Certified Heartthrob: An Enemies to Lovers Romantic Comedy (Heartstring Dating Agency Book 2)

by Lauren Wood

  I didn’t want to give up, but for the moment...life had to go on. I didn’t know how long I’d be stuck in this limbo, waiting and hoping to have my chance to talk to her again. I was starting to feel defeated. Even if I could get a moment with her, she had no reason to listen to me or believe anything I had to say.

  I slid my phone into my pocket and headed out the door to the soup kitchen. It was getting colder out, which always sent more people flocking to the cafeteria for a good meal and a few hours of warmth.

  Rudy smiled when he saw me, like always. But his smile faded when he saw how out of sorts I was.

  “What’s gotten into you?” he asked. “I’ve never seen you so down.”

  “Small troubles in comparison to what you have to go through with winter approaching,” I told him, waving off his concern as I served him his food.

  He simply laughed. “You must be having issues with your friend.”

  “Why are you still saying it like that?”

  “Because you wouldn’t be this bothered by whatever happened if she was just a friend.” He grinned. “I was right all along. I knew there was something between the two of you.”

  “Well, if there was...it’s over now.”

  “What?” His brow furrowed. “It’s hardly over. I can see from the look in your eyes it’s not over.”

  “She decided it was.”

  “And you’re just going to roll over and take that?” He clicked his tongue and shook his head. “Listen to me, son. If you find a woman who gets under your skin like that, you can’t give her up for anything. You have to fight for her.”

  “First, you want me to risk getting heartbroken. Done. Now I have to fight on top of that?”

  “I told you before and I’ll tell you again...It’s worth it. It’s the only thing in this world that’s worth it. Love.”

  Rudy’s words stirred something inside of me, waking up the parts I’d deadened and pushed down just to get through the day. He was right. What the hell was I doing? Trying to carry on like nothing happened while the woman I loved was out there hurting?

  I may have rolled over and let Audrey tear me down when she decided to walk out of my life, but things were different with Camille. She was worth fighting for—worth the risk.

  Seeing Camille walk out of my life, and now dealing with her refusing to talk to me, I was more certain than ever that she was the one. She’d done what she set out to do and converted me to the cause of love. But now I had to fix things. Oddly enough, I realized I would need help from someone I thought I would never want to see again.

  “Thanks, Rudy,” I said, perking up as everything started clicking into place. “I...I have to go.”

  “That’s the spirit!” He let out a wheezy laugh, cheering me on as I bolted from the building.

  An hour later, I found myself pacing outside the door of a place I never thought I would go. After no response, I knocked again until finally it opened.

  “Mark?” Audrey stood there, looking just as surprised as I was to find myself at her apartment.

  “I need your help,” I told her in a rush. “Can I come in?”

  She hesitated for a moment, but stepped aside and ushered me in. “Can I get you something to dr—”

  “No. No way. That’s what got me into this mess to begin with. No drinks. I just need you to sit down and listen.”

  A while later, I had finished explaining my plan and was anxiously waiting for her response. She sat back on the couch, crossing her arms.

  “I don’t know, Mark. This is a huge thing to ask of me. A few days ago, I was begging you to take me back. And now...this?”

  “I know it’s unconventional,” I replied. “But it’s the only way I can think of to set this right. Surely, after everything you’ve put me through...you can help me out with this. You owe it to me.”

  She was still thinking it over when I added, “Come on, we both know you don’t really want me back. You got dumped and then you saw me all over the internet. You just rushed back to what you thought was a sure thing.”

  She looked thoughtful for a moment. “You never felt the same way about me,” she stated. “Not the way you do for her.”

  “Don’t start that,” I groaned.

  “No, Mark. You know it’s true,” she insisted. “Even before I cheated, we were always missing something. It just wasn’t...quite right.”

  I considered that for a moment, knowing it was the hard truth I had been reluctant to admit for so long.

  “What I’m saying is,” she continued, “I’ll do this for you. But first, I need you to admit it to me. That I didn’t cheat on a perfectly happy relationship. We had our issues, and we were both just too scared to admit it.”

  “You’re right,” I sighed after a while. “It was easier to just be angry with you about how it ended. But...no, we were never quite right for each other.”

  “But Camille is the right one for you.”

  I nodded with certainty. “Yes. She is.”

  Audrey flashed a humble smile. “Then I’m happy for you. At least this gives me something to aspire to. Maybe someday I’ll find the one for me.”

  “Help me do this and you’ll rack up all kinds of karma,” I suggested. “If that’s how it works.”

  “Here’s hoping.”

  Audrey and I landed on an official truce, a resolution, closure...something we had never had before. It only lifted my hopes higher as I left her to carry out her part of the plan. I returned home and waited, only this time I was waiting with optimism. I knew what Camille and I had was special and there was nothing we couldn’t get through. At least, that’s what I hoped.

  A few hours later, my phone lit up with a text from Audrey.

  I did my part, now you do yours. She’s a lucky girl, Mark.

