She pointed to the screen. "That woman clearly loves you. It's written all over her face. You obviously have a lot in common." She arched an eyebrow. "Things have come to a head, Lazer. Make a decision. Act quickly. Shut down the rumors. Do something." She took a deep breath. "Do the right thing."
Ashley
It was late. Lazer was sleeping when I finally got to see him. I met his mom in the hall outside his room as she was leaving. She introduced herself briefly, thanked me for spelling her, and said she was going home to get some rest.
"Don't expect much out of him right now." Her tone was light and amused. As if she had some inside information. "He's had a long day. Children! No matter how old they get, they find a way to gray your hair and give you a scare." She looked me over. "Take care of yourself. You've had a long day, too." Her gaze fell on the blue teddy bear I held. She raised an eyebrow.
"The gift shop didn't have much of a selection." I didn't know why I felt embarrassed.
She gave my arm a reassuring squeeze and headed out.
I took a seat next to Lazer's bed, cuddling the teddy bear in my lap and watching him sleep. I realized that I hadn't seen him sleep before. I'd never stayed over.
His lashes were long and dark against skin that was paler than usual. There were dark rings beneath his eyes and a bandage on his right cheek. He was cleaned up. Overall, he looked better than he had when we found him.
Machines beeped and monitored him. His heart rate was a steady pattern. He was in a regular room, not ICU. He was going to be fine. Thank goodness.
He was out deeply, probably knocked by the twin side effects of medicine and shock.
I took his hand and stroked the back of it with my thumb. Still, no movement.
Even battered, beaten up, and needing a shave, he was a beautiful man. When I thought about how close he'd come…
I hadn't realized just how precariously balanced his car had been. In retrospect, it was a good thing he'd been pinned in and unable to move. Any little movement could have uprooted the tree the car rested against and sent him plunging down the hill into the lake. And with him pinned in like that, there would have been no way for him to escape.
They'd also told us that the crash could have easily been a fatality if he'd veered slightly to either the left or the right as the car left the road. There were several large trees that wouldn't have yielded and cushioned the fall the way the tree he'd hit had. Another path might have been a straight shot into the water.
The thought of what might have happened made me shiver. On impulse, I took Lazer's hand and began singing to him, the way I had to Ruck. Ruck and I had had a favorite song. I knew his tastes in music. We laughed over our differences. Kidded each other about their lack of musical taste and sophistication. I sang with Ruck in the shower. I sang to him when he was near and when he was far away on a mission.
I had no real idea what to sing to Lazer. I started by humming. The humming turned into a popular song, all on its own. In my mind, it was Lazer's song. Though, at first, I had no idea why. It just seemed like him. Like us.
It finally hit me—this was the song that had been playing in the bar the night we met.
I grew bolder. Leaned closer over him, still holding his hand, watching him sleep. Singing softly.
His eyes flew open. He pulled me to him with surprising strength. "I sure the hell hope you're not singing me out." His Adam's apple bobbed. His gaze was intense. "I'm not going anywhere."
"Is that right?" I said. "That's good to hear." My voice broke.
We were nearly nose to nose.
"Don't stop singing. I like it." He paused. "I'm flattered. That's the song that was playing when I first saw you in the bar, you beautiful little unicorn." He tried to grin, and winced.
"You remember?" I was pleasantly surprised and felt almost guilty. I had only remembered subconsciously.
His voice grew husky with emotion. "I remember everything about you. I can't get you out of my mind. You've invaded my very being."
"I see." I stared into his eyes and saw only genuine emotion.
He was on the edge of saying he loved me. At least, I hoped he was. But there was no way I was going to coax him into it. Whatever he felt, whatever he meant to say, had to come from his heart, not my hopes.
He still held me close, with a surprisingly strong grip for a man who'd been in an accident.
"Are you saying I'm like a bad penny?" I whispered.
"I'm saying I love you."
My heart stopped.
