Blair
Can you FaceTime me in? I don't want to miss this.
I set my phone down and stare at my computer screen. Despite the panic, I'm a little excited at the idea of my friends helping me get back out there. Who knows? Maybe I'll actually find a love connection.
seven
. . .
Stella
I'm puttingthe finishing touches on a charcuterie board when my friends start arriving for what we're calling our Sunday matchmaking session. It's basically “help Stella get back into dating so she has options for the gala,” which sounds much more reasonable when I put it that way.
“You always make the best boards,” Natalie says, settling onto my couch with her usual grace and immediately reaching for the brie.
“I figured if I'm going to ask you all to play matchmaker, the least I can do is feed you properly,” I say, arranging crackers around the cheese.
Jess arrives with her laptop, because of course she does. “I may have already started a preliminary list of eligible bachelors.”
“You work fast,” Sophia laughs, claiming the chair by the window. “I love it.”
Brandon settles onto the opposite end of the couch from Natalie, looking skeptical. “I still don't understand why you can't just tell your mom you'll find someone when you're ready. Why the performance?”
“Because you don't know my mother,” I say, pouring wine. “She's been in matchmaking mode my entire life. She probably had my wedding planned before I could walk. This buys me some breathing room.”
“Plus,” Natalie adds, “maybe we'll actually find her someone great. Win-win.”
Blair appears on Sophia's laptop screen, with baby Ruby visible in her arms. “Sorry I'm late! Feeding time. But I'm here for moral support and terrible dating advice.”
I settle cross-legged on the floor, wine in hand. “Okay, so here's the situation. I told my mom I'm seeing someone to get her off my back about blind dates. Now she's expecting me to bring him to their summer charity gala.”
“What kind of guy are you even looking for?” Jess asks, her fingers poised over her keyboard.
I pause, realizing I haven't actually thought about this in concrete terms. “I don't know. Someone nice? Funny? Employed?”
“Stella,” Sophia says gently, “you've got to give us more than that. What's your type?”
“I honestly don't know if I have one,” I admit. “I've only had two serious boyfriends. My high school boyfriend was basically my mother's pick and lasted through most of college. Then there was a marketing guy I dated briefly last year who was perfectly fine but boring as toast.”
Brandon raises an eyebrow. “That's it? Two?”
“I've been focused on my career,” I say with a laugh. “Plus, not all of us have your extensive experience in the romance department.”
“No judgment,” Jess says quickly. “Just trying to understand what we're working with. Do you want someone in the industry? Outside it? Creative type? Business guy?”
I think about it, swirling my wine. “Maybe someone who gets that my job is important to me? Who doesn't expect me to be available twenty-four-seven or think my career is just a cute hobby until I get married?”
“Reasonable standard,” Blair says from the laptop. “What else?”
“Someone who makes me laugh. Someone I can actually talk to.” I pause. “Someone who doesn't make me feel like I need to be a different version of myself.”
There's something about the way Brandon is looking at me that makes me add, “And, obviously, someone my parents would think is a good match, since that's kind of the point.”
Brandon just nods, but I catch something shift in his expression before he takes a sip of his wine.
“What about that Mason guy?” Natalie asks, her eyes sparkling.
My stomach drops. “I wish. He's… No.”
