Page 55 of Pucking Your Best Friend

He asked Christina a few more questions about her job while Alfie, for once, tried to concentrate on Maddie, who was telling him about the ups and downs of being a matchmaker. Matt didn’t know all of her stories and was tempted to listen to her at the same time. That would have been extremely rude, though, and Christina’s anecdotes about stubborn Hollywood actresses were just as interesting, so...

After a while, the waiter returned with their drinks and appetizers. Service was slow today for what was supposed to be a good restaurant…and when Matt looked at Maddie’s salad, all he saw was a pile of black olives. And her white wine glass was sized for red.

He waited for Maddie to stop the waiter and point out his mistake, but her eyes only flicked over the salad for a momentbefore she frowned and shook her head, as if she had just made a deal with herself not to say anything.

The waiter trotted away, Christina and Alfie dug into their appetizers, and Maddie stared unhappily at the olives.

“Maddie,” he muttered, “you ordered the salad without olives. And a small white wine.”

“I know.” She waved it off. “It’s no big deal.”

“Maddie. Youhateolives.”

“I know I do.”

“They chopped them up really small, so you won’t be able to pick them off.”

“Yeah, it doesn’t matter…”

“Send it back.”

“No.”

“You’ll have to choke it down.”

“Or you’ll eat it?” she asked hopefully.

“No! Call the waiter and say:Excuse me, I ordered the salad without olives.”

Her cheeks had turned the color of a shy fire engine as she nervously looked at their two dates, who were glancing at them curiously. “Matt, I don’t want to draw attention and…argue with the waiter in such a fancy restaurant.”

He sighed. “We’ve been through this before. It’s not anargumentwhen you tell the waiter he made a mistake.”

“It’s one more confrontation than I want to have,” she hissed.

Oh God, her and her constant fear of confrontation. “Maddie, this salad fits in my hand and costs a whopping fifteen dollars — it’s okay to send it back when you didn’t get what you ordered.”

“Leave it alone, Matt,” she replied tersely, glaring at him before turning abruptly to Alfie McDingleberry and asking loudly, “Alfie, tell me something about yourself. Your profile says you enjoy hiking. What was your most recent trail?”

McGreasy jumped at the question immediately, chest puffed out, telling her how he’d spent two weeks hiking through the valleys of the Grand Canyon and all the other amazing things he’d done. He kept looking at Matt as if to make sure he was listening and appreciating his amazing stories.

“I think Alfie would like to sleep with you, not Maddie,” Christina muttered, deadly serious.

Matt smiled. She was funny. “My bed isn’t big enough for his ego,” he replied calmly.

She snorted and said something to which he only nodded. Seriously, what was Maddie thinking, going out with such a complete idiot? Perhaps her beloved questionnaire wasn’t as good as advertised. Although, Christina seemed nice. It was enjoyable talking with her. She wasn’t overly impressed by him. She had intelligent eyes, a pretty face, and obviously a sense of humor. And yet, somehow, he had no desire to sleep with her.

Sure, he didn’t have to; it was, after all, the first date. But thinking ofsexandhaving toin the same sentence somehow wasn’t the best start, either.

Maddie shifted her weight so that her leg hit his. The hairs on the back of his neck stood up and little electrical impulses danced over the spot where she touched him.

Fuck. He was in trouble.

Why wouldn’t this feeling go away? He had been honest and they had talked openly about it. And he had long since decided that it would be a stupid idea to start something with Maddie.

He pulled himself together and looked at Christina, who was staring at a spot over his shoulder. “I think they want you,” she murmured.

“What?” He turned and saw two men in suits heading straight for him with the same big, wonder-filled eyes as Ronald McDonald.

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