Chapter 1: He was so skinny

My parents-

Always held a annual gala, where all the funds went to charity. My father was always a giver and yes this year they expected me to bring someone. I had never brought anyone except Robbie, my stupid ex-boyfriend. We had been at it since our teenage days.

He lived in our suburban area up north. My father took a great liking to him, I was happy and in-love. We were the perfect couple, we were going to get married and have a couple of kids but that all dissolved into acid when he made another woman pregnant. He told me, he was inlove with her and things between us weren't working. Everything suddenly became clearer and clearer, he had been with Brenda for a while... he cheated on me. He had ofcourse been planning to leave me but he couldn't you know why?

My father is a doctor.

That's sounds stupid because you're probably thinking. What does my father being a well known doctor have anything to do with my relationship with Robbie well-

Robbie is a pediatrician. He absolutely adored kids, he worked at the hospital which my father was in charge of. He didn't want to lose or mess up any opportunity of him getting a promotion by breaking up with his bosses daughter.

It was very unfortunate.

After that I swore I wouldn't focus on relationships but only my career. I moved to New York and now I was back in Los Angeles with my rental boyfriend.

That's if he actually shows up.

"Eric Michelson is sure taking his time!" I said rolling my eyes.

"Leona, you know he is coming from Florida right? It must have been a long flight and he is probably in the bathroom freshening up." Laura said putting a few strands of her blonde hair behind her ear. I just huffed and puffed while standing there. I was jealous, yes I was freaking jealous.

Laura had a nice little petite body that could fit into anything and her blue eyes were just captivating. She could walk around in rags and still make it work. Do you know how it feels to be the other friend? The friend no one pays attention to. The friend that people only know because of her other friend. That's me, I'm that friend. I was slim but very curvy, it made me very upset. The struggle of buying jeans, a slim waist and a bigger bottom. I loved my body but whenever I was with Laura, I felt very self conscious. I got compliments but I felt that's all I had to offer, that's the only thing everyone admired about me, the body of an hour glass. So many times people told me what they would wear if they had my body. I would honestly rather be flat.

Waiting for Eric Michelson for four hours at the airport was not part of the plan.

"We wasted our time, did we really think this was going to work? I will just tell my parents that I'm lesbian and you're my girlfriend!" I huffed, Laura giggled at this.

"I think I see him." She stood up and held the board written Eric Michelson in bold. I remained seated, narrowing my eyes across crowd until I saw him-

I pursued my lips, He was in ripped black jeans, black boots and a white see through shirt.

Just freaking great.

Tattoos!

He walked so slow like he was on an airport red carpet. He had this beautiful curly black hair like Harry Styles once upon a time. He held his duffel bag over his shoulder in a 'I don't care stance'. The photograph we had seen on the website certainly wasn't this. He looked more ridiculous in person, this website was a rip off to think I had already made the deposit and paid for his fucking plane ticket.

He ran a hand through his hair as he approached us. He was so skinny and tall.. I thought to myself. He had a nice strong built, if I may say so myself.

"Lauren?" He smirked at my best friend who blushed. He had a beautiful accent if I may say so myself. Who didn't love a British accent? I know there are a couple of people but don't say it.

"Just Laura." She smiled.

"So did you decide, you wanted to walk to Los Angeles?" I intervened.

He chuckled, biting on his metallic lip ring. "Actually, I decided to take a bicycle."

Annoying.

Arrogant.

List is endless.

"What took you so long?" I questioned.

"That's Leona, your soon to be girlfriend." Laura said softly making Eric frown.

He frowned.

He hoped Laura was his pretend girlfriend, I immediately felt rejected. Why did I feel jealous and hurt-

"I had to change my plane ticket to 12pm, who the bloody fuck wakes up at 6am for a bloody plane-"

Right here then and there, I decided I didn't like him.

At all.

"You ruined my schedule." I muttered as a matter of fact.

"Your schedule, oh my word are you the CEO of Coca Cola or you happen to be Bill Gates? If not then your schedule is nonexistent." He said rolling his eyes.

I. Can't. Stand. Him.

"Not at all, She's a nurse." Laura interjected not knowing he was being sarcastic.

"I would rather jump off a hospital window with my drip than have her as my nurse."

I gasped.

"You don't even know me, Michelson!"

Yes, I was hurt.

"Oh trust me, I know your type!" He said with a sneer. As we walked out of the airport terminal, he totally ignored me as he continued to talk to Laura. I felt rejected and jealous. I had paid for his hotel and this is how he repays me. Paid for his plane ticket and had to pay his agency a deposit.

Eric Michelson was a bastard.

—

"This is your suite.." Laura told Eric, her new bestfriend. I thought bitterly.

"You will stay here until your services aren't needed anymore." I added.

"You make me sound like a bloody harlot."

"You do look like one!" I retorted.

"I suppose I do, my last job... I satisfied cougars while their husbands were at work." He smirked and I gasped clearly disgusted.

"You're disgusting!" I added making him laugh hysterically, I couldn't deny that he was attractive and had a contagious laugh but his attitude and personality was manufactured in hell by Lucifer himself.

