Total pages in book: 92
Estimated words: 93699 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 468(@200wpm)___ 375(@250wpm)___ 312(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 93699 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 468(@200wpm)___ 375(@250wpm)___ 312(@300wpm)
“Because you’re competing in the amateur categories.”
“So? My followers and sponsors are still impressed.”
“You have so much potential, though,” I said. “I would hate for you to go the next couple years without unleashing it.”
“So I can do what?” She crossed her arms. “Become a world champion, all to end up coaching like you?”
Okay, screw this. “Practice is over.”
“That’s what I thought.” She pushed past me and picked up her bag. Then she held up her cell phone.
“Just now leaving ballet practice and heading home to make a smoothie,” she said. “According to my coach, I have a real chance to make it at the elite level, which is why she also swears by Yama Smoothies.”
I rolled my eyes as she faked a smile and did some weird robot dance to a rap song.
She made two more awkward videos before finally leaving.
As much as I hated agreeing with her, things in the skating world were definitely different now.
Social media had changed everything, and I was far too slow to adjust to the times, always ten steps behind the latest trend.
After retiring from figure skating, I’d taken what was left of my endorsement money to start my dream business.
I’d bet everything on myself…and lost.
My business crashed and burned, and I was still recovering from the damages.
Too embarrassed to admit the truth to anyone, I kept up all the appearances. My Instagram account—@BraveBeautyMarks, still received a post a day, all smoke and mirrors about how “awesome” it was to be a successful entrepreneur.
Please let things go my way soon.
I made sure I had my VIP pass for tonight’s event and grabbed my umbrella before heading outside.
“There you are, Angel Face!” My ex-boyfriend, Jalen, was standing on the top step.
Smiling, he extended the same brand of cheap daffodils from when I dumped him months ago. His candy-coated Mustang sat beside the curb, its passenger door wide open.
“What are you doing here?” I asked.
“It’s okay.” He smiled. “I’ll be the bigger person and admit that I may have messed up our relationship.”
“You did mess up,” I said. “You cheated on me.”
“Allegedly.”
“With three other girls.”
“It was two and a half. That last one didn’t count.”
“Oh, right.” I nodded. “You didn’t ‘sleep’ with that one, you sent pictures of her ass to my phone by accident.”
“Exactly.” He cleared his throat. “I’m a changed man now.”
“Save it for a priest, Jalen.” I tried to step around him, but he blocked me.
“I never had feelings for any of those girls, Tatiana,” he said. “It was just sexting with the occasional bang.”
“What?”
“But I only did that because I was tired of waiting on you to let me hit it.”
“Please tell me that you didn’t rehearse this speech,” I said. “Like, there’s no way you uttered these sentences aloud and thought they sounded good.”
“You’re the best girlfriend I’ve ever had, and by far the most beautiful.” He clasped my hand. “I still think about you from time to time. No, all the time.”
I yanked my arm from his grasp, but he grabbed it again and held on tighter.
“It’s okay that you like to wait a while before jumping into bed,” he said. “So, I’m thinking, since I’ve previously put in lots of time, you should reset your patience timer to wherever we left off last.”
“Do you hear any of the words that are falling out of your mouth? Like, any?”
“I would like another chance, Tatiana.” He ignored my questions and caressed my hand. “Can we go back to the late nights talking about your beauty brand dreams with the Saturday strolls in Gramercy Park? The big brunch dates with your bestie and her billionaire boyfriend?”
“He’s her fiancé now.”
“Wow, really?” He paused. “Hope he’s working on one hell of a prenup.”
I stifled a groan.
“I want you back.” He got down on one knee. “I’ll do anything to make things right, and then I’ll make them even better.”
A couple of passersby stopped behind him and smiled.
He whistled, and a violin trio appeared, playing a love song under matching blue umbrellas. Unfortunately, their beautiful notes attracted more strangers to stop and stare at Jalen and me.
“Jalen, get up,” I spoke through gritted teeth. “Get the hell up and tell them to stop the music.”
“I believe in our love,” he said instead. “Back then, we had something special.”
“We’re about to have a restraining order.”
“I love you, Tatiana Brave, and I’m willing to wait however long it takes to have sex with you.”
The passersby exchanged confused looks and “What did he say?” whispers while Jalen pulled a ring box from his pocket.
I blinked a few times in hopes that this wasn’t happening. That maybe—just maybe, this was all a dream since I couldn’t feel any raindrops landing on my skin.
Jalen rubbed the edge of the box over my finger, and my flesh crawled, confirming that this was reality after all.