Compromising Positions

by Jenna Bayley-Burke

  “You don’t have to.” Sophie looked away, concentrating on prepping the room for the class. “I was just teasing back there. I’m sure your latest girlfriend would dump you on your butt if she knew what you’d be doing. Save yourself.” She dragged the mats across the floor with ease, dropping them into the usual purple grid.

  “Let me worry about my butt.” David tapped a steady rhythm against his thigh with his water bottle. “Craig asked for a favor so I’m here. I don’t disappoint.”

  Sophie shrugged. She’d given him an out. If he wanted to stay and let her paw him, so be it. He was a big boy. She turned and looked at him. Was he ever a big boy. Students would sign up for the class just to watch him, even if they had to bring their own husbands along.

  The charm and confidence oozed out of him. He was everything women fantasized about. Even completely unattainable. That was the safest thing about a fantasy. Sophie reminded herself of all of Daphne’s warnings. If she indulged herself and used him in the class, could she remember he wasn’t what she needed? She was already enjoying him more than she should.

  “What exactly do you need me to do?” he asked without leaving the doorway.

  Maybe he was still thinking about bailing on her. She crossed the room and stood next to him, adjusting the lighting in the studio using the panel by the door.

  “We open with some stretches, and then some very basic yoga poses to get the muscles warmed up. We run through a series of positions, showing how to transition from one move to the next.” Sophie’s breath quickened, betraying her desire to appear in control. “Then we show them some more yoga poses and strength moves that will enhance the postures. At the end we assign them positions to try at home and they come back next week with questions.”

  “And you’re comfortable with all that?” The way he stared at her made her think he could see through her. Did he look at every woman that way?

  “Honestly?” She dropped her shoulders and her cocky attitude. That was exactly her question to Daphne last month.

  “Please.” The skin around his warm brown eyes crinkled up in the most delicious way, melting what was left of her resolve.

  “Not really. But I’m a professional. And the class is very popular. Like most everything around here, it’s a passion of Daphne’s.”

  “But not yours?” David leaned against the door jam, letting the door close behind him.

  Chuckling, she crossed the room to turn on the sound system. She liked soft ocean sounds in the background as white noise to block out any outside interferences. She looked up at the clock on the wall. Six minutes.

  “How inflexible are you?” She needed to know, and to shake him up a little. It felt entirely too comfortable having him here.

  “What? Where did that come from?”

  “You said you weren’t very flexible. I was just wondering if you’ll be able to make it through all of the positions tonight.” Sophie forced a smile, reminding herself he was just a man. He couldn’t possibly know she’d had him in every position in her dreams.

  “Where are the cards?” He rolled his eyes and stepped farther into the room.

  “Have you ever read The Kama Sutra?” She pointed to the raised platform where she’d set the cards.

  “Nope.” David sat on the platform, stretching miles of leg in front of him, and picked up the cards.

  Sophie kept him in the corner of her eye to catch his reactions as she walked to the door and locked it. She didn’t want the students wandering in until she was ready for them. She began her deep breathing exercises and returned to the platform.

  “Close your mouth,” she said, sitting down cross-legged next to him.

  “Why would anyone want to come here and go through this in public?” His eyes never left the diagrams.

  “Not an exhibitionist?” She smiled up at him, biting back the desire to tease him further.

  He ignored her taunt. “The idea of assigning a sexual position, it’s very procedural. Good sex shouldn’t be that mechanical and structured.”

  “Maybe it’s just a starting point to get them in the mood, like an aphrodisiac.”

  He turned to face her, finally gifting her with a devious grin. “Or these folks have a group sex fantasy and are using your class to find other couples.”

  “Yuck! I’m sticking with my viewpoint, thank you. Though maybe that is why some of the students tried to set me up when I sat in on the class last month.” She shuddered at the thought. “Besides, you haven’t even met any of the students. I was uncomfortable with the idea at first, but the last session changed my mind. All of the couples are in long-term, committed relationships. I think the class helps them spice things up.”

  He groaned. “It’s sad sex gets so boring you have to take a class to maintain your interest.”

  “Maybe it gives them a starting point to talk about sex. Communication is the key to a healthy sexual relationship.” So she’d heard. “Anyway, Daphne thinks it’s more about the touching.”

  David shook his head and stared into her eyes. He had the thickest eyelashes she’d ever seen.

  “It’s about the sex. Trust me. At least for the guys. They show up because they know they’ll be trying out a new position each week.”

  Thank goodness she’d made most of these arguments to Daphne when she sat in at the last session. She could just reiterate Daphne’s answers. Sophie couldn’t think straight with him this close, smelling so good. Clean, soapy and warm. Not a trace of the biting cologne most men slathered on at the end of the day. He must have showered instead.

  “Maybe at first the women use the sexual element to get their husbands to attend with them. But beyond that it’s about reintroducing nonsexual touch to the relationship. Once couples stop dating, they often stop holding hands or hugging. The majority of the session is partnered stretching. Daphne thinks the students stay with the class for the closeness the touching provides.”

  He shrugged his broad shoulders and finished his bottle of water.

