Page 33 of Play Dirty

And I’m in.

STEVIE: Dinner and adult conversation sounds nice.

MARTY: I’ll pick you up at seven.

STEVIE: Somewhere casual, okay?

MARTY: Do you like Mexican food?

STEVIE: Love it.

MARTY: I know just the place. They have the best queso I’ve ever had in my life.

STEVIE: I’m in!

MARTY: See you Sunday.

STEVIE: See you then.

I put the phone down and realize I’m smiling.

I seem to do that a lot when I’m with Marty.

* * *

The restaurant isas casual and quaint as he promised, and the margaritas are epic. I normally don’t drink a lot because the calories add up but it feels good to just let loose and not worry so much. I lost a ton of weight after my surgery because I was too depressed to eat, and now I’m playing catch up. Eventually, things will probably go in the opposite direction where I’m watching everything I put in my mouth again, but not yet.

Definitely not tonight.

“Do you eat whatever you want?” I ask Marty curiously as the waitress drops off sizzling fajitas and queso that makes my mouth water. “Or do you have a special hockey diet?”

He shrugs. “I eat pretty healthy, but I also give myself time off, especially in the summer. You can’t be super strict all the time, or you just fall off the wagon completely.”

“Tell that to someone who isn’t a model,” I say, chuckling. “I watch everything I eat but I lost so much weight after my surgery I’m still gaining a little back. I was unhealthily skinny.”

“I don’t believe in strict diets where you deprive yourself of everything. I need to have a beer once in a while. Or a shot of tequila. I’m going to have a piece of my kid’s birthday cake. Or an ice cream cone when it’s ninety degrees and I’m at the zoo with my kids. You know? But I also focus on lean meat and fish. Greens and protein are staples in my diet during hockey season. And I carb-load before games.”

“Carb load.” I sigh. “There’s no universe where a model can do that.”

“Modeling sounds hard,” he says, chuckling.

“Probably not as hard as hockey.”

“You eat less, I get beat up more. It’s probably a fair trade.”

We laugh together.

It’s easy to be with him.

I’ve dated a lot and usually I have to put on some kind of show, pretending to be someone I’m not, because there seem to be expectations when it comes to being a supermodel.

But not with Marty.

I can just be—Stevie.

He doesn’t care what I look like in a bikini—at least, he’s never seemed overly interested in seeing me half-dressed. I’m sure he wouldn’t mind, but he’s not one of those guys always making suggestive remarks.

I feel…safe with Marty.

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