Meeting His Match (A Match Me Novel) (Entangled Lovestruck) (3 page)

Sadly, her hormones weren’t listening.

“I don’t have a physical preference. Beautiful, I reckon. She’s got to be able to doll herself up and attend the functions where my presence is required.”

Addison had had plenty of clients who gave her so much information she basically had to mine out the truth to discover what they actually wanted. Caine was the exact opposite. “So, let me get this straight. You have no hobbies. You don’t care what this woman looks like as long as she can ‘doll herself up’ and entertain herself and pop out a few babies for you?”

His gray eyes gave away nothing, but she again had the sneaking suspicion that he was testing her. “That sounds about right.”

He might as well not have agreed to anything, because he was setting her up to fail.

Addison smiled because she felt like smacking that smug look right off his face. “I’ll see what I can do.” Because she had her work cut out for her. Even if she could find a woman he was interested in, getting that candidate to like
him
was going to be challenging. He might be a millionaire, but most women wanted a man a few personality traits beyond being ambitious and rude. She’d have to work on that before she picked who she’d fly down here to test the waters.

But it was nothing she could do right this second. First she needed more research, and then she needed to form a plan of action. Maybe Regan would have some ideas about that. She stood and smoothed down her dress, painfully aware of the way Caine’s gaze tracked the movement. “I’ll let you get to work. We’ll talk more when you come home tonight.” Because he
would
come back to the giant house she’d stayed in last night, or she’d drive over here and pester him until he left. She didn’t know how he stood living there alone, but one night of it and she was jumping at small sounds, flinching at shadows, and ready to believe in all those ghost stories she wished she hadn’t read before she flew down here. No wonder the man was so cranky.

He smiled in a way that did nothing good for her blood pressure. “I wouldn’t miss it for the world.”

Chapter Four

The day went downhill after Addison left. As fun as poking at her had been, he couldn’t deny there was a spark of something there. If she hadn’t pulled away when she did, he would have said to hell with personal boundaries and kissed her. Caine spent entirely too much of his morning wondering what she would taste like. Would she be sweet like she’d seemed at Brock’s wedding? Or tart like her personality now canted toward? Not knowing drove him nuts.

He had to put the conundrum out of his head, though, when his father called. He took a deep breath and answered. “Father.”

“Have you got those contracts finished yet?”

Even after all these years, he couldn’t help the disappointment that hit him. There wouldn’t be any small talk today, just like there hadn’t been any for the last thirty-odd years. His old man wasn’t interested in what he was doing with his life as long as he was managing the company and meeting the other expectations laid out for him. It was a lack he’d always felt, though he’d done his damnedest never to show it. “I’ll have them back to you shortly.”

“You should have had them back to me last night.”

The thing his younger brother never understood was that Caine didn’t live up to their father’s high expectations any more than Brock did. The only difference between them was that he never stopped trying. There were days when he envied his brother’s ability to tell their old man to fuck off. He’d never quite managed it. “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be sorry. Get it done faster next time.” A voice murmured in the background. “My nine o’clock’s here. I expect those papers on my desk in an hour.”

Since it took an hour to get from Manchester to Nashville, he’d have to send them out the door right now. Fighting back a sigh, he said, “Will do.” Caine hung up, the good mood that had come from needling Addison disappearing like smoke. As well it should. He didn’t have time to play games with her, no matter how delightful her responses to his pushing were. When he got home tonight, he’d set the record straight and send her on her way.

Satisfied he had the situation well in hand, he settled down to finish the contracts. Once he gave them to Agnes to be sent over, he moved on. There was a new development going in north of Manchester, and he fully intended on securing the vast stretch of property just north of it—if he could get Gloucester and Richards to see eye to eye. Right now it was a field, but inside of ten years, it would be the premier place for small businesses and for people from the new suburbs who didn’t want to drive the fifteen minutes back into town. It was a good long-term investment all the way around.

By the time he surfaced, his stomach rumbling a protest, it was after five. Caine scrubbed a hand over his face. As tempting as it was to order in and keep going, he had a matchmaker to deal with. He allowed himself a smile as he thought of how outraged she looked when she was going through that questionnaire. He’d answered honestly enough, but seeing how baffled she was had made him be purposefully vague going forward.

