King of the Friend Zone (Power of the Matchmaker)

by Pratt, Sheralyn

  That’s what she got for falling in love with a cosmetic surgeon, she supposed. Somehow she needed to let Jon know that Hunter wasn’t the problem he thought he was.

  But how?

  Next to her, Jon took a deep breath. “I think you should stop spending time with Hunter…I think it’s time to dial that friendship back and leave it in the past.”

  Whoa. That was definitely not the answer.

  “That’s an overreaction, Jon. You just met him. You don’t know him yet.”

  “I don’t want to know him,” Jon said. “He’s rude. He was disrespectful at your parents’ dinner party and inappropriate with how he presented me to those women tonight. I don’t see a single reason to associate with him, which makes me wonder why you’re sticking close.”

  “Because…” Esme almost defended herself until she realized there was no reason to. It wasn’t Jon’s call who her friends were, any more than it was her call to dictate who he socialized with. “Look, it’s probably best if we don’t start crossing the lines of choosing each other’s friends, wouldn’t you say? I mean, I know Hunter is a male friend, but I think it’s clear that we’re not interested in each other romantically.”

  “What is clear is that when you saw something was off, you got his side of the story first and I don’t like that.”

  “Because we were all leaving and I wasn’t going to see him again,” she said.

  The flex of Jon’s jaw let her know he wasn’t really buying that explanation.

  “Flip this around and see the situation from my perspective for a minute,” he said, eyes staying on the road as he kept his voice cool and rational. “Let’s say tonight you met a childhood friend of mine who happened to be a woman. Let’s say this female friend of mine looks like a lingerie model and every time the two of you ruffle each other’s feathers, I pull her aside and talk to her first. How much would you like that? Would you want me having lunches in the park with her or inviting her over to barbecue at my pool?”

  Well, crap. He had a point. A good one.

  Esme sat in silence, considering the scenario he’d presented and had to admit that there was exactly zero chance she’d be cool with Jon being alone with a woman like that.

  “You’re being silent,” he said after a while. “It’s making me nervous.”

  Esme shook her head. “I’m not mad. I’m realizing you have a valid point. I would want the same thing you’re asking of me in that situation. Distance.”

  He nodded, but was wise enough not to say more. It had to be that doctor training of his. He knew when he’d made the sale and when to leave a client with the vision he had sketched out.

  Well, he’d sketched out a scene, all right, and Esme didn’t like what she was seeing.

  If Hunter had been a woman, like Grace, no problem. Esme would tell Jon exactly where he could file his request. But Jon did have the right to weigh in on how he felt about Esme spending time with other single men.

  Crap.

  Jon must have sensed that her thoughts were in his favor, because he continued to drive in silence, even when seconds of silence turned into minutes of thoughtful reflection on her part.

  Why couldn’t he say something stupid and give her some ammunition to deflect away from the topic at hand?

  But he didn’t do her that favor. She was going to have to get used to not being the smartest one in the room with Jon in the room. When they disagreed, she wasn’t going to be the one to win all the debates…starting with this one.

  Esme certainly had no plans to cut Hunter out of her life permanently, but it was fair to dial things back until Jon felt more secure about the fact that they really were just friends. And when the day came when Hunter was in a serious relationship himself, then she could argue that it was safe to reintegrate him into their social calendar in a way Jon could be comfortable with—not that any of this nonsense was necessary. Esme wasn’t a cheater and Hunter was way too proud to be a man on the side. Neither of them were built for affairs, but that didn’t mean that they couldn’t agree on having a little less contact until there was no room to object to spending time together as couples.

  If nothing else, it was one more reason for Hunter to buckle down and finally find someone. When he wasn’t chasing women away with his pessimism, he really was a great guy. There were his looks, sure, but he was so much more than that. He was a total man, able to build anything and everything. And a surprising benefit to his dyslexia and dysgraphia was that he was surprisingly patient with struggling children because he understood their frustrations. But above all, Hunter was a guy who showed up. If he said he’d do something, he did it. No excuses and nothing half way. His word was money in the bank.

  What woman didn’t want that quality in her man? A man who was honest…who could build or fix anything…who never got frustrated by children?

  Seriously, how was he single? It literally baffled the mind.

  “I think this is a record,” Jon said from next to her.

  She glanced his way. “A record for what?”

  “The length of time you’ve been silent when you weren’t asleep.”

  Esme narrowed her eyes at him. “Watch it there, buddy. You’ll undo some of the progress you’ve made.”

  He glanced away from the road to give her a searching look. “So you see where I’m coming from?”

  She nodded. “I do.”

  “And?”

  “And…” This was it—the moment she wouldn’t be able to take back. “I’ll talk to Hunter and explain that things need to change. No more doing lunch or hanging out when you’re not around.”

  He frowned. “And not so much when I am around either. I don’t ever foresee Hunter and me being friendly with each other.”

  “But you’ll still see him around,” Esme said, not budging on this point. “He’ll be at our wedding and other events like that. I won’t be cutting him out entirely. I just won’t be hanging out with him or talking to him without you knowing. Not anymore.”

