Page 45 of Sunset Serenade
There wasn’t time to deal with things likefeelings. There were reports to prepare. Figures to create. And, whether she liked it or not, a new boss to impress.
Maybe Brett wouldn’t be all that bad. Maybe she’d feel the urge to give him a hug one day, too.
At least that’s what she told herself as she got to work.
Brett showed up for their meeting ten minutes early and let himself into her office.
“Woo-eee!”
Rose startled. She couldn’t believe she hadn’t heard him coming. She also couldn’t believe Craig didn’t warn her about how he dressed.
He stood staring, both hands perched on his belt. “I finally get to meet the secret matchmaker.”
He was not at all what she expected. Instead of showing up in a stuffy suit, he wore a light blue Western shirt with a navy yoke at the shoulders, a cowboy hat, and black boots with golden tips. The skin under his eyes was shiny and puffy, and while she’d assumed Brett was the name of a young, tech-startup-type man, he was closer to retirement age.
She momentarily forgot her manners, but finally said, “Please. Come on in.”
“I will,” he said with a wink, his voice deep and drawling.
He took a seat, and the reality of him buying the company hit her all at once. Instead of Craig sitting in the chair across from her, sighing and fretting, it would be this loud-talking cowboy.
Since she loved this job, she tried telling herself Brett might be more huggable than he looked at first glance.
He took off his hat. “I’ve been waiting ages for this meeting. Really. I’m wondering what it is you even do.”
“I’ve only been here a few weeks,” she said with a smile, “but I have a lot to show for it.”
“I heard you got a million people banging on your door, begging to get a match.”
“Not quite a million, but a lot, yes.” She stood and handed him a folder of documents she’d prepared. “I’ve put together some information about my process and what we – ”
“I’m not a numbers-and-charts kind of guy.” He shook his head and dropped the folder onto her desk. “I’m more hands-on, if you know what I mean.”
She didn’t.
He leaned in, a wide, toothy grin opening his lips. “What I was hoping was for you to find me a match.”
Oh. “A match?”
“That’s right. I’m looking for my honey. Shouldn’t be too hard, but you’ll have to weed through the gold diggers.” He chuckled.
There was something black between his front teeth.
“There’s a lot to consider,” she stammered.
He licked his lips. “How you feel about gold, Rose? Are you a rose gold kind of girl?”
She had no idea what he was talking about, and shamefully, in moments like these, a schoolgirl-like laugh tended to escape from her. “Ah, I don’t know.”
“What do you say?” he asked. “You think you can find a match for an old man, or are you not good enough?”
Okay, Rose understood why Craig didn’t want to subject her – oranyone– to this man. He was baffling to talk to. It felt like as soon as she had a hold of the conversation, he abruptly changed course and walked off in the other direction.
It was exhausting, and the longer the conversation went, the more she wanted to escape.
She’d do whatever he wanted to make him go away. “Sure, yeah. We can make a match. I’ll have you fill out the questionnaire.”
He shook his head. “No questionnaire, but you can ask me anything you want to know and I’ll tell you.”
