Grinning over her teasing, Elliston stepped across the threshold, waiting until Mariah had relocked it behind him. "I should have texted you before I left my house. I took a phone call as I was getting in the car and ended up driving all the way here before it was finished. Texting you outside your office door was a spur of the moment decision that I'm feeling a little guilty about now."
Mariah took his arm and walked him to a chair. "Quit making excuses. I'm just happy to see you. Now sit and talk."
Elliston sighed and reached for a relatively safe conversation topic. "Uncle John's gone under again, I assume. He sent me a text when he couldn't make lunch this week. Geez, I miss talking to him. He pays more attention to me than my own father does."
Nodding, Mariah smiled. "Yes. John's been gone four days now. I'm starting to miss him more when he's not around."
"Lucky him," Elliston said, genuinely smiling at a woman he liked and cared about.
"I suppose… but I’m betting you didn't come to chat about your uncle. Why are you here?" Mariah asked.
Elliston puffed out his cheeks and blew out a nervous breath. "I've messed up. I've been on a hiatus from dating for a while like I told you I was going to be, and I've gotten a lot of work done, but…"
"There's always a but," Mariah said, laughing at his guilty look.
"Last month, my best paying client invited me to a private function he was hosting at this resort place. He offered to introduce to me some people there as a way of thanking me for my work. Problem is that it's a couples thing. When he asked me to bring a date, I said "sure" off the cuff. Only…"
"Time got away from you and you forgot to send me a request," Mariah finished for him, summing up the issue.
"Exactly."
"Saturday is very short notice, even for someone as cute as you are," Mariah said softly.
Elliston made a face. "I know. Did I also mention that it's an out of town trip? The resort is in Tennessee. I have to leave tomorrow around six to get there before they close up for the night."
"Elliston…"
"I know. I know," Elliston said, groaning over his error. "I could go alone, but then I'd just look pathetic, and that would probably affect the way my client saw me. Geez, I hate this stuff."
"Yes. Pathetic is a good word…” Mariah repeated, grinning at the term. It also gave her idea. “I get it though. You wouldn't want him to lose confidence in you in any way."
"Right." Elliston ran a hand through his hair again. He hadn’t been taking care of himself lately. It badly needed a trim. He'd stop on the way home. "I knew my chances weren’t good that you could help me, but I figured I'd ask you for a miracle anyway. You can't get anything if you don't ask. That's always been my motto."
"Well, I do owe you a big favor," Mariah said, smiling her agreement. She leaned forward. "I may have a unique solution for you—sort of a tit for tat situation. If the woman goes with you this weekend, you have to go with her to a function as well."
“Seriously? What's her function?"
Mariah laughed. "Her sister's wedding. It's in October. She's the oldest daughter of five and soon to be the only unmarried person in her family. She insists she can't go alone."
Elliston snorted. "So she's in the same predicament I am. She doesn't want to look pathetic."
"That was the exact word she used to describe why she could not go to the wedding alone." Mariah shifted in her chair. "I've found a couple other guys willing to go with her. I was just putting her package together for a presentation tomorrow. I could add you to the top and pitch your case to her. I don't think she'd mind."
"I can tell you right now that I don't care how old she or what she looks like or what she does for a living. There's a spa weekend in this for her and all she has to do is hang out with me enough to pass for a date. I'll toss in a couple hundred bucks for mad money. She won't be out a dime for food or any fun she indulges in."
Mariah chuckled. "Wow. That's true desperation. If she picks you, my fee is a wash. You don't owe me anything and neither will she. That's my contribution to what I owe you."
“You’ll hook me up for free? Now that's what I call a truly perfect date," Elliston proclaimed.
"Good to hear you think so highly of my help," Mariah said dryly, rolling her eyes. "I better get a referral or two from you for this miracle if I pull it off."
"Done and done again," Elliston promised. "I know this is a blatant macho thing, but unfortunately that still applies to business between men. Can you tell me anything about her before she checks me out?"
Mariah snorted. "She's a research doctor, turning twenty-eight, and beautiful enough to impress your client with your extreme manliness in nabbing such a woman. You'll be happy to hear though that she's currently ignoring her biological clock to focus on her work goals. Sorry she's not an older woman, but that's the break for getting a last minute date. You'll have to take what I can get you—if I can get her for you."
"If she says yes, I'll be the most satisfied client you've ever had. Thank you, Mariah."
"Yeah. Yeah. Talk's cheap, son. Send me some paying clients."
Mariah snorted and wondered how in the world she was going to ever sell a stressed-out Della on a whole weekend date with Elliston. If her mother was right about Della being physically interested, this could be a sticky situation.
She didn't think for one minute that Elliston was going to end up settling down with someone so close to his own age. He'd been dating older women and liking them far too much. But he was man—and a man who hadn't been dating regularly.
Della might be more comfortable with someone she knew less well and didn't lust after. Mariah would hate losing a good client over Elliston sleeping with and discarding a woman she was seriously thinking about making her future business partner.
Chapter Two
"When you said you wanted to meet first thing this morning, I didn't think you meant the very first thing today."
"I felt a need for speed. We have a client coming at eleven."
