by Amanda Tru
At his obvious hesitation, she leaned back in her chair, folded her arms across her front, and looked at him expectantly.
Camden finally sighed. “You live with your boyfriend, don’t you? You’ve been with him for two years and have no desire to get married. That must be because you’re already pretending to be married.”
He said that as if it was a big deal. What was he—some old-fashioned, overly-religious fanatic? Didn’t he realize that most couples nowadays lived together? It was the smart thing to do. Why would anyone want to make a marriage commitment before knowing if you could actually live with your partner?
However, instead of presenting him with numerous, solid arguments, Bailey opted for the bottom line. “I don’t see how that is any of your business.”
More bothersome than his obvious disapproval was the fact that he’d used the same words when he said she was pretending at love. He didn’t know her and had no business acting as judge and jury over her life, and yet the word “pretending” had replayed through her mind frequently since he’d uttered it days ago. After his comment now, that incessant replay seemed louder in volume.
“This site promotes itself as being founded on Christian values with marriage as the goal,” Camden said firmly, apparently completely unaware of the anger slowly coming to a hot simmer in Bailey. “You aren’t required to be a Christian to join, but we do respect and value clients’ religious preferences. You can’t match someone who says they are a strong Christian with someone who claims no religious affiliation. Even if that is not your personal value, it is the site’s value. You just can’t do it.”
“Give me a break!” Bailey said, throwing her arms up as she stood from her desk chair. “Did you even look at the rest of Craig’s profile? Yes, Molly is a Christian and wants someone who shares her faith, but Craig runs a nonprofit and has received countless awards for community service. He is a kindhearted, great guy. They are a perfect match.” Bailey pointed to her computer screen as if offering proof of her argument.
Camden shook his head. “None of that matters if they don’t share the same core values—meaning faith. We must follow through with what Molly listed as most important. We would be just like all the other sites if we don’t prioritize making matches that value what our clients value.”
“Fine,” Bailey said briskly, realizing she didn’t have time to win this argument. “If clients rate it as highly important, I’ll try to match people of similar faith.”
Long lists of clients awaited her matchmaking skills, and if agreeing to his terms about religious preference allowed her to return to work, then it was worth it. From Camden’s tone, she knew he wouldn’t easily change his mind about this religion rule. However, that didn’t mean she wouldn’t be able to bend it on occasion when Camden’s eagle eye wasn’t looking.
However, she couldn’t resist adding, “I just think you’re being very narrow-minded about it. Not everyone’s Christianity looks like yours.”
Camden shut his eyes briefly, and Bailey couldn’t tell if he was relieved she had acquiesced to his demands or offended by her words.
“I’m going to let that one slide for now,” he said finally. “We literally have thousands of matches that we need to make in the next seventy-two hours. We don’t have time for a theological debate.”
“Elise is working as well,” Bailey pointed out. “Last I checked, she’d gotten through fifty.”
“That’s a drop in the bucket when we’re getting far more clients than fifty every hour,” Camden grumbled. “I can’t believe I agreed to let you do personal matches. So many clients are choosing that option. It’ll be so much easier if you just review the results of the survey and approve the top match the algorithm recommends.”
“I’m sure I’ll do that for some of them,” Bailey acknowledged, really trying to be agreeable. “But I’ll also look at other clients in the area to check if there is a better one.” She was the one trying to get along here, and all he could do was complain. Their site was pretty much going viral with the free promotion. Thousands of clients had already joined, and it hadn’t been live for twenty-four hours yet. Instead of feeling excited and energized by their success, Camden looked for ways to criticize.
Seeming to prove her point, Camden groaned dramatically. “Fine, just please try to work quickly. Case in point, what are your plans for Molly?” he asked, referring back to the match that had started their argument. “As we already discussed, nonprofit guy is not an option because he isn’t a Christian. Can you please just approve the top match generated by the algorithm?”
Bailey bit her lip, not wanting to continue the argument but desperate to make Camden understand the art behind matchmaking. “It’s just so boring,” she explained, looking at the profiles of both clients side by side. “The algorithm listed Molly’s top match as Jason, but they are so very similar—too similar. If you won’t let me match her with Craig, what about this guy right here? It looks like he’s an hour away from where she lives. Did she give proximity preferences?”
“Yes, she selected within fifty miles.”
“Yay! Marcus McDaniel is forty-nine miles away. Let’s go with him. He’s listed as a Christian, and his hobbies are more adventurous than hers. I think they’ll be a good match.”
“Fine,” Camden agreed, though he obviously didn’t want to. “His answers don’t list his faith as important as she lists hers, but we’ll go with it and mark it off the list. If Molly and Marcus don’t work out, hopefully, she’ll come back, and we can pair her with Jason, her top match from the algorithm.”
When Bailey didn’t respond or make a move to approve the new matches, Camden offered a long-suffering sigh and spoke again. “Bailey, you can’t take this much time with every match.”
“If you leave me alone and don’t argue over every single one, things will go much more quickly.”
“Fine,” Camden said, once again, his tone in clear opposition to the curt “fine” he flung her way.