  Jon didn’t look totally pleased, but he nodded. “Okay. Thanks for that.”

  “You’d do the same,” she said, even though she wasn’t sure. Maybe more to the point was the fact that she hoped he’d do the same, and she refused to be a hypocrite on the matter.

  “I love you.”

  “Love you, too,” Esme said, then looked out her window and watched the landscape rush by. “I’ll talk to Hunter tomorrow.”

  Man, tomorrow was going to suck.

  Chapter 19

  EZ

  Ez:

  Good seeing you

  last night.

  Hunter:

  Was it?

  Ez:

  Haha. Of course.

  Always. Sorry you

  didn’t find anyone

  worth your time.

  Hunter:

  Silver lining: I learned

  what a mastoplexy is

  and the food was

  good(ish).

  Ez:

  Can we talk sometime

  today? I’m meeting a

  client at the Ferry

  Terminal @ noon. Want

  to meet me there @ 11:30?

  Hunter:

  Ruh-roh. This doesn’t

  sound good.

  Ez:

  No. It won’t be fun. Sorry.

  Hunter:

  I love how you sugar

  coat things.

  Ez:

  You know me. The Queen

  of Sweet. So 11:30 work?

  Hunter:

  Sure. See you in a few.

  Chapter 20

  Hunter stared at Esme like aliens had snatched body her during the night and replaced her with a doppelganger. “Seriously? You’re going to hand him this win without a fight?”

  “We need to pick our battles here, Hunter. At least until Jon gets used to you.”

  He leaned forward, clearly annoyed. “And what battle are we winning by not seeing or contacting each other for the foresee
able weeks…or months, or whatever?”

  “We’re letting Jon see that we have separate lives and he can trust us together.”

  He laughed. “Why? Because the two times he’s seen us together we were so clinging and into each other?”

  Hunter had a point. They’d barely even spoken.

  “Are you banned from texting Luke, too?”

  “No,” Esme admitted. “Just you.”

  He leaned back in his seat and shook his head. “This is ridiculous. Jon’s being ridiculous and you’re letting him.”

  “He’s being territorial, and I’m trying to show him that he doesn’t need to be.”

  “By rolling on your back and granting him his territory? Nice tactic, Ez. That work for you in the business world?”

  Okay, now he was pushing buttons and he knew it. “This isn’t business, Hunter. You deal with hearts differently than you deal with money.”

  “Huh,” he drawled. “Maybe that’s what I’ve been getting wrong this whole time.”

  She rolled her eyes.

  He leaned forward over the table and looked her in the eyes. “What about my heart, Ez? Or in this situation am I supposed to pretend I don’t have one?”

  That took her aback. “I…you know where we stand, Hunter. Our friendship isn’t in question.”

  “But your engagement is?”

  “No.” Was it?

  He arched a brow at her.

  “Maybe?” she offered. “I don’t know. This is new ground for me, too. All I know is that Jon is irrational when it comes to you and this is the solution that calms him down.”

  Hunter nodded, his eyes hard. “So no immersion therapy for Jon? He boohoos and gets what he wants, just like that? Sounds like the beginning of a beautiful, mature relationship, Ez.”

  She groaned. “You’re not making this easy, Hunter.”

  “My best friend is cutting me out. Am I supposed to make that easy?”

  “I’m not cutting you out.”

  “Really? How would you define: no calls, no texts, and no contact for the foreseeable future?”

  “A sucky compromise?”

  Hunter shook his head. “Show me the compromise.”

  Esme leaned back in her seat at the small table, almost running her hands through her hair in frustration until she remembered that she’d done it up nice for the client she was about to meet. She rubbed them down her face instead. “Hunter, I need you to be the bigger man here.”

  “I am the bigger man. That’s just science.”

  Gah. He could be so frustrating sometimes. “I mean figuratively.”

  “Of course you do,” he said, then looked away. For several moments there was only silence between them, and Esme regretted scheduling to meet him at 11:30 instead of 11:00. They really needed an hour to hash through this. At least. Then she needed at least that long to recover.

  10:00. She should have said 10:00, but all she could do now was make the best with what she had.

  “Use your time away to find a nice woman to date,” she said softly. “You won’t scare Jon as much if you’re in a committed relationship.”

  “Anything I can do to make Jon’s life easier.”

  “C’mon,” she said, reaching across the table to grip his hand. The warm heat of his hand felt good under her palm. Reassuring. Like all the times he somehow convinced her she’d be safe on a zip line or climbing up a mountain so long as they were connected. Sure, that was different than taking enforced time apart, but if she and Hunter could jump out of a plane together without Esme hyperventilating and passing out, they could do anything. “We can do this.”

  He eyed their entwined hands for a moment before pulling away. “The whippet would probably add ‘no touching’ to his list if he saw us now.”

  “Probably,” Esme conceded, pulling her hand back. The distance felt wrong, but she couldn’t admit that. Not now.

  For several minutes—or at least what felt like it—Hunter sat in silence, processing everything she’d said. And she let him. He had a right to be frustrated. She wasn’t going to deny him that, but she couldn’t really see an alternative. Jon needed to know he was the number one man in her life, just like she needed to be number one in his.

