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“I’m taking it that Lottie isn’t having much success finding you your soulmate?” I tease, placing my glass back on the table.
“Not for lack of trying, I can tell you that much.” He lets out a frustrated exhale. “But I knew she had her work cut out for her before I ever walked through the doors of Love Moore.”
“How so?” My brows pull together in curiosity. “I would have thought it was a slam dunk for Lottie to find you a perfect match. I mean, you’re young, charismatic, well-educated, and handsome. A man like you shouldn’t have any issue having women fall for you.”
“Oh, they fall alright, just not for me. They fall for thename,” he explains dryly. “The Preston name not only opens doors but is also a magnet for the shallow and unimaginative. If I had a dime for every woman that has gone out with me solely based on my family’s name, I’d probably double my fortune.”
“Yikes.” I frown.
“It is what it is, I’m afraid.” He shrugs despondently. “That’s why I sought out Love Moore to begin with, so she could separate the wheat from the chaff. But so far, I haven’t had much luck.”
“I’m sure Lottie will come through for you. Just give her time, and she’ll find you a woman worthy of you.”
“Maybe,” he mumbles under his breath before taking a fortifying breath. “What about you? Are you dating anyone?” he asks.
“Aside from you?” I wiggle my brows, coaxing him to laugh.
“Is that what we’re doing? Dating?” He continues to chuckle. “Because the first time I took you out for dinner, you made it quite clear that friendship was the only thing in the cards for us.” He grins, completely unbothered for being friend-zoned on our first night. “Not that I’m complaining. I’ve actually grown quite fond of our conversations and debates. It’s a great palate cleanser from all the bad dates I have had to endure since returning home.”
“Well, there you go. It’s a win-win for both of us.” I raise my wine glass in a celebratory cheer. “To making new friends that don’t bore us half to death with notions of romance. Salute.”
Laurie laughs away as he clinks his glass with mine.
“You are an enigma, Piper.”
“Oh? And what confuses you about me, old sport?” I tease with an over-the-top posh tone.
“It just strikes me as odd that a young, intelligent, and beautiful woman like yourself isn’t already spoken for.”
You’re mine.
I’ll never let you go.
“Well, that’s easy to explain. You can’t be spoken for if you don’t date.”
“At all?” His brows shoot to his forehead.
“Nope.” I pop the ‘p’ externally at the end.
“With anyone?”
“What can I say?” I shrug. “My life is too busy for such sentimental drivel.”
“Is that the real reason?” he counters, his teasing expression showing that he’s not buying what I’m selling.
“Of course it is. What other reason would I have not to date?”
“Oh, I don’t know. Usually, I find that when a woman is reluctant to put herself out there, it’s because she already knows what she wants, or better yet, who she wants, and therefore dating would just be redundant.”
“Like I said, I have no room in my life for such things. Love is Lottie’s realm of expertise. I try to keep as far away from it as possible.”
“Ah, now I understand,” he muses further. “Spoken like a person who had their heart broken a few too many times.”
“No. Just the once,” I admit.
“I’m sorry. I know how hard break-ups can be.”
I don’t correct his assumption since telling him the truth would open up scars I’ve tried to keep buried.
