Miss Match (6 page)

Nathan laughed. “We don’t need
your secrets. Talia’s a joke and your product’s floundering. I’m launching a new system in January that’s going to make yours look like something out of the Dark Ages.”

“Talia is
not
a joke.”

“She’s got more glitches than a government website. And you refuse to even consider
replacing—”

Luke’s fist flew and landed in the middle of Nathan’s face. Luke felt the crunch of cartilage as hand met nose. Felt the skin on his knuckles split. Blood exploded, splattering all over Nathan’s face and onto Luke’s white tuxedo shirt. Candi let out a dramatic scream. The bartender yelped. Nathan fell to his knees, his hands covering his bleeding nose.

Nathan let out an expletive. “What was that for?” His voice had a distinct nasal sound now.

And that’s when Luke saw Brooke.

CHAPTER SIX

Brooke stood frozen in horror
as she watched blood ooze from between Nathan’s fingers. It’d taken a while to extricate herself from Mrs. Darius and her grandson, but not
that
long. His careful language and easy blush had spoken of a girlfriend he obviously hadn’t told his grandparents about—a bummer since she really could use another client.

Someone in a glittering green dress pulled a cell phone from her bra and snapped a picture. Brooke took a step forward, then paused. Antonio would freak if she ended up in the papers so soon after their conversation. A picture of her talking to the mayor at the gala was explainable, but not this.

Another camera flashed. Brooke lurched toward Luke.

“You’re crazy,” Nathan yelled at Luke. Candi helped him to his feet. A waitress hurried forward and handed him a stack of cocktail napkins for his nose.

“What were you thinking?” Brooke hissed at Luke. “What happened?” A few more people took out their phones. The reporters, clearly differentiated by the press passes on lanyards around their necks, were converging on the scene. The flashes of their cameras were nearly blinding.

“Mr. Ryder, was this a provoked attack?” one asked.

An old woman pointed an accusing finger at Luke. “I saw him punch Mr. Kendall in the nose.”

This is a nightmare.
Brooke grabbed Luke’s arm, pulling him away from the crowd. His breath was heavy, and he shook his hand as though it stung. They had to get out of there.

“I’ll sue you to bankruptcy for this,” Nathan yelled at their retreating figures.

Mitch pushed his way through the crowd. “What’s going on?” he asked Brooke.

“He insulted Talia,” Luke said through clenched teeth. “I had to hit him.”

“Was the confrontation over the voice recognition feature in your home automation system?” a reporter asked, shoving a small voice recorder toward Luke. “Or was it because Kendall is dating your ex-girlfriend?”

“Don’t say anything,” Mitch said. He was already pulling up the contacts list on his cell. “Not until we talk to the lawyers.”

Paramedics pushed their way through the crowd, a gurney helping to cut a path. “Stand back,” one of them said. “Give Mr. Kendall some space.”

Nathan let a paramedic help him onto the gurney. “I think he broke my nose.”

“Wimp,” Luke said, and not quietly either.

“Shut up,” Brooke hissed.

“Does this have anything to do with the fact that you’re having an affair with Mr. Kendall’s girlfriend?” a reporter asked.

“Get him out of here,” Mitch said to Brooke.

Brooke quickly reviewed the contingency plan Mitch always had in place for these situations. Escape through the service entrance into the kitchen. Go to the back of the hotel. A car would be waiting. She grabbed Luke’s arm and tugged.

Two burly men in uniforms pushed their way through the crowd. “Security. Let us through. Security!”

Brooke’s heart sank. “Let’s go,” she said.

A hand fell on her shoulder. “Not so fast. Mr. Ryder, the police will need a statement.”

“Then they’ll have to make an appointment,” Brooke snapped. “Mr. Ryder isn’t feeling well and needs to leave.”

“I’m afraid that leaving isn’t an option, miss,” the security officer said.

“At least let us go outside to talk.” Brooke motioned to the cameras.

