity, don't compare them with other trash bosses, they won't punish you for that," Sonia said passionately, under the astonished gaze of the dancers.

Wanting to strike the iron when it is hot, Andrew who was standing silently to the side listening to everything, stepped forward and continued, "Ladies, what Sonia says is true."

He paused and continued, "We don't need unfounded flattery, what we need are employees who will provide constructive criticism. This dance room will be your territory from now on, so there will be no one who knows it better than you, so I need you to tell me what is and isn't working."

Hearing Sonia and Andrew's words, the dancers had an embarrassed expression on their faces as they remembered their previous behavior, but they quickly recovered and one of them said, "I understand your point, so I would like to be honest with you, can I talk?".

Andrew looked at the girl who spoke earnestly. He had a small impression of the lady because not only was she one of the prettiest of the group, but she was also one of the quietest.

It wasn't that she was shy because when she danced on stage, she could only be described as sensual and erotic, without fear and shame. What Andrew meant by quiet, was that she didn't fawn like the other dancers a while ago, she just kept her distance.

"You can speak quietly," Andrew said curious as to what the girl would say. "While I can't give an assessment of the dance room, since it only opened yesterday and was a special event, I have some concerns for today when it will be open to the general public."