None of these would do. She pulled out the duffel bag she had haphazardly thrown into the corner of the closet and dug through it, settling on a tight black t-shirt, a pair of dark denim jeans and a long dangly necklace. She spied a pair of black wedges that would work well with the outfit, and then ran to the bathroom to get ready.
While she applied makeup, her mother’s face appeared in the doorway and looked at her in the mirror. “You look pretty,” she commented with a smile. “You going out?”
Aurelia felt her face flush and she nodded. She felt like a teenager again telling her mom she was going out on a date. “I’m meeting Lander out on his parents’ property. We’re hoping to see that comet we missed finding our senior year.”
Her mother frowned for a minute and the line that showed up when she worried appeared between her eyebrows. “Aurelia, you have to be careful. A lot of men will want to date you for your money. Just be careful with your heart, sweet girl.”
Aurelia sighed. She knew better than most what would happen should she choose to date anyone seriously. “I know, Mom. I don’t really want to date Lander, anyway. But maybe we can keep in touch after this. He’s still sweet.”
“I’ve seen the way he looks at you. He’s more than just sweet.”
Aurelia hadn’t noticed Lander looking at her in any particular way. Perhaps he liked her appearance now. They had never explored a romantic relationship when they were younger, and she didn’t know what that would look like with Lander. Plus, she would have a difficult time telling if he liked her because of who she was or only for her money. That was the only reason she had been asked out by any man in the last few years. She had taken to automatically declining any invitation to date.
“I’ll be careful, I promise.” Aurelia crossed her heart and put her hand up in the boy scout hand signal, which made her mom laugh.
“Alright, because I really like hanging out with his parents, and if you two mess that up for us, you’ll have to start traveling with your dad and me.”
Aurelia made her eyes wide and opened her mouth in mock fear. “Not traveling with you two. I’d be bored to death.” She faked a choking sound and pretended to be dying, while dramatically slipping to the floor.
Her mom smacked her arm and laughed again. “You’d be surprised. Your father and I are actually good at partying.”
Aurelia plugged her ears and screeched playfully. “I don’t want to know!”
Laughing as she left the room, her mom didn’t say another word. Aurelia turned back to the mirror, and continued her beauty regimen. She wanted to look beautiful, even if nothing was going to happen between her and Lander. She felt like she needed to impress him.
She heard a knock on the door and ran down the stairs to answer it, having just finished applying the last bit of her makeup. Standing in the doorway in a loose fitting polo and pair of jeans was Lander. How did he make everyday clothes look so good? She ogled him up and down before she realized that he had asked her a question. “Um, what?”
He smiled and repeated what he said. “You look beautiful.”
Floundering for something to say, she couldn’t think of anything. “I’ll just grab my shoes and a jacket,” she muttered. She could usually speak confidently, but her confidence wavered around this man. She had spoken to stars and famous athletes from around the world, but when it came to this small town boy she grew up with, she couldn’t seem to lift her head high and speak with authority.
He held the door open for her, and just before she went through she spied her father across the room. He gave her a sly wink and disappeared. She shook her head and rolled her eyes heavenward. They were going to take the mickey out of her when she got back.
Lander had borrowed his dad’s old pickup truck and covered the back bed in pillows and blankets for padding and warmth. They both jumped out when they got to the meadow, unloaded the telescope, the picnic basket and some music off his iPhone.
Aurelia seemed kind of jumpy. Almost like she was nervous or something about spending time with Lander. He didn’t really understand why. She must get a lot of attention from guys all the time. She was sweet and beautiful and had the kindest eyes. He felt a little nervous himself. He wasn’t sure if this was a date, but hadn’t been out since his ex left.
Aurie glanced at her watch and then looked up at him, her big blue eyes radiant in the flickering candlelight. “It will be at least an hour before we can see it. We got out here a little early.”
“I brought some hot chocolate and snacks for us to eat while we wait. It’ll be fun. When was the last time you got to stay outside at night watching the stars?”
Aurelia laughed and climbed up into the bed of the truck. “Probably the last time that you and I did this together. There aren’t a whole lot of visible stars in New York, as you well know, and the last thing you want to do as a woman in the city is wander off alone at night.”
He patted the pillow next to him in the pickup and after she sat down, uncapped a thermos of hot chocolate. When she sat so near him, he felt his palms sweat again and almost dropped the mugs he pulled out of the small bag next to him. It took him far too long to pour the chocolate and almost dropped a good amount on himself.
Aurie sipped the hot liquid as soon as she got it and almost choked. “Wow, that’s hot!” This comment was almost immediately followed by, “Oh my. That is the best chocolate I’ve ever had. What did you do to make that?”
Lander felt a wave of pride roll through him at the compliment. “A few years ago I got to travel to a really small town in Mexico with a client of ours and visit his family. His abuela was the sweetest woman and taught me how to make her ‘chocolate especial’ so that I could share it with others once I got back to the States.”
“It’s so rich, but I love the spicy feeling you get on the back of your tongue once you swallow.”
