Chapter Dedication: Sydity_wonders

Song of recommendation for the chapter: Scared Of being lonely - Beyoncé 🎶 🎶

Taking in a very deep breath, Lee resisted the last-minute temptation to bolt for the hills and forced herself  step into the hall while Lark flashed her a smile and shut the door behind her.

To her surprise, it was quite full. Of women, naturally enough. There was a free seat at the end of the second row, so she sneaked in, trying really hard not to make eye contact with anyone and silently praying that there was no one here she knew. No one was even chattering, which was unusual in a room full of women; as if they were all so silently mortified to be there in the first place that they can't even force their selves to make small talk.

It was so deathly quiet; all you could hear was the buzzing of the fluorescent light overhead and the odd cough. Oh God, she felt like such a saddo, should she just run for it? Because it was not as if she'd ever see any of these people again. . .

No, she said to herself in her most assertive baker's voice, you've come this far, you are not chickening out now.

Sitting there was not admitting that she was total failure when it came to men, it was saying she was prepared to do something about it. Besides, she reminded herself, when was the last time she got a Valentine's Day card? Or flowers from either a straight man or a man who didn't just want something from her?

Lee shut her eyes and did a quick creative visualization.

Yes. There she was, in that hot Vera Wang dress she saw on Pinterest two weeks ago, with her headless husband. Rainy, Lark and Millie were her bridesmaids, her dad was beaming with pride now that his older daughter had finally found someone and her sister had that glazed, shell-shocked, can-this-wondrous-miracle-really-be-happening look that lottery winners always seem to get. . .

Another deep, soothing breath.

Yes, I can do this.

I can do the thirty days challenge.

The thirty days sex Challenge.

If it turned out to be rubbish, she'll just back out of the challenge and never look back.

It was worth a try.

Bang on the dot of eleven o'clock, the door was thrown open. "So, I bet you're all sitting there with one question. The thirty days sex challenge?"

Everyone looked up as the woman — Louis Black, Lee realized— herself made her grand entrance.

Louis Black was probably late Twentyish, absolutely tiny and immaculately dressed in a Chanel-type pillar-box red suit, with platinum-blonde, Marilyn Monroe  hair and a big squared diamond ring on her perfectly manicured left ring finger. She looked like Nancy Reagan and talked like Scarlett Johansson; the same great New York no-bullshit directness.

Lee liked her immediately.

"Sure, you're probably all looking at each other, thinking: What am I doing here? I'm pretty, I'm gorgeous, I'm successful, I should be home doing whatever it is you do. By the very act of signing up with the Agency and sitting here today, you have effectively dialled Marriage and long lasting relationship nine eleven."

They all looked at her, riveted. Lee swore she heard a pin drop.

"You see, you all represent what I call my “Lost Cinderella” generation," Louise went on, taking her place on the little podium set in the front of the rows of chairs, barely pausing for breath. "Sure, you broke the glass ceiling, but you also broke your glass slipper along with it. If you wanna moan and whine about it, there's the door. But if you stay here and do exactly what I tell you, you will be married— if you wish— or will be in a very happy relationship within thirty days."

The woman beside Lee had, by now, actually started to take notes. She had short red hair, untrendy paperweight glasses and Lee found herself silently betting that she was a milk monitor when she was in school.

"Before we start, I got just one question for you ladies." Louise was standing in front of the whiteboard now, hands on hips, a woman not to be messed with. "Short of doing anything illegal or immoral, I want you to ask yourselves this. Am I prepared to do anything, and by that I mean anything, to find a partner before this year ends? Because if your honest answer is no, the door is right there. The good people at the reception will refund you the transportation fee and no hard feelings. "

There was an awkward silence as Lee amongst others shifted uncomfortably in their seats. No one moved, although Lee had to resist the temptation to text Lark to tell her what she was missing.

