True Connections (2 page)

Her dainty nose wrinkled as she took a sip. Her pink tongue darted out over her upper lip, and he stifled a groan. Her actions fueled the memories from years ago. “Back to our grandmothers.”

“Oh, yes.” She straightened in her seat. “Here’s my plan. All you have to do is come to my office, fill out the paperwork, and let me set you up on some dates. If the women don’t work out, I’ll tell them I tried, and you can go back to dating whichever bimbo you were seeing before. And life goes on.”

He frowned. “I’m not going to your dating service to set myself up with strange women.”

“Matchmaking agency.”

“Whatever.”

She glared, her lips pursing. He hated that look. “Then what do you propose we do? At least if we try, they’ll get over it and move on.”

“Until the next time they hatch another scheme.” She was right. Grammy, Nanna Maria, and Dina liked to gang up on him and Lia, which was why they stuck together when necessary. “I’m not signing up for a
matchmaking service.
”

“All right, then fine. You talk to Grammy and Nanna, because you don’t want to pretend to try. They just want you to bring a proper date to the party. That’s it, I swear.” She calmly lifted her cup to her lips.

His eyes narrowed.

“And you can tell them you want to stay a bachelor for life, and that you want to continue dating those blondes and keep disappointing them. Then they’ll probably tell you that they’ll never see the day you settle down, never have great-grandchildren to hold. Then the dramatics are going to start between the two, and you can deal with their sad faces, and you—”

He threw his hands up and glared. “Okay! I’ll be at your office tomorrow.”

Chapter Three

Clutching her coffee in one hand and her briefcase in the other, Lia proceeded up the stairs to her own domain. Max had left her with a sense of victory yesterday, but seeing him again drew forth the emotions she’d long suppressed—first to punch him in the face, then to curl up in his arms. But she held onto her anger instead. It was safer that way.

The years apart had done him good, and made him more handsome. Why couldn’t he have been more flawed, with a scar on his face or something? She’d expected him to have aged a bit, maybe gained a beer belly from all the drinking he’d done back in the day. But no. He’d only become richer and more desirable.

She’d returned to work, thinking about nothing but the warm press of his hand through her coat, as if his palm had burned her lower back when he’d opened the coffee house door for her to enter. That thought had done nothing but dredge up the old kiss—which had haunted her throughout the rest of the day, even when she’d gone home late and eaten a lonely microwave dinner.

And instead of falling into the exhausted slumber she embraced each night after overworking herself, she’d laid in bed formulating ways to torture Max.

Now that he’d agreed to sign up for her matchmaking services, there was nothing wrong with her having a little fun. And to think he couldn’t even remember much about Lindsay Forks. He could barely recall the women he dated, just like those guys who’d dumped her mother and moved onto the next piece of arm candy. She pitied the woman Max ended up taking to the party.

Lost in thought, she set her coffee down on her desk.

“Nice place.”

Lia jumped. Her briefcase fell to the floor as her hands flew to her chest. Max grinned and closed the distance between them.

“What the hell are you doing here?” Her heart pounded.

“Um, hello? You told me to come here to fill out paperwork, remember?” He leaned in toward her, until his mouth was barely an inch from hers.

Her eyes shot to his topaz blue ones, which darkened for the barest second. “What are you doing?”

“You dropped your briefcase.” His eyebrow lifted in question as he picked up her briefcase and set it on her desk, next to her coffee, then moved away. “Why are you so jumpy? Let’s just get this over with so I can go back to work. I don’t have all day.”

Neither did she. But she kept the retort to herself, hung her jacket on the coat rack, and smoothed her hand down her black skirt. She could feel his eyes on her, but she ignored the sensation. Maybe she was imagining things. When she’d first seen him yesterday, she’d noticed his look of appreciation…until he’d realized who she was. Not that she’d changed all that much over the years, besides maturing in her choice of wardrobe and learning what a dumbass she could be when it came to interpreting her own relationships and men.

She could find any client a perfect match, but when it came to herself, she was hopeless. Not that she’d had such a great role model to mirror herself after. Her mother’s choice in men always left her with a broken heart. And it didn’t help that Lia’s ex-best friend stole
her
fiancé, either.

Max sat in one of the chairs in front of her desk while she made a wide circle to get to her own seat. Her palms felt clammy as she turned on the computer.

“So, where do we start?” he asked, casually crossing his knee over his leg.

“Well, you have to fill out a few questionnaires, then the computer will match you up with a few candidates.”

The screen came to life and Lia maneuvered the mouse over the True Connections database icon. The program opened and she clicked until she landed on the new client form.

