The Hero and the Fat Girl (New Hampshire Bears #3) by Mary Smith Read Free Book Online Page A

each change of clothes, I step out for Sharon to inspect. On my last outfit, she hands me a bunch of lingerie. Corset, baby-doll nighties, garter belts, lacy bras, all in my hands.
    “I don’t need this.” I try to hand it back to her.
    “Trust me.” She pushed it back toward me. “Just try.”
    I nod, but already know I’ll be faking it and handing every stich right back to her. I go ahead and begin to sort which two outfits I’ll be taking. I can’t have them all, it’s too expensive. However, my eyes keep drifting to the pale blue baby doll on top of the pile.
    My mind doesn’t have any control, and my hands pick it up and hold it against me. I wonder what Remington would think of me in this. I slip it over my head and inspect myself in the mirror.
    Gross.
    I can see my stretch marks around my stomach, arms, and breasts.
    This isn’t sexy.
    I turn my back to the mirror and rush to get it off of me. No man, especially one like Remington, who has class, would ever think I was sexy in that…or anything else.
    I hurry to get back to get into my original clothes. Suddenly, I feel different in them. I should be used to them, but they almost feel foreign to me. I shake my head, trying to rattle away my thoughts.
    Once again, I open the door to Sharon obediently standing there with a smile.
    “I just take these two,” I tell her.
    “Oh, well, um…” she pauses with an extremely baffled expression on her face. “I’ll just take those then. Mr. Rosin is waiting for you.”
    I hand her the items, thank her for all her help, and go to Remington and Arabella.
    “Are you done?” He looks up from his phone, where Arabella is still playing a game on it.
    I nod. “I picked two things.”
    “Two?” he almost shouts in shock. “Didn’t you try on more?”
    “Yes.” But I can’t afford a whole new wardrobe.
    Remington starts to say more, but Sharon, carrying all the clothes I had in the changing room, interrupts him.
    “Mr. Rosin, Ms. Keck, everything will be at the counter.” She winks at him.
    Winks?
    She’s flirting with Remington right in front of me and his daughter. I can’t be jealous because we’re not really together.
    “Look how far I got, Max.” Arabella shows me the phone.
    “That’s wonderful,” I say, even though I don’t understand what I’m looking at. I have never really gotten video games.
    “Dad, may we go to the bookstore?” Arabella asks, handing his phone back to me.
    “Why don’t you and Maxima go on? I’ll meet you in a moment.”
    “No,” I blurt out and shake my head. “I can purchase my own clothes.” I know exactly what he’s doing.
    He leans in close to me, my knees weak with his proximity. “You’re the best person. Let me do this, please. It’s just two outfits.”
    His soft lips brush my temple, and I barely hold back my gasp.
    “Please.”
    I nod, trying not to think about how he’s the only man who’s been this close to me.
    Ever.
    Well, at least the only one I wanted to be.
    Arabella takes my hand and smiles brightly. “Come on, Max.”
    “Okay.” I finally speak.
    We head out of the store, hand-in-hand, down to the bookstore. Arabella heads right to the Percy Jackson books. She loves them, and I enjoy reading them to her.
    I’ll miss this part.
    “Max, we don’t have this one do we?” She holds up the latest released book.
    “No, we don’t have it yet.”
    “Can we get it today?”
    I smile. “Of course.” She hands me the book and continues to browse the shelves.
    I follow her closely, but my mind is thinking about my childhood again. I can vividly remember asking her and him for books, but never getting them. Then I stopped asking. I used to hide at the library and, when I wasn’t in school, in the park until it got dark.
    I hate the dark.
    Even today.

Chapter Four
    Remington

     
    “I want it all,” I tell Sharon.
    “I figured you did by the way you talked the first time.” She smiles. “There are four pair of jeans, three pairs