She'd flirted with Declan, and had enjoyed every minute of it. She closed her eyes, remembering the way they danced at the club and the way he'd made sure she made it back to herroomokay.
And then she remembered the look on his face when she admitted to cheating him out of the gift card. And then the look after that when he confessed he'd been embarrassed about using her to find a match. The hot guilt poured into her stomach, making her queasier than the leftover tequila in hersystem.
Morgan didn't want anyone to feel bad about needing a little help to find the perfect date. She didn't think there was any reason to be ashamed of it. Of course, she'd never been on the other end before, and every time she set people up before, it had been friends. Now, she was dealing with strangers. Maybe pride was a legitimate issue she needed toconsider.
She called an Uber and got her car. It didn't take long, and by the time she made it back to her room, Lacey wasawake.
“Hey, sleepyhead," she said from her bed. "How'syourhead?”
Morgan lifted her brows. “How'syours?”
“Not as bad as my dress.” She looked down to where it sat crumpled on the floor. The smell of liquor coming from the fabric wasstrong.
“I’m so sorry, Lacey. I'll get it drycleaned.”
Her friend sat up in bed. “No, you won't. It's just a dress. I just want to know all about what's going on withDeclan.”
Morgan groaned and flopped down on her bed. She covered her face with her hands. “I think I messed up. How much did you catch lastnight?”
“Other than the obvious sexual tension that was coursing between you two?” Morgan flushed. “All of it. I wasn't nearly as tipsy as you thought I was. I just wanted to goof off and thought I'd play it up. While I was making out with Paul, who was quite drunk by the way, I heard all about how you lied about this gift card and how poor Declan is a hopelessromantic.”
Morgan sat up. “You don't understand. If you had met him at the coffee shop, you would have thought he was a total sleaze-ball too. He told me I'd be a lot prettier if Ismiledmore.”
“Ew.” Lacey giggled and crinkledhernose.
“I know. And he was all like ‘I don't need helpgettinglaid.’”
Lacey's jaw fell open. “Wait, hesaidthat?”
“Not those exact words. But I connectedthedots.”
“I mean this in the most loving way possible because we're best friends, but did it cross your mind that maybe you connected thewrongdots?”
Morgan hesitantly noddedherhead.
It was very possible. Not that Morgan had entertained the thought before last night. Now, it was all she could think about. Maybe she was making unfair assumptions about herclients.
“What are you going to do?” Laceyasked.
“First, I think I need to give Declan agiftcard.”
Lacey shot up in bed. “It was like fiftybucks.”
“A hundred,” Morgan mumbled. “And then I think I need to push forward. Just with a little bit more sensitivity. I might not likeDeclan…”
She was interrupted by a cough from Lacey. Morgan glared at Lacey as she gave her a sheepishsmile.
“What? Idon'tlike Declan, but he had a point. I can't judge a person's character by one ten-minute interview and unrestricted access to their social media accounts. Maybe I need a questionnaire like those other datingsites.”
Lacey gasped. “You mean they do that for areason?”
“Shut up.” Morgan threw her pillow at her. “I just don't know how I'm going to balance everything. It was already a stretch before. School, work, Date Maker, girls' nights. Not that I want a repeat of lastnight.”
“Even if it involvedDeclan?”
“Especially if itinvolvedhim.”
Each client'sprofile included an address. Which meant sooner than she would prefer, Morgan was doing an entirely different walk of shame across campus. Instead of wearing yesterday's clothing, she was carrying a gift card for the coffee shop sheworkedat.
