My romcom Josh and Gemma Make a Baby is out now and I wanted to share a scene introducing some of my favorite characters from the book with you. This story, set in New York City, follows Gemma Jacobs’ journey to single motherhood and self discovery. Part of her journey brings her together with a group of amazing women in a fertility support group. Check out this scene from the fertility support group’s first encounter:
Meeting the Fertility Support group scene from Josh and Gemma Make a Baby
“You’re here for the fertility support group, right?” she asks.
She pulls a pack of cigarettes out from her suit pocket and
lights one. She takes a long draw and then slowly blows it out.
“Yes?” I say.
She grimaces at me, taking in my bright red winter coat and
my hesitant smile.
“Well, come on then. You first. I’ll shut the door.”
I hesitate, but then I hear female laughter from the
basement. Real, happy, full-belly kind of laughter and I think,
maybe my stupid rambling quote to this woman was right. The
true value is found within, and I won’t find it unless I go in.
So, I walk down the uneven stone steps into the basement
of Clive’s Comics.
The metal door clatters shut behind me. The woman steps
next to me. The entryway is dark, most of the light comes from
the glowing tip of her cigarette.
“It’s down there.” She points to a shaft of light coming out
of a doorway down the hall. “I’m Brook, by the way.”
I smile. “Nice to meet you. I’m Gemma Jacobs.”
“Alright,” Brook says, then she leads me down the dark, old
stone-walled hallway. “Watch out for rats. They bite. And their
piss will give you some freakish disease, so don’t lick the floor.”
I give her a quick look, certain she has to be joking, but she
takes another puff of her cigarette and then steps into the
doorway of the brightly lit room.
I stand behind her. The room is low-ceilinged, painted dark
pink, and there are boxes full of comics shoved against the far
wall. In the middle of the room a group of six folding chairs
have been set up in a circle. Only two of the chairs are
occupied.
There’s a glossy blonde-haired woman with bright blue
eyes who looks elegant and poised, like she could be a model
on the cover of Vogue. She’s talking in a clipped British accent to
another woman who is listening to her and nodding her head
intently.
The second woman has long, brown wavy hair that nearly
reaches her hips and warm light brown eyes. She’s in a shirt
and long skirt that look like they were hand dyed, and hemp
sandals, which wow, must be cold in the winter.
Brook clears her throat loudly and both women turn
to her.
“Hello, darling,” says the blonde woman.
“Brook, will you please put that out? My energy worker said
that all your smoking and negative energy is blocking my chi,”
says the wavy-haired woman.
Brook snorts, but she drops her cigarette to the concrete
floor and steps on it.
“We’ve got another one,” Brook says. She pulls me into the
room. I stumble to a stop in front of her and smile at the two
women.
“Hi,” I say and give a small wave.
Brook steps up next to me. “Her name’s Gemma. She
believes in never judging a book by its cover, has terrible
fashion sense, and is routinely late.”
“What? I am not, I—”
“She wants to have a baby, clearly. And she’s delighted to
make our acquaintance,” finishes Brook.
I give her an incredulous look. Who is this woman?
“Delighted,” says the blonde, she stands up smoothly and
holds out her hand.
“This is Carly,” says Brook. “She’s a former model. Check
out her nudies online.” Brook whistles and Carly gives a smile.
“She married a kazillionaire and never has to work again.
Unfortunately, she’s old, so her eggs suck.”
Carly shrugs and gracefully sits back in her folding chair.
I look at her and wait for her to deny any of Brook’s bio, but
she just says, “That’s all true.”
“I still don’t understand why we can’t meet in your
penthouse instead of this dump,” says Brook.
“Because I like this dump,” says Carly. “The pink reminds
me of a uterus ripe for action.”
“You are one sick Brit,” Brook says.
The brown-haired woman covers a laugh with her hand.
Then she stands and walks up to me. I smell lavender and
maybe sandalwood? “I’m Hannah, it’s wonderful to meet you.”
I hold out my hand, “Gemma. Wonderful to meet you too.”
“Right. Hannah is a crunchy granola type, if you couldn’t
tell. She likes almond butter, weaving her own shoes, and
connecting with the energy of Mother Earth. Nobody knows
why the hell she can’t get pregnant, so she spends gobs of
money on weird crap like fertility crystals and magic fruit pills
from the heart of the Amazon.”
Hannah rolls her eyes and sits back in her chair. “They’re
legitimate supplements, Brook. And I happen to like wearing
rose quartz and moonstone.” Then she looks at the expression
on my face and starts to laugh. “You should sit down,” she says.
I walk to the circle and take a seat next to Hannah in one of
the rusty folding chairs. Brook comes and sits across from me.
“Perfect,” says Carly, I look at her and try not to picture her
naked. Why did Brook have to mention those photos? Brook
grins at me like she knows what I’m trying not to think of.
“Since we’re all here, I’ll call to order the weekly meeting of
the Fertility Support Group,” Carly says. “The first item on the
agenda is welcoming our new member. It’s good to have you,
Gemma.”
Did you love this scene from Josh and Gemma Make a Baby?
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