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He only called me a thousand times while I was getting everything ready, which also means he checked on me a thousand times, making sure that I was following his instructions precisely. Although he drove me absolutely crazy, I loved every second of his attention. Plus, he paid me twice my normal fee. Aside from all that, the smile he’s shooting me right now is priceless. The way he’s looking at me now makes the trouble all worth it.
I push through the crowd, making my way to Nathan. By the time I reach him, he has champagne in one hand and a scrawny, big-boobed bimbo in the other. She looks me up and down and scowls at me.
“Natasha,” Nathan motions to me. “This is Emily. She’s responsible for the amazing spread. The scallops are seasoned with her own secret recipe and she even managed to find time to make each individual cupcake herself.”
“Of course she did,” Natasha scoffs. “Looks like she ended up eating more than her fair share.” Obviously proud of the fat joke she made up on the spot, she doesn’t see the glare Nathan is shooting her. He leans down to whisper to her, but I stop him.
“Don’t bother,” I say to Nathan. Then I turn to Natasha. “I’m sorry,” I tell her, “if you’re so busy trying to fuck rich white men who care more about your breast size than your brains that you didn’t notice the rest of us have something you obviously lack: class. I might be curvier than you and I might not know what it’s like to buy single-digit clothes, but I sure as hell know what it’s like to have people show me respect for my work and not because I’m anorexic. You, on the other hand, will never know what that feels like. And for that, I pity you.”
If looks could kill, I’d be dead right.
Nathan’s mouth is on the floor, but I barely notice.
I just turn and walk away. Hot tears spring to my eyes, but I squish them right back in. There’s no room tonight for tears. I grab a glass of champagne from a passing waiter and down it, hoping the alcohol will take away some of the nerves I’m feeling.
It shouldn’t be so hard to be here tonight.
After all, I am what I am. I’ve never hidden that. I wear my heart on my sleeve where the whole world can find it, grab it, and squish it as they please.
“Hey,” I grab Katie, one of my employees. “I need to step outside for a minute to take care of something. Can you cover me?” She looks at me questioningly, but answers affirmatively, so I leave her in charge and head toward the double doors at the side of the ballroom.
Katie is one of my most trusted assistants. I know she’s not going to let me down.
Once I’m in the hall of the hotel, I take off toward the majestic staircase that leads to the hotel rooms. Yeah, I booked myself a room for the night. I don’t expect to get lucky or anything, but I also don’t feel like taking a cab across town at 3 in the morning when I could just crash here and clean
up first thing in the morning.
As I reach the top of the stairs, I ask myself for the thousandth time why I’m letting girls like Natasha get the best of me. I’m obviously stronger, braver, and smarter than her, but I also think guys like Nathan don’t really fall for girls like me. They fall for the bimbos. They fall for the breasts. They fall for the itty bitty waists and the expensive purses.
When I finally get to my room, I hurry inside and close the door behind me, allowing myself room to breathe, just for a moment.
Then I hear his voice.
“She’s nothing,” he says.
I walk further into the room to find Nathan sitting on my bed, his hands clasped in front of him. He looks genuinely worried.
“How did you get in here?” I ask, wondering what the hell is going on. I could have sworn I locked the door. And how did he know which room was mine, anyway?
“I own the hotel,” he blushes. “So I have a little bit of leverage with the front desk.”
“Of course you do,” I say, kicking off my heels. “Well, what can I do for you, Sir?” I try not to meet his eyes. I don’t want him to know that her words hurt me.
“She’s nothing,” he repeats.
“What?”
“Natasha. She’s just someone I know. There’s nothing going on between us.”
I’m confused.
“What? That’s none of my business,” I tell him firmly. “It doesn’t matter to me who you date.”
“It matters to me,” he says. “I don’t want you to think that I would willingly associate with someone like her. I didn’t even invite her tonight. I invited her father, who thought it would be nice to try to set us up. As you can see, the affection is grossly one-sided.”
Is it?
“Nathan, why are you here?” I finally say, collapsing onto my bed. Our thighs touch as I do, but I ignore the warmth that spreads throughout my body. “You’re missing your party.”
