Alien Sex 101 (7 page)

“A friend of a friend got me a job doing data input part-time.” Mera made the announcement without enthusiasm. “The rate sucks and I’m liable to fry my eyes, but at least the pay is steady, and the job is guaranteed for three months. If you come up with a new class and could use a guest instructor here and there, let me know. We could work in trade if money is too tight. Maybe you or Quinn could give me a couple of sessions in exchange and keep my butt from molding into the shape of an office chair.”

Chuckling, Xindra gave her a quick hug goodbye as her students began to gather for her last class. Even as she got everyone lined up and started putting them through their moves, though, the conversation continued to haunt her. Just how tight were finances going to get for her and her husband in the months ahead?

* * * *

Xindra brought the matter up later once she and Quinn were home and relaxing on the couch after dinner.

Her husband reassured her as he absently massaged one of her feet. “We won’t starve. I know how much I’ll bring in from my local people. There’s no way to predict the temporary ones who make up the bulk of my client base, though. Sometimes I get a whole family taking advantage of the seasonal discounts, while other times one guy shows up a day here or there and then nothing.”

“I never foresaw losing three of my regulars at once.” Frowning, she drained the rest of her Weruvian wine and set the empty glass aside.

“What if we taught an extra class together?” he suggested. “All we’d need is something one evening a week, and we might be able to make up the difference. With both of us teaching, we’d probably be able to charge more than our normal solo rate. What do you think? Maybe a sports psychology class or something like that?”

Xindra nibbled on her lower lip for a second. The idea of teaming up held definite appeal despite the conflicts married couples often experienced in the workplace. Male students sometimes responded better to other males and females to females, so it could be a real plus to have coed instructors. She had a brief flash of hope, but it flickered out.

She shook her head. “Mera was right. It doesn’t look like sports and fitness will sell well. Most variations of our skills just won’t appeal to potential students.”

He hummed in thought and drained his glass dry. It made a light smacking sound when he lowered it to the table. Adjusting his hand, he ran his fingers from her foot to her knee, and she was surprised to see the aroused twinkle in his eye.

“Too much thinking,” he announced. “We’ve worked all day. I think we deserve some playtime.”

Usually she would have agreed, but nature had other ideas. She hadn’t anticipated having to tell him that, and she was surprised into a blush. Apparently a couple of weeks together wasn’t long enough to synchronize their reproductive biorhythms.

“Uh, honey.” She grasped his hand where it had reached her upper thigh. “I hate to tell you this, but this isn’t really good timing anymore.”

“Huh?” He froze, and she saw when he finally caught on. Now it was his turn to blush. “Oh, you mean you’re…uh…it’s that time?”

She nodded. “Sorry, babe. I might have warned you, but I just assumed you’d be in flux. I guess it takes a little more time together.” She flashed him a conciliatory smile. “If you’ll give me a rain check for the day after tomorrow, though, I’ll be sure to cash in with interest.”

“Flux?” he repeated. Then, “Day after tomorrow? That quickly?”

“Of course.” She scowled. “Why? How long did you think it takes?”

Although he hadn’t had that much to drink, her husband seemed to have a hard time forming a coherent sentence. “Well, um, for New Earthling women I think it takes like a week. At least, that’s what a few girls told me the rare times it came up: ‘Not a good week.’ Did I mention I never had any sisters?”

She laughed to dispel any embarrassment. Still, she couldn’t help but feel stunned. A week? That sounded just…awful.

“Flux?” he said again. “What the hell is flux?”

Now her eyebrows shot up. “It’s a sudden dramatic drop in hormones that a male experiences while his mate goes through her infertile period.”

Did the people of his home world call it something different? Then the truth jumped out and smacked her.

“You mean New Earthling males don’t go through flux?”

“Never heard of it. In case you haven’t noticed, we’re randy all the time.” He looked her over and flushed. “Of course, there’s no problem waiting. I know some couples ignore the, er, timing, but most wait.” His smile was slightly crooked. “Not so hard to wait two days.”

