Lahat ng Kabanata ng Nobody Dumps This Curvy Bitch: Kabanata 1 - Kabanata 6

GabbyGod, I’m so tired of people seeing my size before they ever see me. And I’m especially deeply tired of men.I sat tucked into the farthest, darkest corner of The Bean & Leaf cafe, my elbows pinned to the small wooden table, my forehead pressed so hard into my palm that my fingers left red indents against my skin. Cold, quiet tears leaked past my knuckles anyway, dripping uselessly onto the scuffed varnish. People were staring—not with sympathy, but with that subtle, narrow-eyed judgment I knew all too well. They weren't staring because a woman was weeping in public; they were staring because my body spilled over the edges of the tiny wrought-iron café chair, taking up space they clearly thought I had no business occupying.My skin still burned from what had happened ten minutes ago on the busy sidewalk of 5th Avenue. A little boy, maybe five years old, holding a bright pink lollipop in one hand while his mother held the other, had stopped dead in his tracks. He’d raised a stick

NathanI stood in front of the floor-to-ceiling mirror in the private restroom of Le Cirque restaurant, adjusting the cuff of my sleeve. Afternoon sunlight streamed through the high stained-glass window, reflecting off the polished marble sink.I pulled my secondary phone from my inner pocket, set it on the edge of the counter, and tapped the record button. I cleared my throat, dragging a deep breath into my lungs, and practiced under my breath, my voice low, careful, and rehearsed.“Lina, we’ve been together for almost a year now, and you’re the only woman I want by my side for the rest of my life. Will you marry me?”“You got this, man,” a stranger washing his hands offered with a warm, encouraging smile as he walked toward the door. “She’s a lucky woman.”I forced a tight, polite nod. Once the door clicked shut, I reached into the breast pocket of my charcoal blazer and pulled out the small red velvet box. I flicked it open. The overhead light caught the three-carat, flawless, oval

GabbyThe grand glass doors of St. Michael’s swung shut behind us, cutting off the stunned murmurs of the congregation. The bright afternoon light washed over the stone courtyard, but my mind was spinning so fast the world felt completely out of focus.I stopped dead on the top step, snatched my arm back from Nathan’s grasp, and whirled around to face him."Your cousin?!" I choked out, my voice dropping into an urgent, furious whisper. "You are Joel’s cousin?!"Nathan didn't blink. He casually slid his hands into the pockets of his tailored charcoal trousers, his dark eyes calmly tracing the flush spreading across my chest and cheeks."Second cousin, technically," he corrected smoothly, his voice a cool, velvet rumble. "My father and his mother share a grandfather. But yes. Family.""Are you insane?!" My hands flew up to my temples as I took a step back on my heels. "I hired a random guy outside a church to throw off my toxic ex-boyfriend! I didn't hire his relative! Do you have any i