Our eyes met. Hers flashed. If she was surprised, she didn’t show it. I made a funny look at her and shrugged.
She ignored me.
I was spellbound every time Callie walked the runway, always trying to catch her eye. Pleading with her with every bit of body language I knew to forgive me and give me a shot. Trying to make her laugh. Trying to make her smile. She ignored me every time, looking over my head when she walked past.
The lady next to me, once enraptured with my sweetness toward my imaginary bride, switched to giving me dirty looks. Clearly, I was a douche. A cheater. Out ogling other women while my bride was in her sickbed. My infatuation with Callie was that obvious.
After the show, I jumped up and headed toward the dressing tent that was set up for the models at the back of the dome. I waited for Callie to come out. Waited with my heart on my sleeve while the models leaving gave me either pitiful or wary looks, depending on their temperament.
Yeah, sure. I was a bridal fair groupie. A fan hanging out at the back door hoping for an autograph or a quick hookup.
When Callie finally came out, she spotted me and sighed. “Are you stalking me?”
“You said to find a way to reach you.” I gave her my most charming, hopeful grin. “You have to give me points for persistence and creativity. And for going to a bridal fair. Do you know how few guys there are here? I’m going to have to douse myself with testosterone for the next week just to wash off all the estrogen I’ve been exposed to.”
“As a matter of fact, I’m fully aware of how few men come to these things. I’ve done more than a few of them now.” She pushed past me.
I hung with her. “How about you make this easy on us and give me your number now?” I waved my phone in front of her. “Let me take you out to celebrate our celebrity. We’re Internet sensations. We should make the most of that. Most people only get fifteen minutes of fame. If this is ours, we don’t want to waste it.”
She swatted my phone away. “No.”
I was taken aback by her hostility. After that kiss, I thought…
I swallowed hard and followed her. “What did I do now? How could I have done anything?” She couldn’t have known about all the stalking I’d done. “I haven’t even seen you in weeks. Is it someone else? Has Ashley matched you with your soul mate?” I saw red, suddenly irrationally angry with Ashley.
“You remember my matchmaker’s name now?”
“Heh,” I said. “Pair Us, and you, have been all over the place these past weeks.”
She stopped so suddenly that I almost ran into her. She spun and looked me in the eye. “True enough. And Ashley’s under the impression she’s known you for years. That you were best friends with her late husband. Might that be why you know her name?”
Oh, crap.
She didn’t give me time to answer. And my guilty look wasn’t doing me any favors.
“Why didn’t you tell me you’re a Pair Us client? That little fact just slip your mind?”
I went cold. I stammered all over myself. What else had Ashley told her?
“Yeah. That’s what I thought.” She shook her head and started walking.
“Look,” I said, keeping pace with her. “There wasn’t really a good opportunity.”
“No opportunity? Like you didn’t even think to mention it when I told you about being their spokesperson?” She took a deep breath. “Is it because you’re on pause?”
I didn’t think I could pale any more, but I felt the blood completely drain from my face. “Ashley told you?”
“Don’t blame her,” Callie said. “It’s not a secret, is it?”
Talk about a leading question.
“Did she tell you why?” I hated asking. I feared the answer.
“No, not really. Something about you needing a break. She made excuses for you. Like the friend she is.” She spun on me. “Look. I don’t know why you signed up for a matchmaker and then didn’t try. But I’m done fooling around. I told you that. Only guys looking for commitment need apply, as far as I’m concerned. If you’re that guy, get yourself reinstated at Pair Us. Ask Ashley to do a compatibility check on us.”
“If we’re a match, you’ll go out with me?” I wasn’t going through the pain and embarrassment of approaching Ashley without some assurance of success with Callie for my efforts.
Callie’s gaze held mine. She frowned. “Yes. If we’re a match, and Ashley thinks we’d be good together, then yes. I vowed to trust her judgment. It’s my job to date the men she matches me with.”
“That’s encouraging.” I gave her my cocky grin, the one that usually made her smile and laugh. “And dedication to the job.”
She remained stony-faced. “I owe you one. That’s all.”
Crazy as it was, her answer made me the tiniest bit hopeful. She could have repaid her “debt” in any variety of ways.
“Just to make this completely clear—if we’re a match, you’ll approve my profile and let Ashley pass your contact info to me?”
“It’s the only way you’re getting my number, Knox. And you have to promise not to abuse it. The only way I’ll go on a date with you. And I believe you know the rules—five dates. There’s no guarantee we’ll last that long. One move by you that doesn’t show respect for me and my desire to keep my job, and it’s over before it gets started.”
Harsh. I held my hands up. “I know the rules.”
I was so engrossed that I didn’t notice a security guard approaching us until he was right on us. He stepped between Callie and me. “Is this man bothering you, ma’am?”
“Yes,” she said. “As a matter of fact, he is.”
15
Knox
I was dumbfounded. Shocked. After that security guard threw me out of the bridal fair, I was in a funk for the rest of the weekend. How could Callie do that to me?
And yet I still couldn’t get her out of my system. She’d dangled the carrot and given me just enough hope to turn me into a stupid fool. I wasn’t used to feeling this way or being in the inferior position. Usually I was the one with the power.
