“Why do you think the matchmaker put you two together?” Alex asked.
“My first instinct?”
Jack nodded.
“We make good television. I mean you can’t get two people who are more different than the two of us,” Alex said.
“So you’re not sure she’s the right woman for you?” Jack asked.
“I didn’t say that.”
Jack stopped walking at the mark on the ground, put there by the TV crew, and turned toward Alex. “Doyou think she’s the right woman for you?”
“Our date today should clarify things for me. Our first meeting was great for getting to know each other, but today I’m hoping to learn a little more about what makes Fiona tick.”
Turning to the camera, Jack said, “We’ll see what Alex thinks of Fiona after the show and their sailing date.” Then he looked to the left at Fiona, who was walking toward them.
“What about you, Fiona? Were you impressed by Alex on your first date?” he asked her.
She was stunningly beautiful in a slim-fitting mini-dress and a pair of strappy sandals. But how was she going to sail in those clothes ? He stopped thinking about that when he met her gaze and noticed that she seemed upset.
“The jury’s still out, Jack. Every time I think he might be the right match for me, he says something that makes me rethink that.”
“Today is going to be a crucial date then,” Jack said, turning toward the camera and walking toward it. “I think the after show is going to be very interesting.”
Chapter Four
“We didn’t get a chance to talk much during the taping today,” Fiona said as the film crew left her home later that afternoon. The nanny had left with the film crew and Bella Ann was upstairs sleeping in her nursery under the careful eye of Fiona with her video baby monitor handset. “Would you like to stay for dinner?”
“Do you want me to?” he asked. “I know I can be a bit . . .”
“Awkward,” she said. “I was upset when I heard what you said to Jack today, but then I realized that it’s just the way you communicate.”
“In a business setting or on my computer I have no problems,” he explained.
“So, yes, you’ll stay?” she asked. After their sailing date, she realized that she liked Alex. There was an air of confidence about him in everything he did. He had mentioned she wasn't what he'd expected in a mate but that hadn't stopped him from treating like she was his dream girl. He made her feel like everything she had to say was important. And though she was used to being the center of attention, people rarely listened to her the way that Alex did. She didn’t want to give up on him just because he lacked a little polish.
“Yes,” he said.
“Great. Let’s go sit on the porch and talk,” she said, leading the way through her house to the back porch. There were four large rockers set at a distance from each other and she’d had her housekeeper, Flo, put a pitcher of lemonade on one of the tables, along with a plate of cookies.
“I see you were ready for me to accept,” he said. “Am I too predictable?”
“Not at all,” she said. “I just figured you want this to work out, too, right?”
“Yes, I do.”
“Why? You could have been matched with any woman. Why one with a child?”
He sat down in the chair she indicated. It was a sunny May day, perfect for sitting out on the porch. She placed the baby monitor on the table between her and Alex so she could see and hear if anything disturbed Bella Ann.
“Lemonade?”
“Yes, please,” he said.
“While I pour, tell me why you want a family now,” she said.
“It’s kind of a combo of things,” he said, looking out at the yard and not at her. He rubbed his neck and then glanced back over at her as she handed him his lemonade. He took a long swallow and she watched the muscles in his neck work as he did so.
