Read Online Dangerous Curves Ahead (BBW Erotic Romance) by Arabella Quinn - Free Book Online Page A

myself."
    We all laughed as at just that moment Jenna
winked at a passing cowboy who in turn tipped his hat to her as he
walked by our table. Jenna was like that. She was never the most
beautiful woman in the room, but she sure got lots of attention.
She had a fun bubbly personality and exuded a confidence that
attracted men of all types. I, on the other hand, was a little more
reserved and more self-conscious around men.
    Without a doubt, I knew my insecurities were
holding me back. But it was impossible to block out that little
voice inside my head. The voice that told me the handsome man
talking to me wasn't really interested, he was just being nice. The
voice that told me I wasn't worthy of my fantasy man. It was the
voice that I constantly argued with and debated, but rarely
won.
    It was a few brief memories that always kept
me from winning that debate. Incidents like the time in college,
talking to the cute boy at the frat party when I overheard his
friends joking that when he woke up in the morning, the 'beer
goggles' would be off and he would see the 'fat chick'. Or the time
at work, when I overheard one of my colleagues joking that they
should 'get to the doughnuts before Krista found out about them'.
There were other comments about my weight, almost never said
directly to me; however, just as hurtful. Comments that left sharp
pinpricks of tears stinging to escape my eyes and a hard lump in my
throat as I swallowed down my shame.
    While I was mature enough to realize I
should never allow a few jerks to dominate my self-image, those few
fleeting memories always seemed to chip away at my fragile
self-confidence. So I never even looked twice at good-looking men.
The inevitable sting of a nasty comment just wasn't worth it. An
average looking man who could overlook my flaws would do just
fine.
    I shook off my depressing thoughts just in
time to notice Sarah and Jenna clinking their glasses together.
"C'mon, Jenna. We have work to do. We've got to find Krista a hot
cowboy stud for the night."
    I squirmed uncomfortably in the booth. "You
know girls, I don't think hot cowboys are quite my type."
    Jenna's eyes twinkled merrily. "Don't worry,
Krista, you don't have to marry the man. You just have to fuck
him!"
    ***
     
    Jake hailed down a passing waiter and
ordered another beer. He had been nursing the last few sips of his
current beer for the past ten minutes, just as he had been nursing
his wounded pride. Had it only been two nights ago that he had
found out that his girlfriend had been cheating on him? Angrily, he
grabbed his beer and finished it in one swallow.
    It had taken two days for the denial to pass
and reality to set in. He had lavished Lacey with anything she
wanted, and that was certainly no small endeavor. He had invested
two years of time, energy and money into her. And this is how she
repaid him?
    Curiously, while the beer had slowly numbed
his anger, it had shed some light on his many failed relationships.
Lacey was just the last in a string of ex-girlfriends. Like many of
the women before her, Lacey was a shallow woman with no ideals or
convictions. Her only goals in life seemed to be snagging
invitations to the hottest social engagements and keeping up her
many beauty appointments. Lacey was a vacant gold digger who only
used him for his status and money.
    In the cold light of
reality, he had never loved Lacey. He had used her just as much for
her stunning good looks, as she had used him. If he searched deep
in his heart, he realized that he wasn't that broken up after all.
In fact, maybe he was even slightly relieved. My God, hadn't he even been casually thinking about proposing
to her? When he really thought about it,
it was really only the hurt of betrayal and the humiliation of
being cheated on that had him so upset.
    The waiter finally came around and delivered
a fresh beer. Jake scanned the crowded bar as he took a swig from
the chilled bottle. He liked to come down to this unpretentious bar
from time