He shut off his computer and grabbed his keys. It wouldn’t hurt to go home for once. At least the house wouldn’t be empty—Caine had a feeling that any house Addison was in could never be termed as such. She was too full of life, and that enthusiasm leached out into the room around her.

Even if she was a pain in his ass.

Agnes was already gone for the day, but she’d left a new pot of coffee going for him. He shook his head. She was an amazing secretary, but it said something sad about his life that she automatically assumed he’d be working late. It wasn’t the predictability that bothered him so much as the fact he had nowhere else to go.

This was his life.

Caine headed for home, the drive doing nothing to relax him, mostly because he knew exactly what was waiting for him at the house. Or, rather,
who
. God only knew what trouble Addison had gotten up to today. He should be relieved she hadn’t dropped by the office again or insisted on staying to talk more about this matchmaking nonsense, but he couldn’t stop thinking about the way she’d leaned into him when he’d gotten within touching distance. Which led him to wonder when was the last time she’d been that close to another person, let alone a man.

A long time ago, if the surprise on her face was any indication.

He pulled into his long, winding driveway, cursing his curiosity. It didn’t matter that the matchmaker was engaging and stirred something inside him that he thought long gone. She was a complication he didn’t need.

But knowing that didn’t make him any less reluctant to send her on her way. She was a breath of fresh air that he hadn’t realized he’d needed, even if it’d come when they were verbally sparring and poking at each other.

Caine opened his front door and froze as a vicious growl echoed through the foyer. What the fuck? Before he could pinpoint its source, Addison came flying around the corner. “Gollum,
no
. He’s a friend!” She pointed a finger and he followed her gaze to a giant white mop standing in the shadow of the stairs, its lip peeled back to reveal a truly impressive set of teeth. The idiot woman didn’t seem the least bit intimidated. “Be nice. He’s not going to hurt your pups.”

Pups?

The dog ducked its head and rubbed against the side of Addison’s leg, still staring warily at Caine. She finally turned her attention to him and smiled. “Welcome home.”

This place hadn’t felt like home in a very long time. The fact he now had someone here waiting for him—even temporarily—felt strange. He pushed that away to focus on the immediate problem. “What the hell is that monstrosity?”

“Shh.” She put her hands over the dog’s ears. “Don’t call her that. You’ll hurt her feelings.”

God forbid. “Fine. What is that massive dog that I don’t remember owning doing here?” He hoped like hell he had misheard her when she said pups, because one giant mop of a dog was more than enough to deal with right now.

“She’s here to help.” When he just stared, she smiled harder. “We talked about this.”

“No, we didn’t. I would remember agreeing to get a dog.”

“You’re letting me work on your image. Gollum will improve it.”

He eyed the animal. “Tolkien’s Gollum was male.”

“Well, this Gollum is female.” She patted the dog’s head. “She’s quite nice once she gets used to you.”

He doubted it. The animal looked more likely to take his hand off at the wrist than cuddle up with him. So much for dogs being man’s best friend. “That’s wonderful to hear, but I never agreed to any of this.”

Addison sighed. “I won’t be able to successfully match you if you don’t work with me, Caine.”

The fact that he hadn’t volunteered for this matchmaking business seemed lost on her. He stepped forward, but stopped when the dog growled again. “What does successfully matching me have to do with a damn dog?”

“Gollum will make you more approachable. You need that—desperately.”

“There’s not a damn thing approachable about that beast.”

“Something you have in common.”

He circled them, eyeing the long dreads hanging from the dog. It really did look like a mop. When he was a kid, he’d desperately wanted a dog. His dad had refused to allow it. As much as it had broken his ten-year-old heart, he wasn’t about to make up for the lack now.

Besides, if he’d picked a dog, it certainly wouldn’t be this one. “It—” He corrected himself when she glared. “
She
looks like a mop.”

“And this is exactly the problem.” She waved at his entire body. “You can’t even stop yourself from insulting an innocent animal. How am I supposed to get you ready for decent company?”

“I’ve been passing in decent company for years.” No matter how much he hated playing the political games being CEO demanded of him.

But Addison apparently wasn’t listening. “For your information, Gollum is a komondor. They’re a breed with bold and majestic history.”

“A history of cleaning floors?”

She hissed like an angry cat. “In World War II, when the Nazis invaded Hungary, these dogs wouldn’t stop defending their families until they were killed. As long as they were alive, they wouldn’t stop, wouldn’t compromise, wouldn’t give in. Sound familiar?”

