Just Her Type

by Laudat, Reon

  Just Her Type

  By Reon Laudat

  Just Her Type Copyright © 2015 by Reon Laudat

  The Flirtationship excerpt Copyright © 2014 by Reon Laudat

  WWW.REONLAUDAT.COM

  Cover design: GoOnWrite.com

  All rights reserved. No part of this ebook may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

  Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights.

  This is a work of fiction. All characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  Just Her Type

  One woman’s quest for Mr. Right, the Great American novel, and the perfect knit stitch

  When literary agent Kendra Porter loses her heart, she has a tendency to lose her head. She’s impulsively accepted three bended-knee marriage proposals. But this flighty fiancée has never made it to the altar. Her MO is to return the rings with heart-rending breakup speeches. No more! For long-term relationship success, she adopts a more pragmatic approach to dating in hopes of clicking with a different type of guy.

  Rival literary agent Dominic Tobias is a sexy, charming, hipster sort, in other words, Kendra’s usual type to a tee. While he induces the best kind of tingles, he also triggers her flight response.

  The last few women Dominic pursued banished him to that guy purgatory of no return– the Friend Zone. His laid-back, no-pressure courting style has been lousy for his love life as of late. With Kendra, he tries the opposite approach—a full-court-press strategy.

  A fierce pull draws Kendra to Dominic, but she can’t fight unnerving déjà vu when he gets too close.

  Will they prevail over the “cute couple” curse, spooky synchronicity, suspicions of client poaching, and double-wide competitive streaks to achieve their happily ever after?

  Can Kendra conquer her fear and trust off-the-charts chemistry one more time? Does Dominic want to win Kendra’s heart?

  Or does he just want to win?

  Table of Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Chapter 34

  Chapter 35

  Chapter 36

  Chapter 37

  Chapter 38

  Chapter 39

  Chapter 40

  Chapter 41

  Excerpt from The Flirtationship

  About the Author

  Chapter 1

  What? You’re going to move? Please, don’t do it! Kendra Porter mentally telegraphed her desperate plea to her seatmate.

  After boarding the plane, she had recognized the man upfront who had more than likely extended the offer to give up his first class seat for the miserable coach seat of her neighbor.

  The flight attendant went on, tempting Ed, the seatmate, with details of all the amenities that would come with the trade.

  For their flight from Dallas back to New York, Kendra and Ed had been stuck in the immobile 32A and 32B with backs flush against the lavatory. As the ground crew tended to a minor mechanical glitch before departure, Kendra, who had been thumbing through a tattered Fingerhut catalog that someone left behind, tucked it away to listen to Ed, the retired Winnebago salesman from Yonkers. After spotting her I Knit So I Don’t Kill People tote, he told her all about his treasured old Fair Isle cardigans that needed repairs.

  Now he would leave her hanging.

  “First class?” Ed went wide-eyed with delight as he gathered his magazines. “Sure, I’d love to switch!” He turned to Kendra. “Friend of yours?”

  “But I was enjoying our conversation,” Kendra replied, instead of answering his question. “I was about to tell you all about my Aunt Jackie’s yarn shop.” She plowed through her purse and passed him a business card for The Sassy Sheep. “She’s an expert knitter. For a small fee, I’m sure she can repair all the holes in those sweaters you told me about.”

  Ed glanced at the card. “Gee, thanks! I’ll give her a call!” He pocketed it, unbuckled his seatbelt, and popped up with his dog-eared Time magazines. “Sorry to leave you, but this is an offer I can’t refuse. No problem with the company, mind you, it’s my bad back and dodgy knees. Need all the extra legroom I can get. Have a nice flight! Hey, what’s your name again?”

  “Kendra.”

  “Have a nice flight, Kendra!” Ed saluted her and grabbed his shopping bag underneath the seat in front of him before following the flight attendant to first class.

  Seconds later, just as Kendra had dreaded, Dominic Tobias made his way down the narrow aisle, carrying himself like a man sure of his supreme magnetism. He’d donned black jeans and a horizontal-striped cashmere sweater. What were the chances? They wore identical outfits, but his required miles of extra fabric to accommodate broad shoulders and timber-like legs. What is he? Six-two? Six-three?

  Untucked tails of a vertically-striped cotton shirt peeked from his sweater’s bottom ridge. Check. Chukkas on his feet. Check. Groomed stubble. Check. An undercut—dark wavy hair closely cropped on the sides and back, slightly longer on top. Check. Touchable, not stiff, greasy, or goopy with hair product. Check. Retro horn-rimmed glasses. Check. All similar to what her exes had worn. Hipster style. He obviously harbored no aversion to color and conversation-starter clothing. A few days ago, he’d successfully worn salmon-tinted chinos and a ginger porkpie hat on stage. Only guys with a certain attitude—swagger or Grammy award cred—could rock those without looking utterly ridiculous.

