Arm Candy by Jill Kargman Read Free Book Online

see if those blues guys are out there singing,” he suggested excitedly.
    As the street band strummed their bass and crooned in harmony and light, fluffy snow started to dust their flushed faces, Wes knew, as Eden swayed in his arms to the music, that he could never be more elated than he was in that moment.
    “I love you, Eden.”
    “I love you so much,” she spat out guiltily, abruptly, surprising herself. “Come here.” She threw her arms around him and kissed him as the mingling voices of the singers swelled. As much as that moment made her pulse rise, she still had her own seething drive to contend with, and the lure of fame made her heart beat even faster.
    After growing chilly standing still as the snow fluttered, they decided to get walking again. They strolled the wooden walkway of the Brooklyn Bridge, their favorite place to go together, as they had on their second date. They walked under the majestic Gothic arches, drinking their coffees, looking upward in silence.
    “I have something for you,” Wes said.
    He reached into his pocket and pulled out a little red box of Sun-Maid raisins.
    “Aww.” She leaned in and kissed him, taking the box.
    “I wish—” Wes stopped in his tracks as his voice broke. He suddenly looked serious and then choked up.
    “What?” Eden asked, stopping also, surprised by the emotion in his face.
    “I wish it were a box of diamonds,” Wes said.
    Eden looked into his eyes, saying nothing. She thought she would cry.
    “You deserve the world. I love you so much, Eden. I’ll love you always, for the rest of my days. You make me want to give you everything I have, and even everything I don’t have yet. I want to marry you,” Wes said, holding her cold hands in his.
    Eden didn’t know what to do. She panicked. She leaned in and kissed him. They kissed and kissed until the tears Eden was fighting won their battle and welled in her eyes.
    Eden never answered him that night. She just put her arms around him and squeezed him harder than she ever had before. When they returned home, they made love with a fervor so intense it was as if they would melt into each other; she gripped his back as he moved over her, as if she could hold on to him forever, but deep down, she knew she wouldn’t.
    Wes collapsed on top of her in a euphoric state, kissing her dewy neck while Eden lay on her back. Staring at the ceiling, the tears streamed out of the corners of her eyes down toward the tops of her ears. Wes didn’t notice, but if he had, he would have mistaken them for tears of joy.
    “I love you so much,” he panted, wiped out.
    “I love you, Wes,” she replied as she patted his fluffy head of hair and choked back the sadness welling inside her.

8
    Thanks to modern medical advances such as antibiotics, nasal spray, and Diet Coke, it has become routine for people in the civilized world to pass the age of 40, sometimes more than once.
    —Anonymous
     
     
     
    O ne warm day, after a month of sessions during which Otto Clyde very cautiously asked Eden to shed, say, her sweater, or even her skirt, Otto took a deep breath and walked up to his dream model. He had done his whole rigmarole before—pick out a new gorgeous girl, make her feel pretty, get her relaxed, maybe get her some booze, play some music, work her down until she feels calm and comfortable, not to mention a little tipsy. Then get her to show some skin.
    He knew exactly what to do. He came in close for a gentle whisper.
    “So, my dear,” he started carefully. “I was thinking that today—”
    Without a word, and unflinchingly maintaining eye contact with him, Eden pulled her black T-shirt over her head, revealing her perfect, pert breasts with no bra. Otto gulped. She stood up and calmly pulled down her panties with zero self-consciousness, as if she were a mannequin, but with a twinkle of confidence that proved she couldn’t have been more alive. She was so at ease with her body, unlike the shy virgins or awkward