  “For the record,” Hunter said at last. “I would never do this to you. If a woman I was dating gave me this ultimatum, she’d get my answer in the form of taillights leaving her front door.”

  Esme bit her lip at the admission, knowing it was true.

  “You’re family,” he said softly. “Family is non-negotiable.”

  Man, sometimes Hunter knew right where to aim when taking a shot. “But you’re not family. Not—”

  “Technically,” he finished for her. “I know. Yada yada.”

  Esme glanced at the clock on her phone. It was 11:52 and there was every chance Deborah would be a few minutes early. She had to finish things up…even though they were miles from being on the same page.

  “I know this is all less than ideal,” she said. “But being engaged is a little different than dating. If the situations were reversed, I’d want Jon to do the same for me.”

  His face was unreadable as he stared at her. “So we’re done?”

  “For a while. Until Jon stops freaking out, okay?”

  Hunter’s jaw clenched and his nostrils flared, but he said nothing.

  “The good news is that this will get you out of doing things at all the engagement parties and the wedding. I think we’ll still have you do the toast at the engagement party my mom is throwing next week where all our friends and family officially meet Jon, but after that you can lay low. That’s a win, right?”

  Not according to the look on his face, it wasn’t. But Esme chose to ignore that.

  “Until then, I’ll ask your mom to pass on any relevant messages from me. She won’t mind.”

  Hunter’s response was to look at the table and say nothing.

  Why wouldn’t he say something?

  “Hunter?”

  “Sure,” he snapped, voice devoid of inflection. “Sounds like a plan.”

  She reached for his hand again, then stopped herself. No touching. “Don’t be mad.”

  He laughed at that. “Aren’t you the one who likes to say that you can choose the action but not the consequence? Well, you chose to make Jon happy by giving him everything he wants for the asking, Ez. I hope that works out well for you, but you don’t get to choose how I respond to your choice.”

  As he stood, he threw a twenty on the table to pay for their drinks, then headed toward the exit. Instinct had Esme chasing after him.

  “Hunter,” she hissed, trying not to make a scene. “Don’t leave like this. It doesn’t have to be like this.”

  “You’re right,” he agreed, still walking. “It could get much, much worse, and we wouldn’t want that client you’re waiting for to witness anything like that, would we?”

  He had a point, and part of her was grateful that he was weighing that into his reaction. But she still wasn’t ready to see him leave. Not like this.

  Unfortunately, two steps later, she spotted Deborah walking toward the restaurant they’d agreed to meet at. The other woman spotted Esme in the same moment and flashed her a smile.

  “Esme Taylor?”

  On reflex, Esme went into professional mode. “Deborah Manning.”

  The woman held out her hand. “Please, call me Deb.”

  “Deb it is,” Esme said, taking her hand. “Pleasure to meet you.”

  Hunter looked between them, then focused on Deb. “Aren’t you going to introduce me, Esme?” he asked with a hint of flirt in his voice.

  “Of course,” Esme said, raising an eyebrow at his tone. He’d certainly switched gears fast. “Deb, this is my good friend, Hunter. He is a local fireman. Hunter, this is Deb. She’s a PR Manager for a firm out of Chicago.”

  “It’s a pleasure,” Hunter said, taking the woman’s hand.

  Esme took the moment to look at the other woman—really l
ook at her. She was a few years older than Hunter, maybe early thirties, but she definitely wasn’t hard on the eyes. She had some mixed ethnicity in her, giving her an exotic look and hair with so much shine it almost qualified as a glare. She was dressed professionally while also showcasing long, toned legs, and the smile she sent Hunter was definitely a few shades warmer than the one Esme had received.

  Deb was single and definitely attracted to Hunter.

  Well, good. That was a good thing. If only she didn’t live in Chicago.

  “The pleasure’s mine,” Deb said to him. “Will you be joining us today?”

  “I’m afraid not,” Hunter said, looking honestly dismayed. “But perhaps I could join up with you later, after you’re done with work for the day?”

  Deb’s lips parted in surprise at the invitation. She glanced at Esme to get a read on her reaction before responding. “The three of us?”

  “No,” Hunter said. “Esme has plans, but say the word and I’ll open my evening right up for you.”

  Here it was: the classic Hunter charm that seemed to work on all things female. As soon as he turned it on, he could pretty much say any stupid thing he wanted and leave with a valid phone number in his pocket.

  If the light in Deb’s eyes was any indication, Hunter was definitely about to get hers.

  “Well,” the woman stammered. “I’m not sure how long Esme and I will be working…”

  That was Esme’s cue. “We should be done by 5:00.”

  Hunter beamed. “How about 7:00 then? That will give you time to decompress a bit before I pick you up. I’ll make reservations for us at 7:30.”

  Deb’s mouth opened and shut as if she wanted to play hard to get but realized just as quickly that it was a waste of breath. She was only in town two days. Putting Hunter off would mean no date at all. “Are you always this forward?” she asked.