"I've loved you for a long time." He sighed. "That's what the trip to New York was about. That's why I was so disappointed. I wanted to make a big private proclamation about it. A romantic gesture. Now it's turned into more of a semi-romantic whimper."
I inched my lips closer to his. "A whimper's good. I like whimpers."
With an IV in one hand, he was one-handed. He released my hand, slid his hand behind my head, and pulled me into a gentle, seductive kiss.
When we finally pulled apart, I leaned my forehead against his. "I love you, too."
"I'm done playing games," he said softly. "I love you. I only want you. I'm no longer your client."
"You're firing me?" I tried to sound shocked, but it was nearly impossible as happy as I was. "You still owe me my fee, you know. It's in the contract. I did, after all, find you a match you're happy with."
"And want to be exclusive with."
"Why, Lazer Grayson, are you asking me to go steady?"
"Yeah. I guess I am." He stroked my hair.
"Then I accept." I rubbed my nose against his. "Danika is going to be publicly heartbroken."
"I'm sure she'll get over it." He sounded tired, but still sexy. "You look tired."
"I do?"
"It's three hours later in New York."
"Cruel of you to remind me."
He patted the bed next to him. "Kick off your shoes and climb up here next to me."
I pulled back and stared at him. "Are you inviting me to bed?"
"Yeah. Sure. You're a hard woman," he said. "The crazy, dangerous things I had to do to get you back in bed." He covered my hand with his. "I'm serious. You look tired. Climb in. I want to hold you for a while. I was nearly killed and died of thirst today. You owe me at least a cuddle."
"Died of thirst?" I said.
"All right, thirst for love?" he said. "Is that better?"
"You're too much." I slipped my shoes off.
"Or not enough, depending on how you look at it." He scooted over to make room for me.
"Seriously, Lazer. You could have died. The firemen told me how easily your accident could have been fatal. In excruciating detail. If you had hit the next tree over, for example—"
He put a finger to my lips. "But I didn't. Life's too short to dwell on what-ifs."
I slid onto the bed next to him, curled my legs beneath me, wrapped my arms around him, and rested my head on his chest. He held his breath.
"I'm hurting you!" I tried to pull back.
He pressed my head against his chest. "A few bruised ribs are hurting me. You're making me a happy man."
As if to highlight the point, the heart monitor began to beep faster.
We glanced at it together.
He shook his head. "Damn hospital equipment. It's giving me away."
"I hope it doesn't bring the nurse in."
He stroked my hair. "If it does, I'll send her away."
"What happens when she comes in to do a regular check of your vitals?" I said, relaxing against him.
"She'll have to work around you."
His heartbeat beneath my ear was steady and reassuring.
I yawned. "We have a big PR problem to deal with. If anyone catches us like this—"
"We'll deal with that tomorrow."
Chapter 8
Ashley
Yes, I did make it home. Eventually. I ran home in the early morning to shower and change. I headed to the hospital in time to watch the Rose Parade with Lazer.
I took my secret elevator down to the lobby, realizing that Lazer would soon be using it to avoid the prying eyes of the other woman. As he'd intended all along.
I made a stop on the way for donuts and coffee. Hospital food wasn't my favorite. The jury was still out on whether Lazer would be released or not.
We had a busy day ahead of us. We still had fires to put out. Lots of them. Most of the New York women would be arriving back from the holidays today.
I was still wondering who was behind the release of that video footage and the accusations of unethical matchmaking behavior. We needed to make a statement before we no longer had a business. We owed it to Lottie, Peter, and the other men to save Pair Us. We owed it to ourselves. And I needed my matchmaker reputation to remain intact if I was going to continue in the business.
Speaking of the men, they had been mysterious about what they were up to this morning, saying they'd see me later at the hospital and help me get Lazer home.
A man I didn't recognize was leaving Lazer's hospital room when I arrived. He was solidly built and had a no-nonsense air about him. I was good at reading people and body language. It went with the matching job. He had the look of a former cop.
"A PI," Lazer said before I could ask. "I'll find out who's behind the assassination attempt on our character and Pair Us if it's the last thing I do." He grinned to show he was half teasing.