  I shot up from the couch with my phone in my hand and returned to yet another place I never thought I would find myself—the Heartstring website. I stared down at my computer screen and clicked on the upper righthand corner…

  A few more clicks and the prompt appeared. Create new profile. You’re on your way to finding true love!

  I smirked at the phrase that, at one time, had made me so angry. I wasn’t on my way to finding true love, I had already found it. Now I just had to get it back.

  I typed and clicked my way through the rest of the setup, then scrolled to the bottom of the screen. I typed the company’s number into my phone and hit call.

  “Heartstring customer service. How can I help you?”

  “Yes...I am having a huge problem with your website that I was hoping you could help me with.”

  “Certainly, sir. Whatever it is, I’m sure we can get it sorted out in no time.”

  21

  Camille

  I stared down my reflection in the mirror and decided it was time to wipe my eyes, fix my hair, put on some lipstick, and get back to work. I had been a perfectly happy, single, and independent woman before I ever knew Mark existed. I could get back to being that person.

  After days of moping around my apartment, I was ready to go back to the office. I had been avoiding it and all of my family, aside from Jada, like the plague. Not only was I dealing with heartbreak, but I would also have to face being a disappointment to our company for bringing this scandal down on us.

  My phone was littered with a variety of messages, including some from Victoria, who was suggesting we could spin this whole thing to our advantage. She proposed a campaign to set me up through our own app. She claimed plenty of decent men out there were just chomping at the bit to treat me right, and now the whole internet felt sorry for me. I didn’t know if that was a good thing or a bad thing, but it mostly just felt bad.

  As I reached for my briefcase so I could head out the door, a stack of papers spilled out of it onto the floor. I bent over to pick them up, but froze at the sight of the photo staring back at me from the top of the stack.

  It was the report I had compiled on Mark when his trolling endeavors first came to
our attention, and the very first page had his picture plastered on the front...complete with his perfect smile, rippling arm muscles, and perfect...well, perfect everything.

  I swallowed against the tears threatening to spill out all over again and shoved the papers back into my bag...except for the photo. That went directly into the garbage.

  A nagging feeling started gnawing at my gut...one that suggested I may never get over Mark. I kept trying to tell myself that everyone felt that way after a breakup, but one day they miraculously felt better and finally indifferent to the person they’d once loved. This didn’t feel like that, though. I guessed he might always be the one who got away...or the one who ran away, pushed me away, however you wanted to put it. It hadn’t exactly been my decision. Better to just accept it and move on.

  I climbed into the backseat of a cab, mustering up my determination all over again. I wondered how many more unfortunate blows like that I would suffer before the end of the day.

  Then my phone chimed with a message request. I glanced down, expecting something from another tabloid or blog...But no. It was from...Audrey?

  “What the hell does she want?” I grumbled, clicking the message open. I cringed as I read it, wondering what new heap of salt she was going to try and rub in my wound. Hasn’t she done enough already?

  Audrey: Hi, Camille. I know I am probably the last person you want to hear from right now…

  You can say that again…

  But...I thought you deserved to know the truth. What you saw at Mark’s apartment really was just a big misunderstanding and it was all my fault. Nothing happened between us, even though I have to admit I wished something would. I went there to try and get him back, but he wouldn’t agree to it because he only has feelings for you now. Messing things up with him was the biggest mistake of my life, but I figure I can at least try and save you from making the same mistake. So...you win. He’s all yours, and you’re a lucky girl.

  I blinked several times at the message, trying to wrap my head around it. Why on earth would she say all of that unless it was true? And what good would any of this do for her or Mark if this was all just a scheme against Heartstring, like I had spent the last few days convincing myself it was?

  Before I could even process this, my phone started ringing. This time it was a call from Heartstring headquarters, so I didn’t hesitate to answer.

  “Ms. Meadows...this is Jake from the customer service management team.”

  “Yes, hi, Jake. What’s going on?”

  “A rather urgent matter, I’m afraid,” he replied with panic in his voice. “There’s a customer who has been blowing up our phones all morning, insisting to talk to someone at the executive level. He’s demanding we find the specific profile of someone who doesn’t appear to be on our site. It’s the weirdest request we’ve ever received. But I’m afraid he’s quite insistent…”

  “What?” I groaned. Like it was our problem this guy couldn’t find some random woman on the site! That’s not how things worked, and it did not bode well for how I could expect the rest of my first day back to go.

  “Look, Jake. I’m just a few minutes away from the office. Meet me at my door and we’ll get this sorted out.”

  Twenty minutes later, I was sitting behind my desk, waiting for Jake to patch the disgruntled customer through to my phone. “This is Camille Meadows, Heartstring executive,” I answered. “What seems to be the trouble?”

  “The trouble is that your site promises true love, but the woman I love doesn’t appear to be featured anywhere. I’ve been swiping all morning and I can’t find her.”

  I swallowed hard, instantly recognizing the voice as none other than Mark Silver.

  “Well, I don’t know what to tell you, sir,” I said slowly, my voice tight. “Not everyone believes in love...or online dating. Surely you of all people can understand that.”

  “I used to,” he replied. “But not anymore. I know who I want.”

