Page 9 of Candy Coated Curves

We let go of one another and walk some more. He buys me a ridiculous but adorable headband that has those old-fashioned, large, colored bulbs that light up. It’s so festive and happy and I immediately put it on my head.

“This is going to make my sister so jealous,” I tell him.

He looks at me and chuckles. “And that pleases you?”

“Oh yes. We both love Christmas so much and have a tendency to get competitive with who can dress the most festive.”

“I see.”

“Look out!” someone yells.

I turn to see what’s happening, but instead I’m hit with a wall of wet, cold something that drenches me. I shriek, but I’m pretty sure the sound is swallowed up by me getting a mouth full of snow.

Yep, snow.

Man-made snow, but still snow.

“Oh my God, Roni, I’m so sorry,” a voice yells from off to my right.

But I’m still wiping the frosty stuff from my face.

“Holy shit, guys, you hit her square on. You could have hurt her,” Nash barks. “Are you hurt?” he asks, rubbing a hand up my arm.

“I’m okay. Just cold. And wet.” I pull at my shirt, which is now basically shellacked to my body. Awesome. I bet that’s super flattering, highlighting all my bumps and wobbles like that.

“Sorry,” the person yells again.

From the voice it sounds like one of the Crawfords. Maybe Johnny.

“The snow machine kinda had an explosion,” he explains.

Someone thrusts a small towel into my hands. “Dry your face, Roni.” This is Amber’s voice. Now that I’m able to clean the wetness off my face enough to see around me. She leans close to my ear. “Okay, that was not how that was supposed to go. Are you hurt?”

“No.” I wipe my face some more, then look at the cloth. “So much for this being waterproof mascara,” I grumble.”

“It worked, but I apologize for getting you in the face too.” She gives me a big grin.

“Holy Fuck,” Nash says in a deep, growly voice.

“What? What's the matter?”

I look at Amber. She’s got her lips folded in on themselves and she’s clearly holding back a smile. Then her words sink in.

It worked.

Naked phase.

Oh. My. God.

I glance back at Nash and he’s just staring at me, his eyes eating up every inch of my body. I look down but I can't see anything. I mean I can see that my shirt is now pretty much completely transparent, but you know I'm wearing a bra and leggings and stuff. Since I’m a plus size girl, I wear industrial sized bras and panties so it’s not like I’m standing out here advertising a demi bra and thong. So, I am fully covered.

“I have to get you the fuck out of here,” Nash says. He grabs my hand and spins me around. And then we spin around again, as if he's lost and not sure of his bearings. Finally, he seems to figure out which direction we need to go and he tugs me behind him.

Amber laughs hysterically.

“It’s not that funny,” I yell to her.

“Uh-huh. Call me later. I’ll want details.”

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