Player(29)

She was stunning, from the sliver of her shoulders to the red swells of her breasts. From the notch of her waist, accentuated by the thick belt she’d grabbed, to the sway of her houndstooth skirt’s hem at her knees. Her calves were elegant curves, rolling down to those ankles she so prided herself on, her little toes sensually peeking out of the tip of her shoes.

I stuffed my hands in my pockets and whistled, swallowing hard when it was done. “I don’t want to live in a world where you don’t wear this outfit to dinner. You’ve gotta tell me why you look like you’d rather throw those clothes on a bonfire than wear them out.”

Her face pinched in discomfort as she looked down at herself. “The skirt is too busy and the shirt is so…tight. You can see…you can see stuff I don’t want people to see.”

I frowned. “Like what? Because from where I’m standing, you look like a winning lotto ticket.”

She shook her head and sighed.

My frown deepened. I took the steps to meet her, lifting her chin up so she’d look at me. “Tell me.”

Another sigh. “My…my arms are too big—they look funny.”

I turned her a little, taking her elbow in one palm and her hand in the other to inspect it. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. I don’t see anything wrong, Val. They’re in perfect proportion with the rest of you.”

“Maybe that’s part of the problem.”

My teeth ground together. “What else? Is there something else?”

Her cheeks flushed pink and pretty. “My back.”

I stepped around to the back of her, but all I saw was the twist of her curly hair, the curve of her neck, the span of her waist, the spread of her hips and ass. My hands found their way into my pockets again to keep her body safe from their touch.

“What about your back?”

She reached behind her and adjusted her bra strap. “Just…all this. It’s so lumpy and…fat.”

“Don’t say that word.”

She frowned at me as she turned to face me. “Why not? I am.”

“No, you aren’t.”

“You wouldn’t understand,” she said, containing her frustration. “I bet you’ve always been this beautiful, and you’ve only been with pretty, skinny girls. But when you’re built like this”—she gestured to herself—“you catalog all the things about yourself that are shaped wrong. Too big, too much, too fat. That’s what they call it, Sam. It’s not a dirty word.”

“It is, and you know it is. Even when you say it, you sound like you’re trying to hurt yourself. You know, everyone has their things. Some people think their noses are too big. Or their chins. Their teeth are crooked or their eyes are too small. And you want to know the real secret?” I took a step toward her. “They’re all way more worried about their own insecurities to pay any attention to yours. If I saw you on the street, I wouldn’t see what you see. I’d see your neck, this curve.” I brushed my knuckle in the bend where her neck met her shoulder. “I’d see your waist, your pretty ankles.”

She chuckled softly at that, though her cheeks were still flushed with emotion.

“There, that smile. That’s what I’d see. It’s what you should see, too. You’re beautiful, Val. Anyone who doesn’t see that needs to get his eyes checked.”

I caught myself before I said more—or worse, before I did something I shouldn’t. I turned back to her closet and absently flipped through the hangers.

“I don’t want you to wear that outfit if you’re not comfortable though. The lesson is about confidence more than anything, and how gorgeous I think you look doesn’t matter if you don’t feel gorgeous.”

She drew a long breath from behind me. “You really think I look okay?”

I turned again and met her eyes with heat I hadn’t intended and couldn’t have stopped. “Val, you could stop a man’s heart dead in his chest. I wouldn’t lie to you, not about this, not about anything. I only wish you could see yourself the way I see you.”

Val held her head up, her eyes shining, her throat working as she swallowed. And her small mouth smiled, lips together. “All right. Let me just finish my makeup, and we’ll go.”

“Put on the red lipstick,” I suggested.

“Really? I mean, it’s so…costumey.”

I gave her a look. “You’re wearing a houndstooth skirt. Wear the lipstick.”

She chuckled, rolling her eyes. “Whatever you say, professor.”

With a smirk on my face, I watched her walk away.

She’d get there. She’d see herself like I saw her.

I just had to show her.



Val

My salivary glands exploded when I read the steak menu.

Every topping known to man was available to smother your meat in. Spinach. Garlic butter. Mushrooms. Onions. Pico de gallo. Cheese. Olives, chimichurri, herbs—the list went on and on and on.

I frowned, dragging my eyes to the salads with a sigh.

“What’s the matter?” he asked over his menu.

“I should probably get a salad, huh?”

He met my frown with one of his own. “Not unless you want one.”

“What I want is this ribeye smothered with everything.”