Something I knew all too well since I was headed out to meet my two best friends instead of a Prince Charming ready to sweep me off my feet.
I checked my phone for the twentieth time, but there werestill no new messages from Matchmaking Mamas. I’d signed up for the dating service, but the list of available men who matched my profile was apparently in short supply.
Not that Iola hadn’t tried. She’d suggested several potential dates. But seeing as they were the same men Maverick had dated, I’d already had the inside track on why they weren’t right for me.
So I was waiting impatiently for someone new to sign up.
Still, you never knew where romance might strike. Maybe I wouldn’t need the Matchmaking Mamas at all. Maybe I’d walk into Taco Loco and see the man of my dreams, just waiting for me.
Weirder things had happened, right?
I smoothed down my shirt, a silk-print tee with the illustrated characters from the cover ofHeartstopper. I was a sucker for romance, and gay romance? Even better.
My curls refused to sit right. I fussed with them until Tramp got bored and jumped onto the dog couch. I’d gotten them both beds, of course, but they’d decided my furniture was more to their liking. So, I’d abandoned my sofa to their whims and gotten a love seat for me.
I was already late thanks to a catering job that kept us busy until seven, so I gave up on my hair and let myself out the door. My dream guy probably wasn’t gorging himself on chips and salsa, anyway.
I locked up behind me and went down the wide porch steps. My green 1962 Beetle convertible waited in the driveway. My grandmother had passed the car on to me when she died, and it was my most treasured belonging.
My sister and her husband got the house, and my brother andhiswife got the RV bus Grandma had loved taking on trips before she got too unwell to travel regularly. The car wassmall, though. It wouldn’t hold a whole family. It was my consolation prize for staying single.
I might have resented it if I didn’t love it so dang much.
The top was down because it was still hot as hell in September. I opened the door and got in, debating whether I should put the top up to preserve my hair. But my curls weren’t behaving, anyway. At least I’d have a good excuse for looking sloppy.
I started the engine and pulled out of the drive, enjoying the breeze tugging at my hair. I drove through downtown Granville, passing by Glazed Holes, Moore Hardware, The Stag Pub, and my friend Maverick’s flower shop, Rainbow Garden.
The parking lot at Taco Loco was packed, but that was nothing new. Margaritas were two dollars off during Happy Hour.
I pushed open the door and bypassed the line of people waiting to be seated. Maverick waved his arm from a booth on the far side of the restaurant.
I made my way over, swerving to avoid running down a toddler who was tottering about in the aisle.
“Sorry!” His mom swooped in and picked him up. “He snuck off on me.”
I glanced back over my shoulder, smiling at her. “No problem. He’s cu?—”
I crashed into something hard and bounced back. A large hand closed around my arm. “Sorry about that,” a deep voice said. “You good?”
I looked up at the biggest man I’d ever seen with ginger hair and a truly impressive beard. “Yeah, fine. Sorry. Should have been watching where I was going.”
His lips quirked. “Better you run over me than the kid. Have a good night.”
Damn. What I’d give forthatman to play the role of Prince Charming. Swoooon.
Maverick pushed a drink my way as I sat down. “So, how’s the matchmaking going?”
I grabbed a chip and scooped up some salsa. “It’s not.”
“The dates are that bad, huh?”
“What dates? There are no dates.” I crammed the chip into my mouth, enjoying the burst of fresh tomato, onion, and peppers.
“I shouldn’t have told you about all my dates,” Maverick said with a frown. “Maybe one of them would have worked out better for you.”
I shook my head. “No point wasting my time with players or guys who don’t want to stick around Granville.”
“Maybe Percy?—”