“Mr. Ryder, how much have you had to drink?” a reporter called.

The security officer looked around, then nodded and escorted them from the room. The door to the ballroom swung shut behind them. But not before a few last camera flashes captured the moment.

Antonio is going to be thrilled.
Brooke groaned at the thought. She was supposed to pick him up at the airport in less than twenty-four hours—plenty of time for this to go viral.

“Thank you,” Brooke told the security officer. He nodded and helped them escape into the relative anonymity of the hotel’s parking garage. A police officer arrived moments later.

“What happened?” the police officer asked.

“Nathan was mouthing off,” Luke said, his words running together. “Insulting Talia. Insulting my father. And now he’s trying to steal our clients.”

The officer looked at Brooke.

“I didn’t hear the confrontation,” she said.

Mitch arrived then, nearly blending into the darkness with his ebony skin and black tuxedo. “Nathan grudgingly declined pressing charges,” Mitch said. Brooke let out a sigh of relief. “I think he wants to look noble in front of the press.”

“Let him try to sue me,” Luke said. He stuck out his chin belligerently. “I’d love to take him on in court.”

Brooke felt like slapping Luke. Didn’t he care about how this was affecting everyone else involved?

Mitch swore. “You think you’re in hot water with the board now? They’d have boiled you alive if Nathan had decided to press charges. And it’s my job on the line too. I’m supposed to stop this sort of crap from happening.”

The police officer held up a hand. “Let’s all calm down.” His radio beeped to life, and he spoke quickly into it, then listened. “Looks like Mr. Kendall is indeed feeling generous. Since he isn’t pressing charges, I don’t need to take your statements. You can go.” He nodded his head toward Luke. “Make sure he doesn’t drive himself home.”

“Thank you, Officer,” Brooke said as the police officer and security guards left.

“I’ll get him home,” Mitch said, motioning to Luke.

Brooke nodded. She needed some space right now. And she needed to figure out how to spin this to Antonio. Maybe she should call and explain, before it started circulating around the web. No, better to delay.

“He provoked me, Brooke,” Luke said as she helped him into the waiting limo.

Brooke closed her eyes and took a deep breath. “I doubt the media will care.” She slammed the door shut and turned to face Mitch. “How bad is it going to be?”

Mitch sighed. “Hopefully Nathan doesn’t change his mind about pressing charges. The press heard him decline so I doubt he’ll flip. I’ve already got people on damage control. All we can do is wait and see.”

Brooke leaned against the car. “When is he going to come back?” she asked. “I miss Luke.”

Mitch awkwardly patted Brooke on the shoulder. “He’ll bounce back soon.”

“If I don’t kill him first. My fiancé is going to lose it when he finds out about this.” Brooke took a deep breath and blew it out. “I’m going home.”

CHAPTER SEVEN

Brooke tossed and turned all night
before finally giving up and going for a run. The trees in the park reached toward the sky like skeletons, and the cool air hurt her lungs. She ran a few laps around the paved trail, enjoying the stillness of the park. The sky was beginning to light, and she heard a few birds chirping nearby.

Her phone buzzed in her armband, knocking her out of her thoughts. Who would call this early?

Brooke slowed to a jog and slid a finger across the screen of her cell.
I’m sorry.
It was a text from Luke.

Brooke angrily shoved her phone back in her armband and picked up her pace. He should be sorry. His behavior last night had been out of line.

And now she’d get to explain the whole debacle to Antonio.

Brooke ducked her head and increased her pace even more, her feet pounding against the asphalt. She and Antonio were a perfect match, or practically perfect at least. When Brooke had approached Charlotte two years ago about signing as a client with Toujour, she’d expected Charlotte to insist a matchmaker couldn’t also be matched. But Charlotte had been excited to help Brooke find true love, and agreed to let her join. It took only two okay dates before she was matched with Antonio. His Italian family was ultra-traditional, and his parents had met on their wedding day through a matchmaker. They wanted their son to find happiness the same way. Brooke and Antonio had a seventy-one percent compatibility rating, which was excellent.