In the hours alone, I did a brutal self-evaluation. I’d left dozens of women hanging since joining Pair Us. Led them on for a date or two to impress Ashley and stay in her good graces. This was a taste of my own medicine, and I deserved it. Which wasn’t a pleasant thought. I’d never thought of myself as a user or a douche. But I was. Not only had I not been honest with myself and the women I’d dated, but I was on the verge of breaking my vow to Ruck. And all it took was one hot model. I was in misery.
I could have called Ashley at any time during that time. Instead, I texted her and asked her to reinstate our Monday meeting. If I wanted any kind of a shot with Callie, there was only one way through this. I had to face Ashley and tell her the truth. I had to face breaking my promise to Ruck directly.
To my surprise, Ashley responded almost immediately. The Blackberry 9 a.m. See you there.
Ashley was waiting for me at her usual table. She was on the phone when I arrived. I slid into the chair across from her, heart thumping.
She nodded at me and ended her conversation. “Sorry about that.” She set her phone on the table. “Ready to cry uncle, are you?”
“Damn it, Ashley. What do you want me to say or do? I did that shoot for you.” I swallowed hard.
“I know,” she said. “But I hope it wasn’t for me. I hope it was for you.” Her gaze ran over me. She frowned. “Have you lost weight?”
“What?”
“Don’t take this the wrong way, but you look terrible,” she said. “Not like your usual self. I hope you ordered your usual breakfast. I’m starting to sound like my grandma. You need fattening up.”
I nodded. “Yeah. I got the usual.”
Our waitress appeared on cue and delivered my coffee to me.
“Well.” Ashley leaned back to let the waitress refill her water and head to the next table. “There’s no postmortem to do. Let’s get down to business. I assume you want to be
reinstated?”
I nodded. “I do.”
Ashley nodded and crossed her arms. “I won’t take your money if you’re not serious about finding a match.”
“I’ll give it my best shot.” With Callie.
Ashley studied me. There was no way she could find fault with me. I was serious.
“Since our new ad campaign, we’ve gotten many new clients and tons and tons of new members.”
Rub it in.
“Mostly men.” She laughed. “You know Callie. You may have seen—she’s our new spokesmodel. She’s been wildly popular. That campaign is a resounding success. She’s a heartbreaker. Drives the men mad. They can’t sign up fast enough.”
Dagger to the heart. I had to forgive her. She didn’t know what she was doing. Or maybe she did. I had no idea how much Callie had told her.
“Callie is that,” I said. “You saw our photoshoot from Flash?”
“How could I miss it? It’s everywhere.” Ashley uncrossed her arms. “You two make a beautiful couple on camera. The chemistry between you two—wow! That was some nice camera work. Peter is a genius. Justin is extremely pleased. The wedding event was one of their most successful new product launches in company history.”
“Fantastic,” I said, miserably, though it was. “That chemistry you mentioned? That’s why I’ve come to talk to you. I’d like a match date with Callie.”
Ashley unfolded her arms. “You and half the men in the city.”
“Can you do me a favor?” I said. “For old times’ sake?”
She cocked her head to the side. “Yeah?”
“This isn’t easy for me, Ash,” I said. “Given our history. And my promise to Ruck. Would you set up a match date with Callie for me?”
“I’d love to, Knox. You know I’d do anything for you. But—”
“But?” I couldn’t believe she’d refuse me.
“I figured since you wanted to meet that you wanted to come off hiatus, so I took the liberty of running through the database, looking for matches for you. After seeing the pictures from Flash, of course I thought of Callie. How could I not? I specifically ran your profile against hers. I was optimistic…” She paused. “I hate to be the one to tell you this—she’s not a match, Knox.”
“Of course she’s a match.” I nearly came out of my chair. I was prepared to beg Ashley. “She has to be a match. Don’t tell me she isn’t. I’ve never felt like this—”
“Before? With anyone else? Even with me? You proposed to me. This must really be something. But you know the rules. I don’t put people out on match dates who aren’t good matches.”
I had hoped it wouldn’t come to this. It was my moment of reckoning. “Ash, give me a break.”
“I want to. I really do, Knox. But I can’t until you give yourself one.” She reached across the table and took my hand. “Is Callie special enough to tell the truth for?”
I stared at her. “Ash—”
She lifted an eyebrow.
“I lied on my dating profile.” I held my head high and met her eye.
She nodded. “I know. I guessed.”
“How long?”
“Early on.” She looked at me sympathetically.
I took a deep breath.
“I need an honest answer now,” she said. “Do you want to be matched with Callie just to hook up?”
“No.” I held her intense gaze.
She was silent a moment. “I believe you. Because of that, and our years of friendship, I’m willing to give you a second chance. Fill out your profile and dating assessment honestly and I’ll run them again. I have a feeling you and Callie are actually very closely matched indeed.”
“You were playing me?”
She shrugged. Part of me still loved her. Part of me always would. She was a great woman. Being in love with her had kept me going through rough times. But it was time to let go of the fantasy of being with her and pursue something real.
“We’ve been playing each other,” she said.
“You and your feelings—”
“I’m never wrong.” Her smile was tender.