“Why a matchmaking service? Why couldn’t you have opened up a normal business like a drycleaner’s or clothing store or something?”

“I love watching people hook up. Maybe it’s from Nanna’s annual Valentine’s Day party or whatever. The idea of playing matchmaker has always been fun.” At least she had the joy of seeing others be happy. Her business was the only success she had.

“Which is why I avoided those parties when I could.”

She grinned. They’d always found ways to disappear when Valentine’s came about, but their grandmothers always wrangled them there. Although she’d thought herself lucky to have missed them for so long, now the idea of attending alone brought a pang to her chest. “That’s because Nanna and Grammy had designs for the both of us. Maybe it’s in my blood, maybe it runs in the family. Besides, our families have always been romantics.”

He frowned. “If you say so.”

“Okay, except for you. I can’t see you doing anything romantic, anyway.”

“I’m a man. I don’t have time to play games like this.”

“Whatever you say. If I get you a date, then Grammy and Nanna are gonna love me more.”

“And what makes you think they won’t set you up after they think they have me taken care of?”

“I’ll deal with it when it’s my turn.” She’d be alone for the rest of her life, so it didn’t matter. Max drummed his fingers on the desk. She pursed her lips. “What?”

He shrugged. “How long is this going to take?”

She glanced at her watch. “Are you in a hurry? Would you rather forget this whole thing so
you
can deal with our grandmothers instead?”

He glared, and Lia bit her inner cheek to keep from smirking. Picking up the keyboard, she placed it in front of him and adjusted the screen to face him. “Fill this out.”

He sat up and shifted to the edge of the seat. “What is this bullshit? Favorite food? Color?”

Lia rolled her eyes and pulled her iPad out of her briefcase, then opened her calendar. “Just answer the questions.”

“This better be damn well worth it,” he muttered. He continued to click on the mouse.

“Who knows? Maybe you’ll actually meet someone worthy enough to rock your world.” She brushed the iPad screen with her finger to get to the next week, but something white caught her attention. She glanced over to the drawer to see the edge of the invitation sticking out of the drawer. She pushed at the corner of the ivory cardstock. Focusing on their grandmothers’ mission and seeing Max, she’d almost forgotten about the wedding that should have been hers.

“If anyone finds out I’m here, I’m sure they’ll get a kick out of it. But I do need a date to the charity ball this weekend.”

She recalled Grammy Carol mentioning the event. If she went with him, it would only fuel their grandmothers’ hope to see them together one day.
No way.
“What kind of charity ball?”

He gave her a quick glance before his eyes returned to the computer screen. “For the Marksmith Foundation. They raise money to help cranky single miserable women like you.”

She ignored him. “What charity?”

Max grinned, and her heart did a flip. “It’s to raise money for victims of drunk driving and a few other things. I don’t remember. Keith Walkers’s mother heads the foundation. His twin sisters died in a drunk driving accident three years ago. I’m actually one of the sponsors for this event.”

Lia leaned back in her seat. She wished she could hate him for all the good deeds he’d done for the community. Their grandmothers constantly raved about how kind-hearted Max was in helping the less fortunate, even though he profited from making an undeveloped part of town look like a gold mine.

“And you need a date?” she asked, tapping her finger against her chin.

Max threw her a grin. “I could scrap this whole thing and just bring someone I know. Not like you can really find me anyone.”

Her eyes narrowed. She’d heard the challenge in his voice. “Nanna and Grams want you to bring a proper date to the party, so I’m sure that entails one to the charity event.”

He snorted. “Look, it’s bad enough that I’m here filling out this form.” He turned the screen to face her. “What does it matter if I have allergies or not? Or what my dream vacation is? Who came up with these stupid questions?”

Her throat tightened and she blew out a breath. “Just answer the questions to the best of your abilities.”

He chuckled. “Sweetheart, you have no idea what those are.”

Her fists clenched, then released. This was just Max. She’d show him. “I’ll find you a date to the charity.”

“Why does that sound so ominous?” He moved the screen back to position.

With as much innocence as she could feign, she smiled. “Who knows? Maybe you’ll find a proper date tomorrow—someone that Nanna and Grammy would approve for both the party
and
your charity thing.”

“What’s going on tomorrow?”

“The speed date luncheon.”

Max grimaced. “Speed date luncheon? Are you for real? Who actually goes on dates in the middle of a work day?”

She glared. “People who take my company seriously. Don’t tell me you’ve never picked up women during the day now that you’re making big bucks?”

“Money isn’t everything.”

She wished she could believe him. Men like him used his wealth to their advantage to draw weak women like her mother into their lair, before they broke hearts and moved on to the next victim. “Maybe it’s all your success that’s attracting the wrong type of women.”

