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Kennedy gave him an encouraging smile. "You were doing really great until that point. You just forgot the goal. You want to meet your wife, not hook up for one night of nonsense sex."
"There's nothing wrong with no-c
ommitment sex if both parties agree. Connor raised me on that philosophy."
"You need to keep the main goal in sight. A short sexual affair or a one-nighter will throw your game off, and no one wants to date a male slut. You want a nice girl, right?"
"For God's sake, I'm not a male slut. Is this your normal behavior training class? This must be illegal." He looked about ready to storm out again, but Kate touched his arm and murmured something in his ear. A few beats passed, and finally, he gave a curt nod. He shot Kennedy one last glare, sat back down, and refocused on Kate.
"That was a close call," Arilyn whispered.
"Yeah, but I think we got him now. He's going to look at this as a challenge and refuse to lose."
"So, what do you say, big boy? Wanna get out of here?"
Kennedy tried not to laugh at Kate's slutty voice, and knew her friend was enjoying the hell out of her character. She usually played the sweet girl next door.
"Actually, you seem like a fascinating woman. I'd like to get to know you better first. Tell me about yourself."
Kennedy grinned. Nice.
Kate did a little pout. "I guess we can talk for a few more minutes. Well, I'm a single mom, I work at Mugs, and I'm trying to put myself through school."
"What are you studying?"
"Massage therapy." She batted her eyelashes. "Want to be one of my practice clients?"
He didn't bite this time. "I just read a study quoting an increased space in the market for massage therapists. There's quite a demand lately. Experts are citing more people need careers with jobs at graduation, so that was a smart move."
Kennedy puffed up with pride. Arilyn gave her a thumbs-up sign.
"It's nice to have a man finally understand that. I want to be able to properly support my daughter."
"How old is she?"
"Twelve. Super smart and beautiful. Hope she does better than her mom."
Kate put a bitter twist into the words to see what reaction ensued.
Nate turned serious. "Seems to me you're teaching her to stand up, be independent, and follow your passion. I'd be proud to have a mom like you."
Emotion clogged Kennedy's throat. Kate looked surprised, then a bit misty-eyed. She squeezed Nate's hand. "Thank you. I really like you. Let's go to my place so I can show you how much."
"Okay."
Kennedy closed her eyes. And pushed the button.
"Ow! What'd I do now?"
Kennedy shook her head in disappointment. "No sex, Nate. You spent a few minutes with her. Is that enough to tell you she's worth a long-term dating relationship? Sex is serious business and not something to be handled lightly."
He rubbed his neck and muttered something foul under his breath. "I liked her, okay! And there's nothing wrong with wanting to have sex."
Arilyn smiled with sympathy. "We understand. But at Kinnections, we try to guide clients to think of sex as a big turning point. We encourage steady dating and a monogamous relationship before sexual activity."
Nate glowered at both of them. "Then you should've told me that so I know the damn rules." He drained the rest of his drink. "Come on. Let's do this."
"Umm, I'm done with my part," Kate said. "Arilyn, you're next."
Nate stared her down as she stepped up to the bar stool like he was a pitcher ready to strike out Babe Ruth. Kennedy wondered if this was a bad idea. He liked competition and enjoyed the win. He now viewed the buzzer as something to beat or die, and Arilyn was standing right in his way. Kate took Arilyn's place next to Kennedy and shot her a worried look.
Arilyn turned her back and waited. She was about to introduce her client to the next female prototype: eager to commit, fall in love tonight, and live happily ever after. Nate leaned in.
"Hey. My name's Nate. How are you?"
Arilyn shifted and gave him a huge smile. "Hi, Nate. I'm Wanda. It's nice to meet you. What brings you out on a weeknight? Hard day at work? Do you live in the area? What do you do?"
She threw the questions out with deft ease, meant to keep a man's mind in a tailspin. Nate fielded the questions and took his time answering. "I felt like unwinding with a drink tonight. I'm an aerospace engineer, and I just moved to Verily."
Arilyn pumped up her usual calm aura to supersize. "Wow, that's pretty awesome. I own a bakery in town, and work all the time, and said to myself tonight, 'Self, you need to get out more and have some fun.' So I took myself down to Purple Haze, and now here you are! Kismet, right? Do you know what kismet is?"
He never faltered, his entire attention focused on not failing this task. "Yes, kismet is a wonderful thing. I agree about the work issue. I'm currently doing a lot of research for a firm looking to put the private sector into space, and it's hard to remind myself to get out and relax."
Kate looked impressed, but Arilyn wasn't done with him.
