Djinn in Love (Mystical Matchmakers #4)

Chapter 1

CHAPTER ONE

This wasn’t working.

Jasper Bayat sighed as he walked his date out of the restaurant, his hand resting lightly on her lower back.

This was his third date in a week. Gillian was a lovely woman. Intelligent. Articulate. Cultured.

On paper, she was exactly what he said he wanted in a woman. Exactly what he said he wanted when he signed up for Mystical Matchmakers.

In reality…she bored him. Not only that, but she seemed to tense up any time he raised his voice above a murmur. Or frowned, even if it wasn’t at her.

Based on her demeanor, their date wasn’t what she expected either.

When they stopped next to her white Mercedes, Gillian squared her shoulders and faced him, obviously gearing up to let him down easy.

Jasper was tempted to beat her to the punch because he didn’t want to waste any more time listening to her try to find the words to let him know that she didn’t want to see him again.

To his utter surprise, Gillian said, “You’re a smart, handsome man, Jasper, but I don’t think we need to bother with a second date.”

He blinked at her. All night, she’d been so careful in choosing her words when she spoke that her sudden bluntness was a bit of a shock.

Once the surprise faded, he smiled. “You didn’t seem to be enjoying yourself all that much. I’m sorry I wasn’t better company.”

Gillian cocked her head, studying him. “I think you would have been excellent company if you weren’t distracted by whatever it is you were thinking about all night.”

His smile faded. “I wasn’t distracted.”

It was Gillian’s turn to grin up at him. “I’ve dated enough to know when a man has one hundred percent of his focus on me, Jasper. It was clear that you didn’t. And that’s okay. As I said, you’re very smart, so I enjoyed our conversation, but I think we can both agree that we lack chemistry.”

He fought the urge to scowl and shoved his hands in his pockets. Dammit, the woman was right. He had been distracted. And they did lack chemistry. He noticed that she was beautiful, but he wasn’t attracted to her.

Finally, he relaxed and chuckled. “As I said, I’m sorry I wasn’t better company. At least the food was delicious.”

Gillian’s smile grew. “That it was. Thank you for dinner.” She reached out and squeezed his hand. “And good luck finding your match.”

With that, she climbed into her Mercedes and drove away.

Jasper walked over to his SUV, folding his long frame into the driver’s seat. As he started the car, his mind wandered to the subject that had been distracting him tonight.

Veronica Salt.

In the five weeks he’d been a member of Mystical Matchmakers, he’d spoken to her at least twice a week, sometimes more. Each time, it only cemented in his mind what he’d thought the day he met her.

She should have been his match. Not his matchmaker.

Two months ago, his mother insisted that he have a date for his brother’s wedding. She offered to set him up with the daughter of a friend, which he turned down immediately and with vigor. For some insane reason, his mother thought that he needed a woman like her in his life. Someone outspoken, bossy, and independent.

While he admired all those qualities in his mother, he didn’t want them in his romantic partner. Mostly because he was outspoken, bossy, and independent, so dating a woman just like him would only lead to arguments and him pulling out all his hair.

No, he needed someone who calmed the constant chaos in his head and cooled the fire of his temper. A woman who could stand up for herself, but whose strength was quiet rather than bold.

Until he’d walked into Mystical Matchmakers, Jasper had never met a woman like that. Not until he shook Veronica’s hand.

Instantly, the eternal ticking of his thoughts slowed and his always simmering internal fire calmed. The inside of his head fell silent. He realized the feeling was true peace.

Every time he talked to her, the same thing happened.

But when he’d asked her if she ever dated the clients, she shook her head and said that clients were off-limits. Especially clients that she was working with personally.

For the next few weeks, he’d tried to move on and find another woman to take to his brother’s wedding, but every date became less and less appealing. Especially when he spoke to Veronica after each one to give her feedback.

Now, he had a little more than a week until his brother’s wedding and no date. He could already hear his mother introducing him to every single woman at the reception and pushing him to dance with all of them.

Shuddering, he put his car in drive and left the restaurant parking lot. He couldn’t endure that. Not for the four-day event that would be his brother’s wedding party.

No, he needed a date.

And it had to be Veronica Salt.

As he pondered the dilemma during his drive home, an idea popped into his head. One that should have alarm bells blaring in his mind, because the concept was unhinged.

But there was one thing he excelled at, in business and in life, and that was getting what he wanted.

He knew how to work hard. He wasn’t afraid to take risks either.