Feeling slightly uncomfortable, Xindra sat back and mulled things over for a minute. Before they’d gotten married, she and Quinn had discussed their different customs, expectations, and family backgrounds. They’d made all their important beliefs clear to each other, and they’d done just enough research to confirm that a New Earthling and an Allurian could produce fertile offspring. After all, they weren’t a separate species. They were just different races that had developed certain physical disparities while evolving on distant worlds. And yet, he hadn’t known his first time would hurt, she hadn’t realized his chest and pubic hair would be so stiff and springy, and they were both ignorant of each other’s reproductive cycles. If they were this adrift after having grown so close and intimate with one another, she could only imagine the blunders going on all over Trilanta between the various races hooking up short term.

And that’s when it came to her: a glimmer of possibility. What if they could find a way to help others avoid learning the hard way too and at the same time earn a little more financial security for themselves? It just might work.

“Sex Ed,” she blurted out.

“It certainly has been.” Her husband gave a disbelieving shake of his head.

Xindra waved her hands at him to gain his full attention. “No, I mean that’s the extra class we can teach: Alien Sex Ed. We can teach a course about the sexuality of various planetary races and about intraracial and interracial intercourse.”

“Say that three times fast.” Despite the joke, she could see he was interested. “Don’t they already have classes in sexuality at the colleges?”

“Dry, boring lectures,” she retorted. “Those are mostly meant for medical majors and anthropologists, and the students are practically kids. I’m talking about a more hands-on course geared toward mature adults. You have to get a license to pilot a ship, but anybody can take another person for a ride without the first inkling of what they’re doing. Add in racial misunderstandings, and it’s a wonder there aren’t more broken hearts and wounded people walking around.”

He nodded, obviously seeing the potential. “Sex sells. The topic would be attractive to people, but more importantly, we’d be teaching something genuinely useful. How hands-on are we talking about, though? We’d want to make sure we didn’t end up just putting on a peep show.”

That was true. She thought about it for a moment. “I think we should introduce as much academically valid information as possible, but we should only use diagrams as a jumping off point for comparison with live models. Touch by students should be handled in a medical manner, with full sanitary precautions. The trick is to get mature, respectful adults to participate. We don’t want some juvenile thrill-seekers or anyone who’s going to handle the situation inappropriately.”

“Easier said than done.” But he was already working on a solution. “We’d have to limit the class size. A small, intimate gathering is less likely to get out of control, and there’s no reason we can’t interview everyone and run a background check before we admit them. If they have any record of violence, sexual harassment, or anything of that ilk, we can turn them away.”

Her smile was radiant. “That’s an excellent idea. We can keep the number down so that it’s manageable but worthwhile. Maybe we could get the students involved as well. We can ask on their application forms whether they’re willing to share their own sexual experiences, pose as live models, etc. Everything can be offered in degrees so that someone who’s comfortable with their nudity but doesn’t want to be touched can have that option. By getting the whole class involved, the students are more likely to be respectful and cooperative with each other instead of sitting back and ogling.”

“I like it.” His excited tone told her he was really rolling with the idea now. “Once we have the applications in, we can determine the right tone. If the group seems more open and inclined to get involved, then we can take it to the next level. Hey, we can even use the medical scanner at the gym for an internal viewing. That way we can show the reproductive anatomy of our live models from the inside out and also reveal how everything comes together during sex.”

“You’re a genius! The fact that we’re an interracial married couple should lend us more credibility. Oh, and we can be the first models.”

He blinked. “What?”

“We can’t very well ask other people to do something we’re not willing to do.” She smiled and let her gaze roam over his body. “Besides, we both know we’re not shy. I’d want to make certain no one snuck in any recording devices, but otherwise I’d be willing to model in front of a small, pre-screened group.”

He scratched the back of his neck. “Are we talking about just standing nude, letting them touch us, or actually having sex in front of them?”