My heart raced. My stomach burned. This was the hardest part. “My promise to Ruck?”
“You’re falling in love with Callie already,” she said. “It’s written all over you. You’d be miserable without her. Regret it your whole life if you didn’t take a chance with her. Now you have a taste of what I feel for Lazer.” There was nothing vindictive about her. She was full of empathy.
I nodded. There was no denying the truth.
“The promise you made to Ruck was admirable and honorable, the vow of a true friend. For his part, Ruck was trying to do the best for two people he loved. He saw how well we got along and he knew how you felt about me.
“He was trying to do what I do—match two people he thought would be happy together. And we could have been. If there was no Lazer and no Callie.
“But that’s not what happened. Ruck couldn’t have predicted Lazer and Callie.” She got a misty look. “You and I knew Ruck better than anyone else. He only wanted us to be happy. The thought of us together gave him comfort.”
She looked away and took a moment to compose herself. “He’d be devastated if he knew the burden he inadvertently put on us. He never wanted that.” She took my robotic-fingered hand in hers and looked me in the eye. “I released you from your promise to him a long time ago. It’s time you release yourself.”
“You’re a wise woman, Ashley Harte.” I swallowed hard.
“You’re just now figuring this out?”
“I still feel guilty as hell.”
“Don’t beat yourself up,” she said. “Give yourself a little time to get used to the idea that you have fulfilled your vow. You offered me the chance to be your wife. If I refused it because there’s someone better out there for you and me, it’s on me.”
I squeezed her hand. “A part of me will always love you.” I swallowed hard. “We can’t forget Ruck. I think that’s what he feared most.”
“We’ll never forget Ruck, Knox. After the last year or so, how could we?” She got an impish grin. “How’s this for a compromise—you name your first son after him? I can’t do it, obviously. Lazer would never go for it.”
“Deal.” I lifted her hand to my lips and kissed it. “And you can be little Ruck’s honorary aunt.”
She released my hand. “Perfect.”
My heart was still hammering. “Does Callie ever have to know about the promise?”
“Not unless you tell her.” Ashley’s face lit up. “I’m so happy for you, Knox. I really am.”
“I just hope I can win her over,” I said. “She’s not too happy with me right now.”
“You will,” she said. “As soon as you get me that updated profile.”
I pulled out my phone. “I’ll fill it out over breakfast.”
“Sounds good to me.”
I grinned, already feeling lighter. “Good. If I have any questions…”
“I’m here to answer them.”
Lazer
Ashley came back to the office from her meeting with Knox, grinning so beautifully that she made my heart ache. She moved sinuously, like a cat. A damn hot cat. Later, I’d make her purr. I ran into her in the building lobby and took the elevator up with her.
“How did your meeting with Knox go?” For once, there was no jealousy on my part. No irritation, either. Just eager anticipation.
“Fantastic.” Alone in the elevator, she slipped her arms around me as the doors closed and I pushed the button to our floor. “You’re brilliant.”
“But we knew that. He took the bait?” I cupped her butt. She had such a beautiful butt, always nicely emphasized by the tight skirts and formfitting dresses she wore.
“He begged like a big-eyed puppy.” She kissed me.
Elevator sex had a certain appeal, but the ride up was too short. There was always lunch. We broke apart as the door opened into Pair Us’ reception area. Lottie greeted us.
/> I followed Ashley into her office. “Begged to be reinstated. Fantastic.”
Ashley closed the door behind us. “Begged to be reinstated. Begged forgiveness. Begged for Callie’s contact info. Begged to be given another chance on every front.” She slipped her arms around my neck again. “And here’s the best part—he even begged, well, agreed and wanted—to be released from his vow to Ruck. Now that he knows what love is—”
“Love already?” I said. “He hasn’t even had an official date.”
She kissed me and slipped out of my arms too quickly, heading for her desktop computer. “You did too good of a job with your brilliant plan. A perfect match is irresistible. Date or no date yet, this is the one. It will stick. Sometimes you just know.”
I followed her to her desk. “What are you in such a hurry to do?”
“I tormented the poor guy and made him confess to cheating on his original profile. He was so eager to be reinstated that he reworked his profile over breakfast. He even asked me for clarification and help with some of the questions.” She took a seat at her desk.
“Brilliant.” I put my hands on her shoulders and began to gently massage them. “What’s the hurry now?”
“I promised him I’d run the new profile against Callie’s as soon as I got back to the office.”
“But you know he’s a perfect match already.” I rubbed her shoulders the way she liked.
“Says you.” She leaned into my touch and relaxed into my message. “You do know how to rub me the right way.”
“I’ll give you another demonstration at lunch.” I leaned over and kissed her neck.
“That’s delicious. Don’t take this the wrong way, but stop trying to distract me.” She reached up and stroked my hair. “I need my full wits right now. This is too important to mess up. And I’m curious to find out how accurate your web-scraping method is.”
“Highly,” I said. “We tested it on ourselves.” But I let her go to it, watching her work in silence.
“Wow,” she said at last. She looked straight up at me. “One hundred percent match by any method, yours or mine.”
Mr. Accidental Groom Page 14