The Matchmaker's Playbook (Wingmen Inc., #1)(13)

“In men?”

“In you,” she said pointedly. “Now, stop whatever it is you’re thinking about and pay attention. I just transferred here from Boise State this semester, and I already feel like I’m behind.”

“Ohhh.” I snapped my fingers.

“What? What ‘ohhh’?”

The world suddenly made sense. “You’re from Idaho? Hit me with the town you were born in, because it sure as hell wasn’t Boise.”

She shifted in her seat, moving farther away from me as she gave me a quick sidelong glance. “Riggins.”

“Dear God, save me from small towns with only one grocery store.”

“Stop,” she hissed, “talking.”

“Okay.” I shot her a calculated half smile—just enough to make her wonder. “I got all I needed anyway.”

I could tell she wanted to ask me what the hell I was talking about, but she had impressive self-control. I’d give her that.

She was from a small town in Idaho. Transferred here . . . for what purpose? My guess was her dad. I was still banking on the single-parent thing. He got a job transfer. I racked my brain. Boeing? Possibly Microsoft? Maybe even Amazon. Hell, Seattle boasted so many different corporate headquarters, it was a toss-up.

I glanced back down at her flip-flops.

I was going to go with Microsoft. Computer-nerd dad with no fashion sense who used to work from home via satellite. Bingo!

I tried to pay attention to the lecture but kept getting distracted by the way she tapped her pen.

And the fact that she had on perfume and pink nail polish. What girl who dressed like she did wore pink nail polish and Prada perfume? Did she have that pink thong on under those basketball shorts? Now those I could definitely work with when the time came. They would look so good dangling from one ankle with her legs in the air. Parts of me twitched with interest just considering the possibilities of exploring all of her diverse . . . nuances.

A mystery.

I hadn’t had one of those in a long time.

Or a challenge. Hah, too bad she wasn’t a client. I could do a lot with those legs. Granted, they wouldn’t be wrapped around me, unfortunately, since I never got involved with clients. Not for lack of trying on their part.

The lecture ended an hour later.

We both stood. I let her walk by me and whispered, “Blue.”

She froze but didn’t turn around. “What?”

“Your eyes.” I squeezed by her and whispered in her ear, “They’re a really pretty ice blue.”

“Like my soul.” Her eyes narrowed. “Now, will you please leave me alone?”

“Why would you want that?” I fell into step beside her as she lengthened her stride. “Besides, any friend of Gabi’s is a friend of mine.”

“That’s really unfortunate for me.”

“So you saw me naked,” I said loud enough for people walking by to hear. “Big deal.”

Wide-eyed, she slapped a hand over my mouth and backed me up against the wall. I grinned against her palm.

She leaned in. “I wasn’t impressed,” she whispered amidst a cloud of minty-fresh breath.

I pushed her hand away and laughed. “You’re a shit liar. Then again, that may have been your first time seeing a naked man, and therefore, you’re waiting to compare me to the sad, unfortunate soul-sucking individual you’re going to end up with. I bet he’ll have glasses.”

She frowned. “What’s wrong with glasses?”

“And a bald spot.” I nodded thoughtfully, then pointed to her temple. “Right here.”

Rolling her eyes, she stepped back and escaped.

For the record, I let her.

She was out the door maybe five feet before she turned around one last time.

They always did.

They always would.

I waved.

She flipped me off.

She might as well have kissed me.





CHAPTER SEVEN

Sunlight broke through the clouds, a rarity in January, when it was usually rainy and gray. The calming sound of the fountain was broken the minute my Superman ringtone went off. Duty called.

“It worked!” Shell screamed into the phone. I barely managed to save my eardrum by pulling the phone away while she continued to shriek.

“Of course it did,” I said with a bored tone. If I didn’t know what I was doing, I’d suck at my job. A few girls walked by my bench and waved. The wind picked up, causing some of the water from the fountain to sprinkle across the girl closest to me. Her revealing white shirt was most definitely getting wet. And I didn’t miss the fact that she leaned into the water, turned to make sure I was looking, then stuck her finger in her mouth and sucked. Hard.

What a shame that she had to ruin her shirt in order to gain my attention. I almost pitied her, and then, she turned toward me.

Or not. Not a shame. God bless America.

She blew me a kiss.

I winked in response.

Her friends giggled at our exchange.

At this point I expected either the solitary giggle or the hateful stare. I usually only received the second if I’d already been with the girl and forgotten her name, or the fact that we’d slept together in the first place. That’s why I had Lex! And my damn calendar. So I didn’t forget important information.