"I hope it's not the last thing you do. There are more fun ways to go out." With everything else going on, I'd momentarily forgotten about looking for the culprit.
He laughed and waggled his eyebrows lecherously. "Yeah. You're right about that. I know the way I really want to go."
"You're terrible." I set the coffee and donuts on the tray table, and bent over and gave Lazer a lingering kiss.
"I'd like to be worse." There was that lecherous look again. "But first I have to get better."
I ignored his innuendo. "Any suspects?"
"Too many." He shook his head. "I should warn you—I have many business enemies. People who'd like to take me down. A few jealous exes who'd still like to get their hands on some of my money. Or at least take it from me. I briefed him on all of them. Are you sure you still want to be exclusive with me?"
"Revenge. Intrigue. Jealousy. Sounds like an adventure." I pulled up a chair next to him. "I'm definitely in now. Though, given the mishap with your security team yesterday, we may want to reinvestigate and revamp your security procedures."
"Those guys won't screw up again." He opened the donut box to get a peek. "Believe me." He grinned evilly. "Which one's mine?"
"Depends on your mood this morning—economic crunch, maybe? Given the current state of Pair Us affairs and your affinity for nuts."
He shook his head. "Not my mood. Something cheerier."
"Toffee with your coffee? It has a nice rhyme, and complements the coffee I brought you nicely."
"Getting close," he said, looking in the box. He pointed to one. "That one looks interesting. And delicious. What is it?"
I looked at it, shook my head, and cracked up. "All right. You caught me. I know you too well. We're on the same wavelength. That's the one I got for you. Graham crackers, chocolate, marshmallow, chocolate sandwich cookie bits, and nuts. It's the sm'utty-oh."
He grabbed it and a napkin. "Nice name. I hope it lives up to expectations."
I handed him his cup of coffee.
He grinned at me. "You brought me breakfast the morning we struck the deal to form Pair Us. Are you going to propose another deal while I'm weak and enraptured with my sm'utty-oh?"
"This time I have no ulterior motives. Other than I'm selfishly splurging before my New Year’s resolutions kick in for real. What did the doctor say?" I said. "Are you out of here soon? The guys want me to text when you leave. In case I need help getting you home." I paused. "I get the feeling they're up to something."
"I wouldn't doubt it," he said calmly. "That would be in character. Let's hope it's relatively benign. They have a warped sense of humor at times."
He paused. "The doctor won't be in until this afternoon. He's in surgery all morning. Plenty of accidents last night. Apparently, the New Year's parties didn't end on New Year’s Eve."
Lazer glanced at the clock. "Parade time!" He flicked the TV on and patted the bed next to him.
I climbed up and laced my fingers through his, coffee in the other hand. We settled in to watch the parade. Lazer was uncharacteristically quiet while I bubbled over with enthusiasm for all of the beautiful floats, the skill that it took to design and assemble them. All the absolutely stunning flowers on them.
"What's the matter?" I set my empty coffee cup down when the parade was almost over.
He looked sheepish. "Not to rub it in, but we were supposed to be live at the parade. That was the plan, anyway."
My jaw dropped. "What?"
He nodded. "Flying you to the parade was part of my evil plot to get you back into my bed again. I…"
He wasn't usually at a loss for words. "I regretted my refusal of your offer to watch the Thanksgiving Day Parade live with you. I wanted to make it up to you as part of my goal to have you all to myself for the entire long weekend."
"Oh." I was deeply touched. "The best laid plans, huh?" I put my arms around him.
I was interrupted from proceeding with any more amorous intentions by the sound of Sheri Carmichael's show on TV following the parade. Her promo caught my attention. And Lazer's. And stopped my heart mid-beat.
"I didn't know Sheri's show was on today." Lazer put his arm around me.
"I didn't, either." I put my head on his shoulder. "This is a weird New Year’s/parade season. I guess it's regularly scheduled programming?"
