Tamed Galley Master

by Lizzie Lynn Lee

  TAMED

  A Dangerous Curves Novella

  Lizzie Lynn Lee

  First Edition 2015

  ©Copyright Lizzie Lynn Lee 2015

  Cover Art by (Lizzie Lynn Lee) ©Copyright (July/2015)

  Edited by Tina Winograd

  Proofread by Claudette Cruz

  This book contains material protected under International and Federal Copyright Laws and Treaties. Any unauthorized reprint or use of this material is prohibited. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system without express written permission from the author.

  This is a work of fiction. The characters, incidents and dialogues in this book are of the author’s imagination and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events or persons, living or dead, is completely coincidental.

  TAMED

  A Dangerous Curves Novella

  Lizzie Lynn Lee

  Real men love curves.

  Curvy is smexy.

  For a long time, Danielle Thomas was very confident about her size, her look, and her social life. After all, she has the most amazing man, Brian Ellis, as the love of her life. However, Brian called off their engagement because he wants to honor his late mother by having his bride wear his mother’s wedding gown. Uh-oh. Danielle could starve herself to death but she isn’t going to squeeze into size four anytime soon. Like never. She’s a naturally big girl. Crushed emotionally, Danielle begins to avoid romance and men altogether and that makes Kate worry. As her best friend, she wants Danielle to be happy. So, what better way to get Danielle over her ex-fiancé than hook her up with some hot, single man?

  Kate hears there’s a phantom website called “Dangerous Curves” that will match big, beautiful women with extremely sexy, hunky men, but only if they were deemed worthy of getting laid. Without Danielle’s permission, Kate enters Danielle’s information. As soon as Kate pushes enter, Danielle is magically teleported to where her dates await. Yeah. Dates. Not just one, but two men—tall, dark, and twins, Dane and Collin. They like to share their woman, among other naughty things.

  But that’s not the best part. Dane and Collin are actually weretigers. They love Danielle for her curves and who she is, and most importantly—they play for keeps.

  Chapter One

  There were one hundred things she’d like do right now, but going on a double date wasn’t one of them. Danielle Thomas knew from the beginning that tonight’s outing was going to be a dud, anyway. But her best friend Kate had been so worked up with “Operation Get Danielle Laid” for more than a week; she didn’t have the heart to balk on Kate’s plan.

  Not even an “Uh-oh, I Told You So.”

  Yes, their dates were reasonably good looking and all, but when Alan met her earlier, Danielle could tell he’d rather be paired with Kate. After all, Kate was model gorgeous. Tall, leggy, tan and blonde. Danielle was everything Kate wasn’t. Danielle had black hair, pale skin, and too generous of curves. She had a pretty face, though.

  But people had been telling her, she would be an absolute bombshell if she shed about fifty pounds. Rude. Like she wasn’t trying. Anyway, Danielle had given up the idea of slimming down just to impress a guy. Because she didn’t need one. Ever. Not after that dickhole of a fiancé called off their wedding. So, Danielle put on her game face and pretended to enjoy the evening.

  The sports bar where they were dining was situated on Miami Beach. The moon hung in a perfect crescent in the clear night sky. The air was thick with sea breezes and meats ripe on the grill. Their dates chose to dine outdoors where the tables were illuminated by lanterns and candle lights, and it was jam-packed. It was freaking romantic, actually. Not for a double date, though. Especially when Danielle’s blind date seemed to be rather somewhere else.

  Well, newsflash, mister. I feel the same way too, Danielle thought ruefully.

  Will, Kate’s date, seemed to think he would go home with her best friend tonight, judging from his cocky smile and attitude. Once every so often, he gave his friend Alan a sympathy smile.

  Danielle resisted the urge to roll her eyes each time he did.

  “So, how long have you been friends with Danielle?” Will asked Kate. His oily manner made Danielle itch to smack him on the head.

