Matching Mr. Right (Rocky Mountain Matchmaker Series Book 1) (11 page)

After Greg left, Nick slowly slid his hand from hers, then crossed his arms. “So your prince, who you haven’t seen for two years, who your gooey heart longs for, just wants to play football with you?”

“No! It’s just . . . none of your damned business.” He’d hit way too close to the truth, and that holding-her-hand-hostage thing hadn’t been funny. She packed up her laptop and stood to leave. “Did you read the stuff I forwarded you about first dates last night?”

“Yup.” His grin quickly faded as he stood and walked out beside her. He beat her to the exit and yanked the glass door open. “I’m parked just over there.”

She was parked right in front and really didn’t want to talk to him at the moment, so she pressed her fob and unlocked her car door. “I’ll just meet you there.”

“I can’t believe you drive a Prius.” He tilted his head as he circled her car. “Pop the hood. I want to see how many mice are under there.”

“You know what, Nick? It’s going to be tough finding you a woman as hilarious as you!” She slid behind the wheel and slammed the door. She’d had enough of his smart comments.

His knuckle tapped on her window.

She rolled it down. “What?”

Leaning inside, he shot her a big grin. “Is my lunch date a brunette? You said they were better in—”

“Yes. Now go away.” She splayed her fingers across his face, pushed his big head out, then rolled up her window. He’d get a brunette the next time too, all right. And she had just the one in mind. His name was Jordan. A good friend with a wicked sense of humor who was almost as pretty as Nick. Too bad for all the women in the world, Jordan preferred men. Teach Nick to sabotage her quest for Greg by holding her hand like that.

He knocked again.

She lowered her window a scant inch and raised a brow.

“We should think green and ride together. But I’m not cramming myself into that Prius. I’ll drive.” He opened her door, reached in, and wrapped his large hand around her arm. She grabbed her things just as her body took flight.

His firm grasp propelled her across the rough pavement, tugging her toward his sexy car.

“Maybe I don’t want to be trapped in a car with an obnoxious man like you.” She lifted her key remote over her shoulder, beeping her car locked.

“I love when you’re feisty and pissed off. I’ll bet you’d be fun under the sheets that way too.”

“My sheets are reserved for Greg. And we need to discuss your bad attitude toward him! What do you think Greg thought when you held on to my hand like that?”

Nick’s jaw clenched as he opened her door. “He doesn’t deserve you, Shelby.”

“And you’d know this, how?” After he’d rounded to his side and joined her, she buckled her seat belt and glared at him.

He blew out a breath before he zipped into traffic. “You need a guy who wants to make love to you, not play football with you. What does he have that I don’t?”

She snorted. “The desire for a wife and kids, for starters.”

He shifted gears and floored it through a yellow light. “Why can’t you just sleep with a guy and have fun? No strings attached.”

She’d wondered that about herself too. Often. “I guess because then I wouldn’t be me?”

He opened his mouth to respond, then snapped it shut. “Good point. But then the guy you pick is too blind to see what a beautiful woman you are?” He turned and briefly stared into her eyes. “You deserve better, Shelby.”

She started to defend Greg, but Nick raised a hand to cut her off. “It’s how I see it. And I’m done fighting about Gary!”

She poked him in the arm. “Until you admit holding my hand hostage in front of
Greg
shows what a jerk you are, we’re not even close to being done!”

“Okay, I’m a jerk. But at least I’d know what to do with the sexiest woman to ever cross my path.” The lust in his gaze threatened to make her traitorous girl parts combust.

She crossed her arms and closed her eyes, blocking out his alluring baby-blue ones. “You’re impossible.”

When he chuckled, she winced.

Good come back, Shelby. That’d rate about a Three from the East German judge.

Her anger slowly dissipated as she leaned back and enjoyed the fast ride. She really missed her Porsche.

Nick’s comment about why she couldn’t just have a fun fling bounced around her brain.

Who was he to talk? She turned to him and asked, “Have you ever been in love, Nick?”

He shook his head. “Nope.”

“If you’ve never been in love, you can’t know what you’re missing. Dating will be good for you. You work too much. You need to find someone you can have fun with and who’ll show you how nice a real relationship can be.”

“I had fun with you last night. Dump the prince and I’ll show you what it’s like to have great sex with a real man.”