  She wanted to keep quiet, but her mind was taunting that this might be the only conversation she’d ever have with him, no matter how trivial. “It’s a very popular class. Daphne has enough people on the waiting list for a year.”

  “Really?” He arched his eyebrow as he turned toward her. Was he teasing now?

  “It’s a big trend, combining sex and exercise. We’re trying pole routines and belly dancing.”

  “I’ll have to look into that.”

  She looked away to hide her frustration. She shouldn’t care if someone else were pole dancing for him. She’d have to watch herself. One conversation and she was already getting possessive.

  Sophie got up and walked back to the closet. She liked him, liked him enough to give him another out. “If you’re not comfortable with this you can go. No hard feelings. Tell Craig I made you leave.” She lifted the sweatshirt over her head, pulled off the sweatpants and slid on her non-slip yoga shoes.

  It was his decision. She crossed the room and unlocked the door, peeking out to see the receptionist back at the desk. She opened the door. The first few couples wandered inside. For the next few minutes she busied herself with greeting the students and getting them ready. She didn’t want to watch her fantasy walk away.

  ———

  David wasn’t sure if he was staying until Sophie took her clothes off. Somehow, he lost his ability to think. Without her sweats, she looked like a different person. The toned expanse of belly between her sports bra and low-slung yoga pants magically made her seem taller. The curves on the woman were dangerous. Her hips flared wide beneath an impossibly small waist. He swallowed hard to keep himself from drooling.

  He watched in amazement while Sophie ran the class through the warm-up. He stood along the back wall, his arms folded across his chest and just stared. She was doing a good job of warming him up.

  He kept reminding himself to keep his mouth closed as she modeled moves for the students. The rest of the class must have mimicked
her movements, but he didn’t notice. This warm-up looked like the main event to him. This was why the men showed up for this class, to watch her.

  He closed his eyes and tried some of the deep breathing she’d been doing earlier. Sophie was not his type. Not even close. He had rules about women. Rules that had kept him from having a woman for almost five months.

  That’s what this reaction was about. It was a steamy situation and his libido was rebelling because it had been ignored. He’d take care of it this weekend, maybe later tonight with that blonde on the stationary bike. He could handle this. He opened his eyes slowly, and winced. Maybe not.

  He couldn’t take his gaze away. She thrust her pelvis forward and back, her hips swayed from right to left, up and down, circles, figure eights. He sucked in a ragged breath and tried to think of the quarterly report he’d read this morning. No good. She moved to lie on her back and repeated the same sweet torture again.

  Her voice was perky and sweet. “Try and run through these stretches everyday. It will loosen your hips and help the movements feel more natural during lovemaking.”

  He could run her through those stretches every day. No problem. Where had that come from? He stared at her smooth skin. She was young, early twenties, way too young for him.

  “Finding which movements work best for you in each position is the key.” Sophie flipped onto her elbows and knees. He closed his eyes against the image burned forever there.

  Craig trusted him. And all David could think of was running through every position with her later. There had to be a catch, or a hidden camera. Had Craig punked him?

  ———

  From memory, Sophie went through the history of The Kama Sutra. Thankfully she could do it without thinking, because having David Strong stare at her that way was frying her brain cells. He looked at her like, well, like he did in her dreams. Maybe this was all a very vivid dream.

  No. If it were, the students wouldn’t be here, listening to her every word. And he wouldn’t be all the way across the room. Sophie crooked a finger at him, beckoning him closer as she picked up the remote. Dimming the lights, she turned on the projector and an image of a couple illuminated the wall behind her.

  “The Kama Sutra teaches about lovemaking as an experience, not an event. It illustrates how to slow down and make the most of your partner, to bring you both as much pleasure as possible. And that means starting at the very beginning, with touch.”

  Sophie swallowed hard as David stepped up onto the raised platform. She looked out at the class, instructing them to stand as she tried to find her bearings.

  “In The Kama Sutra, the man is the pursuer. But that’s due more to the age it was written in. Now, women are free to make the first move.” Sophie reached out, running her hand down the length of David’s arm. The coarse hairs tickled her palm.

  “Instead of racing to the main event, start slow. With a simple touch. It’s important to start lovemaking outside of the bedroom. It’s the glancing touches, holding hands, embracing as you walk, moving together as one that builds the intensity of what’s to come.”

  Sophie stepped closer, leaving the class behind for a moment as she slipped her arm around David’s waist and pulled herself to him so they stood side by side. She didn’t even come up to his shoulder. The realization made her smile, and brought her back to reality.

  “Some embraces can be done throughout the day, with no one knowing what you’re up to. Other embraces will escalate things. Like the pressing embrace where the man presses his body against the woman.” Sophie clicked the remote so a new image appeared behind them.

  David turned so they were face to face, their height difference making the embrace ridiculous. Sophie grinned, her mind daring her on. She pressed the button and a montage of the remaining embraces covered the wall.

  “The Kama Sutra has ideas on every pairing, ways to make lovemaking more accessible and exciting for every couple. It’s up to you to experiment and find the ones right for you. For lovers with height differences there is the Climbing a Tree embrace, where you place your foot on his, your thigh on his, wrap an arm around his back, place your hand on his shoulder and boost yourself up for a kiss.”

