The Naughty Girls Book Club. Sophie Hart

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СКАЧАТЬ second meeting of the Cafe Crumb book club began very differently to the first. Although Estelle still worried about whether or not anyone would turn up, her concerns proved unfounded, as Sue, Rebecca and Gracie all arrived before the seven p.m. start time.

      They queued up at the counter for their drinks and cakes (for this time, refreshments and snacks weren’t free) and sat down quickly, three distinctive copies of Ten Sweet Lessons on the table in front of them.

      The atmosphere was completely different to the last meeting. There was no air of boredom, tapping of feet or heavy sighs. Everyone sat bolt upright and eager to begin. There was a buzz in the air, and it was as though everyone couldn’t wait to start.

      There was, however, no sign of Reggie.

      ‘Have you heard from him, Estelle?’ asked Sue.

      ‘No, I haven’t,’ she replied, coming over to sit with them and placing her own copy of Ten Sweet Lessons on the table.

      ‘I wonder if he’s going to show up.’

      ‘Do you think we scared him off?’ Gracie grinned wickedly.

      ‘Well, it’s got to be fairly unnerving for the poor boy,’ replied Sue. ‘A nice young man like that, and then he has all us women to contend with. Not to mention the subject matter for this week,’ she finished, tapping the book lightly.

      ‘He probably didn’t read it,’ Rebecca sniffed dismissively.

      ‘Or maybe he did and feels intimidated,’ Gracie chimed in. ‘Maybe he didn’t feel he could measure up to the famous Alexander Black.’

      ‘Mmm, Alexander Black,’ drawled Rebecca, pretending to swoon.

      Gracie rolled her eyes. ‘What? That disturbed sicko, with his pathological need to control everything and take advantage of a younger woman?’

      ‘Yep, that’s the one,’ replied Rebecca with a giggle. ‘He can take advantage of me any time.’

      ‘Should we just get started?’ wondered Estelle, looking anxiously at the door.

      ‘Yes, let’s,’ said Gracie. ‘Besides, even if Reggie does turn up, it’s not like he’s going to say anything. He’ll just sit in the corner and makes notes about us.’

      ‘True,’ Estelle agreed uncomfortably. ‘Although I would like to encourage him to join in if at all possible. It seems a waste otherwise.’

      ‘And it could be good to get a man’s perspective on these things,’ added Sue. ‘See if Ten Sweet Lessons is as much of a turn-on for men as it is for—’ She broke off suddenly, flushing as she realised that she’d just revealed more information than she intended to.

      ‘Well, it sounds as though you enjoyed the book,’ Estelle smiled, unable to help herself. ‘What did everyone else think?’

      There was a burst of noise, as everyone began speaking at once, and Estelle laughed, holding up her hand for silence. ‘This is a little different to the last session!’

      ‘This was so much more exciting than Tess of the D’Urbervilles,’ Rebecca grinned.

      ‘It was certainly wilder, but I don’t know if you can compare it to a classic like that,’ objected Sue.

      ‘They both feature women being oppressed – whether by societal norms in Tess, or physical subjugation in Ten Sweet Lessons. Why can’t anybody write a book about strong women?’ Gracie complained.

      ‘Great everyone, that’s really interesting,’ cut in Estelle, feeling like a referee. Everyone was so eager to speak; she instinctively felt she’d done the right thing by choosing such a controversial book. ‘So given everything that’s just been said, why do you think Ten Sweet Lessons has proved to be so popular? Rebecca?’

      ‘Sex,’ she blurted out.

      ‘Absolutely. Sex sells,’ agreed Gracie. ‘Whether the book is of any quality or not doesn’t matter. It sells on notoriety alone.’

      ‘Oh, come on Gracie, you must have enjoyed it a little bit,’ Rebecca pressed. ‘You’d have to be dead from the waist down not to read about all that spanking and sexy stuff without feeling some urges of your own. I don’t know about anyone else, but I wanted to jump on my husband every time he walked through the door.’

      ‘I have to admit, it made me thoroughly envious,’ Sue admitted. ‘I didn’t know that most of that sort of thing went on, let alone have the opportunity to try it.’

      ‘It’s great, isn’t it?’ Estelle enthused. ‘It’s as though Ten Sweet Lessons has suddenly made it okay to read this sort of novel. It makes you feel very naughty for doing it, but that’s part of the appeal.’

      ‘I know! I read it on the bus,’ Rebecca agreed. ‘More than once I found myself sitting looking at everyone else, hoping they couldn’t tell what I was thinking. It’s like having a sexy secret.’

      ‘I also found it quite frustrating,’ confessed Sue. ‘It made me realise what I’d been missing out on all these years, and wondering if that’s what everyone else was getting up to while I’d been – if I may speak frankly – lying back and thinking of England.’

      ‘Well my ex and I never did anything like that,’ Estelle admitted, marvelling at how openly the women were speaking in front of each other. ‘Although maybe we’d still be married if we had! You know, spiced things up a little,’ she finished ruefully, thinking of what Ted had said about him and Leila.

      ‘It’s given me a few ideas,’ Rebecca giggled.

      ‘I just don’t get what the big deal is,’ Gracie protested. ‘It’s not like we’ve never read about sex before, so why is this book so popular?’

      ‘I think it’s the novelty factor,’ Rebecca said thoughtfully. ‘I mean, I’ve never read anything like this before, and it wouldn’t have occurred to me to pick it up unless everyone else was raving about it. But it’s made it acceptable – mainstream even – to read erotica.’

      ‘How about you, Sue?’ asked Estelle. ‘What did you make of it?’

      ‘Well, like Rebecca said, I’ve never read anything quite like this before,’ Sue replied, fiddling self-consciously with her necklace. ‘I mean, obviously it’s very graphic in parts. And this whole idea of pleasure and pain – that’s something I’ve never really considered. Some of the content really was extreme and shocking. But ultimately, I think the book’s appeal comes from the fact that, at its heart, it’s a simple love story. A romance almost.’

      ‘Ahh, I love a good romantic spank on the bottom,’ sighed Rebecca, making everyone laugh.

      ‘But it is an interesting point, Sue,’ Estelle continued. ‘Is it actually erotica? Is it just a romance novel with added sex scenes? Or is it nothing more than porn?’

      At that moment, the door opened. Reggie walked through, just as Estelle was finishing her sentence. As he heard the word ‘porn’, a slow blush spread across his face, burning from his neck all the way up to his forehead. ‘Um … I …’ СКАЧАТЬ