“Whatever we’re comfortable with. Would any of that bother you?”

When he continued to look uncertain, she slid over so she could rub his shoulders. She had to admit, this was pretty risqué. Perhaps she was pushing for too much?

“I don’t know,” he admitted. “To be honest, I’m not sure how I’d feel about it. Having Mera watch us was different. It was exciting and unexpected, and, yeah, I found it surprisingly erotic. I certainly have no problem posing nude. I never did have a lick of modesty that way. It’s the touching and the sex I’m not a hundred percent sure about. I think I’d have to get to know the students first.”

Relieved that he was considering it, she nodded. When she thought about it, she realized she felt the same way. She’d like to size up their audience first.

“There’s no reason we can’t wing it once we get to that point,” she said. “We can always start off offering nothing more than a visual, and then we can each decide whether or not to invite the students to touch us once we get to that point. It’s probably a good idea to emphasize the right to choose for all the participants—no one
has
to do anything, and everyone, including the models, retains the right to say no and back out for any reason at any time. There should be consent every step of the way.”

“Absolutely.” He sounded just as adamant on that point. “But how would we conduct the first class? For that matter, how will we find enough models to fill a three-month course? I’m assuming we’ll charge for the whole thing, or do you just want to have them pay per class?”

“Why not offer both options? We can give a discount to anyone who pays for the entire course up front, and the rest can pay for the privilege of picking and choosing which lectures they want to attend. If we’re lucky, most will go for the package deal and be willing to actively participate. We’ll need an incentive, though. How do we encourage people to model, especially for full intercourse?”

He appeared to think it over. “We could give them that class free. You or I could also throw in a free martial arts lesson or free training session while we’re at it.”

Xindra remembered Mera had been willing to make that trade. “Oh! I bet Mera would be willing to pose for us. She said she’d help instruct, and we know she’s bold.”

Quinn didn’t seem so sure. “Does she have a partner she’s willing to sleep with?”

She returned a frown. “Not unless we can find an Oquaran male for her. She’s been getting hurt by the alien males.”

“Someone hurt her?” Quinn tensed beneath her, and she could see his eyes had darkened.

If Xindra hadn’t already been in love with him, her heart would have turned over again just watching how protective he was. He was such a good man.

“Not on purpose,” she assured him. “There were just some physiological issues the men weren’t aware of, which is precisely why this class is such a good idea. I’ll do some research and see what I can come up with. In the meantime, I still think our introductory class should be about New Earthling and Allurian unions. Hmm, do you know any New Earthling women who’d be willing to go all the way with an audience?”

He suddenly looked sheepish. “Actually, I believe I do.”

“Good.”

She patted his shoulder to assure him it was okay. Before she’d married him, she’d known he had a lusty appetite and had gotten around. All she cared about was that he’d always kept himself and his partners safe, and he was all hers now.

If he could find them a New Earthling female, then she could get them an Allurian male. She had a whole family full of horny people.

“My cousin, Huv, said he was going to stick around town for a while. He’s single, a mature thirty-six, and he enjoys frequent good sex according to what he tells everybody. I don’t know if he’s ever been with a non-Allurian, but he certainly isn’t prudish. He’d model the whole act for us if we found someone agreeable who was comfortable with him.”

Quinn ran with it. “We can show both sides of the equation. The class will get to see an Allurian and New Earthling pairing with the genders both ways, and that will buy us some time before we commit ourselves to doing the full show. I like it.” Grinning now, he leaned in and kissed her on the mouth.

Xindra felt so happy and excited, she couldn’t help but deepen it. Shifting around in front of him, she slid down so that she was kneeling between his legs. Opening his pants enough to pull out his penis, she smiled in satisfaction as it started to grow. He groaned when she shouldered his knees father apart and bent closer.

“I never seem to finish what I start down here,” she whispered, purposefully puffing warm air over his damp tip. “I really should learn to commit myself.”

Whatever he meant to say in response, it was lost in keening pleasure as she took him all the way.