I really don’t think he understands what the word “fine” means! Bailey thought sourly.
Turning his back on her, Camden focused on his computer. “I’ll just continue sorting through the clients and sending you the ones who have potential matches. I’ve already set things up so that if a client does not have a qualified match in the area that is designated, they are sent an email after twenty-four hours. The email gives them options of continuing to wait or widening their search parameters. Since we are just getting started, we have a log of unmatchable profiles. Hopefully, we’ll get many more clients who sign up in the next few days, and the problem will fix itself.”
Not bothering to respond, Bailey focused on the profile in front of her, relieved that Camden had set up her own computer and workstation. They sat with their backs to each other on opposite sides of the office, which contributed to a much happier situation where they could work separately and not interact. Now, they just argued whenever forced to consult each other, as opposed to the nonstop arguing before.
Unfortunately, Camden had arranged so he could follow Bailey’s progress live while doing his own tasks, ensuring that he had eyes in the back of his head. Even with him turned the other direction, Bailey never lost the feeling that his eyes always watched her, probably because they did.
His two huge monitors acted like all-seeing eyes. Every once in a while, he’d instant message her rather than speak across the few feet of space, and she actually preferred this. An instant message was easier to ignore, especially since they usually consisted of telling her what to do. Even now, though she worked steadily to approve matches, she also saw her to-do list increasing in a long trail behind where she currently worked as both the website and Camden added profiles and notes that required her attention.
“Here’s one that you can approve really quick,” Camden said while an instant message with a link to a profile popped up on her screen. “There is only one match within the twenty-five-mile radius he requested. Fortunately, the algorithm
indicates they’d be a strong match. However, while she chose the algorithm match, he selected personal matchmaker. That means you just need to click your approval of the match on his profile, and they will be matched to each other. Then you’ll be done and can move to the next on the list.”
“I’ll take a look,” Bailey said distractedly. She could read the impatience in his voice. She was still working too slowly for his liking. Now he was trying to help speed things up, hoping she wouldn’t notice what he was doing. She wished he would just back off. She didn’t care if she worked all night. Getting these matches right was too important. Their success of the website depended on it!
Isn’t it nice the way that he thinks I should drop what I’m working on to cater to what he wants me to do? As if I’m not busy at all!
Finishing the match in front of her, Bailey then opened the profile Camden had messaged. She looked over the results of Camden’s algorithm and then went back to review specifics on the two profiles Camden intended to match and how each of the clients answered the survey questions.
“Having trouble?” Camden asked several minutes later, not quite managing to keep the annoyance out of his voice.
“I’m just not sure,” Bailey hedged, feeling puzzled. “Something isn’t right about this profile. Did you look at it?”
Camden stood from his desk and came to look over Bailey’s shoulder and see what she was referring to. “I looked at it briefly. Do you think it’s a fraudulent account?”
“No, it’s not that. It’s her.” Bailey pointed to the picture of a pretty blonde-haired, blue-eyed woman on the screen. “Eleanor is twenty-seven and has a teaching degree. She taught for three years in Minneapolis and is now living in what appears to be the middle of nowhere and working at a company called Evergreen Services. That certainly doesn’t sound like a school.”
“It’s not quite the middle of nowhere, Bailey,” Camden pointed out, reaching over to bring the map window up on her screen. “Milaca is only about an hour from the Twin Cities. People change jobs all the time. Besides, maybe Evergreen Services provides educational services, and she’s still a teacher. There is nothing strange about either one of those things.”
Bailey gently swatted his hand away from her computer. He was far too close. “Maybe it’s more of a feeling. There’s more to Eleanor than the facts on this profile.”
Bailey felt rather than saw Camden’s eye roll. Camden liked facts and figures. Bailey doubted he’d ever had a gut instinct in his life.
“None of that changes the fact that there is only one candidate that fits David Reid’s search radius,” he insisted.
“That’s another thing. Why is his search radius so small? If he bumped it to fifty miles, we could possibly consider other candidates in the Twin Cities. Eleanor’s search radius is fifty miles. If his was the same, we could match them with different people.”
Camden shrugged, “He obviously wants a local girl, and they are a strong match for each other. Why on earth would we match them with different people?”
He didn’t get it, and she had no hope of explaining it to him. “Maybe I should email David and ask if it would be okay to bump his search radius up a bit. Then we’d have more candidates to work with.”
“No, Bailey,” Camden immediately objected. “Let it go. Eleanor Nielson is a strong match right in his town. The situation couldn’t be more ideal. You don’t need to make everything so complicated. Just click the little approve button and be done with it. See, the approve button is right here. Isn’t it cute? I know you want to push it.”
Bailey worried the hem of her black cardigan between her fingers, looking carefully at David Reid’s profile. “Fine. I’ll approve it. He’s an engineer, and he’s even a Christian. No wonder you approve. Eleanor lists herself as a Protestant Christian, and he says he’s a conservative Christian and a seminary student. Is that close enough?”
“I certainly hope so,” Camden said, a sliver of doubt creeping into his voice for the first time. “It isn’t like we have other options to choose from with his search parameters.”
