Chapter 16

Tatum:

Four years ago

The girl hanging on Nigel’s arm is beautiful to the point that I begin to think of other words to describe her because beautiful just doesn’t cover it. She’s not exactly tall but she is taller than me. Where I’m 5’2 in height, she’s about 5’5 tall and where I’m more curves than bones, she’s slender and graceful in a way that makes my confidence dwindle. Her slender body makes her appear taller than she actually is while my curves make me appear shorter. It suddenly occurs to me that in every way I’ve assessed her, I’ve somehow compared her features to mine and the contrast is startling. Her red hair is piled in ringlets above her head and the long evening gown she wears fits like a second skin.

I’ve never seen her before but the way Nigel holds her, I know there’s familiarity there. She’s walking happily alongside him and there’s a satisfied smile on her face. Nigel looks very comfortable with her and it makes my heart tremble because I haven’t seen Nigel comf