"True," Della said with a chuckle, sipping her coffee. Sighing, she pushed back her unwashed hair. She'd worked late on her dissertation and not risen in time to wash and style it. A five-minute shower had been all she could manage. "You didn't have to put all this together for me. I could have just looked the guys up in the database."
"Where's the fun in that?" Mariah demanded. She pointed to the tablet. "You're getting the full treatment. This will help you understand the process and how hard it is to make the decision about who to choose."
Della snickered and swiped past the opening page of the file with her name on it. Beneath it was a great looking guy. She looked up at Mariah. "I remember this guy. He's hot, but very political. We redid his video a few weeks ago. It was worse than his first one. Politics are not sexy."
"I know what you mean, which is partly why he wanted the chance to get something for free, but hey… think of the entertainment value he'd bring to the wedding banquet."
That actually was funny and it made her smile. "Okay. Mr. Political stays on the list."
She swiped again and there was a client she'd always admired. "Well now, this is a pleasant surprise for a Friday morning."
"I know," Mariah said. "He's good-looking and a nice guy by anyone's standards. I think he must secretly like you."
Della sighed. "He's great but my family would like him too much. He'd be getting all kinds of embarrassing questions about our relationship every time we were separated. I couldn't do that to someone I actually liked. Think I'm going to have to go with Mr. Political. I like the idea of keeping emotional distance between us."
Mariah chuckled. "Before you talk yourself into suffering for the sake of your revenge, check out the third guy in your group."
Della's startled gaze left the tablet. "Thought you only found two."
"I had a late request yesterday—an emergency of sorts. The next guy has a problem similar to yours. He's willing to do a trade. Unlike the other two though
, the guy doesn't know who you are yet. Well, you technically know him and he knows you, but I’m letting your identities be revealed slowly."
"A trade date?" Della asked, chuckling over the idea. "Sounds a bit kinky for us.”
Mariah pointed a finger. “Just swipe and look at him. Then I'll explain."
Della did and both her eyebrows shot up. "Elliston McElroy?" Her gaze flew back to Mariah. "But he's not dating at the moment… and when he does date, he dates older women now.”
"All are true statements. However, he needs someone willing to go out of town to a spa resort in Tennessee this weekend. He forgot to put in a request. He was pretty desperate when he stopped by late yesterday. I've never seen him like that."
Della was stunned. "Wow."
Mariah held up a hand. "Hang on—it's gets better. Elliston offered to toss in a couple hundred dollars as mad money so his fake girlfriend can have some fun at the resort. I think you'd have to meet him for meals and hang out with him a bit to keep up the appearance of actually being his date.”
Della shook her head and laughed, still mostly speechless.
“While I know his offer to trade dating favors might feel a bit strange to you, it would be a way for you to have a short break. You'd have to leave after work today though and I totally understand if you just can't react that quickly to the offer."
“I don’t know. I have to make some changes before the committee will hear my defense next month. I tried doing the work last night, but energy-wise I'm running on empty."
Della stared at Elliston's handsome face. He was genuinely tempting to her as date. That could be a problem for both of them. Maybe it didn't have to be if she was smart.
Mariah reached out for the tablet. A still stunned Della handed it back.
"The political guy is a piece of low hanging fruit to throw at your unsuspecting family as torture. I added Elliston into the mix because it might be a little bit easier to marshal up the energy for your last hoo-rah of dissertation work after you got a massage and went swimming for an afternoon."
Della sighed wearily. "I'd love to get a massage." Her eyes went dreamy over the idea, then cleared. "I don't think I told you this, but I took a video photography class Elliston was teaching at the Cincinnati Art Museum. We sort of got to know each other a little better in a platonic friend kind of way. He’s a great teacher. I still text him occassionally with questions. He’s very smart."
Mariah smiled. “So you're friends then?”
Della held up a hand and pinched two fingers nearly together. "A little bit friends. Not the wedding escort kind. I would never have asked him to go with me, even though I once did think about inviting him for shock value.” She laughed as she looked at Mariah. "I kept imagining my family's reaction to his tribal tats and weird haircut. Now that was a fun fantasy, let me tell you, even without the sex. My mother would be appalled.”
Mariah smiled. "I see you have an innate evil side. I can respect that."
Della chuckled and shook her head. "Even if I was tempted to say yes to his trade, which I was the moment you said a massage was involved, I couldn't go out of town as his date looking like I look today. I barely got myself together enough to come to work this morning. Personal maintenance has not been high on my list lately."
"No worries. I can help with that. The salon has an opening this morning. If we limit you to hair and a mani-pedi, you can be done in two hours. I'll call the image consultant and ask him to drop a few dressy outfits in your size by the salon.”
“So I’d need to dress up to be Elliston’s date?”
Mariah shrugged. “It’s a guess. Regardless, you can wear them to dinner at least. Knowing Elliston and the kind of clients he draws, the place will be posh. We'll make the outfits a bit more conservative than your usual clothing. You'll look a little older, but also rich and successful. Then all you have to do at home is pack a bathing suit, shorts, night clothes, and a toothbrush. That should allow you to leave on time."