A small drip of chocolate drew Lander’s attention to Aurelia’s mouth. It had been the first time he had really looked at her lips since they had returned to their home state. Her perfect cupid’s bow was highlighted by a gloss that made him want to lean over and nibble gently on her bottom lip. He reached over and gently wiped the spot off her lip with the tip of his finger. Without thinking, he sucked the chocolate off and looked back up at her.
The look in her eyes was hard for him to read. Her thick lashes hid her eyes and he could see her chest heaving. Her skin flushed pink on her cheeks and neck. He had seen that reaction before, a long time ago. It did crazy things to his stomach. Since when had he been such a nervous wreck around women?
“Tell me more about your job. Do you get to travel a lot?” She wasn’t looking at him anymore as she spoke. She was looking up at the stars.
Lander took a sip of the sweet and spicy chocolate, and his mind traveled all the way back to the small abuela, stooped over a pot on a hot plate in her kitchen. The smell of fresh baked tortillas and spicy meats was hard to forget.
“I used to travel a lot more, but now there are other people who do that. Mostly I stay around New York. I run a lot of the company from my office, but to be honest we have so many more employees now that it could pretty much run itself at this point. I just like to stay busy.”
“I understand that one. I’m pretty much the same way. I have a team of people who work for me and they could do most of the work, but I reserve some of the higher end clients for myself.”
“You have to tell me more about what you do. It sounds fascinating.” Lander was genuinely interested in her work. “Do you have a date matching site as well or do you only work in person?”
Lander saw her bite her lip. She did that when she was thinking. He smiled at a memory of her biting her lip like that one day when they were walking along a river and he asked her what she wanted to do after high school. A small pang of regret hit him in the pit of his stomach. They had thought that they would be inseparable forever. They promised to keep in touch and hoped one day to share an apartment as roommates after school. Little
did they know that ten years later would be the first time they had seen each other since the summer after graduation.
“Well, we have a website as well, but the more people are willing to pay, the more involved the company will get in trying to find them a match.”
Lander paused for a minute. Some little fact was itching at the back of his mind. Where had he heard of this before? Craig. Craig had told him about a corporation based out of New York City that matched people and worked with high end clients, keeping their services confidential. He now remembered the conversation clearly.
“You know, it’s been five years now. You have to move on and find someone new. There’s this matchmaking company. The most recent Fortune 500 company, and get this—the CEO is a woman. That’s pretty awesome. There aren’t too many female CEOs in the list of Fortune 500s. She founded it by accident apparently and was quickly funded by three different celebrities within six months. They have a 100% success rate when you utilize their private services. You can afford it, too. What else are you going to do with all the money you’ve been making?” Craig liked to monologue a lot. Lucky for everyone close to him, he had a decent sounding voice. Unlucky for Lander however, Craig had taken it upon himself to act like a mother hen trying to get him to go out on dates for the last couple years.
“Craig, come on, man. You know I’m not like that. And there’s no way I’m going to use a matchmaker. Even if it’s a guarantee. I’m just not ready yet.” Lander got back to work on his computer, thinking Craig would leave him alone. He had no such luck.
“You should be ready. You’re holding on to the past because you’re scared that there isn’t a girl out there for you. But there is.” Craig handed him a business card and left without another word.
Flipping the card over in his hands he read the name of the company—Riematch.
“Do you own Riematch?” Lander asked her incredulously.
She jumped and her back went stiff. “How did you know?”
“No way! Really?” Lander asked incredulously. “You’re the CEO of a Fortune 500 now? How did you do it? I can’t believe I didn’t know. Mom never even mentioned it.”
Aurelia closed her eyes and when she opened them again, there was a strange look on her face. She didn’t smile when she spoke anymore and she seemed detached. “Yes, I am the Matchmaker.”
“That’s really neat. Congratulations.”
She seemed to be waiting for more, but Lander wasn’t sure what it was. “Aren’t you going to ask me to match you up and ask for my autograph or a picture and all that?”
Lander laughed loudly. “Really? I’m supposed to want you to match me up just like that?”
She smiled then and ducked her head, trying to hide her eyes and the obvious embarrassment on her face. “I just figured that you would be like everyone else.”
Lander frowned, which pulled his eyebrows together, and sighed. “That must be really frustrating. I’m sorry that’s what you expect from everyone. But I promise, I don’t want you to match me up. Actually, my friend Craig tried to get me to use your services not too long ago and I didn’t want them.” He stuttered, hoping he hadn’t offended her. “I-I mean your services are great and everything, but I don’t want to find a match. I’m not looking to get together with anyone.”
She giggled and leaned back on her elbows, sipping the hot chocolate in her hands. “Well you’re the first then. The only real conversations I have that don’t involve work happen with my mom and dad. Everyone else wants me to match them up. It’s exhausting. Not to mention the fact that men don’t want to date me, they want to date my money.”
He knew the feeling, but now didn’t seem like the right time to bring up the fact that he too owned a multi-billion dollar corporation. If he did it would just sound like he was bragging, so he decided to change the subject. “Care for some crackers and cheese?”
Aurelia scrunched up her nose. “As long as it’s not too stinky.”