From the way she was looking at him, she obviously thought those were traits he and the beast shared. “I reckon I’ve made quite the impression on you for you to have such a high opinion of me.”

Her eyes flashed. “Something like that.”

Before he could respond, movement in the doorway behind her caught his eye. Four white fluff balls tumbled into the room, yipping as they ran in circles around Gollum and Addison. Jesus Christ.

Caine gritted his teeth. “Tell me those aren’t
puppies
.”

For the first time since he walked through the door, she looked less than a hundred percent sure of herself. “They’re only eight weeks old. I couldn’t take her babies away from her.” She brightened. “Plus, this just shows how big of a heart you have.”

She certainly had a lot of ideas about his supposed image if she thought he needed a herd of dogs to be more approachable. “Except it wasn’t my idea.”

“Semantics.”

The dog stopped eyeing him long enough to follow her pups into another room. It was the strangest thing. Caine could actually
see
his life spiraling out of control. “I’m billing you for any damage to my carpets and furniture.”

“No need to be so sour about it. Komondors actually shed less than your average dog.”

And this was why he didn’t have a dog. Things like shedding and potty training and coming home at regular hours to make sure the animal was fed. “I don’t have time for a dog.”

“Then you don’t have time for a wife. A dog is significantly less of a commitment.”

“If you’d be so polite as to remember…I
don’t
want a wife.” Or at least he didn’t have time for a wife. Running the company meant long nights and taking his work home with him…when he actually managed to make it home. Call him crazy, but the thought of entering into a marriage like his parents had—cold and functioning independent of each other—wasn’t appealing in the least.

“Maybe not, but you certainly need one.” She peered out into the driveway where he’d parked and groaned. “A convertible Jaguar? In red? Seriously? Don’t you have something…subtler?”

Now she was picking at his car? Christ. He’d only been home fifteen minutes and all she’d done so far was insult him. “Subtler.”

“Something that doesn’t scream ‘I have money and am a powerful man!’ would be good.”

“Plenty of women like my car.”

She shot him a look that was damn near pitying.
Again
. “And how well has that worked out?”

Damn it. There wasn’t a damn thing he could do to argue with that one particular fact.

Needing to be back on firmer ground, he stepped closer to her. Her breath caught when he tucked a long strand of hair behind her ear, and a thread of satisfaction worked through him. She wanted him. She might not like that she wanted him, but she did. “You tell me.”

“Stop trying to change the subject or intimidate me into retreating. I’m going through candidates tonight. It might be difficult, but I’m sure I can find someone suitable.” She surveyed him again, taking a few steps back. “I suppose your wardrobe is adequate.”

He was wearing a thousand-dollar suit and she found that
adequate
? Every word that came out of her mouth was a surprise, and damn if that didn’t send a thrill through him. Ever since he was a child, he knew the path his life would take. The last thirty-odd years, he’d walked it in exactly the right way—one that didn’t involve surprises. And Addison was nothing but surprises. But that didn’t mean he’d let her get away with the last word. “I see you’re still wearing the purple dress.”

She blushed, smoothing down the dress in a nervous movement that only served to accent her body. And what a body it was. She looked soft and inviting and curvy in all the right places. Combined with the brilliant red hair—and the personality to match—it was enough to make his mouth water. He stalked closer, edging her up against the wall. “I like you in purple.”

“I didn’t pick it for you.” She stopped him with a hand on his chest, but she didn’t remove it, her fingers kneading his pec. He didn’t think she realized she was doing it, because she was too busy frowning at him. “Stop trying to intimidate me. It won’t work.”

“Addison, did it ever occur to you that I’m not the kind of man who tries to physically intimidate women into submission?”

She raised an eyebrow. “Recent experience seems to contradict that, don’t you think?”

Damn it, she had a point. Ever since she waltzed into his office, he’d been crowding her without invitation and generally acting like a shit. Caine started to step back, but her grip on his shirt tightened, keeping him in place. He went still, as fascinated by the confused look on her face as by the warmth of her touch against his chest. She stared at her hand like it didn’t belong to her. “Um…”

If he were a better man, he’d extract himself from this situation and let her retreat. He wasn’t a better man. He closed the small distance between them and did what he’d wanted to do ever since he set eyes on her.

He cupped the back of her neck and kissed her.