Page 34 of Good Luck Charm for the Wolf

God. He’s such a dork.

Immediately I reply with a laughter emoji.

Because this bit of silly nothing? It’s really, really endearing.

Eric never made me laugh like this.

Not once.

He made me self-conscious.

Made me feel lucky to have his attention, even when it came in breadcrumbs.

Being chubby meant I spent a long time in relationships convinced I should just accept what I got.

That I should be grateful for any scraps of affection because, well, I wasn’t anyone’s fantasy.

It took me years to unlearn that toxic crap.

Years of figuring out that I was worthy, and beautiful, and didn’t need to settle for assholes who made me feel small.

And yet sometimes that old doubt tries to creep back in.

But Doug?

So far, Doug makes it easy to ignore those voices.

He makes me laugh.

He flirts like I’m irresistible.

He checks in.

He wants to make plans.

For once, it’s not complicated or confusing.

For once, I’m not decoding texts or wondering where I stand.

For once, someone seems really into me.

I stare at his silly text and grin so wide it hurts.

Maybe this is it, I think, heart flipping as I find a meme that’s equally goofy and flirty to send back to him.

Maybe this thing with Doug is the start of something real.

Something easy.

Something worth it.

And tonight?

Tonight, I’m going to wear my favorite dress, style my curls, and walk into our date ready to see if my Wolfman really is as good in person as he is over the phone.

Spoiler alert: I really, really hope he is.

Chapter 11

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