"Good. You all passed the first test," said Louise approvingly. "Okay, ladies, let me just set you all straight on a couple of things. One: I don't care why you're still single. Maybe you're looking to get married for the first time or the fourth time. Maybe you're constantly dating the wrong type of men— and, God knows, we've all been there. You know, the ones who can't get over their ex or the ones who'll live with you but won't commit to you, or, when they do, the whole thing gradually fizzles out over time. Maybe you've been badly hurt in the past and don't wanna get burned again. Or maybe you've devoted so much time and energy to your career that suddenly you wake up one morning and there you are. Single and panicking."

Lee looked around. There was a lot of murmuring and heads nodding in agreement, her own included.

"Like I said, I DO NOT CARE why any of you lovely ladies are unmarried," Louise continued. "My question is: What are you gonna do about it? If you wanna do the challenge, let me warn you right now, it's not gonna be easy. This is a huge commitment; there are rules and sacrifices involved. Over the next four weeks you are going to learn how to rediscover yourselves. You are gonna change your entire mind set, you're gonna do exactly the challenges and, within a year, I will personally dance at each and every one of your weddings. Now, are there any questions so far?"

There was silence as everyone tried to digest what she said. Eventually, swotty, note-taking girl beside Lee tentatively put her hand up.

"Yes, the lady with the red hair, second row."

"I've lived in this city all my life and my question is: What if there are just no single men in New York? All the ones I meet all seem to be either married or gay. "

Before Louise had a chance to answer, someone else who she couldn't see had piped up from the back row. "Or with girlfriends? I've met loads of interesting men, but they all seem to be very happy with their long-term girlfriends."

Someone else at the back said, "Yeah, me too. And you know what they say, married men are easy, men with girlfriends are impossible."

That was greeted with raucous laughter and by now, there were about a half-dozen hands enthusiastically waving in the air.

"I think we're geographically challenged, you know," said swotty girl beside Lee to no one in particular. "I read an article recently that said that you really have to go west of the Shannon to find a partner these days. The ratio of single men to women is three to one in Manhattan."

"Ladies, ladies, please," said Louise regaining control. "Let me just debunk a few myths here. Sure, single women outnumber single men the world over. Plus, you gotta face up to the hard, cold reality that many guys over thirty-five want younger women. And they're in a buyer's market. Accept that fact and then address it. This means no more narrow criteria about what kind of guy you're looking for. No more 'Oh, my ideal man has to be a rich handsome doctor, who my mother will love, who plays sports, gives to charity and does meals on wheels at weekends'. Your future husband or partner may have great qualities but they could also come in very different packages than you imagine. You're gonna learn how to cast your net wide. Your husband could be divorced, have kids from another relationship, be shorter than you or be completely different from any other guy you've dated in the past. Now, any other questions before we start?"

There no was answer. Even swotty girl had nothing to say.

Louise grinned and lifted a hand in
greeting. "The purpose of this challenge is to allow you to explore sexual touch in a safe and nurturing environment. I understand that many of you will be feeling anxious. That's fine and is only to be expected. However, I hope that by putting yourself outside your comfort zone for this afternoon you will be rewarded, and that this experience will have a lasting impact on you and help you find that long lasting life partner you've always wanted."

Lee listened intently, keeping her eyes fixed on Louise as she spoke. Her nerves were still extreme. She was momentarily filled with a mad urge to jump up and yell something inappropriate about just-getting-the-fuck-on-with-it-already. She gritted her teeth and clenched her fists in her lap, forcing herself to breathe slowly.

She tried to pay attention as Louise read out the ground rules for the challenge:

• Be open with your partner.

• Don't be afraid to say no.

•No nudity—not until you're alone together at least. 

Thank fuck for that.

She did not need to see anyone in this room starkers, thank you very much.

When Louise started talking about the challenges and also sites to get things like kama sutra and different sexual positions from, Lee couldn't quite decide which she felt more like doing at that particular moment.

What the fuck am I doing here?

By the time Louise got them up and moving for the first icebreaking exercise, Lee was so far outside her own body she felt as though she was on autopilot.