This plan would require both of those things to be effective, including a huge risk of this blowing up in his face.

But, if he succeeded, the reward would be the woman he’d wanted since the first moment he saw her.

Oh, yes. Jasper was going to go through with his plan.

Because she was worth it.

Monday, he implemented the first step.

He left work an hour early and headed to the offices of Mystical Matchmakers. He would go in and tell Veronica that he no longer wanted his membership because the only woman he wanted to date was her. Then, he would find a way to convince her to give him a shot.

He glanced through the front windows as he approached the office and stopped. There was a man standing in front of Veronica’s desk. He was smiling as he spoke to her. Then, the man winked at her and a pretty pink blush spread across her cheeks.

The fire that constantly burned in his belly, the fire of the djinn, flared. He fought his body’s urge to expand with magic, wrestling with the instinct to turn the man into a toad. Or a braying jackass.

Jasper marched away from the window, his plan razed to ash. Instead, his fire ruled him.

He pulled the door open just as the man was exiting. The guy nodded at him, and he managed to return it. Barely.

When he walked through the door, the first thing he saw was her. The sun coming through the window highlighted the hints of purple in her hair even though it was pulled back into a long braid that draped over one shoulder.

All he could look at was her. He headed straight toward her desk, stopping just in front of it.

He hated the way her spine stiffened up when she saw him. It made the fury in him swell, even as it made his chest tight. He didn’t want to cause her tension.

“Mr. Bayat.”

“We need to talk.”

He heard how loud his voice was, but there was nothing he could do it about it. He was barely hanging on to his control.

A tall blonde woman moved into his line of sight and held out her hand. “Of course we can chat. I’m Dominique Proxa, the owner of Mystical Matchmakers. I’m sorry we haven’t met before.”

He looked down at her hand, tempted to ignore it. Only knowing that Veronica would disapprove of the behavior had him wrapping his fingers around hers and giving it a short shake.

“Hello. I’m Jasper Bayat. It’s nice to meet you, Ms. Proxa, but I would prefer to speak to Veronica.”

He noticed that she was looking at Veronica and did the same. Veronica’s posture was still ramrod straight and her face seemed pale. He didn’t like that she seemed afraid. Of him.

He fought to tamp down his roiling emotions. To regain control.

She didn’t know him well enough to understand that his anger wasn’t directed at her. And he wasn’t very good at hiding his emotions because he never bothered before. He had no doubt that she could see what he was feeling.

Dammit, why was he always off balance with this woman?

“You seem upset. Perhaps it’s best if you tell me what’s troubling you,” Dominique said, drawing his attention away from Veronica.

A flash of annoyance spiked his temper again, but he ground his molars together and took a deep breath.

“I would prefer to deal with Veronica. She has been my point of contact since I started with your agency.”

Good. His voice sounded calmer. More even.

Dominique opened her mouth, probably to argue with him, but Veronica interrupted. “Of course, Mr. Bayat. We can talk in the conference room. It’s this way.”

Jasper followed her as she rose from her chair and walked toward a small room to the right. The wall between the front part of the office and the room was glass, but they wouldn’t be overheard inside.

When Veronica shut the door behind them, Jasper turned to face her.

“How was your date this weekend?” she asked.

He couldn’t control his frown. “Gillian was a nice woman, but we weren’t a good fit. That’s why I’m here today.”

Veronica tilted her head, nodding and listening without interrupting, so Jasper continued.

“I told you when I signed up that I needed a date for my brother’s wedding. The event is this coming weekend. Even if Gillian was a good match for me, she likely wouldn’t want to attend a four-day family event with me, even though we would have separate rooms.”

He realized that the space between them was much larger than he wanted, so he moved around the table until he could see her face clearly.

“I don’t have enough time to keep up with this trial and error. I need to confirm whoever my date will be this week. My brother is breathing down my neck about this because the wedding planner needs my date’s name for the place cards at the reception. My mother is foaming at the mouth because I won’t tell her anything about who I’m bringing and insisting on introducing me to a slew of “suitable” woman, none of whom I’m actually interested in dating. This process isn’t working for me.”

Veronica nodded. “You’re right. Your date probably wouldn’t be comfortable spending four days with you, even if you met her and hit it off today. But waiting until six weeks before your brother’s wedding to start looking for a date might not have been the best choice.”

She was right. But godsdammit, he was a busy male. And he hadn’t realized his mother was going to insist he have a date or provide one for him, whether he agreed or not. Fuck. He had to get back to his plan.

