Cupcake Cutie (Plus Size Romance 1) by Lynn Cooper

 
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
    ELLA SKYE SHOOK HER fists in the air .  Not again! For the love of God, when is that old lady going to learn to keep her damn cat inside? The cloying sounds of a screeching meow-meow was quickly shredding what was left of Ella’s nerves.  Grudgingly getting up from her computer, she trudged to the front door and opened it to the familiar, ear-piercing noise known as Beatrice Abernathy’s voice.
    “Here kitty, kitty! Sampson, please come down out of that mean old tree.  Come to mama,” the eighty-year-old whined, tapping her cane on the sidewalk.  Stiffly, she turned around to give Ella a disapproving look.  “A big girl like you shouldn’t be parading around outside in her underwear.”
    Images of strangling Beatrice’s scrawny little neck played on a constant loop in Ella’s mind.  She didn’t have anything against the elderly, but this particular octogenarian knew how to push Ella’s hot buttons—more specifically her fat buttons. 
    “Ms. Bea, I would hardly classify yoga pants and a tank top as underwear.”
    “Any garment that shows every nook and cranny should stay behind closed doors.  A woman of your size should wear looser-fitting clothes.”
    Ella was fuming but knew it was no use to offer any explanation, excuse or defense for being overweight.  Beatrice was just as narrow-minded and judgmental as the rest of the world.  Only other women plagued with PCOS (Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome) could understand her battle. If not for the Soul Cysters online support group, Ella would have no empathy at all.  Even her own mother thought the extra pounds came from gluttony and laziness.  No one outside the support group could grasp the ill effects of having a severe hormonal imbalance.  One that slowed Ella’s metabolism down to a crawl, sapped her energy and caused a myriad of other problems.  Not the least of which was unwanted body hair in the most inconvenient of places.
    Ella rubbed her fingers underneath her chin to check for regrowth.  If she didn’t have the hair on her face waxed every week, she’d be sporting a full-on beard that would put a lumberjack to shame. Thankfully, her skin still felt silky smooth.  Having Beatrice as a neighbor meant Ella’s curvaceous and ample figure was under constant scrutiny.  The last thing she needed was to give the old bag more ammunition. 
    “Here kitty, kitty, kitty!”
      Meow-meow! Meow-meow!
    Despite Beatrice’s rude and hurtful comments, Ella knew she had to offer some assistance.  If for no other reason than to stop the assault to her ears.  Sampson and Ms. Bea were about to bring on a migraine.  And that was the last thing Ella needed.  She loved her job as a graphic design artist but, during deadline time, things could get a bit stressful. At the moment, she was designing an important ad campaign for The Little Cupcake Company on North Broad Street. And this little interruption had the potential to throw her off schedule big time.
    Determined to get back to it, she briefly assessed the huge oak tree in her front yard.  For some reason, that blasted feline always chose a tree on her property.  To a cat, trees probably always looked taller and more tempting on the other side of the street.
    The limbs appeared to be plenty sturdy.  And, thanks to her upper body workouts, Ella was quite confident she could shimmy up the tree and rescue Sampson.  Easy peasy.  She would be back to designing in no time.
    On her first jump, Ella grabbed hold of the bottom limb.  She swung herself up and over until her firm, round booty was resting comfortably in its crook.
    She looked down when she heard a wispy gasp.  Beatrice was fanning her face.
    “Lord, child, you’ll fall to your death.  Those limbs get smaller towards the top.  I don’t think they’ll support a big girl like you.”
    Inwardly, Ella screamed. Shut up, you old biddy! If you’d keep your stupid Sampson in the house, this wouldn’t keep