Curves Envy - Alphas Love Curves: BBW Billionaire Romance (4 page)

“As long as you haven’t gone overboard, then I can rest assured.” Devin is the oldest amongst us. He’s thirty-one, but he’s so protective, you’d think he was our guardian angel.

“At least you didn’t end up in a twelve-month relationship before finding out how much of a jerk he is,” Amelia snarls. She is more determined than I am to hold a grudge against my ex-boyfriend George Kazan.

George took over his father’s restaurant dynasty. He liked to blame his Greek roots for being big-boned instead of ’fessing up to the fact he loves food too much. We hooked up on an online site and after six months of dating, I moved in with him. My cousin Trish had moved to LA, and her mother couldn’t bear to remain in New York after losing her sister, so she moved to Maine to grieve. My father’s mother was the only relative left in the Big Apple, so when George proclaimed he saw a future between the two of us, I jumped at the opportunity to create a new family unit.

Dating a man who had unlimited access to food while I was still coming to terms with my devastating loss was possibly the worst decision of my life.

“Vince’s saga has nothing to do with George. Vince was a cheat. George, on the other hand, was a pig who put me down every chance he had because of my weight when he tipped the scale at two hundred thirty-nine pounds himself. The fact he dumped my ass for another plus-size woman is proof he was a bully. And he was verbally abusive. Every time we were at a function, I was nervous to even approach the food table for fear he’d make a remark about how I should select lighter choices or stay away from the desserts. I was too insecure to see the writing on the wall and I was afraid to leave him because I had convinced myself it wouldn’t ever get better for me. It’s my own damn fault because George was no prize stallion. Not to mention he had a small dick,” I spit out.

We all laugh and my comical moment lightens the mood for a few minutes.

“Yeah, you did constantly complain about George’s ‘manhood.’” We’re all roaring now. Devin has always mocked the names some heterosexual women call certain body parts, citing that in the gay world, a dick is a dick and a pussy is just that.

“Hon, didn’t you grow suspicious when Vince, the so-called pilot, could never stay at your place for longer than a few hours on Saturday mornings? And he always had a last-minute flight during the week whenever you tried to connect with him?”

“Devin, I was willing to turn a blind eye hoping my grocery market hookup would turn out to be something more. I was dying for attention because I was tired of being lonely. I know I sound desperate, but I’ve been single since George left me. I was willing to ignore the warning signs for a bit of affection. I’m pretty sure it was all a lie, but the way Vince used to talk about my body made me feel like Gisele Bündchen,” I say, feeling sorry for myself. “Yeah, I’ve lost a lot of weight since my grandmother passed away, but I’m still not comfortable with all my body parts, like my pudgy stomach—but he was. I was willing to pretend nothing else mattered.”

Lexi nods, frowning over her coffee cup. “Honey, we’re only as blind as we want to be.”

She’s right. I pretended to be an ostrich and I stuck my head in the sand instead of ’fessing up to the fact I was in a shitty relationship and living with a man who was sucking anything positive out of me. I should have left George months before he left me. As for Vince, I knew from the get-go it was too good to be true. I was craving a man’s touch so much I was willing to believe anything.

“Lexi, are you still addicted to all this personal development stuff?”

“Candy, it’s positive thinking. It’s a way of life. It’s something I practice daily,” she says, sitting a little straighter in her chair and adjusting her glasses.

Lexi has latched on to this Oprah movement to rid herself of the chains of her past. She eats up these sorts of books and she’s the first person to run to one of those weekend life-changing seminars. You know, the ones claiming to be able to improve your life in forty-eight hours or less. It seems to be working well for her, but I’d rather burn my hair than sit in one of those events.

“Listen, ladies, enough of this heavy talk. Before we move on to cupcakes, ice cream and booze, we can’t forget an important step in the healing process.”

“Devin, I’m not in the mood,” I lament.