“None of that matters. My sole purpose in coming here was to find a date for my brother’s wedding. A woman I wouldn’t mind spending time with. Someone I’d like to get to know better. You haven’t fulfilled your end of the bargain…yet.”

Veronica frowned at him. “What do you mean yet ?”

“So far, you’re the only woman I’ve met through Mystical Matchmakers who I can tolerate. And, since you haven’t found another woman to go with me, I think you should be my date.”

There was a long silence as she stared at him in obvious disbelief.

“If this is a joke, it isn’t funny,” she stated, crossing her arms over her chest.

The hint of hurt in her expression made him clumsier than he already was. Jasper found himself fumbling his words. Something that very rarely happened to him. Most people accused him of being too blunt, but there was something about Veronica that left him nearly tongue-tied.

“It’s not a joke and it definitely isn’t funny,” he said. “You owe me a date and, since you didn’t manage to find a suitable match for me, you’ll have to do the job.”

“Do the job?”

“Either that or I cancel my membership and demand a full refund.”

“We don’t offer refunds unless you’ve been with our service for at least three months,” she replied. “It was in the contract you signed.”

“Then, I’m sure there are a lot of your current and potential clients that would like to know your service isn’t effective or worth the cost.”

Oh, holy shit, this conversation was going off the rails and in no way resembled what he intended to say to her. How had this happened? Then, he remembered the man who’d smiled and winked at her and found himself grinding his teeth again. That was right, he saw a man flirting with a woman he wanted to make his own.

He watched as Veronica closed her eyes and lowered her head, her shoulders slumping in defeat. Shit, shit, shit. This wasn’t what he wanted. He tried to find the right words, a way out of this mess, but before he could come up with something that wasn’t completely asinine, Veronica was speaking.

“We’ll talk to Dominique. She could take over your file. Her magic makes her especially suited to finding your perfect match. I’ll also suggest she offer you a refund since you did tell me that this was an important weekend for you and your family, and it was vital that you have a date.”

“That’s fine. But you’ll also tell her that I asked you to go as my date.”

“Fine.”

Without looking at him again, Veronica headed toward the door. He followed without thought and their bodies crashed together just before they reached the door, her small frame colliding with his chest and abdomen. Her hands clutched at his waist for a moment before she jerked them away.

He heard her inhale sharply and saw the pink flush rush to her cheeks. She was blushing because she touched him. Surely that was a good sign.

Jasper grasped the door handle and opened it, allowing her to go first.

Her boss, Dominique, was sitting at Veronica’s desk, clearly watching them through the glass wall. She got to her feet, her glimmering blue eyes meeting his. If he wasn’t mistaken, she looked as though she was planning something.

Veronica spoke as soon as they reached her. “Dominique, I’m afraid Mr. Bayat is extremely upset with the matches he has been getting. I think perhaps you should take over his file and maybe even offer him a refund.”

The blonde’s brows rose as though she were surprised by her employee’s words.

Jasper crossed his arms over his chest. It was time to regain control of this conversation and get back on track with his plan.

“I don’t want a refund. I need a date to my brother’s wedding this weekend. That was why I signed up for this service in the first place.”

Dominique nodded. “I’m very sorry to hear that. Would you like me to see if I can arrange for you to meet someone in the next couple of days? Maybe she would be a suitable candidate.”

The sentence wasn’t complete before Jasper was shaking his head. “No, Veronica will attend with me.”

He ignored the way Veronica stiffened next to him. His words weren’t exactly what they’d agreed to, but she didn’t say that. No, she remained silent.

As he watched Dominique, he saw her mouth tighten. If he wasn’t mistaken, the blonde woman was trying not to smile. Hm, maybe she was an ally after all.

“Only if Veronica agrees,” the woman stated, her tone firm.

Veronica’s head snapped up, her body going rigid. “What?” she asked, her voice cracking as it rose higher in pitch.

Jasper ignored her. This was it. He was on his way to getting what he wanted. He’d find a way to fix the mess he’d made, and he’d do it fast. “She has.”

“I’m glad that’s settled then,” Dominique said. “Once the wedding is over, please give me a chance to help you find the right match.”

There was no way in hell that was happening. The only match he wanted was standing next to him, her body vibrating with surprise and confusion.

Satisfied that this encounter was back on track, Jasper smirked at the blonde woman. “We’ll see.”

When she smiled back, he wondered if it was because she was onto his machinations or she thought she’d gotten her way.