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“May I ask you a question, Riley?”
“Of course.”
“Why Nate?”
The way her eyes smolder thinking about him has my hands balling into fists.
“He probably wouldn’t remember me if you asked him, but I actually met him once, years ago, at another charity event. It wasn’t as high class as the Boston Winter Ball, though. We were just cleaning up a playground over on the southside where a new one would be built for the underprivileged kids in the neighborhood. He had just started playing for the Boston Guardians, so he wasn’t a big name yet. Still, while his buddies all acted like they were God’s gift, Nate kept mostly to himself, too busy doing the actual work of cleaning up the playground to pay anything else much mind. I like a man who doesn’t need to be the center of attention and can still hold his own. Even more if he actually cares about doing his civic duty. So, ever since that day, I guess I never really got him out of my mind.”
“So why wait this long to pursue him?” I hear myself ask.
“Honestly, I wasn’t ready for a relationship. I needed to focus on my career first, and I think he probably did, too. But when Agnes told me that he was ready to get out of the singles market and commit to someone, I guess I didn’t want to lose my shot. A man like him is hard to find. He’s one in a million.”
Yes.
That he is.
“So, you’re not bothered about how he’s been portrayed in the press lately?” I question further.
“Not one bit.” She chuckles. “I know the press. They like to build you up, just to tear you down later. The man I met that day was a far cry from being toxic. I’m a good judge of character, Miss Moore. I’m seldom wrong. And besides, you wouldn’t have taken him on as a client if he was indeed a menace to society either, now would you?”
She’s got me there.
“No, I would not.”
“That’s what I thought.” She beams. “I think, like me, you’re a good judge of character, too. You see people for what they are, even if they don’t see it clearly themselves. Hopefully, you will use that skill to see that I’m not playing around when I say I’d be perfect for Nathan. All I need is a chance. And I hope you’ll give it to me.”
She throws me another conspiring wink and then leaves.
Not five minutes later, Becca rushes back into my office, looking absolutely giddy.
I’m not as enthusiastic.
“Oh, my god. Don’t you just love her?!” Becca shrieks out in excitement. “Gahhd, I want to be her when I grow up!” she jokes.
“You do?” I grumble.
“You don’t?”
I shake my head.
“No, not really. There’s something off-putting about her.”
“Really? I didn’t get that about Riley at all. You have to admit that her tracking you down just so she could get a date with Nate is soooooo romantic! Riley and Nate would make an excellent couple,” Becca shrieks in utter glee.
“That’s not happening,” I retort, trying to nip that ridiculous idea in the bud.
“Why not?” Becca asks, looking absolutely confused by my reply.
“Because she can’t just come into my office and demand to be set up with one of my clients. Nate is not an object you can pick or choose off the shelf. That’s not how we do business here.”
“But she’s perfect for him.” Becca frowns in confusion. “I mean, she’s obviously an extrovert, which will do wonders for Nate. She’ll challenge and support him since she knows how difficult the life of an athlete is. It’s a no-brainer.”
“And I said no. She is not Love Moore material, and that is the end of that,” I reply sternly, unwilling to hear another word about how Riley and Nate could be a match made in heaven.
Becca’s forehead creases in worry.
“Is everything alright? I heard you on the phone earlier before with Cooper. Is that why you’re acting so… peculiar?”
