Just the Way You Are Read Online Free

whole date; I had to be open-minded and see what Greg had to offer. If I didn’t, I could well end up knee-deep in cat litter and tins of Whiskas.
    After a few minutes, a waiter came to take our order.
    ‘I’ll have the steak and chips and a pint of Coke please mate,’ said Greg.
    ‘Can I have the penne carbonara and a mineral water please?’ I handed the menus to the waiter and smiled as he took them away.
    Out the corner of my eye, I saw Greg raise his eyebrows sceptically.
    ‘What’s up?’ I asked. I wasn’t sure if I wanted to know the answer but felt it was polite to at least ask.
    ‘Nothing, nothing…’ He trailed off and folded his arms, causing the delicate material of his shirt to strain at his biceps.
    ‘Are you sure?’ I didn’t feel comfortable with the atmosphere that had developed between us. It was obvious I’d done or said something to offend him but I couldn’t think what.
    Greg shook his head and curled his top lip in a very unattractive way then sat forward so he could see me.
    ‘I just… I thought you would’ve ordered a salad instead of pasta, that’s all.’
    The comment took me aback. I certainly hadn’t been expecting that; since when did your choice of food matter so much on a date? I’d clearly been out of the game too long.
    ‘Oh… OK, forgive me for sounding stupid here but why does what I have to eat bother you?’
    He let out a sharp breath and glared at me like I’d asked the most stupid question ever.
    ‘Well look at me, Ava. I’ve modelled for Calvin Klein, Burberry and Primark; I’ve got a certain image to maintain.’
    You certainly have if you’re modelling for Primark,
I wanted to say.
    ‘Right…’ I said slowly, not quite understanding what he meant.
    ‘What I mean is,’ he continued, seemingly having read my mind, ‘I can’t just be seen with any old heifer. My agency’s looking to get me into acting and presenting so who I’m seen with is everything. Don’t get me wrong love, you seem nice enough although your face is quite plain and you could be doing with losing about a stone. A big bowl of pasta isn’t going to do you any favours; I’d have gone for a salad if I were you.’
    I sat opposite him, open-mouthed and scarcely able to believe what I’d heard. He’d called me ugly and fat and critiqued my food choices; he’d only known me five minutes! Cheeky bastard.
    ‘Goodbye Greg.’ I calmly got up and walked away from the table as fast as I could.
    Just before we wound up for the day, Paddy and Miranda called a surprise editorial meeting. As usual, they’d sprung it on us on a Friday evening, when everybody was too busy thinking about the weekend ahead to contribute good ideas These meetings almost never happened at the start of the week when people were refreshed and full of energy.
    ‘Right everybody, I know it’s only October but we need to start planning for our Valentine’s Day issue right now. Our competitors
Mirage
and
Glitter
will already have started and you can bet your life they’ll have something big planned to shift issues. It might be an exclusive interview with a big celebrity or a huge features project but whatever it is, we need to do something bigger and better.
Mirage
beat us in the circulation figures last year and we can’t let the same thing happen again. I want us to pull something spectacular out of the bag. I know it’s quite soon to be thinking about it but does anyone have any ideas?’
    Maddie’s hand shot straight up in the air. ‘We could compile a list of the city’s top Valentine’s date spots.’
    How original
, I said to myself,
our competitors would never think of that
. Then again, I didn’t exactly have a list of amazing ideas myself.
    ‘That’s good Maddie, but I want you all to think
big
. Think amazing, think of something that’ll really pull the readers in.’ Paddy sat forward and rubbed his hands together, waiting in anticipation for one of us to produce the gold nugget that would