Page 113 of Plus Size Player

I stared at her in disbelief. “Are you not hearing anything I’m saying?”

“No, I heard you. And this changes everything.”

“This changesnothing. After he did that on Friday, he turned around and played in my face Monday morning. He ignored me during the entire shoot. He didn’t even attempt to make amends. And for that, he’s still blocked.” I shrugged, trying to appear nonchalant. “I extended that man an olive branch and he rejected it.”

“Nina, you’re in denial!” She leaned forward. “It’s so obviousthat he said no to you because he can’t be alone with you! He wasn’t rejecting you. He was resisting temptation.”

I rolled my eyes and waved my hand dismissively. “Speaking of resisting temptation. Run the potential dates you have lined up by me and try to convince me you don’t have a thing for—”

“These plates are hot,” the waiter said, sliding the fajita skillets in front of us.

The sizzling chicken and fresh vegetables smelled delicious. I took a sip of my drink as Aaliyah asked for chips and salsa. As much as I hated to admit it, Aaliyah’s romantic-ass excuse for Russ made me feel better.

Slightly.

“… so I don’t know. It doesn’t matter.”

I pointed to her. “It does matter. Because you matter. And what you want matters.”

“It’s been an exhausting summer,” she admitted. “I don’t know how you do it. My birthday is Saturday, and I don’t feel like I’m any closer to what I want than I was two months ago.”

“Change your perspective,” I told her. “You had a mission this summer and you went for it. You should be proud of that. Dating is exhausting if you’re not having fun. So have fun! Line up the rest of your week with dates and see what happens. While you wait to find the one, enjoy the ones.” I gestured to her cell phone. “And when you’re ready to go after what you really want, you’ll get that fairy-tale, happily-ever-after Prince Charming.”

She swallowed the bite she was chewing and pointed her fork at me. “You, too.”

I almost choked on my fajita.

17

When I pulled up to a large multipurpose art space downtown and saw Russ in a navy suit standing at the door, my stomach flipped.

He looked good—too good.

I watched him open the door for a woman. She seemed to thank him, but then lingered, reaching out to place her hand on his forearm.

My eyebrows flew up. “Oh,” I mumbled, intrigued. It was always interesting seeing how women reacted to him. I understood completely how and why he received so much attention. But I never felt threatened, jealous, or bitter because I was secure in what we had.

But now we don’t have anything.

He said something and smiled. She moved closer to him and then went inside.

When the door closed behind her, his smile fell. Pulling his phone back out, his thumb breezed over the screen. He slipped his phone into his pocket, but he didn’t seem to be leaving his spot near the entrance.

Maybe he’s waiting for someone.

Licking my lips, I got out of the car. I’d just closed my door and taken a step when I felt something right behind me.

“Hey!”

I jumped at the unexpected voice, dropping my bag and spinning around. My orange sundress billowed around me from my quick movements.

“Jonah!” I yelped when I realized it was him. “You scared the shit out of me.”

“I’m sorry,” he apologized, grabbing my bag from the ground and handing it to me. “I didn’t mean to.”

Once I brushed off my bag, I exhaled. “It’s okay,” I assured him. “I wasn’t paying attention.”

Turning toward the door, I noticed Russ wasn’t standing there anymore.

---