“The hell you’re not.” Devin jumps to his feet and puts both hands on his hips. “Come on, young lady, up. I want you on your feet now. The same goes for the two of you.” Devin gestures to Lia and Lexi to also get up. “You know the drill. I’m going to go change the music and I want us all to shake off this bad episode. Don’t pretend to move. Shake it like you mean it. No one, including you, Candy, is allowed to fake it.” Devin runs to the Apple dock and fumbles with his iPhone until he finds the music to cure all blues—Earth, Wind & Fire’s
Boogie Wonderland
. This disco classic has been Devin’s go-to song whenever he’s feeling down and in time, it’s become our mantra as well when life forces us to turn lemons into lemonade. I resist at first, but it doesn’t take much for me to join my friends in a dance frenzy.

“You hear that, sweetness?” Devin points to his ears, inviting me to soak in the words.
You say your prayers though you don’t care; you dance and shake the hurt.
It’s impossible to remain impassive when the lyrics invite me to shake off my dramatic morning.

Chapter 3

What time is it?

I slowly open my eyes and turn my head to find out when I need to get up.

Shit. It’s eleven? How could I have slept so late?

By the time we were done with dessert and alcohol, it was time for dinner. Since Brian, Devin’s new partner, was working at an uptown club and Lia, Lexi and I are all single, we decided it would be a crime to stay cooped up at my place on a beautiful Saturday night. At eight o’clock we headed to BonChon for the best chicken wings in the city. Needless to say, we closed the restaurant and at two o’clock in the morning, we all squeezed into the back of a cab to go end the evening where Brian was spinning records.

“I guess we had a little too much fun.” I look at Leonardo DiCaprio with eyes half open. “Damn, my head hurts. Mama needs an Advil or two.”

I fling the sheets off the bed and look down at my naked body. I’m still not used to taking stock of my lumps and curves. At my heaviest, I used to avoid mirrors altogether, but as I trimmed down to a healthier weight, I felt more confident glancing at my body. As much as I despise Vince for his action, the four weeks we spent together were a real boost to my ego. He praised me constantly on my round thighs, my big breasts, my soft stomach and even the cellulite on my behind. It might all have been a lie, but for a short moment in time, I allowed myself to believe him and I was willing to feel good about myself.

“Leo, let’s go find a cure for this hangover and I’ll feed you,” I say to my cat as I squat to cuddle him in my arms.

I barely have time to reach my kitchen before my phone rings.

Shit, where’s my handbag?
I look frantically around my apartment in search of my hidden phone. I wobbled back to my place at four-thirty in the morning too tipsy and too tired to bother putting anything away. As a result, my place is a mess from my intervention with my friends and from leaving all my stuff all over. My handbag is plunked on top of my stove like a teakettle and I run to it to find out who’s calling. It’s Amelia. “Hey, Lia.”

“Are you still alive?”

“Barely. I have a ridiculous headache,” I say, opening a cabinet in search of painkillers. “What about you?”

“I’ve been up for a few hours and I’ve already swallowed two extra-strength Advils and a gallon of water. We partied too hard last night.”

“Last night? Are you kidding me? You’re the one who came to the intervention with booze super early in the afternoon,” I laugh.

“Yeah, but I believe it’s my duty as a supportive friend to bring the alcohol. Anyways, I wanted to call to make sure you were okay after Vince. I know we talked it out yesterday and God knows you had enough alcohol to never remember his name again, but I wanted to check up on you. Sometimes the morning after can be brutal once the flood of memories come crashing down like a Malibu wave.”

Amelia is the best friend any woman can ever hope for. Without her I would never have survived losing my parents at nineteen.

Amelia was the first friendly face I laid eyes on when I started my first day in a new high school. Although she met me as an average-size teenager, Lia always remained a faithful friend as my weight ballooned while I was desperately trying to cope with my emotions. I was in mourning, I was in pain and I was angry at life. Who wouldn’t be when they lost both parents the same day? I took out all this pent-up energy on myself and turned to food as my solace. As a result, I put on one hundred and fifty pounds in two years. It’s not as if I was ever skinny. I can’t say I ever knew what a thigh gap looked like on me, but the death of my parents sent me into a self-destructive spiral and Lia was there to catch me. She never judged me as I was packing on the pounds.

“You’re the best for asking. I’m doing better today and it’s not because of the alcohol,” I joke.