  Kate sipped her Hurricane before answering, “Since high school. Originally my family came from Dallas, but dad transferred here in the late nineties. Our houses were next to each other and we went to the same school, so we’re naturally best friends. After high school, we went to different colleges, but for some strange reason, we ended up working at the same firm. We were destined to be besties forever. We’re even roommates.”

  Danielle forced herself to smile to compliment Kate’s story so she wouldn’t stand as sour grapes.

  “How interesting,” Will drawled with his lightly laced Southern accent. Ting became tang. “You know, I went to your company website and stumbled onto your department employee pictures. But I don’t recall I saw any of Danielle’s photos.”

  “Oh. That’s because of the budget cut,” Danielle said rather quickly.

  Kate lifted an eyebrow.

  Will’s smile still gleamed in the dim light. “Budget cut?” he echoed.

  “Yeah, I won’t fit in a group photo. They’d have to bring in a specialist for an aerial shot.”

  “Danielle!” Kate admonished.

  Surprisingly, Alan burst out a laugh and quickly recovered himself. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to.”

  It seemed Will was too dim to catch on to the conversation. “Aerial shot?”

  “Never mind. Danielle likes to joke around.” Kate hurried in with damage control.

  Guilt sneaked into Danielle’s heart. She didn’t mean to sabotage this date with her self-deprecating jokes. She did it a lot to herself after Brian ended their engagement out of the blue. They had set a date, venue, and even hired a wedding planner. But then, Brian had acted weird when he came into the dress fitting. He said he liked the dress, not loved it, and Danielle didn’t think anything else back then. She was just elated she was going to marry Brian, the man of her dreams.

  Then two days after the bridal shop visit, Brian sat her down and told her he couldn’t marry her. The reason: his grandmother, who was also the grand matriarch of his family, wanted Brian’s wife to wear Brian’s mother’s wedding gown. His mom died when Brian was a newborn, complication from a difficult birth. It was her dying wish that someday her son’s bride would wear her wedding gown when they married.

  The grandmother was very adamant about fulfilling Brian’s mom’s last wish, even though many in the family thought the request was rather frivolous. Reality started peeling from the seams. Brian’s mother was a slender beauty. The gown was a bespoke Vera Wang. Danielle wouldn’t dream to fit into it. She asked if she could alter the dress. Brian’s grandmother flat out refused, said the dress was an important memento. They came from a wealthy family based in Boca Raton, and pretty much a mover and shaker in Florida.

  Danielle was crushed. If that old hag didn’t want a fat girl as the bride of her only grandson, why didn’t she just say so? The whole business with fulfilling a dying wish was just a freaking ploy, and it hurt more than the truth itself.

  And what made it hurt even more was that Brian hadn’t tried to defend her. After all, she was his freaking fiancée, wasn’t she? She was the girl he wanted to marry, not his grandmother. In the end, Danielle realized Brian didn’t want to get on his grandmother’s bad side. He was a trust fund baby, but he’d inherit the family fortune when his grandmother passed away. One thing she was certain about Brian: He’d been pampered all his l
ife. He wouldn’t survive if his lifeline was cut.

  It was painful to realize she held little value to Brian.

  She wasn’t chasing him for his wealth. She came from an upper middle class family. Her late father was a judge and her mother was a dermatologist. Her clinic was often frequented by celebrities. They were a respectable family.

  Danielle waved at the waitress and ordered another drink. “Another zombie, please.”

  Kate gave her another disapproving look.

  “What? I like rum,” said Danielle.

  She nudged Danielle’s shoulder. “I need to powder my nose. Can you come with me?”

  Danielle sighed inwardly.

  Kate threw a flirty smile to their dates. “We’ll be a minute, gentlemen.”

  They sashayed between the busy tables into the restaurant and headed for the restroom. Danielle washed her hands while Kate pouted behind her. There were a couple other women using the facility, but her best friend didn’t seem to care. Kate scolded her immediately.

  “What gives, Danielle?” Kate started. “I planned this date especially for you, and you keep sabotaging it. Enough with the fat jokes already.”