They were simply asked to move around the room and make eye contact and smile at each person as they passed them as part of getting used to meeting strangers process before they met their paired partners. Lee drifted around the room with a frozen grin plastered in place. She was slightly encouraged to see that several of the other participants also had a rabbit - in-headlights look about them. But some of them looked sickeningly serene as if it was everyday you sign for a sex challenge, which made her want to punch them.

After a few minutes of that, they were asked to begin touching hands with people as they passed. Lee instinctively wiped her palms on the leg of her jeans and winced at how sticky they were. She took a deep breath and carried on weaving in and out of the other people, allowing her hands to brush against others as she moved.

They walked mostly in silence. Some people were still smiling a greeting as they made eye contact; others were more serious. Lee started to notice little details about the hands she was touching. Some were tentative, others more confident. Some were sweaty like her own, some were warm and dry, others cool and smooth. With
each successive touch Lee started to feel just a little calmer. As she passed Louise and touched her hand, she gave her fingers a quick squeeze and Lee grinned in surprise, meeting her warm smile before they moved on. When she passed a blonde haired lady their palms brushed and Lee met her eyes. She saw interest there and cool assessment and felt slightly uncomfortable under her gaze.

"Okay." It was Louise's voice that drew everyone's attention this time. "You may all return to your seats." She waited until everyone was sitting before speaking again. "I think it's a good time to tell you that all of you in this room already have a paired partner."

"We did this in other to keep the suspense up because introducing them now would be bizare," Louise continued. "But, you'll be meeting them tonight and you can discuss how you want your first time together to be as you try out the challenges. A message— which tells you of where  and when you'll be meeting your partners tonight— has been sent to your emails."

She clasped her hands together, a smile dancing on her painted lips. "We are glad that you all decided to come out of your comfort zones to do this. While many of you will feel weird about sleeping with someone you just met, let me assure you that you'll be fine. Remember not to hide who you are. Explore your inner self,  your inner kinks and above all, enjoy yourselves. Don't forget the main rules: you're entitled to say No, if you feel like the situation calls for it. And if you don't think your partner is treating you right, please let us know. If you have any questions please don't hesitate to ask. Keep us updated about you and your partner."

"You might want to get a book or a diary just so you could tick the challenge you've done so far and also list out what and what you don't like in your partner," Louise continued. "Don't be afraid to address any issue with your partner. Be open. Be honest. Don't ever hesitate to decline what you feel is not right. Tell him or her what you want and what you like. Remember to always take your partner feelings into consideration. Read the book you were given, too. And as I said, call in if you feel something isn't going right. Any questions? "

A lady— mid twenties, shoulder length blonde hair, dressed in a flowing blue gown and matching headscarf — raised her hand. "How are you so sure that this thing will work out? "

Louise smile never faltered. "Well, if you didn't think it would, will you be here? "

A Raven haired, with a mouth that was too wide for her pixie face, raised her hand this time. "Why can't we meet our partners now? "

"That's the rule, Miss Archibald. "

Lee glanced at the lady's receding hairline line and had to wonder if there was some punchline there. What were the girls parents thinking when they named her that. 

Questions ran back and forth until Louise decided that it was the end of question time and they were all handed a form to fill out their names and such. The form comprised of three sheets of papers which was stapled together at the edge. They were told not to open the other parts and Lee had that nagging feeling that it belonged to her partner—whoever that was. And while she was tempted to take a glimpse, she decided not to.

After all, what could ever beat a surprised planned dinner date with some nameless and faceless stranger?

"That's all for today. Thank you for coming." Louise said, after the forms were collected. "We look forward to hear positive news about you and your partners. I wish you all a very racy thirty days ahead!"

There were loud mutterings in the class.

And Lee could connect because,  what the ever-loving fuck did she just get into?

A/N:

Yeah, what did she get into?

QOTC: If an app like this existed, would you sign up, and what category would you fall in?

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