  Sophie illustrated the embrace until she and David were eye to eye. In his gaze she saw something akin to panic, which evened the playing field quite a bit. She slid back down.

  “Like climbing a tree, hence the name. There is also the Twining of a Creeper, where you snake your way around his body like a vine until your hand is behind his neck and you can pull him to you for a kiss.”

  The back of his neck was hot beneath her hand. When their eyes met this time she saw something else there, something she’d never experienced. Dear God, he could read her mind. She released him, shaking her head as if it might help clear away the clouds of lust.

  “The Kama Sutra has a lot to offer in the way of lovemaking preparations—bathing and massage, kissing and oral sex.” Sophie prayed her blush wasn’t as heated as it felt as she flipped quickly through the slides. “But those are techniques for you to explore on your own. Here, we’ll focus on positions you might find awkward at first, or might not have the stamina for. We’ll show you how to get in position, and how to condition your body so you can stay there.”

  ———

  Working It Out closed sometime during the class. David stepped out into the empty lobby, marched to the receptionist desk and sat down hard in the chair. There needed to be some physical space between him and Sophie. His reaction to her had been all too real. No matter how technical she kept it, he’d always been a second away from tossing her over his shoulder, carrying her out of there and finishing the act. He couldn’t help but overhear some of the students tease Sophie.

  “If you would have told me you were going home to that, I never would have been after you about my nephew,” a kind, matronly voice said.

  “No harm, Kathy. I’ll see you at yoga tomorrow,” Sophie replied.

  “When we try this tonight, I’m going to fantasize about that one,” a gruff voice said. David really hoped it was a woman. “I hope you won’t mind.”

  He heard Sophie laugh. He sunk his heavy head into his hands. He should bail. Run now and never have to look the woman in the face. Except he might. She was Craig’s sister-in-law, so she would probably be popping up unexpectedly for the rest of his life. Just like a part of him had popped up unexpectedly.

  He listened to the sounds of the students filing out the front door. He battled between being a coward and apologizing. He didn’t have much practice at either.

  “David, are you okay?” Sophie’s voice was laced with honey. She even smelled sweet. Why was he so aware of her?

  He raised his head from his hands and saw her, dressed in her sweats again, standing next to him. Every fiber of his being wanted to grab her heart-shaped face and kiss her breathless.

  He pushed his feet on the ground roughly, sending the chair backward “I’m fine, just fine.”

  “Okay then.” Sophie retreated to her office. He kicked himself.

  She’d gotten him through that class without embarrassing him, and he was acting like a child. He shook his head and told himself to sack up. Sophie emerged from her office a moment later wearing sneakers and a backpack. He stood as she walked into the lobby.

  When she approached him, he remembered how small she was. He’d completely forgotten. Strange the way someone so diminutive had commanded a room, controlled his body just moments ago.

  He swallowed, forcing the words out. “Thank you for covering for me in there. I appreciate it. I apologize if I made you uncomfortable.”

  Sophie raised her hand. “You don’t owe me any apologies, David. Thank you for helping me with the class.”

  David stared into those pale blue eyes. Was she really going to make this easy for him? He’d seen the look of surprise in her wide, innocent eyes when they were going through the positions. She’d given him every opportunity to walk out of the class, and now, after h
e had practically molested her in front of a room full of strangers she was going to let him off the hook?

  Sophie walked toward the door, pressing numbers on the keypad to set the alarm. He followed, but not too close.

  They stepped outside into the cool night air.

  “Let me walk you to your car.”

  “Oh,” she turned to face him. “I didn’t drive.”

  He nodded. “You live around here?”

  “No, just up in the Alphabet district. I usually go grocery shopping with Craig and Daphne and they drop me off after class.”

  “You don’t have a car?”

  Her cheeks pinked. Was it cold enough for them to color? “I have one. It’s just a beast to park. It’s really not worth the hassle for two miles.”

  “I’ll drive you home.” It wasn’t an offer.

  “Really, you don’t have to.” She tucked a stray curl behind her ear. “I’m just going to walk up to the grocery store, then head home. I’ll be fine.”

  “I’ll take you.” She obviously hadn’t heard him.

  Her smile was so wide, dimples pressed into her cheeks. “To the grocery store? Are you trying to earn a merit badge or something?”

  He couldn’t help but grin. “No. One man has already accosted you tonight. I just want to make sure you make it home safe.”

  “You didn’t accost me.” She rubbed her arms through her sweatshirt in the cold October air. “But if you want to play the Boy Scout, I’ll let you.”

  “Good,” he smiled, his alarm beeping as he stepped to the curb.

  “This is your car?” He was used to the response. She was a beauty. A very expensive beauty, but he had a soft spot for her.

  “Yes,” he said, opening the door carefully. Sophie eyed him strangely as she slid inside. Circling around, he let himself in.

  “I can’t believe you actually fit in here,” she said once he closed his door.

  ———

  Sophie squeezed her thighs together and tried to think about anything but sex. Which of course didn’t work. Even though David had been just going through the motions with her in class, she’d been right on the brink of climaxing. Now she was walking a razor’s edge of desire. If Sophie knew how, she’d seduce David right there.