Page 67 of Spin The Bottle
Aiden drops everything, grabbing my hand in his as he inspects the damage. “I thought you knew how to cook,” he says as I curse in pain.
“I thought I did too.” I groan, feeling the throbbing in my finger increase. “Cooking is dangerous.”
He laughs. “You’re dangerous.” He grabs my finger and brings it to his mouth, sucking on it.
“Did you just—” My eyes widen.
He chuckles, pulling my finger out of his mouth. “It stops the bleeding.” He pulls me, sitting me down on a chair. “Here,” he says. “Where do you keep your bandages?”
“I don’t have any. Check the bathroom, maybe Rosie had some.” He nods, heading out of the room. I stare at my bleeding finger, watching as the blood drops out.
“Give me,” Aiden says, walking out of the bathroom with a bandage. I hold out my finger to him. He crouches, wrapping the bandage around my finger. “There,” he says, pressing a kiss against the wrapped finger and smiling at me. “All good.”
I can’t help the grin on my face when he looks up at me. Who the hell is Aiden Pierce? And why do I want to get to know him when we’re not naked? This was not supposed to happen. Lines are blurring, things are getting too complicated. And I don’t want to stop it anymore.
23
Family visits
Being back home is so bittersweet. I miss my dad, I miss the weekends we used to spend together, I miss watching him at work in the food truck on my way back from school. But I also hate that this is the one place that always brings back bad memories.
This house was where I binged for the first time, hating my body every time I looked in the mirror, devouring an entire box of cookies just to starve myself the very next day. This house is where my mom looked me straight in the eyes and asked me what she did to deserve a daughter who didn’t look like her or my sister.
This house is where I learned that my body was not accepted, that my value as a human, as a woman was diminished because of my size, because of the way I look.
But one look at my dad when I open the door has every bad memory floating away. I miss him so much. His grin warms my heart when he pulls me in for a hug. “Leila, it’s so good to see you.”
“Me too.” I pull back. “I miss you, Papi.”
He gives me a smile. “I wish you’d stay until your birthday next week.”
He always made a big deal out of birthdays, inviting all the neighbors and the family over for a huge feast. It’s honestly so disheartening that I won’t be able to spend my birthday with them this year.
“I’d love to, you know I would. But I have class.”
“Hmm. ¿Y como van?”And how is it going?he asks, making me wince.
“Good.”
He gives me a pointed look. “No mientas.”Don’t lie.
I let out a laugh. “Boring. But it will be fine.”
He nods. “I know you picked business because of me, but you don’t need to do everything I do, Leila.” He shakes his head, closing the door behind me. “You are not me; you’re your own person.”
“I know that,” I glance at him. “I wanted to make you proud.” I’ve always admired him, starting his own business, and even though it’s not my dream, I was always interested in how it worked.
“You do. Estoy muy orgulloso de ti. Mi Tigresa.”I am very proud of you. My Tiger.“And this photoshoot, huh?” He laughs. “I know how difficult that must have been and I am so proud of you for following your dreams,” he says, wrapping his arm around my shoulder. “Even though I wish you would do it with your clothes on.”
I laugh. “Thanks, Papi.”
“Did it go well?” he asks.
I nod. “Yeah it was fun.” It always is. Every time I stand behind a camera, it gives me a rush just like the very first time. It went great, apart from the other girls making little comments here and there about their bodies. The way they looked in the mirror and tore their perfect, thin bodies apart right in front of me, Amina, and some other bigger girls was such a slap in the face.
“And how are you feeling about it?” he asks.
I shrug. “Good,” I admit. “I know I would have loved to see someone that looked like me in those magazines, and now I can be that for someone.”
