Have you ever woken up between a woman's legs? If the answer is no, you should stop reading now; you wouldn't understand half of what follows. Or, if you're feeling brave, stay: you might learn something.

The night before, we'd had sex. I'd fallen exhausted, molded against her, seeking refuge in sleep. But the cycle had its own plans. The scent of copper woke me before the light.

There she was, oblivious, breathing. The Romans, in their brutal wisdom, had a word for the sheath of a sword: vagina. A scabbard. An enclosure designed to hold the blade.