“Yeah,” Rune said. “Her friend’s car broke down.” He shook his head. “But I’m pretty sure that wasn’t it.”
“Why?”
“Because she’s the third woman I’ve dated who’s run away the first time I invite them over for a dinner.”
“Hmm. Any ideas why?”
Rune shrugged and poured more wine in his glass. “Nope.”
“Have you thought about using a dating service?” Clay asked.
Rune’s eyebrows lifted and he swiveled his head to stare at his neighbor in disbelief.
“What?” the troll asked, his tone defensive.
“It’s just that was the last thing I expected you to say,” Rune said. “You used a dating service?”
“My mother signed me up without my permission but I’m not mad about it anymore because that’s how I found Dylan.”
Dylan was Clay’s fiancée and she’d just moved in with him a couple of months ago. She seemed really sweet, and the state of Clay’s front and back yards had improved enormously since she moved in. Wood nymphs nurtured plants just by their presence.
“Really?” Rune asked, drinking more wine. It was a shame that he couldn’t get drunk because he really felt like finding oblivion somewhere.
“Yeah. Mystical Matchmakers. You should give them a call. Even if you decide not to use their service, the owner, Dominique, is one hell of a looker.”
“I heard that,” a low feminine voice called.
“I know,” Clay called back.
A woman’s laugh floated across the dark lawn and Dylan emerged from the shadows of the bushes that surrounded my porch, coming up the steps to sit on Clay’s lap.
Dominique may have been a looker, but Clay looked at Dylan like she was the only woman on the planet. Even though they hadn’t been together for long; they were definitely a unit. Despite the difference in their sizes and species, they fit together. There was no other way to explain it.
“He’s right, though,” Dylan said. Her eyes nearly glowed in the darkness. “You should sign up for the service. They do an excellent job.”
Rune lifted the wineglass to his lips and drained it. “I guess it’s time to give it a shot. I’m tired of being the three-date wonder.”
“Let me know how it goes,” Dylan said, a half-smile on her face. “Maybe you’ll have a date for our wedding after all.”
Maybe, but he wasn’t going to get his hopes up.
ChapterOne
Astra regretted ever signing up for Mystical Matchmakers.
In the last month, she’d gone on seven dates, each more disastrous than the last. The males that Veronica and Dominique hand-picked for her seemed to expect one of two things: that she would be one of the guys or that she could and would kick their ass if they stepped a toe out of line.
While the second part was true, Astra rarely felt the need to physically assault a man who got handsy or said something out of line. Usually, a hard stare was all it took for them to back off and quickly. Being a Valkyrie had its uses, after all.
This was the same problem she’d run into with the men her mother and sisters kept trying to throw in her path. They were perfectly nice, but none of them ever seemed to treat her like a woman. Only like a warrior.
She didn’t want to be one of the guys. She liked being female. Sure, she loved a good bout in the sparring ring or target practice at the gun range, but she also liked romance. She wanted someone to take her on picnics or to the art museum. Maybe even the symphony. She wanted to wear a dress and make-up and have a man look at her with both affection and desire.
Beer and wings at the local sports bar could be fun, but she didn’t enjoy being ignored by her date for the game on the huge TV’s all around the room.
Mystical Matchmakers was a mistake.
One she intended to rectify immediately.