  Kendra had avoided contact with Dominic, a.k.a. Mr. Dazzling-Smile-Double-Take-Body, at the four-day Romantic Wordsmith Conference that had ended forty-eight hours ago. Getting lost among two thousand readers, writers, editors, and fellow literary agents had been a cinch. But now, the prospect of sitting so close to him for three hours, only made her think of coyotes gnawing off their legs to escape steel-jaw traps. Still, she would mind the manners carefully instilled by Aunt Jackie. “Hello there!” she said with restaurant-hostess perkiness.

  “Hello.” Dominic adjusted his geek-chic glasses and sat, canting his knees so as not to jam against the seat in front of him.

  “So, you gave up first class, extra leg room, and the reclining option.” Kendra shifted and tried using her purse as a makeshift Berlin Wall until it became clear no amount of positioning and repositioning would keep it in place.

  “I did. You gave me no choice,” he said. “This was the only way I could make official intros happen.”

  As if Kendra didn’t already know who he was. Humph. She squashed the purse next to the canvas knitting tote underneath the seat in front of her.

  He offered his hand. “Dominic Tobias.”

  “Kendra Porter.” When they shook hands, her skin tingled, just as she’d figu
red it would. And she loved his voice. It was the first time she’d heard it up close. If voices were drinks, his would be a flavorful beer. Kendra was a woman who preferred a tall brewski to neon Sex and the City cocktails dressed up with fruit slices, glitter dust, and bendy straws. She appreciated everything from a crisp, uncomplicated bottom shelf lager to a complex old-country-style ale. His voice was a dry stout. Rich. Earthy. Not too warm. Not too cold. Just right. It made her want to cozy up to him for a taste.

  “The fit’s a little snug, but the company makes up for that,” Dominic said of his seat.

  Kendra broke the ice with people by giving compliments. Genuine comments only, lest she come off as a big phony. Anything about the sexy, oh-so-masculine timbre of his voice would sound overly flirtatious so she did a quick scan and said, “I like your scarf.”

  “This old thing?” Dominic grinned, revealing perfect white teeth as he tapped the scarf’s bold zigzag print. “Thank you.”

  “Mind if I ask where you got it?”

  “Truth? My mother’s closet.”

  “Nice,” she said. How cool. He had no qualms admitting this.

  “At last.”

  “Pardon me?”

  “At last we meet.” Dominic leveled his dark brown gaze at her. “Every time I tried to get near you at the conference you disappeared. If I didn’t know any better, I’d think you were giving me the slip, lady.”

  “The slip? Now, why would I do that?” Kendra dipped her chin and looked up at him through her thick lashes. “Those events are all about schmoozing. But I am surprised you took the time for that Dallas conference.”

  “I had several clients attending. I like to maintain a personal touch and get face time with them when the opportunity presents itself. That’s the way you stay on top, keep your ear to the ground and all that. Hey!” Dominic motioned toward their catalog-labeled “bisque and pepper” striped sweaters as if he’d just noticed they matched.

  “Yup. Twinsies!” Kendra said. “How about that?”

  “You know what they say about great minds,” he replied, stroking the stubble on his chin as if the sartorial coincidence didn’t bother him in the least. “I’d hoped we could have a drink, or at least coffee, together at the conference, but we can do that now as soon as the flight attendant starts cabin service.” He pushed his backpack underneath the seat in front of him.

  “So, you spoken for?” Dominic dropped a glance at her bare ring finger.

  “Way to beat around the bush,” Kendra quipped.

  “Hey, I believe if you want to know something, you ask.”

  Kendra considered fabricating a significant other, but her lips moved before she could think it through. “No. I’m not ‘spoken for.’ ”

  “Good. Maybe we can change that.” He winked.

  That move triggered the second red flag, after the matching sweaters thing. Once upon a time, she’d preferred men who’d dispensed with the game play and declared their romantic interest straightaway.

  But that was the past.

  Dominic Tobias had actually garnered her attention a while ago. She’d read numerous publishing industry articles about him, and she might have surfed over to his agency website and social media accounts a time or two. Or several dozen. Just checking out the competition, or so she’d told herself at the time. She’d also seen his photos in Town & Country, usually with his well-heeled family and friends, and in Us magazine, with his A-list Hollywood clients who’d written best-selling bios or memoirs.

  While he had a reputation as a shark when it came to business, he was quite the catch, according to more than a few single women in the publishing industry. Gorgeous, successful, and from what she had gathered, an all-round fascinating bachelor.

  They also had a lot in common as Gen Xers with the same anachronistic devotion to all things eighties-related, especially film, TV, and music. They even loved the same cover band–Love Nest Ninjas, a local eighties new wave group. She’d read all about his favorites on his blog.

  “I thought I saw you in the audience at my How to Power up Your Author Platform in Twelve Easy Steps presentation at the conference,” he said. “So, what did you think?”

  Okay, so she hadn’t completely avoided him during the five-day conference. To ensure they would not bump into one another, she’d actually skulked about and hidden in the back of the auditorium at his presentation. Those glasses of his obviously had telescopic lenses.