“There’s nothing wrong with my success. I’ve worked hard to be where I am, and when I’ve accomplished what I want, maybe then I’d consider finding the right woman.”

She quelled the urge to scoff at his words. He’d never settle down. From what she’d seen at the construction site, he enjoyed his job a little too much, and he obviously still dated the same types of women—women like Lindsay Forks. “We’ll see.”

He growled as he focused back on the computer screen. “Is this thing going to tell me who I’m to meet right away?”

Lia smirked. “No, I have to run your reports through another program and see which candidates match your file. Then you’ll meet them this week. So, if you don’t meet—” she lifted her hands to quote “‘—the right woman’ then there’s always the social on Friday.”

His eyes narrowed, tension lining his jaw. “And this happens all this week?”

She stifled her amusement and cleared her throat. The least she could do was pretend to be professional, even though devious thoughts ruled her mind. She knew just who to hook him up with. “Yes. We only have two weeks until Nanna’s party. So if you don’t find anyone this week, we’d need next week to try again. The Regis Royal Hotel is—”

Max jerked out of his chair. “I’m not going.”

“Why not?”

He paced the carpet in front of her desk and shoved a hand through his hair. “I do business at that hotel all the time. They recognize me. Shoot. Nick Claremont owns that chain. If he finds out I was there for a blind date, do you know what would happen?”

She pressed her lips together to contain her laughter. “No, why don’t you tell me?”

He spun around and slammed his palms on the desk. “I’d be the laughing stock of the town.”

“No—” Lia leaned further back into her chair, her breath hitching at his close proximity. “Nobody’s going to laugh.”

Of course he would worry about his reputation. The successful playboy cared what others thought of him. The Grant elite, from what she’d learned, kept well to their own social group. And if word got out, how was the rich bachelor going to find his next victim?

“No one is going to laugh. And what makes you think Nanna and Grammy won’t tell their friends, who would tell their kids?”

Max froze.

She chuckled. She had him there.

He straightened, but kept his glare. “I’m not going.”

Lia took a deep breath. “Do you want me to talk to our grandmothers? It’s just a few luncheons and socials. It’ll be over before you know it.”

His lips thinned. “I am not going to a speed date luncheon.”

She crossed her arms. “You have to.”

“Dammit, Lia! This is stupid.”

“Stop being a baby and just get it over with. Two weeks. That’s it. Once you find a date to the party, then you can decide if you guys still want to see each other.” She had her doubts. She couldn’t imagine him settling down with anyone, despite what he’d said at the coffee house. The idea of Max getting married sent a pang to her heart.

He huffed and dropped into his seat. His hand covered the mouse again as he continued to fill out the questionnaire. “If it weren’t for our grandmothers, I swear I wouldn’t have stepped foot in your office and signed up for your dating service.”

“Matchmaking.”

“Whatever.”

Lia grinned. Victory. Max couldn’t win. She knew which strings to pull. Always had. “Plan on clearing your calendar the next two weeks.”

He grunted. “I’ll tell my secretary to work it out with you.”

“Lovely.” She picked up her iPad once again and fiddled with the calendar.

“How come you don’t find yourself a date or something through your company?”

She stiffened. “It’s unprofessional to date clients.”

“You’re not over that ass, are you?”

Lia sighed. She waited for the anger to rise at the mention of her ex, but her insides turned numb. At times, she wished she could brush aside the betrayal of Steve’s wrongdoings, but she’d been glad to be given the chance to finally open her eyes. Too bad she couldn’t have taken the past five years back. When would she ever be able to hold a relationship without it messing up on her?

“Mind your own business,” she said.

“Seriously, why won’t you talk about it?”

She looked up. Max would be the last person she’d confide in. Plus it’d been his fault. Was she truly so undesirable that one kiss forced him into Lindsay Forks’s arms? If it hadn’t been for him, she wouldn’t have thought she loved Steve and left for the city to start a new life.

“He didn’t want to marry you?”

She glanced at the desk drawer. She should have burned the damn invitation when she’d gotten it. Her gaze leveled with his, but didn’t waver. Her insides tightened. “Are you done with your questionnaire?”

Max eyed her suspiciously. “Yeah, I’m done.”

She took the keyboard and mouse back, turning the screen so she could check his answers before finalizing the test. It wasn’t until she glanced up that she realized he stood next to her.

“Forget him,” he said softly.

His musky cologne teased her nose, smelling just as she’d remembered, and she drew a deep breath. He lifted his hand and stroked her chin, forcing her to look at him. The caress sent a jolt to her belly.