“Oh, you remember how I like my cheese then?” He laughed again. It had been a long time since he had laughed so much. “Don’t worry, it’s only gouda. You’ll like it. Not stinky, I promise. I remember how much you hate stinky cheese and figured your tastes weren’t any better than they were before.”
She made a shocked sound with her mouth and smacked the side of his arm playfully. He grabbed his arm and moaned as if she had hurt him which only elicited more smacking and then a loud oops as she spilled her chocolate.
“Don’t worry about it. These are just the fancy pillows from the guest bedroom. My mom probably won’t care,” he teased.
“You are such a brat.”
“That never goes away, you know,” he replied with a smirk.
She stuck her bottom lip out in a pout and Lander was surprised at the reaction he had. He wanted to grab her hand and pull her over to him and suck on that pouty lip. What was wrong with him? She wasn’t his type. She was his best friend. Or at least she had been. They knew way too much about each other to get involved further.
Aurelia didn’t know what to think about Lander. Here they were in the back of his dad’s old truck watching the stars. It was the perfect evening. The way he looked at her wasn’t like a best friend. Her mother was right. He looked like a hungry Klingon eyeing the last plate of fresh gagh on a three month sojourn into deep space.
Almost laughing aloud at the image procured in her mind, she really needed to stop doing that. People always thought it was strange when she laughed for no apparent reason. It was the curse of her introverted ways. She could easily entertain herself without once talking to anyone around her.
“The comet should be out now. Somewhere over there, according to the very reliable sources on the internet.” She pointed roughly in the direction of the comet. “It should be visible to the naked eye, but the telescope will help.”
Lander set up the small telescope in the bed of the truck and stepped back. It was mounted on a small tripod that stood about eight inches off the surface of the truck—the same one they had used years ago to study the stars.
Lander lay down on the pillows and Aurelia joined him. He threw a blanket over both of them to stave off the chill in the night air. She could feel the heat of his body next to her and felt an intense urge to scoot in closer to him.
“Do you remember when we were last out here?” Lander asked her while he looked through the telescope.
“Yeah, of course I do. We were up talking all night. I got grounded the next day for not making it back to the house until five in the morning.” Aurelia could still remember how angry her mom had been when she didn’t get back home. She had waited up all night for her.
He peered through the scope while he spoke. “You and I talked about our futures. You wanted to be an artist and you had all these dreams about painting in France.”
“Yes, and I remember you were going to be a famous basketball player.” She smiled at the memory. They had stared up at the stars just like they did now, talking and teasing.
“Do you remember the pact we made?” Lander didn’t look at her, but she could hear something strange in his voice.
“Pact? I don’t know…” She could recall something, but surely that’s not what he was talking about.
“Yeah, if we were both thirty and we weren’t married yet, we would marry each other.” He laughed, but it sounded strained.
Aurelia laughed too. “Yeah, well at least we aren’t quite thirty yet.”
She closed her eyes for a minute, picturing what that would look like. Marrying Lander wouldn’t be that bad, would it? She opened her eyes again and he was staring at her, his head propped up on his hand. He had this look in his eyes that she hadn’t seen on his face before. Just as he leaned in for a kiss, Aurelia’s phone went off. The blaring tone startled both of them and the moment was lost.
She looked at the screen. Her mother had the worst timing possible. “What is it, Mom?”
“Honey, you have to come back to the house. There’s some
news on I think you need to see.”
“I’m really busy right now, Mom. Can’t it wait?”
The urgency in her voice was alarming. “No. And bring Lander.”
She hung up the phone and looked at Lander with concern. “My mom says we have to come back to the house. Something on the news that she said we have to see.”
Lander looked concerned as well, but didn’t ask. It couldn’t be anything good.
Chapter 4
Lander had missed his chance and he knew it. He should have just kissed her. Now he would never know how her lips felt. Maybe they would have more time to spend together after everything settled down tonight. He tried to ignore the cold, sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach.
They drove back to the house in silence, the only sound a gentle hum of the radio. He thrummed his fingers on the steering wheel in nervous anticipation, making sure he kept the vehicle going the speed limit and not flying through the windy back roads.
Once they reached the house, Lander jumped out of the truck and grabbed Aurelia’s door for her. They both ran inside and followed the sound of the TV blaring. All four of their parents sat on the sofa in the living room, staring at the screen. A news anchor in her mid thirties was speaking while the CNN headline banner flashed across the screen. When the news anchor mentioned Riematch, his attention focused intently on what she was saying.
“In a fit of rage, an angry spouse has sent out threats to release secure information from the dating service, Riematch. The man has allegedly hacked the database for the multi-billion dollar corporation and has the names of their most privileged clients. As of yet, no information has been released. The man, identified as Nathaniel Scrow, was recently divorced and blames the dating service for the termination of his marriage. He tweets:
‘They found her a rich man to date while we were still together. The lady that owns that corporation has no soul #illruinyou #soulless’.
As of yet, threats have been via social media. Police are investigating the matter further to determine the extent of the security breech.”
Love, Snow and Mistletoe: Four Sweet Christmas Romance Novellas Page 20