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Thelma nodded. “I remember you from yourForever Yoursapplication. I’m Thelma Ward, I run the agency, and I’ll be hosting the events this week.” She looked around the room. “I assume you’re all attending?” There were murmurs and nods of agreement. Callie was halfway through her souffle before she realized that Thelma was staring at her. “You’re in our desired age group.” she commented, pausing a moment before continuing, “You work here, right?”
Callie swallowed. “Yes, I’m in town temporarily this summer. I’m assisting my aunt with getting the inn back on its feet since my uncle passed last year.” She reached out to Aunt Fran and gave her hand a tender squeeze.
“We have a small shortage of females registered for this week,” Thelma said pointedly. “I’m willing to make you an offer. If you come to all of the events, I’ll give you half off the total package price.”
Aunt Fran stirred a packet of sugar into her tea. “That’s certainly very generous of you, Thelma. Callie, I think you should accept. It would be good for you to see what else is out there and have a little fun. Besides, I really don’t need that much extra help around here since I have Jeannie coming in, and I’m pretty sure she could use more hours.”
Callie frowned. Her aunt knew she had a boyfriend; however, she also knew their agreement to give each other some space that summer. She considered the offer. Money wasn’t an issue. Maybe it would be good for her to expand her horizons and get out of her comfort zone. Besides, she hadn’t done anything purely for fun since she could remember. She might also make some new friends.
She looked around the table, stopping at Jackson, whose thoughtful eyes met hers, and her heart quickened.
“I’ll do it,” she said softly.
Chapter Five
CALLIE
What had she gotten herself into now, Callie wondered as she walked into the convention center, nervously twisting a strand of hair as she asked the clerk at the information desk for help locating the banquet hall where the afternoon’s Meet and Greet event would be taking place. She followed the man’s direction to the bank of elevators and glanced at her watch. Fifteen minutes. Suddenly, the thought came to her that she still had time to leave. She could just turn around and walk back out to the car she’d borrowed from Aunt Fran and leave a message for Thelma that she’d changed her mind.
Just then, Jackson appeared beside her. “I don’t think the elevators will work unless you press the button.” He grinned as he reached over and tapped the Up button, which lit in a circle of blue.
“Oh, right,” said Callie sheepishly.
“Are you dreading this as much as I am?” Jackson said.
“Pretty much,” Callie admitted, relaxing a bit. “To be honest, I haven’t dated in a while, so I’m afraid my skills will be woefully rusty.”
Jackson nodded. “Yeah, I’m in the same boat. My brother signed me up for this event as a birthday gift a few months ago. Apparently, he thinks I need a mate.”
“Do you live alone?” asked Callie.
“I’ve got a condo in Tampa,” Jackson replied, “but with my contracting business expanding, I’ve found more need to travel lately. That hasn’t left me much time for socializing.”
“Hey y’all!” came Amberley’s twang as she walked up along with several other men and women who looked to be about their age.
The elevator opened, and people began streaming out as they and the others climbed aboard.
As the doors slid shut, Amberley punched the button for the third floor.
“Let the matchmaking begin!” she cried.The others looked a lot like deer in the headlights, thought Callie as Jackson grinned.
˜*˜
JACKSON
Jackson walked into the large conference room where long-skirted tables and chairs had been set up. One side of the room was a small refreshment center with ice-filled buckets containing bottled water and soda. Small wicker baskets were filled with an assortment of packaged snacks. A podium stood in front with a microphone.
Jackson grabbed a soda and took a seat in the last row. Although he was tempted to follow Callie to the front, he resisted his desire to be close to her. She was here to meet people, just like he was. He had to give her some space. However, he couldn’t help but be drawn to the pretty strawberry blonde, feeling like she could relate to his sense of being a fish out of water when it came to dating.
He noticed what looked like magazines spread along the tables, as well as black ballpoint pens and plastic water bottles, both of which bore the logoForever Yoursin swirling pink letters. Baskets with self-stick name tags and sharpies were placed at intervals. After writing his name on a nametag and attaching it to his shirt, he picked up one of the magazines, which also bore the agency’s logo on the cover with the titleLOOKBOOKunderneath. He flipped it open and discovered a detailed itinerary section for the week and another with headshots of all the attendees in alphabetical order by first name, organized down the left side of each page. Details including age, hometown, and profession were included underneath each person’s picture.
To the right, was a grid with columns marked Event 1, Event 2, Event 3, and Event 4, and rows with the labels Appearance (1-10) and Personality (1-10). Jackson found a photo of himself that his brother must have submitted. It had to be at least a couple of years old, as he’d worn a goatee back then. He also noticed with some consternation that now he had a bit more gray hair at his temples.
Oh well,he thought, I am what I am. If she’s only interested in me for my hairstyle, that wouldn’t be the girl for me.
Other people were milling about the room making small talk or glancing through theirLookbookslike Jackson. At precisely 3:00 pm, Thelma strode into the room dressed in head-to-toe turquoise blue and platform sandals carrying Liza Minnelli, who was busy licking a paw. A young woman with her hair in a messy bun wearing an outdated brown skirt suit several sizes too big and no-nonsense flats hurried behind with a notepad.
“Testing, 1-2-3.” The microphone squealed in response to Thelma’s loud rasp. Those still standing quickly found their seats. Jackson guessed there were probably about fifty people altogether, split evenly between men and women. The room stilled and all eyes focused.
