“You have shit on your shoes!” he said, unfazed.
She smiled. “Better on your shoes than in your head.”
He laughed dryly. “Interesting outfit,” he stated calmly as his gaze flicked back to her eyes and darkened again.
“Seriously?” Annoyed, she crossed her arms. “Are you the fashion police?”
“No, but if I were, I’d arrest you.” He lifted one corner of his mouth — it was incredibly unnerving to Rachel that it made him even more attractive. Luckily, Rachel couldn’t stand good-looking men. They were always the patients with such an overrated self-image that they blamed their partners entirely for all their marital problems.
“And if I were a wrecking ball, I’d take you out,” she replied tonelessly. “Our day seems to be full of disappointments on both sides.”
Hailey snorted, but the man in the suit maintained his neutral expression, as if people told him every day how muchthey wanted to physically attack him. “I’m noticing that you’re worse than Maddie.”
She snorted. “Everyoneis worse than Maddie. Maddie’s an angel.”
“Maddie’s a wannabe Cupid who’s shooting poison darts,” he whispered, his voice suddenly dangerously calm. “At first, I could shrug it off, but she’s putting crazy ideas into my clients’ heads. She's ripping them off. And if there’s one thing I hate, it’s people who exploit the gullibility of others to enrich themselves.”
“What did you say?” she spat incredulously, taking a jerky step toward him. He was starting to seriously anger her. “Did you get up on the wrong side of the bed? Why are you such a bad-tempered bastard? It’s a funny sign, not a declaration of war! It spreads love.”
“It spreads lies,” he replied coldly.
“So, love is a lie?”
“No. Your damn agency and your absurd promises are.”
Her jaw clenched. “You’re going too far,” she said, her tone a warning.
“Oh, sweetie, I haven’t even started,” he murmured darkly. “I should sue you for advertising false promises.”
“They’re all true.”
“Oh, please. This is bigger crap than what your damn baby goat left on your shoe!”
“Oh, is that our baby goat?” she asked Hailey, surprised.
“Just for a while, until I find it a home!” she piped up hastily.
Connor snorted. “This is a damn zoo! At least you got rid of your chicken.”
“Oh, no.” Hailey shook his head. “Eggsy is sleeping in the closet. She had a rough night.”
“Naturally,” he gritted his teeth. “Okay, that’s enough. I’ve had enough. We’re not a damn circus, and you have no right to harass my clients. I’m telling you one last time: Stop thisnonsense or I’ll take legal action. A cease and desist order always does the trick.”
Visibly intimidated, Hailey shrugged and gnawed her lip. Rachel was familiar with this type of routine and could tell when someone was bluffing.
“You’re a real clown, aren’t you?” she asked. “You come in here, give us dirty looks, and throw big words around in the hopes that people will back down. Does that usually work for you?”
Connor slowly turned back to her, his eyes narrowed and his shoulders visibly stiff, stretching his suit jacket over his muscular back. “Yeah,” he said harshly. “Because people know I’m not joking.”
“Well, you don’t know me very well yet, but I don’t find this funny at all. Our agency works. We offer love at first click. Your clients should be happy that we approach them!”
“And you know that because you found your own Prince Charming with the help of your stupid questionnaire and algorithm?”
“No,” she said, gritting her teeth. Not yet. “But I’m a psychologist and a couples therapist, and I fucking created it. Hailey programmed the app, and she’s a fucking genius.”
“I am?” Hailey asked uncertainly.
“Yes!”
