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Chapter 1
Winona “Winnie” Graves
Ilove my job! Like, I really love my job. Apart from my family and friends, Curvy Girl Boutique is everything to me. After graduating college together, my three best friends, Ella, Bria, Lola, and I bought and opened up a boutique for plus-size women here in downtown Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. I have to be one of the luckiest bitches in the world. You see, we’re all curvy women, and finding beautiful clothes at a boutique in downtown Myrtle Beach was unheard of until we decided to change that. Putting our heads together we dreamed up Curvy Beach Boutique, designed with the thicker woman in mind. We give everyone the chance to feel beautiful in all their curvy glory.
Bria, Lola, Ella, and I all went to college together, each of us majoring in fields that would help us be successful in our business. I got my degree in advertising. I run our website and online sales as well as work with local businesses around Myrtle Beach and the newspaper to get the word out about our store. I also highlight Bria’s new designs in our display window. Ella is our finance guru. She helps with sales and does all of our accounting. Lola is great with people so she manages our customer service department and helps navigate the people that come in and out of the store. Bria is our clothing designer. She designs beautiful one-of-a-kind pieces of clothing that she then sends to our manufacturer to make in mass quantities. We have made this store one of the most popular stores in Myrtle Beach since opening two years ago.
I love Ella, she’s one of my very best friends, but after a disastrous marriage and divorce, she has been in a rut. A rut that’s rubbing off on the rest of us since we hate seeing her so miserable. Bria, Lola, and I got together earlier and we think we’ve come up with a plan, now to let her in on it. “Ella, Sweetie. We’ve been thinking, it’s time for you to get back on the saddle. We’re all going to the bonfire at the beach on the fourth of July. Maybe you could meet someone there.”
I watch as she tosses another stack of neatly folded t-shirts onto a display table. “No, I’m not ready. I know y’all mean well, but I think I should decide if I’m ready to get back in the ocean to claim another fish.”
“Look, Ella, Hun, I know you think you’re not ready, but girl, it’s been a year since the divorce was final. You cannot be hung up on that son of a bitch still,” Bria insists as she hangs up a yellow, lightweight cotton summer dress.
“We don’t mean for you to start a new relationship, but girl, you’ve been cranky lately and I don’t think your B.O.B. is keeping up with your needs. Sweetie, and I say this with all the love in the world, you need to get laid.” I say.
“Agreed,” Lola chimes in from behind a clothing rack.
Ella groans. “Where am I gonna find a dandy that’ll be willing to have sex with me?” She asks.
“Oohhh! I know!” Bria shouts. We all look at each other in silent agreement. “The Fourth of July bonfire,” Bria says, rubbing her hands together.
Ella gives her the stink eye, before asking, “What?”
With a chuckle, Lola says, “Run, Ella. If Bria gets a hold of you, you’ll look like one of the tourists that walk around here.”
Sticking out her tongue, Bria gives Lola a hurt look, “As if! You know I have way more fashion sense than that. Jeez, give a girl a break. But seriously, Ella, you need to update your wardrobe.”
“Hey, most of my clothes come from our store,” Ella says defensively.
“Yeah, right! Sweetheart, those clothes are from like four years ago. It’s time to upgrade, and of course, cause I love you, I’ll help you,” Bria offers with a laugh.
“Yay! Dress up montage!” Lola claps as she giggles.
“No, Ella, those are going near the front display window. They’re the new swimsuit line and they need to be front and center,” I say as I cross the room and take the clothes from Ella, and toss it back into the box that they came from. I pick up the box and walk over to the front of the store and set it down.
“So what about it?” Lola asks Ella who looks confused.
“The bonfire, silly?” Bria says.
“Fine, I’ll go, to get out, but don’t count on me picking up some random stranger to do the funky monkey with. But going out will be good for us all,” Ella says, giving each of us a meaningful look.
“Alright, let's finish putting up inventory, and then we can get down to business and find all of us outfits for this party,” I say, putting my hands on my hips.
Working together, it doesn’t take long to finish. Thank the good Lord, we waited to do this after hours. Trying to get any inventory done during the working hours is just madness.
Giggling like a bunch of schoolgirls, we grab things off the racks that have caught our eye and Bria skips to the back office and pulls out several bottles of wine from our stash. Using whatever cups we can find, we pour our drinks and begin trying on our picks. We laugh at ourselves and just have a great time just hanging out. Some things will never change.
Ella eventually steps out in a stunning bathing suit and cover-up that highlights her curves and flawless tan. Whoever she spends time with at the party will be the luckiest guy there. She more than deserves a good guy, even if it’s only for one night.
Once we’ve all picked out something pretty to wear we put everything back in its rightful place so the store is ready to open early tomorrow morning. I tell my best friends goodnight and head back to my one-bedroom apartment that overlooks the beach.
When I graduated from college and came back home, I lived with my parents for the first year while we were getting the store up and running. But once we were making a steady profit, I took the leap and moved into my own place. I love it! I love being out on my own where I can do whatever I want, whenever I want to.
As soon as I walk into my apartment I go to my bedroom and change into a t-shirt and some short shorts. When I’m comfortable, I grab a Whiteclaw from the refrigerator and bring it out to the deck facing the ocean. The bright moon is high in the sky, illuminating the dark ocean waves. There’s nothing better at the end of a long day than to come out here and listen to the crashing waves as I unwind. The only thing that would make this better is if I had someone sitting beside me, asking me about my day.
I tried dating a few times when I was away at college, but no one ever made an impact worthy of a second date. More like no one ever measured up to the one guy I’ve had my eye on for years. I can look as much as I want, as long as no one is watching, but I keep my hands to myself and pretend like he doesn’t mean everything to me. He’s the guy I’ve pictured standing at the end of the aisle on my wedding day, the one holding my firstborn, the one to whisper those three little words no guy has ever said to me.
He’s also Ella’s older brother and completely off-limits.
I’ve never told anyone how I feel about him, especially Ella. I know if she ever found out the depths of my feelings for him she’d disown me as her friend. I can’t risk our friendship or business relationship for some guy who probably doesn’t even know I exist. I remember when we were sophomores in high school and Holly Tyson got all buddy-buddy with Ella just to get close to Brody. Ella completely lost it on the poor girl and made sure to make a scene in front of everyone in our homeroom. I didn’t see Brody like that back then, I was too focused on high school boys and their stupid games to notice Brody Wilkes, the goofy all-American football player who loved to have fun.
That all changed the summer we came home from our first year away at college and we were hanging out at Ella’s parents’ house for some barbeque they were having. Brody walked into the backyard with some of his friends and was laughing about something as he filled a cooler full of beer. He was no longer the tall lanky boy I remember growing up around, but a full-fledged man. From that moment, he was the only thing I could see, and I hated myself for it