“No thank you, Mr. Shallow.” She huffed out a breath.

Would she consider it if she thought Nick would take her seriously? But he wouldn’t. He’d sleep with her a few times and then move on when he became bored. But the sex would probably be amazing.

When they arrived at her favorite cozy Italian restaurant, Nick held the door open for her. She couldn’t argue with Nick’s manners. It was about the only thing she couldn’t argue with him about.

The little tables covered with red-and-white checked table cloths all had wine bottles with colorful wax dripping down the sides at their center. The scent of garlic and warm, freshly made bread made Shelby’s stomach beg for a big slice of their to-die-for lasagna.

The owner, Michael, waved from the kitchen. “We got you all set up like last time, Shelby. You want the usual?”

“Yes, please!” She loved supporting small mom-and-pop restaurants like hers and Jo’s. Although, Jo had bigger plans for theirs one day.

She wrapped her hand around Nick’s big arm and tugged him to the rear, weaving through the tables full of diners. “Okay, so you’ll sit here with your back to the wall and wait for Lisa. She said she’s wearing a blue silk shirt and black slacks. I’ll be over there where she can’t see me but you’ll be able to. Try not to make eye contact with me when I speak in your ear. It’s a mistake first-timers often make.”

“Got it.” Nick accepted the ear piece and popped it in. “So, what does Lisa do for a living?”

“That’s an excellent question you should ask
her
, not me. Have a seat and I’ll go to my table and we’ll do a quick sound check.”

Nick nodded and pulled his chair out.

Shelby took her place, grabbed a menu so she could hide her face when Lisa walked by, and then said softly, “Can you hear me, Nick?”

“Roger that.”

“Good. Hey, put your phone away.”

He frowned at the screen. “Why? She’s not here yet.”

“Don’t make me come over there. Put it away, now!”

“I just want to answer this one—”

“Nick. Stop. You don’t want to miss that magical moment. The one where she’s searching for you, you’re looking for her, and when your eyes finally meet, you both realize at the same time you’ve found the one you’re looking for.”

He laughed as he tucked his phone away. “You should be writing chick flicks instead of children’s books, Shelby. That’s the most ridiculous—” He glanced up. “She just walked in. And yet, there’s not even an ounce of that magical mojo crap you just described. I’m feeling totally ripped off here—”

“Shhhh! She’s going to think you’re talking to yourself like a crazy person.”

When Lisa reached his table, Nick stood and held his hand out. “Hi. I’m Nick. Are you Lisa?”

“Yes, nice to meet you, Nick. Shelby described you well. I knew it was you instantly.” Nick shook the tall, slender, dark-haired beauty’s hand and then pulled her chair out for her.

So far, so good. Lisa was a new client so it’d be good to see how she operated too.

When a big plate of lasagna appeared before Shelby, she smiled and thanked her waiter. As she listened in, Lisa did all the talking and Nick gave her short one or two word answers. He hadn’t paid any attention at all to his homework. He was breaking all the conversation rules.

She dug into her meal, hopeful that Nick would get a clue and ask Lisa something.

When he seemed more interested in the menu than his date Shelby said, “Thank her for meeting you on her lunch hour, then ask what she does for a living.” She’d chosen Lisa because she was a lawyer, like Beth, hoping it’d be easier for Nick to find common ground.

Nick smiled and asked Lisa the question.

Lisa laid her menu down. “Well, I just recently made a huge life change. I quit my job because I felt stifled and unable to embrace my beliefs to the fullest. So, I bought a little shop nearby. We sell crystals and hard-to-get items for those who wish to cast spells and practice voodoo.”

Nick blinked. “Spells? And voodoo?”

Shelby stopped eating and strained to hear as Lisa said, “Yes. I omitted that part on my profile because many people are closed-minded about my lifestyle. I can talk to the dead sometimes too.”

“The dead too, huh?” Nick’s brow furrowed. “And spells. Wow. That’s . . . interesting.”

Lisa nodded as she perused the menu again. “Yes, I’m quite good at them, actually. You seem a little uptight. If you’d like, I could cook you up a good cleansing spell.”

Shelby laughed so hard she nearly spit out her lasagna.

Nick said, “No. I’m good. But thanks. So, what are we going to order?” He lifted his menu in front of his face and whisper-screamed, “Get me out of this. Now, Shelby!”