It only took three dates for them to decide to be exclusive. They’d been together ever since.

Her phone buzzed again. Brooke ignored it and kept running. The sky was now a dusty pink, and the trail was starting to fill with other runners. One more lap, then she’d get ready to pick up Antonio.

She was unlocking her apartment door when she received another text. Brooke sighed and pulled her phone out. Both texts were from Luke.

I’ll explain what happened to Antonio if it’ll help.

Please don’t be mad at me. I’m sorry.

Brooke closed her phone without replying. She’d decide how to respond after gauging how upset Antonio was.

Brooke took her time getting ready. She curled her hair into loose beach waves, the way Antonio preferred, and put on a little more makeup than usual. Then she paired her favorite jeans with stylish boots and left for the airport.

Traffic was a nightmare, but she still arrived at the airport early. She parked in the short-term lot and headed inside.
Maybe the story hasn’t hit the newsstands yet.
And maybe Antonio hadn’t been online.

Curse Luke Ryder. She’d looked forward to Antonio’s return since he left ten days ago, and now because of Luke she dreaded it.

Three car rental counters advertised various savings, but thankfully didn’t have any newspapers with Luke’s face on display. Maybe not enough time had passed for the story to be in print. Brooke found baggage claim and four more newsstands, but none of them had a front page photo of Luke either.

Brooke closed her eyes and wished she could rewind last night. What could she have done differently? Maybe she should’ve told Mrs. Darius to bring her grandson to the bar. Maybe she should’ve made Luke go with her. Maybe she should’ve refused to leave his side. Maybe she should create a rule to avoid ever being in this situation again.

Maybe Luke should grow up and stop acting like a child.

Last year at the company party, Luke had joked and charmed everyone in the room. Brooke’s only concern had been making sure things didn’t get too awkward between him and Antonio. Now Brooke felt more like a babysitter than best friend.

A small gift shop stood in one corner of the baggage claim area. Brooke looked at her watch. She still had at least thirty minutes to kill. She wandered into the shop.
Santa Baby
played on the overhead, and Christmas ornaments were prominently displayed on the front counter.

“Hi,” the store clerk said. “How can I help you?”

“Do you sell newspapers or magazines?” Brooke asked.

The woman popped her gum. “Sure do. They’re on the back wall.”

“Thanks.” Brooke headed to the back of the store. None of the newspapers or magazines showed a picture of Luke on the cover. She let out a sigh of relief.

“Next up, Luke Ryder in a jealous rage.”

Brooke’s head jerked up. She zeroed in on the television in the corner, showing
E! News.
A picture flashed of Nathan Kendall, blood spurting out of his nose.

“Last night, Luke Ryder punched Nathan Kendall in the face,” the reporter said. He motioned to the picture behind him.

“You’ve gotta feel bad for the guy,” the female reporter said. “His dad just died, and now he’s CEO of a billion-dollar corporation that isn’t doing so hot. And the competition is moving in on his old girlfriend.”

“He’s already having an affair with an engaged woman,” the male reporter said. “Does he need to add another one to his list?”

“Kendall didn’t press charges, so he’s coming out of this looking like a hero,” the female reporter said. “Looks like Luke won’t get either woman to break up with her significant other anytime soon.”

Brooke looked away in disgust. They hadn’t even mentioned the purpose of the gala, or the announcement of the lung cancer foundation. The two positives had been overshadowed by the one negative.

“Delta Flight 435 from Atlanta, Georgia has now landed,” the airport announcer said over the intercom system. Antonio’s connecting flight.

Brooke checked the time on her cell phone. The flight was nearly thirty minutes early. Her stomach clenched. She turned away from the television and wandered over to wait by the security exit. Soon she and Antonio would be reunited after ten long days apart. The tabloids—and Luke—better not ruin this.