“Unless we want to wait for more clients in the area or email him to widen his net,” Bailey pointed out. “I’ll go ahead and click your cute, little approve button. If it doesn’t go well, though, I will email him and find each another match in the Twin Cities. She looks like she’d be better suited for the city anyway. I’m not quite sure she’s the small-town girl he’s looking for.”
“Now who’s being judgmental?” Camden asked. “Don’t worry, I’ll pray about it. David will find exactly who God intends him to find.”
“Wait, you’ll pray about it?” Bailey asked, looking at him sharply. “Is that really necessary?”
“Sure, why not? I always pray that God will use our site to help others to find who He designed for them to be with.” Camden turned to his side of the room as if the matter were settled.
“Don’t you think God has better things to do than concern Himself with a matchmaking website?” Bailey couldn’t resist flinging back to him.
Camden paused and turned back around to answer seriously. “No, I don’t. I believe God is very much interested in our daily lives and can even use things like a matchmaking website for His glory. He cares about Eleanor Nielson and David Reid. If His will is to bring them together, then I hope He uses us to do so.”
Camden strode back to his computer, and Bailey wearily propped her head on her hand. With one little click of her mouse, she finally pushed the button to approve the match, but she didn’t necessarily feel happy about it.
Unfortunately, she didn’t know if her discomfort had more to do with the match or with Camden. Or maybe it had everything to do with the realization made uncomfortably clear in the past few minutes.
With Camden’s “help,” there was nothing easy about matchmaking.
It was going to be a very long night.
“Come on, Bailey. We’ve been working nonstop for the last seventy-two hours. Let’s get out of here and take a break.” Camden turned out the overhead light to the office while Bailey still sat glued to her computer screen.
This was a switch. Usually, Camden was the one who didn’t know how to find a stopping place.
“Just let me finish this match,” Bailey protested.
“It’ll be here when we get back,” Camden urged. “So will the hundreds of others. With the free promotion over, new sign-ups should slow down a bit, and we can finish getting caught up. I just checked in with Elise, and she’s knocking out matches like a machine. We have time to take a break.”
Despite his words, Bailey continued working in the dark while Camden leaned against the door jam.
“All done,” Bailey sighed, finally shutting down her computer and standing to follow Camden.
Any impatient remark Camden could have launched died before it reached his lips. One glimpse of Bailey’s face, and Camden felt bad for being impatient in the first place. Bailey was exhausted. They had both worked nonstop these last few days. However, Camden suspected that even after he finally called it quits for the night and went home, Bailey stayed up all hours working.
Their arguing finally settled down some, and Camden had backed off, letting Bailey handle the matchmaker matches on her own terms. She worked steadily, but at a much slower pace than Camden preferred. To her credit, she gave every single match she looked at her full attention. She gave her best every time, unwilling to ever simply mark one off the list for the sake of convenience. Though it drove him crazy from the business perspective, he admired the work ethic. In the end, Bailey did what she’d set out to do. She and Elise had played personal matchmaker to thousands of clients who signed up during the first few days of the site’s debut. Bailey was as dedicated as she was stubborn. Strangely, those were the same qualities he admired and that drove him crazy on a daily basis.
“How about Mexican food?” Camden asked cheerfully, leading the way to his car parked out front of his parents’ house.
“Okay
,” Bailey replied dully.
Camden looked at her sharply, concerned with her lackluster response.
Now he recognized his parents’ absence tonight as a very good thing. They had gone to a theater production in Brighton Falls, which meant Lydia hadn’t been around to prepare an unrequested evening meal, and Camden was glad. As much as he appreciated his mom’s pampering, a meal in the house would not have worked well at all this evening. Bailey very much needed to get out of the house.
Camden couldn’t get more than one-word answers out of Bailey the entire way to the restaurant. Fortunately, there was no wait, and their waitress showed them to a booth in a corner.
“Thank you, Marianna,” Camden said after the young woman deposited baskets of chips and salsa at their table and took their drink order.
Marianna brightened at the use of her name, sending Camden a warm smile.
After a few minutes of munching on the chips, Bailey began to recover a little more color in her face. Marianna returned with their sodas, once again smiling at Camden and declaring she’d be right back to take their order.
“Who is she?” Bailey asked, frowning after Marianna left.
Camden shrugged, “Her name is Marianna Martinez. I don’t know her well, but pretty much everyone knows everyone in Crossroads.”
“Why doesn’t she like me?” Bailey asked bluntly.
Camden scowled. “What do you mean? She doesn’t even know you.”
“Exactly, but both times she’s been here, she’s sent you smiles that would score a perfect ten on the flirting scale, and then she’s thrown glares my direction.”
“I’m sure you’re being a little oversensitive. I think—”
“Here she comes,” Bailey muttered. “And it looks like now we have an audience.”
Out of the corner of his eye, Camden saw several lovely, little heads pop out from the doorway near the kitchen, their eyes glued to their table.
“Do you need any more bean dip or salsa?” Marianna asked brightly. Then, without skipping a beat, she said pointedly, “Mr. Camden, I don’t think I’ve met your friend.”