This was the perfect punishment for what he did to her in front of Greg. No way was she shutting it down. It was entirely too much fun to watch him suffer. “It’s good practice. Ask her if she knows any
love
spells.”

He growled, “Hell, no!” before he lowered his menu and broke another rule by glaring straight at her.

She answered him with a smug smile as she ate her awesome lasagna. She’d have to remember to update Lisa’s profile when she got back home.

Nick tugged at his collar the whole time their waiter took their order. When he glanced her way again, she almost felt sorry for him. But it’d be interesting to see what he did in this kind of situation, so she ignored his pleading eyes and buttered some more warm bread.

“Look, Lisa.” Nick ran a hand down his face. “You seem like a great person and all, but I have to be honest here. I’m one of those closed-minded people you mentioned. I don’t want to be disingenuous and pretend I think we’d be a good match. So maybe—”

Lisa lifted a hand and cut him off. “Yes, I know. I read you as soon as I touched your hand. I also saw that you’re in love with another woman. You should get in touch with and accept those feelings because she’d make you happy.” Lisa called the waiter over and canceled her order. Then she said to Nick, “But you need to figure out how to forgive yourself before you’ll be truly happy. It was nice to meet you. Be well, Nick.”

Because Shelby was still processing Lisa’s words, she forgot to hide behind her menu. Lisa winked at her as she passed by.

Shelby picked up her plate and slipped into Lisa’s vacated chair as the waiter placed a plate of lasagna in front of Nick. “Okay, that last thing she said is freaking me out. How could she know? About the forgiving yourself thing. Maybe she’s legit?”

Nick laughed. “Shelby, think about it. Most people carry guilt about something, it was just a lucky guess.” He took a big bite of lasagna. “This is amazing!”

“I know, right? It’s my favorite.” She took another bite off her own plate and pondered the rest of what Lisa said. “Could the other woman she thought you were in love with be Beth? You were with her for a few years.”

Nick’s fork stopped mid-bite. He stared into her eyes for a moment before he slowly shook his head. “No. It’s not Beth.”

“Oh, okay.” A weird sense of relief filled her as she finished off her meal.

When she was done, she pushed her empty plate forward and watched Nick eat. Joyous lust for his rich, cheesy lasagna lit his handsome face. He probably had that same expression when he made love to a woman.

After he scooped up the last of the red sauce with his garlic bread, he glanced up and caught her staring. “What?”

“Nothing.” She pulled herself together and held out her hand. “I need my Bluetooth back.”

He handed it over. “This didn’t do
me
any good, but you seemed to enjoy it. Next time, can you hit the mute button when you’re laughing your ass off? It’s distracting.”

“Okay. But when she got to the part about you needing a cleanse . . .” Shelby started laughing all over again.

“Yeah, that was hilarious.” Sarcasm laced his tone, but Nick smiled as he signed his name to the bill. “Let’s go.”

She waved to the owner on the way out. When they got to Nick’s car she held her hand out and waggled her fingers. “Keys, please. I want to drive back.”

“I
never
let anyone else drive my car.” Nick’s grin grew wicked as he tugged his keys from his pocket. “But maybe I’d be willing to make an exception.” He leaned closer and whispered, “If you kiss me again.”

The heat smoldering in his eyes sent a bolt of desire straight to her belly.

She wanted to. But she really, really shouldn’t. “Deal.”

Nick’s brows spiked as he dropped the keys into her hand.

She stood on her toes and kissed his cheek.

“That’s not nearly good enough.” Nick reached for his keys.

She held them behind her back. “Too bad. Next time you’ll just have to be more specific.”

Laughing, Shelby hightailed it to the driver’s side before Nick changed his mind. She was a good driver and couldn’t wait to scare the crap out of him on the way home.

CHAPTER NINE

“Chester loved his bright-red sneakers. Hopefully, all the girls would too!”

Chester Goes To His First Birthday Party

“Mirror, mirror on the wall, will this be the sexiest outfit of them all?” Shelby chanted into her full-length mirror as she slipped a dangly earring into place. She wore a scoop neck pink top with a push up bra underneath that worked the girls nicely, super tight jeans, high heeled ankle boots and a tight cropped leather jacket to top it all off. Her hair was poofier than usual and she’d given herself dark, smoky eyes. “Or do I look a hooker?”