little,” Grace explained. “I thought a sex seminar might help boost our membership.”
“Works for me,” Juliet said.
The women watched as Melinda Gibbons set out a crystal punch bowl full of condoms on the table, next to the dildos.
“You know, Grace, you’re right. Mothers Coming Together does sound like the name of a porn movie, especially when you throw in fifty flesh-colored dildos,” Anna said dryly.
“See? This is going to be a whole new chapter for Mothers Coming Together,” Grace said brightly.
“Oh, my God! Are those… penises ?” one of the women milling around gasped, and suddenly everyone’s attention was on the dildos.
Usually, someone had to flick the lights to get everyone’s attention when an MCT meeting started. The first half hour of the meeting was reserved for socializing, and this precious adults-only time was the main reason many of the MCT members showed up. But tonight all of the moms hurried to sit down at the round tables without being prompted. A hush fell over the room, punctuated by a few excited whispers.
“I think she’s selling sex toys,” one woman said to a friend.
“Oh, my God , those dildos are huge ,” another woman squealed.
“I guess it’s time to start the meeting,” Grace said. She smiled, but felt another wave of fear-laced nausea wash over her. What had she been thinking when she volunteered to be president? She was now going to have to stand up and speak in front of all of these women. Gah .
“Good luck,” Anna whispered, and briefly squeezed Grace’s hand.
“Come on, let’s sit down. I want a good seat for this,” Juliet said.
“Will you sit up at the front table? I want to see some friendly faces,” Grace said nervously.
Anna nodded. “We’ll save you a seat.”
“Thanks.” Grace sucked in a deep breath and walked slowly to the front of the room, where Melinda Gibbons was now setting out an assortment of sex toys—a black leather cock ring, an anal plug, and several different types of vibrators, including one that looked like a bullet and another that was shaped like a rabbit.
“Hi, Melinda?” As though she could be anyone else. “I’m Grace Weaver. We talked on the phone. Thank you for coming tonight.”
“Yes, hi, Grace, it’s nice to finally meet you in person,” the redhead said pleasantly, reaching out a hand, which Grace took in hers. Melinda’s hand felt small and cool, and her grip was surprisingly firm. “Thank you for inviting me.”
“I thought I’d start off by introducing you to the group, and then I’ll let you do your thing,” Grace said. “Is that okay with you?”
“Sounds perfect.” Melinda smiled serenely. Unlike Grace, Melinda didn’t seem at all nervous about momentarily standing up in front of all of these women and talking. If anything, she looked loose and utterly relaxed.
Must be all of the orgasms she’s having , Grace thought, and she made a mental note to buy a vibrator.
Grace turned to face the roomful of women and immediately became aware that all eyes were on her. She looked out at the crowd, swallowed hard, and hoped that she didn’t look as fat as she felt in her black linen tunic and pants. She’d made a mad dash to Stein Mart yesterday and bought the set without trying it on. She hadn’t even particularly liked the outfit, but she was desperate. The only thing in her closet she could get into were maternity pants with the hideous stretch-panel waist. And even though she’d bought the outfit two sizes larger than she’d worn before having Natalie, it still felt a little snug. The pants dug into her waist, and the tunic stretched uncomfortably over her breasts.
She drew in another deep breath, although her lungs felt too small and too tight to contain the air. Grace’s heart started pounding, and for a scarily long moment she wondered if she was having her first full-blown panic attack.
Thinner than me, thinner than me, thinner than me. The entire freaking room is