Never Been Kissed

Ch.08 ↬ M

Josh appeared scarred for life by the time the class had finished.

Pale-faced, he sent wavering smiles at the pregnant women who had all been previously immersed in the discussion and were now appearing a lot more at ease after the incessant reassurance that sex was perfectly fine for the baby and could still be comfortable, despite their protruding bellies.

As the woman in charge of the mothers' class, Mandy, collected her board she'd used for her graphic sketches—much to Josh's heightening discomfort—she grinned at me. "It feels good to be back in here for the class."

"It was great," I told her, hoping to coax a reaction from Josh if he felt the need to contribute to the conversation. "Very informative."

"What she said," Josh piped up, pointing at me.

Mandy gazed at Josh. "Same time next week?"

He opened his mouth and paused. "Well, I think I've got a bunch of meetings next Monday morning. But... I suppose... I'll see what I can do..."

"Excellent."

She waved at us before leaving, and by the time the door shut behind her, I released the laughter that had been threatening to escape for the entire duration of the class. Josh had been perpetually squirming in his seat and muttering profanity under his breath. When Mandy announced the class was over, I'm pretty sure I heard him thanking "Jesus and all things holy".

Josh's voice tore through my hysteria. "Don't take this the wrong way, but I think I might be celibate after that."

His fear-heavy words evoked another bark of laughter from me. Frankly, I didn't mind the class, but maybe that was because I was surrounded by other females. Josh must have felt singled out being the only male and I could only assume he was still young like me.

"What happened to Trinity?" I found myself asking not unkindly, more out of curiosity than anything.

Josh turned to me, wide-eyed momentarily as he failed to disguise the astonishment in his features. "Oh. Well, it was just a one-night stand. Relationships and I don't mix too well."

Fleetingly I indulged in the question of what kind of lover Josh was. Was he rough but satisfying or slow and tender? My last boyfriend was the latter and while it was sweet and intimate, it never quite rendered me feeling breathless and wholly satisfied. I wondered what that felt like before I realised I had to reply to Josh.

"Well, maybe one day when you get a woman pregnant, you'll feel differently. Some guys find it such a turn on knowing a woman is pregnant with their baby." Credit to all the adult romance fiction I've read for that titbit. "So you didn't like her sketch of the inside of a vagina?"

"You know the thing I fear the most?"

I shook my head.

"Pregnant women. And we were outnumbered, Madeline. Throw in the inside sketches of a woman's vagina and the vivid, unappealing descriptions and I think you've found my nightmare. Let's not mention the frequent references she made to the fact that pregnant women have to piss a lot." He studied me for a moment as I struggled to prevent my grin. "You're really enjoying this, aren't you?"

Despite the profound struggle, I relaxed my facial features. "I'm sorry."

He appeared the most relaxed he had done since the staggering realisation of what the class was dawned on him earlier. His lips twitched into a slow smile and I felt an unfamiliar flutter in my stomach. It was short but sweet, fuzzy but warm. He was too charming and too handsome for his own good. And in that form-fitting suit? Knee-jellifying. That's what he was.