"You're not the first nurse to call me that, like the last time I went to check on my HIV status..." he added.

I immediately pulled Laura aside. "Take that freak back to where ever he came from Oregon or Ohio or whatever-" before I could finish I was interrupted.

"I'm from Manchester, did you even read my bio?" He said in a relaxed tone as he poured himself a glass of bourbon.

Drinking at this time of the day.

"Laura read your bio." I replied.

"You should read it too, right at the bottom you will realize it's written doesn't tolerate bitchy snobs."

I was about to rip that lip ring off his smart mouth when Laura replied.

"Let's just give him a try, we already paid $350."

"They can keep it, what was I even thinking... this was a bad idea."

"Lee, calm down. We just need to make him look the part and everything will be okay."

"He needs to remove that lip ring thingy first-"

"No way!" Eric said loudly taking another gulp of his drink.

"My money, my rules." I crossed my arms.

"Do you wanna cut my hair as well and take me to get my tattoos removed, Leo!" He said in a sarcastic tone which made me roll my eyes.

"Well that wouldn't be such a bad idea, mate." I mocked his accent. "Call me Leo again and I will castrate you!"

I warned. Laura just seemed amused by our bickering, her phone rang making her excuse herself out of the bachelor suite. It was probably her boyfriend Samuel but we called him Sam. They were your ideal perfect couple, my parents loved Sam because he was outgoing and came from a well of family as well. Basically anyone who was well off was automatically in my parents good books. How would I convince them this salvage specimen was one of us-

"Leona Louise." Eric muttered.

"Leona Winters." I corrected him.

"No, Leona Louise the musician not you!" He sneered. I felt oddly embarrassed.

"You're Leo!" He said sitting on the leather couch and putting his boots on the coffee table.

"I do not understand Americans, why is it called football when you play with your hands, isn't that rugby-" he said thoughtfully, this was the very first logical thing he had said to me since we met four hours ago.

"I don't know, I don't do sports." I said sitting right next to him. He looked at me biting into his lip before he spoke again.

"So I presume you borrowed that outfit from your grandmother or you just enjoy time traveling?"

Here we go again.

"What's wrong with what I'm wearing?" I said a bit hurt, I tried to cover it up but it was visible.

"I don't know, I just wouldn't date someone dressed like that."

"Ofcourse, you prefer slutty clothing."

"No, I prefer comfortable clothing." He bit on his lip ring again, it was annoying.

"You consider skinny jeans comfortable?" I questioned making him nod as he switched the channel to something else.

"Well I have prepared questions for you!"

"Is this an interview because I thought since you chose this pretty face-" he gestured at his well sculptured jaw. "You had already made a decision."

"I need to know what you do for a living?" I gave him a forced smile.

"I travel, I'm a tourist."

"Be serious!"

"I work whenever, I can." He replied making me sigh out loud. "When I was twenty, I got into a car accident with a company car so they paid me off. I used that money to travel and I'm still traveling-"

"Right you must be broke considering I found you on a ridiculous website!"

"No, I just enjoy acting as a Christian boyfriend, paying well is just a bonus."

I immediately rolled my eyes.

"Did you go to college?"

"I dropped out, school isn't for everyone." I let out an exaggerated sigh, my parents would never approve of me having an uneducated boyfriend but this was temporary, for now after I return to New York... I would tell them we broke up.

"Lee and Ricky, I have to go. Sam needs a ride, his car got towed." Laura said as soon as she got off the phone. I was surprised she said Ricky.

"Who is Ricky?" I furrowed my eyebrows.

"My nickname while growing up." Eric said with a genuine smile. I had no idea they had already done that much catching up, in the few hours that we had met.

"Oh.." I said.

"Tell, Sam I said hi." I yelled as she went out the door.

"Who is Sam?" Eric asked.

"Her boyfriend."

"So he really wants her to fetch him when he could just uber or get a taxi.." Eric questioned my exact thoughts.

"Well.." I paused. "He is the romantic type and probably has a surprise for her." I frowned.

"No need to be jealous, Leo. I can be romantic too."

"Call me Leo again and-" I breathed in trying to compose my anger. "And shut up you aren't even my boyfriend... I would never date-"

"Someone like me?" He said more like a question. "What makes you think, I would want you too."

He was right, I was your average 5'4 woman with naturally red hair and green eyes other than that nothing was appealing. The red hair that I always tied in a bun. I never let my hair down.

"And your parents?" I decided to change the subject.

"They died." He bluntly said.

I feel bad.

"I'm so sorry-" I said quickly but he stopped me.

"No one is promised tomorrow, death awaits us all." He smiled, taking another gulp of his bourbon.

"I didn't know you could be smart too." I let out a sardonic laugh.

"Well Leo, there are so many things you don't know about this lad."

"I just need to know enough to fool my parents that's all." I retorted. He looked at me as if he wanted to say something but decided not to as he closed his plump lips.

We spent the rest of the day bickering and fighting about the questions he refused to answer. He wasn't so bad but he took out the worst in me. Just a month then I would be back to my normal life.

Eric was trouble and for the first time in my life.

I took a risk.

-