  Danielle rolled her eyes. “Give it up, already. Even a village idiot can see Alan has no interest in me. He got buyer’s remorse and I don’t want to look like I’m desperate. Because I’m really not.”

  “Honestly, Danielle, the only way you’ll ever get laid is if you crawl up a chicken’s ass and wait.”

  Danielle snorted a laugh. And so did the woman next to her.

  Kate gave both of them her signature death glare. Danielle sobered immediately. She blotted her face with oil paper and refreshed her lips with a swipe of lipstick. The woman next to Danielle left and Kate claimed her empty space.

  “I told you I don’t need a date. I don’t need men,” said Danielle. “You keep pushing this issue on me. I told you I’m done with men in general.”

  “That’s what worries me,” Kate interjected. “I want my best friend back. Ever since that bastard walked out on you, you’ve been like this.” Kate made a desperate gesture. “I hate to see what you’ve become. You used to be cool. And confident.”

  Danielle reflected on the truth in Kate’s words. She used to be confident about her self-image. She was proud of her curves. She might not be the image of Hollywood beauty standards, but she held a special allure all her own. Men of all shapes and sizes couldn’t resist checking out her chest. Her all-natural F cup boobs never failed to attract their attention. And her shapely lush backside and hourglass waist had always earned her a double take from every creature with a cock. She was the very incarnation of Botticelli’s Birth of Venus in spirit. Radiant. Glowing. Sensual.

  Until that damn wedding gown disaster.

  Suffice it to say, any self-confidence she had was knocked to the bottom rung and seemed to stay there.

  Danielle held up her hands. “Listen, I just need to take time to heal, okay? I thought Brian was my soul mate. I was wrong.”

  “Yeah, but how long are you going to wallow in pain like this? It’s already been three months. You should move on. I bet Brian moved on a long time ago.”

  Danielle sighed. “If I stop making fat jokes, would you stop badgering me with blind dates?”

  “Deal.”

  The door to the restroom opened and a stream of flushed-faced girls entered. Danielle shimmied past them. Kate shadowed her. Her best friend halted her when they were about to step into the bustling restaurant area.

  “Wait,” Kate said. Her eyes twinkled mischievously. “On second thought, let’s ditch them.”

  “I beg your pardon?” Danielle pretended to look scandalized. “Does mine ear deceive me? The honorable Kate Winter wants to play hookie on a date? That’s shocking, madam. Indubitably shocking.”

  Kate rolled her eyes. “I got buyer’s remorse too, okay? Will is a droll.”

  “Well, I hate to say I told you so, but I told you so.”

  “And Alan is no better. He sounded more interesting on his profile.”

  “Where did you round up these people?”

  “Remember when I had a business trip to Orlando last week? I met a few reps from Socor who are single and it snowballed from there.” Kate pulled out her phone and started texting.

  Danielle craned her neck, peeking over Kate’s shoulder. “What are you going to say to them?”

  “That you got violently sick and had to go home. We both take a rain check.”

  “Oh, that’s nice. Throw me under the bus.”

  “Deal with it. You owe me that much.” Kate hit send and stowed her phone back into her satchel with a triumphant sneer. “Let’s go.”

  They barged into the kitchen, apologizing profusely along the way and exited through the back door. The hot, humid temperature ambushed them as soon as they stepped outside. Kate laughed uncontrollably.

  “I can’t believe we ditched them,” she said between her giggle fits.

  “We’re bad people,” added Danielle.

  “Yes, yes. We’re bad. We’re the only girls in the world who ditch their lousy dates. Well, let’s go.” Kate pulled her hand. They tottered along the alleyway and crossed the parking lot.

  Danielle hiccupped. The nice buzz she had gradually dissipated, leaving her with a lingering hangover. They stopped by a Cuban food stall and ordered their bitter, potent coffee and Reuben sandwiches.