“Thank God you didn’t have time to develop a drinking problem.” I can hear the irony in her voice.

“I guess I’m lucky. Seriously, I woke this morning grateful for the four weeks with Vince.”

“How can you find anything positive about the fake pilot other than a few fuck sessions?”

“He was a caring lover, I’ll give the weasel that much. Vince helped me like my body. It might all have been a lie, but his words were uplifting, Lia.”

“So you’re okay?”

“How can I not be? I have you, Devin and Lexi in my life. When the shit hits the fan, my friends come running.”

“Funny. You’ve come a long way since the death of your grandma.”

“Yeah. I made a promise to her.”

Eighteen months ago, my whole world spiraled again when my adoring grandmother passed away. She was only in her early sixties. She was a healthy woman, but she too was mourning. I’m sure she died of a broken heart from losing her only child—my father.

I would have normally gone on a food binge to deal with my loss like before, but my grandmother made me swear on her deathbed to take better care of myself. She said the battle wasn’t over. She had fought for justice after my parents died, but she didn’t have the deep pockets necessary to fight the big corporation who owned the crane that dropped a deadly load that smashed my parents’ car to pieces. It was a long and ugly battle, and my grandmother had to give up her fight when her money ran dry. She had nothing left on the day of her death other than the New York apartment my grandfather had bought decades ago. It’s the only thing she left me in her will.

“I miss my mom, dad and grandmother so much, Lia. Without you guys as friends, I’d be an orphan alone in New York City.”

“Oh, please. You know I’ll always be here for you. Devin and Lexi are like our siblings. You’ll never be alone. And Candy, please don’t let your loneliness cause you to date another asshole. If you need a little something-something, text me and I’ll buy you a new vibrator.”

I burst out laughing at my friend’s joke.

“Listen, it’s such a beautiful day, it should be a crime to stay indoors today. Do you want to go catch a late breakfast at Vanilla Beans and we can hang out?”

“God, yes. Let’s do it. Once I get rid of this nasty headache, my body will be in dire need of some caffeine and solid food.”

“I hear you, girl. No one should be forced to be sociable before a latte. Why don’t we meet there? We can have a leisurely brunch and then go for a long walk or window-shopping. I refuse to stay cooped up today. How long will it take you to get ready?”

“Great idea. I’m in pretty rough shape after last night, so give me a couple of hours to get ready and to get there.”

“See you at one-thirty?”

“Perfect.”

I hang up the phone and look around at the sorry state of my apartment. Normally, I’d be obsessed about tidying up before leaving to meet Lia, but honestly, for some reason, I don’t give a care in the world. I feed Leo and hit the shower.
It’s not as if any lovers are going to come around for a while.

Chapter 4

I arrive at Vanilla Beans at one-thirty to find Lia already seated at a table for two at the back of the cozy eatery. The place is packed with hungry New Yorkers in search of a delectable Sunday meal.

A few years ago, I would never have dared to set foot here. Cozy is my code word for tiny. The tables are nearly touching each other and I’m very cautious not to bump into anyone as I make my way through the restaurant to join my friend. A few years ago when I was at my heaviest, this journey would have been mortifying and I would have insisted on ordering our food to go or I would have selected a place with more maneuvering room.

As I arrive at our table and wiggle out of my spring coat, I catch the gaze of a ruggedly handsome man sitting in the far left corner of the room. I immediately lower my gaze and then furtively look up from under my lashes. He’s still looking my way.

Is he smiling at me? Down, girl. A little over twenty-four hours ago you were dealing with Vince’s drama.

My cheeks burn at the sight of him, but I quickly brush it off.
I’m sure he’s only looking my way because a slim hot chick is following me.
I smile widely when Lia jumps to her feet to hug me. “I’m so happy we’re doing this. I think I’m going to enjoy our day out.”

“I’ve been here for fifteen minutes and there’s this electrifying energy in the air… and quite a few drool-worthy guys today,” she says with a mischievous smile. “The sun is beaming, spring has finally sprung, the city is buzzing with excitement and something good is going to happen today—I can feel it.”