Page 69 of Curvy Love

“I admit that I want one.”

He reaches around me and turns off the faucet and spins me around.

“Willow—” but before he can say anything his phone blares from his pocket.

Then mine starts ringing. And it’s Sabrina’s ring tone.

He cocks a brow at me. “Is that the song from the Wizard of Oz?”

“Yes, and if you tell her, I’ll deny it.” I grab my phone and leave the room to answer.

I never do find out what Abbott was going to say to me because I have to listen to Sabrina whine about Milan and the photo shoot that isn’t going well and how selfish it is of me to not have a passport because no one knows how to make her smoothies. I want to tell her that she knows how to make her smoothies, but I refrain from pointing out that logical fact because again Sabrina and logic are not a good combination.

By the time I get off the phone Abbott is waiting for me in the living room, he’s dressed and has his shoes on. My stomach tightens.

“Are you leaving?”

He stands and comes and grips my arms. “Yes. But only because I have to go home and get ready. We have to go on our date tonight. Lezlee has made arrangements with some selected members of the press so we’ll get tasteful pictures and then the public part of all of this can go away.”

“Oh, okay.”

“She is sending you the details about where we’re going and the kind of dress, etc.” He rolls his eyes. Then he tips my chin up so I look in his face. “Hey, Dimples, tonight people take pictures of us, but that changes nothing about the truth of us. Do you understand that?”

I nod. But I’m not certain I understand any of this and I can’t help but feel like my initial thoughts about him and all of this were right; we don’t belong in the same world.

chapterthirty

From the websiteGossipLane.com

Remember that curvy girl who won herself a date with Scottish soccer player, Abbott James?

Paparazzi spotted them out at their date this weekend and the photos are delicious.

After all his insta-gushing about the Austin food truck scene, one might have expected him to bring her for tacos. After all, he is known as the Beast of Edinburgh, so no one expects a man like him to be house broken, let alone know how to show a girl a proper good time.

Despite that, they were spotted together at one of Austin’s nicest restaurants and then at a wine bar afterwards. Photos show them sharing dessert and walking hand and hand to his car afterwards.

Has this beast finally found a beauty who can tame him?

Maybe. But before you get too swoony over the idea, don’t forget, he has a topnotch PR team. And look closely at those photos! Notice they’re taken through the restaurant window? Why would a local celebrity like James really ask to be seated by the window? And then walk hand in hand with his lady love to a wine bar a block away?

Maybe he’s into her. Or maybe his PR firm thinks we’re just suckers for a ugly duckling love story. Either way, this gossip girl can’t wait to see what happens next!

chapterthirty-one

Willow

It’s been two days since our date, and things are weird and different and horrible. I got a text early this morning from Sabrina. She’s back home and needs me to come over ASAP. I can tell from her text alone that she’s not happy. Maybe she was forced to eat actual food on her trip or maybe they didn’t have the right sparkling water. Who knows.

I glance down at my phone and my stomach tightens. Not only is my boss in a shit mood, which means my day will likely be unhappy, but I haven’t heard from Abbott in hours. We’ve spoken on the phone and texted since our date, but I haven’t seen him since he dropped me off. Of course there have been several photographers camped out on my street so I’m sure that’s why he’s laying low at his friend’s condo.

Still, I can’t help but feel that maybe I’ve been played a fool. I mean it happens, right? It’s happened to smarter girls than me and certainly prettier ones. I put my biggest pair of sunglasses on and drive through the line of camera guys—at least there are fewer today so I’m sure they’re losing interest since it seems Abbott has lost interest in me.

The drive to Sabrina’s is monotonous and I want to call my sisters, but I don’t want to tell them what’s happened. Especially since I don’t really know what’s happened other than I fell in love and I think I’ve gotten my heart broken. Rite of passage and all of that. I knew lightning couldn’t strike the same family three times. Lesson learned.

I slip into Sabrina’s house and she doesn’t heckle at me which is kinda weird. I set my stuff on the entryway table and go into the kitchen to start making her smoothie only to discover there’s a woman behind the counter already chopping the vegetables.

Sabrina spins on her bar stool and gives me a look. It’s not really a glare. It’s more like she wants to pat me on the head and tell me ‘nice try, but no luck.’

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