He might pick none of them, but perhaps I can lead the witness and all.
With that to-the-moon-and-back smile, he crosses his strong arms, which only draws more attention to the muscles in them, the strength in them. The flutter taunts me once more. I kick it aside as I wait for his answer.
He says decisively, “Emily.”
And my stack blows. I see red.
“Rowan,” I seethe.
“What?”
“She’s all wrong for you,” I bite out.
“Why do you think that?” He seems genuinely confused, but I’m not about to tell him yet.
“Why did you pick her?” I ask.
“She made a good cookie,” he says, a crease digging into his forehead. “And besides, didn’t you want me to pick someone?”
“Of course I did,” I say, irked beyond all irking.
“So what’s the problem?” He sounds so innocent.
I breathe out hard, trying to loosen the valve on my anger, to let go of some of my frustration. But…I know what he did.
“She hates sports and is allergic to dogs.” I poke his sternum. It’s rock hard. I poke it again. “You picked her to purposefully sabotage the night.”
His face goes blank, but he swallows hard—a sign he’s been caught in the act. When he parts his lips to speak, nothing comes out.
Damn him.
“So you did? You’re confessing?” I ask, parking my hands on my hips.
“Why did you bring her for me then?”
“To test you. To see if you’d do just that. Purposefully choose someone who’s all wrong for you.”
“So she was a plant.”
“She’s allergic to dogs! I told her to tell you that! She detests sports. I made sure she’d drop that into the conversation.”
His lips twitch at the corners. “You coached her?”
“I’m a matchmaker and a dating coach. Of course I coached her. I’ve been coaching you too.”
“Yeah, but you coached her to drop in the details of how unmatchable we are?”
“Yes,” I say, stomping my booted foot this time. Because…this man. This infuriating man.
He takes a beat, nodding, as if he’s absorbing this. “So you set a trap?”
“I did,” I say. “To see if you’d deliberately pick someone wrong for you—as an act of matchmaking sabotage. You’re faking it to tank this. If you really wanted this to work, you wouldn’t pick someone so incompatible.”
His green eyes flicker with…curiosity. Fascination. “And you’re admitting you set me up?”
“Yes. Because you’re not festive as fuck…You’re a saboteur.”
He smirks. Shakes his head. Whistles. “And you’re an evil genius.”