  “It was good,” she said, nodding. Watching him on stage from a safe distance, she’d found him intelligent, self-assured, witty, and charismatic. “I gleaned some tips for my clients.”

  Sharing an occupation could either ramp up their compatibility or stoke conflict. With mere inches separating them, it was almost enough to make Kendra forget her new approach to dating. Instead, she renewed her vow to stay focused.

  After all, at thirty-four, she had reached that age at which the average person was supposed to become less neurotic. Okay, so she still worked on exorcising those neurotic tendencies. Those things took time.

  But man, oh man, Dominic Tobias is a looker. Kendra tossed her long, dark hair over one shoulder and gazed at his lips.

  “Did you enjoy the rest of the conference?” Dominic asked.

  “Huh?” Oh, that deep, sexy voice. Move over, Vin Diesel.

  “The conference. Did you enjoy it?”

  “Yes.” Kendra stopped gaping at the man to look out the window as the plane taxied down the runway. Enough obsessing over that sexy voice and highly kissable-looking lips! Focus on company goals! Increasing profits!

  Her literary agency careened toward financial ruin. Dominic was the last person she wanted to know this. Nor would she whip out that promising submission she’d planned to review on this flight home. What if he caught a glimpse of a line or two on her e-reader and became intrigued enough to track down the author, whose name was clearly displayed? Long shot, but she’d heard of colleagues going to extensive lengths to land choice clients.

  Kendra did not want to go head-to-head with Dominic again.

  Instead, she reached inside her knitting tote for one of the books she’d tucked in there. Her fingers caressed the embossed, foil lettering of the trade paperback edition of Onyx & Snake Eyes she’d purchased at an airport shop. The author, Brody Goodwin, many considered an undisputed master of modern noir novels, mixed elements of mystery with deep psychological studies. Kendra was eager to read his latest work, the fourth in the series, since the hardcover edition had debuted at the top of all major best-seller lists early last year. However, there were only so many hours in a day and manuscripts by clients or potential clients took precedence over books read strictly for pleasure. When she wasn’t catching up on novels, she read everything from quirky blogs to small literary magazines to search for new talent.

  Kendra shoved Onyx & Snake Eyes deeper inside the bag. After all, Brody Goodwin had chosen to work with Dominic’s agency five years ago. No way would she give Dominic an opportunity to gloat. She removed a copy of the self-help book, The Single Girl’s Guide to Cute Coupledom, so she could gloat instead, though she’d already read it several times from rough draft to final trade cover edition.

  Kendra’s client, clinical psychologist/relationship expert Lizzy Hopewell had enjoyed her personal best sales with it and subsequent books in the series. Lizzy specialized in detailed to-do lists and road maps to nab Mr. Right. Most of the advice focused on finding relationship nirvana based on the ol’ chestnut: Opposites attract until they attack. After extensive field research, Lizzy believed in “mirror mating.” Selecting a version of oneself was the key to a successful long-lasting relationship after lust had inevitably run its course, she claimed.

  Been there. Done that. Sorry, Lizzy. When it came to affairs of the heart, there was no one size fits all. In fact, moving forward, Kendra planned to do the opposite of what Lizzy had advised.

  “Cute Coupledom” had been fun, for a short while, but obviously it wasn’t a sustainable m
odel for Kendra Porter. She’d met with Lizzy during the conference, where they’d caught up and brainstormed ways to ride the cute-couple train to another best-seller. She opened the autographed copy of Lizzy’s book she’d snapped up to deliver to her hairstylist so why not show off a little?

  “That’s doing well,” Dominic said right on cue. “Surprise hit. Congratulations.”

  “Lizzy did most of the work of course.” Kendra brimmed with false modesty.

  “Yes, but you found it the perfect home by nailing the right hook. I happen to know it made the rounds. And oh, boy, did it make the rounds.”

  Was that a dig? Kendra pursed her lips.

  “I admire your persistence. It wasn’t an easy sale,” he added.

  “But it sold. And as they always say in our business, it only takes one yes.”

  “True. And it has struck a chord with a lot of women, much the way The Rules, Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus did back in the day and Act Like a Lady, Think Like a Man and He’s Just Not That Into You did most recently. I’m impressed.”

  “Thank you.”

  The flight attendant droned through instructions regarding oxygen masks and exiting in case of an emergency.

  “So, you in the market for a better half?” he teased as she turned pages of Lizzy’s book.

  “I told Lizzy I would brainstorm ideas for an additional workbook for the series. Just flipping through again to note what’s been thoroughly covered already.” Kendra resumed reading, but Dominic persisted. And he would not give up on the middle armrest. After the flight attendant went to her seat and the plane took off, Dominic and Kendra spent the next ten minutes ever so gingerly maneuvering for territory.

  “Your favorite part of the conference?” Dominic asked.

  “Hard to say.” The sly armrest jockeying continued.

  A short time later, the flight attendant reappeared with a cart to take their drink orders. Kendra requested a package of trail mix and coffee with two sugar packets and three creams.

  Dominic also ordered trail mix and coffee with two sugar packets and three creams.