Page 47 of Sunset Serenade
“Thank you.” She cleared her throat. “I feel like I’ve learned a lot about you over the last…” She looked at her watch. “Two hours, but let me ask you this. What are you looking for in a relationship?”
He swallowed the bread and smacked his lips. “Smart, successful, young, and beautiful.”
That was more of a shopping list, but okay. Rose kept her eyes focused on her computer screen. “Right.”
“You don’t have to be shy. I like a good, successful woman.”
Uh... “I’m sure I can find you a good match.”
“There’s no need. I already know what I want. I’m looking right at her.”
Rose kept her eyes straight as the walls closed in around her. This wasnothappening!
Before she could sputter out an answer, a miracle occurred. Craig appeared at the edge of their table. “Rose! We’ve been looking all over for you. We’ve got a matchmaking emergency.”
“An emergency?” She looked up at him, wide-eyed.
Brett scoffed. “There can’t be matchmaker emergencies.”
Craig winked at her. “Sorry, bud. This is the business. You’ll understand one day.”
Rose followed his lead and stood from her seat.
“We were having a nice time,” Brett protested. “You can’t cut our dinner short. Rose is starving. Look at her.”
Rose slipped her laptop into her purse. “I’m actually fine but thank you. I’ll be in touch!”
She turned and walked out, shoulder to shoulder with Craig.
When they got through the front doors and onto the sidewalk, Rose burst into laughter. “You havenoidea how you just saved me. Brett said he wanted me to find him a match, but it turned out he’d already decidedIwas his perfect match.”
Craig groaned. “I am so,sosorry. I should’ve known this would happen with him.”
“At first I thought he was sort of an eccentric grandpa,” she said, “butthen…” She shuddered. “I’m naïve, aren’t I?”
“No.” Craig laughed. “No one should have to anticipate that.”
“Oh, you mean anticipate your future boss insisting on dating you? Yeah, no thanks.”
The smile on his face faded and he cleared his throat. “I am sorry I cut off your dinner, though. Are you hungry?”
She pursed her lips, then turned to look at him. “I think you do owe me a pizza.”
His smile returned. “You read my mind.”
Chapter Nineteen
Craig didn’t know what was worse – that Brett had hit on Rose or the fact that he hadn’t prevented it.
Maybe the worst moment was when Rose talked about a boss dating an employee and her face twisted in disgust?
There was no need to choose. It was all bad, and Craig felt awful, even when Rose assured him she wasn’t fazed.
“He caught me off guard,” she said. “That was all, but I can handle him. Don’t worry.”
All Craig had were worries, but he wasn’t going to burden her with them. Barney had been right about that – Craig wasn’t in the habit of counting on others. It wasn’t Rose’s responsibility to fix this. It was his.
It was undeniable now, though. He couldn’t let Brett buy the company. Even though it had been Craig’s idea initially, he now knew it was a bad one. It didn’t matter how desperate Barney was getting; with the fanfare around their matchmaker service, it should be easy to attract another buyer. Someone normal. The users deserved better. His employees deserved better.
