“What are you doing? Going to put another bug in Nana’s ear? Maybe try an earwig this time. Now, that’s a cool bug.”
“Nah, I’m meeting Oliver at the brewery.”
I scowl at him. “Do not, under any circumstances, tell Cole what I told you.”
A laugh rips out of him. “You really think I’m going to tell him that you plan on seducing him?”
“Stranger things have happened.”
“No, Holly,” he says, glowering again, “your secret is safe with me.”
“Hey, shouldn’t you be happy I told Bryn about all this, and you’re no longer my only confidant?”
“I am.” He slides his arms into his coat. “But I’d be even happier if that internet guy had shown up and you weren’t thinking about Cole as anything other than a guy who pours beer. We both know he’s not interested in you.”
I clutch my chest again. “Brutal with the stab wounds.”
This time I’m not totally kidding. I guess that little girl still lives inside me. The one who heard Cole say,I’ll be seeing you Holly Mayberry,and thought—hoped—it meant something. But it’s his looks and his body that give me the zip, not his annoying personality, right? So I’ll pretend I’m careening down the right path with my new plan. Hell, even if I crash and burn, I’ll have fun on my way down, right?
Right?
Rowan waves, leaving me alone with the mostly finished computer. I tap my nails against the table and take out my phone.
I feel a little pang of disappointment at the sight of the little Matchmake Me logo at the bottom of the screen.
“You really let me down, Judith,” I mutter. Hot Rod seemed like he appreciated me for more than the zip…mostly because he didn’t have the first idea what I looked like, but even so.
Sighing, I find Cole in my contacts and send him a message.
So I’ve mostly finished the computer. When can I bring it over? I figure we can set it up when Jane’s not there so it’ll be a fun surprise.
He’s almost certainly working tonight, as he does most nights, and I didn’t expect a response anytime soon. But Cole likes to surprise me when I least expect it, and it only takes a few seconds for him to answer.
Cole: You didn’t need to do that, Holly.
Me:I beg to differ.A tall man with a gun snuck into my house and held me at gunpoint until I finished the computer. I assume you hired him?
Cole:Nah. I guess I’m not the only person you piss off.
Me:I believe that 100%.
Ahem. Hot Rod. Ahem.
Me:So???? Whaddya say?
Cole:You’re up to something.
I find myself smiling as I respond.Yes. When?
Cole:Saturday night. Jane’s spending the night at a friend’s house.
Good. I’m going to get over Cole by getting under him.
A voice in my head suggests it’s a strategy that has worked for literally no one, unless the man in question is really bad at sex, and it would be a pity for a man like Cole to be bad at sex. Still, if thinking it will work is a delusion, I’m happy enough to bask in it for a while.
I click into Matchmake Me and type,You screwed me, Judith.
Judith:Don’t blame the messenger.Besides, I told you there’s another man with 75% compatibility. Maybe he’ll screw you.
“Oh, you’re saucy!”
Then again, she is my brainchild, in part. Maybe she can’t help herself either.