Della laughed nervously. "You've certainly got this all worked out. Were you so sure I'd pick Elliston?"
"Not at all," Mariah said truthfully. "Courtesy of my military father’s training, I prepared for all possibilities, which is what I do with every client. Of the three dates I found for you, Elliston is the all round best option. I know you'll make a good showing on his arm this weekend. Since I still owe him for giving me the address of John's secret lair, I've offered him this deal for no fee so long as he reciprocates with you. You get a spa weekend and a wedding escort out of the deal. Happy graduation."
Della snorted as she leaned back in the chair. "I feel like I'm running in front of a steamroller."
Mariah laughed and nodded. "You are, Dr. Livingston. It's called your destiny at The Perfect Date."
"My destiny here involves Elliston?" Della smirked and crossed her arms.
"Your destiny involves him for this weekend and one dreaded Saturday in October. But if you want the political guy, let me know quickly. I would need to call Elliston and break the bad news to him that he's going to the resort alone. His man card will suffer but I'm sure he'll survive. Young male egos are resilient."
Della bit her lip. Even with the tats, Elliston would stand the best chance of fooling her family in a good way because she genuinely liked him as a person. Based on what she knew so far, Elliston was a good sport too. The idea of him going with her already made attending the wedding seem like less of a chore. Was that her gut pointing her in the right decision?
She sighed and looked at a still waiting Mariah. "Okay. I'm up for a trade. Tell Elliston yes. It will save The Perfect Date money in the long run. I'll play the adoring girlfriend when he needs me to and I may end up being genuinely adoring if he pays for me to get a massage."
"Good. I'll call and tell him. I'm sure he'll be thrilled. Go do what you have to and scoot over to the salon. I'll see you back here in the office on Tuesday. Take whatever is left of Monday off when you two get back to town."
Saluting, Della rose to do as she was told.
It was nearly six-thirty. Elliston was running late, but Della wasn’t mad. Travel in Cincinnati was always tricky this time of day. She wished now she’d sent Elliston a text, but there had been so much to do to get ready that she had taken the time.
Plus, she’d finally been forced to take a call from her family. It had been her father asking her to please talk to her mother. She’d calmly asked her father to tell her mother that she was going out of town on a business trip. It had taken ten more minutes to convince him she would talk to everyone sometime next week. If she got very lucky, her father would relay the message, and then maybe she would get a quiet weekend to enjoy the spa.
Determined to be a good sport about his tardiness, Della locked up and dragged her suitcase down the steps of her rented brownstone and parked it by the bottom. She put the handle down on her luggage and stood beside it. The short, full skirt she wore showed off her naturally tanned long legs and the wedge heels made them look even longer. A guy she hadn’t seen in months happened by on his way to the gym where he worked and stopped to talk to her legs… or at least that’s how it seemed to her, since he barely glanced up at her face the whole time he was speaking.
Della tucked her cell phone into a skirt pocket and tried to pay attention. Brad had a nice body and lived in her neighborhood. He was working his way up to asking her out—she could tell. Was she interested in dating him? Not at the moment, but soon she’d have her life back. Dates—normal dates—might be possible then.
Brad worked at the gym she frequented. He was very cute and obviously attracted to her. He had no idea that she would shortly finish her advanced degree. Even if she mentioned it, she doubted Brad would be able to take it in. She was just a cute skirt with legs to him, but a single woman her age couldn’t write any half decent guy off. There were too many jerks out there. She knew that for a fact because she kept finding them.
Elliston pulled the car up to the curb in front of t
he address she’d given him and scanned the sidewalk for Della. A guy and some hot, long-legged babe in a short skirt were outside waiting for a ride. He still wasn’t sure taking Della with him was a good idea, but he was glad to at least not be going alone.
He checked the traffic and wondered if he should double-park and go up to her apartment, or just send her a text and ask her to meet him downstairs. Before he could make a decision, the hot babe’s skirt and legs appeared in his sports car’s passenger window. Hot babe leaned down and tapped on the glass.
Sighing in annoyance, Elliston rolled it down to see what the woman wanted. He was stunned more than he believed possible when Della’s face appeared. “Pop the trunk for me if there’s room for my bag back there,” she ordered.
Elliston stared at her. His brain kept trying to short-circuit. What had she asked him? Oh yeah, open the trunk. Like he had never driven the car before, he looked around and finally spied the trunk’s unlock button.
“Rental?” Della commented, laughing as the hunky guy with her grabbed her bag and stored it away.
They talked a moment more, and then a long legged Della climbed into his passenger seat.
“Hi,” she said.
“Hi,” Elliston said back. “I didn’t recognize you.”
Della snorted. “New hair style I guess,” she said. “I see you got yours cut too.”
Elliston nodded. “Thought I’d go a little more conservative. This client leans in that business direction.”
Della searched the top of his head. “It’s a little short, but it works for you. Of course, you have the type of face that pretty much looks good under any cut. I think it’s your eyes. That’s mostly what you notice first.”
Her phone rang and Della looked at it before frowning. Elliston watched her, waiting for what she’d say next.
“Ready when you are,” she said cheerily. “I think I might turn off my phone. Family is bugging me today.”
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