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What if she was destined to come home to empty houses her whole life?
“Worrying never solved anything,” she said to herself as she reached the front door of the cabin.
Once inside, she checked her appearance in the mirror. Her skin was pink from the sun shining down on the walk over and it made her hazel eyes appear slightly greener and the freckles along her forehead and nose more pronounced. She looked...good. Healthy. Vibrant.
“Sunshine and sex will do that to you,” she muttered at her reflection. It had been a while since she’d indulged in either of those things. “It’s all the endorphins.”
Grabbing her laptop, she positioned herself on the bed and started making her way through the files, reading each one over carefully, looking for any possible red flags. When the alarm eventually went off on her phone, she logged into the Zoom call that Maxine had set up. A second later, the older woman’s face appeared on-screen.
“Hi, Maxine.”
Maxine Diamond was something of a Manhattan legend. A self-made millionaire with humble beginnings who found fame on television, hosting a popular dating show in the eighties before having her own talk show that focused on love and relationships. She then went on to start her own matchmaking company, using her skills but also employing technologists to help her build a patented matchmaking algorithm that had led to thousands of love matches.
Maxinelookedlike the kind of person who’d hosted a dating TV show in the eighties. She was in her sixties and her hair still had that “fuzzy perm” style, with fluffy brown curls surrounding her heart-shaped face. Her lashes were coated in electric-blue mascara and she wore a pink-and-black houndstooth blazer withseriousshoulder pads. Chunky gold hoops dangled from her ears.
“Hello, August.” She smiled warmly. “Is this still a good time to chat?”
“Yes.”
The first time August had met with Maxine, her stomach had been filled with butterflies. Now it felt like she’d eaten a lead tennis ball.
This is supposed to be exciting. You’re working toward something you want.
For some reason, the first thing that flashed into her mind was a picture of Keaton from last night. The way his eyes had darkened with intensity as he’d drunk her in. The raw and naked want displayed like a flashing neon sign across his face. The utter peacefulness as she’d drifted off in his arms.
You can’t have that...not with him.
“Great.” Maxine gave an efficient nod. “Have you had a chance to look through the profiles I sent you? I’ve got an idea of who would be a great first option, but I want to hear your thoughts.”
For a moment, August’s mind went completely blank. She couldn’t think of a single one of their names or anything she’d read, despite looking at the profiles only moments ago. It was like Keaton had taken up all the space in her head and now there was no room for anyone else. Feeling slightly panicked, August reached for her phone and opened her email app so she could jog her memory. That’s right.
There was Brad, the banker. Thirty-eight, divorced without kids. Liked to go hiking and camping.
Next was Kai, the dental surgeon. Forty-three, never married. Liked vintage cinema and going for day trips to farmer’s markets.
Then there was Darius, the sales executive. Thirty-nine, never married. Liked something equally as bland and uninspiring as the first two.
Keaton would laugh all three of these guys out of the room.
“Uh...” August shook her head, trying to gather herself.
“It’s okay to say none of them are taking your fancy,” Maxine said gently.
“I guess I’m still feeling a little gun-shy after what happened with Asher.” It sounded plausible coming out of her mouth. But August wondered if it was nothing more than a convenient lie.
A convenient lie that covered up a very uncomfortable truth: that she still had feelings for Keaton.
Why couldn’t she get it through her thick skull that he didn’t want a relationship? How was she supposed to achieve her goal of shared companionship and practical support when he wouldn’t even let anyone into his home? Let alone his life?
“That is completely understandable.” Maxine nodded. “I’m hoping to have an update from my lawyers soon on what our next steps will be, but they seem confident we can prevent Asher from mentioning us in his article, as it would be a breach of the contract he signed. If we need to take him to court, we will.”
August let out a long breath and her shoulders sagged. “That’s a relief.”
“But I don’t want you to let one bad egg put you off your goals, August. He doesn’t deserve to take that from you.” Maxine looked concerned and August felt a lump form in the back of her throat.
In some ways, Maxine had a nurturing vibe about her. Or maybe that was simply because August’s own mother was the human embodiment of a lump of ice and so anyone with warmth, by comparison, felt like a nurturing presence. Maybe that’s why August was so terrible at dating and figuring out whether a man had good intentions or not—it wasn’t like she’d hadanyguidance. Ever.
Her grandmother had died before she was born and her mother had zero empathy or people skills from which to learn. With no sisters or female cousins to help her out, August had been left to wade through the dating waters alone—without support or advice—until she’d had more relationship false starts than a lawn mower with no gas in it.