"Yeah." Lazer kissed my hair. "Some of the games were on yesterday. The rest are on later this afternoon and evening."
I smiled at his strong, handsome profile while he studied the TV screen.
"Wait!" He frowned. "Isn't that—"
Sheri smiled directly into the camera.
"Ladies and gentlemen—We're starting the New Year off in style here at the Mercer Street Micro Distillery in downtown Seattle, not far from our studio. The owners and proprietors, Mark and Cary, who are great friends of the show—"
The cameras panned to them behind the bar. Mark and Cary waved, and each lifted a glass clearly monogrammed with the bar's logo. Why not capitalize as much as they could on the free advertisement?
"—want you all to know they're open for lunch today. Come watch the games on their big-screen TVs and enjoy a locally distilled beverage while you're here. And some delicious Northwest cuisine and appetizers."
Lazer froze beside me. "Wait. Look. In the crowd." He pointed. "Is that Austin and Jeremy?"
I leaned forward and squinted. "And Cam and Dylan?"
For one of the first times since I'd known him, Lazer looked worried. "This can't be good. Sheri's producer has been trying to get a hold of me since early this morning. She wanted a statement."
"What did you do?" I said.
"Ignored her."
The camera swung back to Sheri.
"Mark and Cary are friendly guys who love their regulars. And new customers, too, of course. One of their regulars is billionaire Lazer Grayson. Lazer's been in the news this weekend for being spectacularly rescued by his friends yesterday. More on that later in the show."
"The guys are going to eat that up," Lazer said.
Maybe it was my imagination, but I thought Sheri looked like a kid on Christmas as she continued. "Lazer's at the center of our story today and part of the transformation that's been happening all over Seattle.
"Take a look around here today." She gestured around the distillery. "What do you see?"
The camera scanned the room.
"Damn!" Lazer looked immensely pleased with himself. "Look at that. At least half the people are female."
Sheri nodded as if she was agreeing with Lazer. "Yes, this sports distillery is half full of women. We're at parity here today,
thanks to these four men"—she gestured to the guys—"and the innovative dating app they developed. And entrepreneur and playboy Lazer Grayson.
"It's a story that was repeated all over the city on New Year’s Eve. Seattle, formerly a place with too many men and too few women, finally has enough of each to go around. Men in this city are singing Lazer's praises. Just check out our Twitter feed. You'll see what I mean.
"The women have a slightly different opinion than the men on what has happened to the dynamics of Seattle's dating scene. They say they have more competition. But when they land their man, he quickly commits."
"Look at the women!" I shook my head in disbelief. "They're fixing up! When they have to compete, they make an effort."
"Nice." Lazer smiled.
I hugged him. "What a social experiment! We did it!"
"We'll talk to men and women here later in the show and get their take on the changes, both positive and negative. But first, every story has a beginning, middle, and an end. Let's start at the appropriate place, the beginning. Which happened here, in this very bar. And led to a new venture, social transformation, an influx of women pouring into the city from all across the country and Canada, a scandal, and a story of heroism, friendship, a dramatic rescue. And, finally, a great love story.
"It all began here at The Mercer Street Micro Distillery last August, when Manhattan matchmaker Ashley Harte walked into this distillery looking to see whether the rumors were true—was Seattle short on marriageable, matchable women? Was it the opposite of her city, where she was having trouble finding enough men for her female clients? And was there a way to bring the two groups together?
"Dressed in Manhattan chic, she caused quite a stir that day in this casual gathering place, and caught Lazer Grayson's eye."
Lazer turned to me. "She thinks she's 20/20."
"Or Dateline." I was riveted. "I should have brought popcorn, not donuts."
"We can order out."
I laughed. He was serious. There was nothing Lazer's money couldn't buy, including having popcorn delivered.
"Maybe later," I said.
We returned our attention to the TV and sat transfixed as Sheri spun our story.
Match Point: A Jet City Billionaire Romance (The Billionaire Matchmaker Series Book 5) Page 7