  Kate chose the farthest bench and settled in. She unwrapped the sandwich and dug in with gusto. They hadn’t had dinner earlier. Just drinks. They met up with Will and Alan at Galapagos and supposedly would head to a comedy show on Bicknell after that. Chappelle headlined Miami for a week before continuing his tour to Tampa, but Danielle had a feeling no matter how hilarious the show would be, it couldn’t salvage their disastrous date night.

  Danielle sipped her coffee. Slowly, the simmering buzz from the alcohol ebbed away. She took a bite of her sandwich and savored the complex sour and salty taste. Her stomach calmed gradually.

  She took a breather. Deep, long exhalation. The breeze from the sea gave respite from the hot and humid weather. She could smell salt in the air. Along with burned charcoal and pungent seasoning. Laughter and a seductive Latin beat rumbled in the background, along with the soft crashing of ocean waves.

  Friday night in Miami.

  Mating night. And everyone tried to get lucky.

  Except her.

  Kate looked psyched. “So, listen, I heard this from the girls at the office. There’s a dating website that guarantees curvy women hookups with hot guys.”

  “Here we go again.”

  “No, really. They said it’s a phantom website—”

  “What the hell does that mean?”

  “It means that not everybody can just see it. If you’re meant to see it, you can find it. That is why they call it phantom.”

  “Sounds like a scam to me.” Danielle waved off her best friend’s enthusiasm. “Would you stop pimping me around? I don’t need men.”

  “That’s the problem. You won’t be able to forget Brian if you don’t hook up with another guy. In fact, I won’t stop. No, scratch that, I will make this my life mission to see you date some hot guy.” Kate sipped her coffee and winced from its bitterness. “They said in order to see this phantom dating site, you have to send a blank email to this website. Dangerous Curves. Dangerous Curves. Dangerous Curves. Three times. If they deem you worthy to get laid they’ll match you with some hot guy.”

  “That is the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard.”

  “Yeah, but you’ve got nothing to lose, right? Now, give me your phone.”

  “What? No.”

  Too late. Kate snatched it from Danielle’s handbag. She giggled while she swiped the device and opened Danielle’s email.

  Danielle sighed again. She gave up. When Kate had her mind on something, she would make it happen. Kate could be pushy at times, but Danielle couldn’t get mad at her. Kate always had her best interest a
t heart even when it came as intrusive.

  “So, here we go.” Kate’s fingers danced on the screen. “Dangerous Curves. Three times.”

  Danielle lifted a brow. “Just Dangerous Curves without any extension? No dot com or dot net or anything? How does that even work?”

  “The instruction I heard was you type in just Dangerous Curves three times on the address field. They say if you are meant to see the website, you’ll be able to send your message.”

  “This is the biggest bullshit I heard all evening.”

  “Won’t hurt to try.”

  “It won’t work. No email service will allow you to send a message without a proper extension.”

  Kate pushed send anyway.

  Danielle glanced at the screen. Wait, weird. Kate was able to send it. Bet it would bounce, she thought.

  A few seconds after that, Danielle’s phone chimed, announcing a new message.

  Danielle peeked. Instead of a notification of an undeliverable email, she got a message with Congratulations in the subject. Kate thumbed it open and scrolled down. They read the message together. It said that Danielle was the kind of woman Dangerous Curves was looking for.

  “Oh my God. It works. It works!” Kate laughed with excitement.

  “Let me see that. I don’t believe this.”

  Kate dodged Danielle’s hand. She followed the link provided on the email and it opened to a fancy website. Designed in elegant red and gold color scheme, the site boasted their success stories by displaying testimonies from happy couples.

  Kate widened her eyes at her. “Do you see these hotties? The guys who are being matched with the girls are extremely hunky. Ooh, check out this one, says he is a lion and a firefighter. They were matched last June and they are currently expecting their first cub.”

  “What do they mean he’s a lion?” Danielle frowned.

  “Maybe his horoscope, a Leo,” Kate offered.

  “But why did they say they are expecting their first cub?” Danielle pointed out.

  “A typo. They meant a baby. Or they do that for fun. You know, marketing gimmick.”

  Danielle tsked. “A scam. I can smell it to high heaven.”