"Are you married? Have kids? I'm really looking to settle down and have kids, and I'm so impressed with your career! I mean, so many men nowadays just want to find themselves and make no money and be drains on society. Look, I usually don't dive right in, but I like you. Want to have dinner with me? I want to meet a serious partner who's done partying and wants to get married quickly. I just sense you feel the same way, Nate. Kismet, right? So, what do you think?"
Sweat beaded his forehead. Kennedy leaned forward. This was the man's wet dream come true--a woman to get serious and be ready to talk marriage right from the gate. She'd coached Arilyn to offer him his dream woman and see how he liked it. His brow crunched as he seemed to try desperately to figure out the correct approach not to get zapped. Her hand paused on the button.
"I'd love to have dinner." His voice came out strained. "And yes, I'm looking for a serious relationship."
She dropped the controller on her lap.
"Wonderful! This is such a relief. I sensed an immediate connection between us and just feel that you, as a businessman, will completely understand me."
"Why do you feel better understood by businessmen?" he asked.
"Well, when we have the babies, I intend on going straight back to work and hiring a nanny. My bakery chain is everything, and I don't feel I need to give up anything. I intend to have it all, Nate, and hopefully with you." Arilyn chirped out the last of her words with a confident smile and waited for complete agreement.
The words spewed out of him. "I don't believe a woman should rush right back to work after giving birth, and I don't believe in nannies. You'll have to give up your job and stay home with them, of course. That's the only proper way to raise children."
Kate gasped. Arilyn stared.
And Kennedy pressed the button.
"Son of a bitch!" He jumped and slapped at his nape. He curled his hands into tight fists and gritted his teeth. "What'd I say now? I nailed that scenario!"
Kennedy sighed. "Why on earth would you believe women have to give up their jobs to become mothers? Haven't you heard of balance?"
"Connor explained that if women keep themselves in the work force, they end up having affairs and breaking up the family. The children are the ones to suffer. I sure as hell am not going to have that type of life for my kids. Not after seeing what my own mother pulled."
Sadness leaked into her heart. Her friends were quiet as they pondered his words. Arilyn was the one to speak finally in a quiet, supportive voice. "I completely understand why you would think that. But not all women have affairs or run off. This is the point of the search. You want to find women who have similar ideals, but if you close yourself down to possibilities, you may miss out on the right one. Love can change people, make them compromise."
He vibrated with unspoken tension. "Why would I want to waste my time chasing the wrong woman?"
"Because the wrong one can end up being your true love," Kate answered. "It happened with me. When I met my fiance, Slade, I categorized him as the completely wrong type for me. We were opposites and held different core philosophies. But we fell in love. Changed. Grew. And if I had stuck with the ideal man I had
in my head, I would've missed out on the greatest thing in my life."
Raw yearning reared up and swallowed Kennedy whole. She breathed through the sudden emotion and need to experience what Kate had: true love. Real love. Full of mess and hard work and worth every moment. She averted her gaze and concentrated on the buzzer, trying to pull herself back together. What was wrong with her? She'd never experienced such a primitive longing to throw herself into a relationship no matter the odds. The long line of men behind her were like ghosts, haunting her future and reminding her over and over she'd never be fulfilled.
"I understand."
Arilyn slid off the stool and gave him a hug. "That was a big moment, Nate. Thank you for sharing with us."
She imagined that a slight red tinged his cheeks. "Sure. Are we done?"
"No," Kate said. "Kennedy goes next."
She lifted her head.
His gaze locked on hers. Those green eyes burned with a banked fire that promised everything . . . if she was brave enough to take it. The odd thought skittered through her mind, but it was too bizarre to analyze, so she walked slowly over and took her place on the stool.
"Dare I ask who has the buzzer?"
"Kate. She's fair."
"And what should I expect from you?"
A smile touched her lips. He'd ditched the awful cologne. His natural scent swarmed over her and wrapped her in spice, soap, and lemon. "Everything you hate."
He smiled back. Dropped his voice. "Bring it."
Goose bumps broke out on her flesh. She squeezed her thighs against the sudden wet ache throbbing in her core, as excitement and challenge woke up her nerve endings. Her body hummed and prepped for the mental battle about to begin, responding as if he had just ripped off her clothes, spread her on the bar, and pleasured her mercilessly with his tongue and hands and teeth.
"Keep looking at me like that and you'll get more than you bargained for."
She shivered at his words. "Bring it."
He growled something under his breath.
"Okay, guys, you can begin."
Kate's voice drifted in and broke up the bubble. Kennedy turned her back on him and waited till she heard his voice.
"Hey. My name's Nate. How are you?"
"Hi, Nate. My name's Wanda. What's up?"
He slouched comfortably against the bar. "Just relaxing after a hard day's work. How about you?"
"Same."
"What do you do?"
"I'm a makeover consultant for a matchmaking agency."