  “But does she want you back?”

  I heard him smile through the phone. “Why don’t you tell me?”

  “Did you tell Audrey to message me?” I asked, my heart pounding.

  “You wouldn’t listen to me. So, I had to turn to the only other person who knew what really happened.”

  I blew out a shaky laugh, fighting back tears of happiness. “She seems to think I’m a lucky woman...and that it’d be a mistake not to give you another chance.”

  “I can only say that I was lucky to ever have a chance in the first place.” He sighed. “And if you were to ever give me another shot, I’d do everything in my power to make sure you never regretted it.”

  My heart pumped harder with adrenaline and a surging, overwhelming need to see him. All the reasons not to were rapidly melting away. “Where are you?”

  “Go to your window,” he told me.

  I looked down at the busy sidewalk and saw him standing there among the crowd with his phone to his ear. “Don’t move.” I smiled, hung up the phone, and raced to the elevator.

  I ran outside as fast as I could. The moment I walked out of the building, Mark’s stride quickened to match my own—sending us crashing into each other right there in the middle of the sidewalk. He swept me up into his arms and spun me around, kissing me deeply.

  “I’m so sorry for everything,” he whispered against my lips. “I love you, and I don’t ever want to let you go again. And honestly...nothing about that scares me anymore.”

  I felt tears of happiness stream down my cheeks as I replied, “I love you, too. I’m still a little scared, but I think you can fix that.”

  He swung one arm down under my legs, picking me up and cradling me against his chest. “Challenge accepted.”

  He started off down the sidewalk, carrying me to a cab. I didn’t know where we were going and I didn’t care. Before, watching that same moment play out in a movie would have made me gag, but now that it was happening to me...it was the most romantic thing in the world. All because it was with him.

  Epilogue

  Mark

  I stirred awake to the best sensation in the world...Camille draped across my body, skin to skin. She purred and stretched, rolling over to hold me closer. It was becoming harder and harder to get out of bed every day with her lying there next to me.

  “Good morning, beautiful.” I beamed down at her as her eyes slowly opened.

  She smiled. “Good morning. Are you ready for the big day?”

  “The better question is...are you?”

  She laughed. “I was born ready.”

  “Then we better force ourselves to get up and at it, before we slip into our usual habit of getting distracted by other things…” I glanced down at her breasts pressed against my chest, and felt an immediate regret for having advised against all that could happen if we lingered between the sheets a little longer.

  She arched her neck and pressed her lips gently to mine, only making matters worse. “No reason we can’t let ourselves get a little distracted.” She grinned.

  An hour later, we succeeded in our second attempt at getting out of bed, but only after having satisfied our relentless sexual appetite for one another. When we finally could pull ourselves away, we both got dressed and reviewed our notes for the day.

  Life Beyond was a local non-profit that helped widows and widowers rebuild their lives after losing their significant others. I became involved with them after seeking help for my old friend from the shelter, Rudy. And after getting to know their organization, I realized that Camille’s company held a great opportunity for the grieving singles they served.

  I invited her to start a new project with me that would use Heartstring to nudge Life Beyond’s members back into the dating scene once they were ready. Today was the first official day of the event, and we were all set to go to the center to introduce the participants to the Heartstring app.

  We walked in together, hand in hand, which brought a big smile to Rudy’s face. He had signed up for the program after making
great strides in getting his life back together, and now he was ready to see if fate had a second great love in store for him.

  After Camille gave a little talk to the participants, we split off into smaller groups to encourage them and help them set up their own profiles. Rudy, myself, and a man named Hank huddled together around my laptop, scrolling through the Heartstring site.

  “I don’t know if I’m ready for this,” Hank confessed, dragging his hands down his face in indecision.

  I considered how hard it must be to dream of moving on after the love of your life has passed away unexpectedly. I could imagine the grief better now than before, because I knew I would be destroyed if I lost Camille.

  “I know this isn’t easy,” I said slowly, patting his shoulder. “Finding love is scary, no matter who you are or what stage of life you’re in. But…” I glanced over at Camille helping a group of women across the room and smiled wide. “A wise man once told me that when you find the right woman, the risk is worth it.”

  Rudy nodded with a proud smile.

  After we finished our work at Life Beyond, Camille and I walked around the corner to grab lunch. We talked about how successful we thought the event had been and then moved on to other things. She was catching up on some work messages on her phone when I looked out the window and noticed a man taking pictures of a woman on the corner. I laughed to myself as I remembered all the media fire we had been under not that long ago.

  “At least everyone seems to have lost interest in us now,” I commented to Camille. “Just when I got used to seeing my picture plastered all over the internet, they moved on to something else.”

  Camille stared at her phone and frowned. “Apparently not. I mean, us...yes. But not from Heartstring.”

  She slid it across the table so I could see an article that had just been posted regarding her younger brother’s latest antics. He had come under fire a few times recently for his wild behavior, but apparently, he’d crossed into new territory the night before, when he got insanely drunk at a club opening. The picture boasted a crazy looking side of Joshua, standing on top of the bar while making out with two women at the same time.