Chapter 1
Chapter One
Waiting on set for the producer of the reality TV dating show Sexy & Single, Fiona McCaw realized that she hadn’t been this nervous since she first set foot on a catwalk.
She hoped she was doing the right thing.
The 'set' for the show was a hotel room across the street from the restaurant where she'd be meeting her date for the first time.
Ramsfeld East was the famous Manhattan flagship restaurant owned by Hamilton Ramsfeld the celebrity British Chef.
He was a personal friend of Fiona's father, which was why she'd suggested the location when she'd learned that Matchmakers, Inc.
the company she'd hired to find her a husband had approached her to be part of Sexy & Single.
Fiona was used to being in the limelight.
The daughter of a famous fashion designer, she’d become his number-one model in her teens, so she’d grown up with a camera always trained on her.
She’d blossomed into one of those lucky girls who could have had a career as a supermodel but instead her ambitions had driven her to design, like her father.
Her mother often said, in a not unkind way, that Fiona’s looks were wasted on her.
And having given birth to her daughter eight months ago, Fiona was starting to understand her mother’s angst and dreams for her.
She wanted the world for Bella Ann and without the grounding influence of a man like her father in the child’s life, she felt lost. Fiona knew how to be the center of everyone else’s world, but had scarcely a clue about how to treat her sweet, precious daughter that way.
That’s why she’d gone to Matchmakers, Inc.
, after Bella’s father had made it crystal-clear he wanted nothing more to do with Fiona and the baby.
Fiona had looked around at the men she knew, but there had been no one that she thought was good enough to be her baby's father.
She worried that having the baby would limit the men who'd want to date her, maybe make the pool of potential mates smaller, but Mona the matchmaker, had reassured her that many men came their company because they were ready to settle down.
She looked down at the face of her daughter and smiled.
Everyone said she was overindulging the darling girl who’d never been further than a few feet away from Fiona.
The baby was sleeping happily now and Fiona hoped she’d stay that way.
Her nanny had called in sick today so Fiona had no one to help with the baby.
“Hello, Ms. McCaw. I’m Willow Stead, the producer of Sexy & Single.
I’m so glad that you agreed to be a participant on the show.
” Willow kept her voice pitched low as she approached Fiona and shook her free hand.
She was tall and thin and had long, straight, black hair that fell almost to her waist. She reminded Fiona of a young Cher.
Her skin was olive-toned and her eyes had an exotic shape.
She wondered if the other woman had ever thought of modeling.
“She’s so sweet,” Willow said, looking down at Bella Ann.
“Thanks, but it’s only when she’s sleeping. She’s inherited all my diva tendencies,” Fiona said with a smile. “Call me Fiona.”
“ I’m not sure how much your matchmaker at the agency told you about the show and how it works.”
“Not much, I’m afraid. She did try, but my daughter was a little colicky when I was in the Matchmakers, Inc. office for my preliminary interview,” Fiona said.
“Having a baby on the set will be a challenge, but we really want to reach a diverse viewership and there a lot of single-moms out there. Here's the set up, you and your match will have six dates, which will all be taped. We’d like you to record a video diary before and after each date. Our host, Jack Crown, will talk to you both individually, but some of the time—okay, most of the time—we’ll record that separately because Jack is so busy. ”
“He is busy,” Fiona said. “I think he’s hosting every other reality show on television these days.”
“He brings in the viewers, so we’re happy to have him,” Willow said. "He agreed to do our show to broaden his market appeal--his words not mine."
—
“How many couples have you had on the show?” Fiona asked.
“You’ll be our second. The first couple is happily engaged.”
“That’s promising . . . So what do you need me to do now?”
“Let’s have you record your diary. Since you’re our first single mom on the show, we’d like you talk a little bit about that. Did it motivate you to go to a matchmaker? Also, what qualities do you hope to find in a man who can be both a husband and a father to your child?” Willow said.
“What if I don’t want to be too revealing?” Fiona asked, just now realizing what she’d really signed up for.
Willow tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “Say whatever you’re comfortable with. If we need more, I’ll have you rerecord it.”
“Willow, you’re needed across the street on the set.”
“This is Kat, our number-one production assistant,” Willow said, introducing the woman who wore a pair of jeans with a radio on her belt and a faded rock T-shirt from the ’80s. “Kat, this is Fiona. She needs to record her diary. When she’s done, bring her to the Ramsfeld East.”
Willow walked away, leaving Fiona with Kat. “When you’re done with your diary, I’ll get you ready to head over to the restaurant where your date is waiting. Where’s your nanny?” Kat asked.
“She's sick today,” Fiona said.
Kat looked horrified. “I wasn’t aware we needed to provide one.”
“It was a last minute thing. Bella Ann will be fine. I’ll just keep her with me today and next time my nanny will be here,” Fiona said.
“That’s not possible without clearing it with Willow first. Plus, we need some shots of just you . . . um, I’ll hold the baby while you go and record your diary,” Kat said.
“I can take her with me. You go find Willow and make sure that I can keep Bella Ann with me,” Fiona said. “I don’t relish the idea of giving her over to a stranger.”
“Who do you normally use for a babysitter when your nanny isn't available? Maybe we can get them down here,” Kat said.
“No one, Courtney has never been sick before. Is this going to be a problem?” Fiona asked.
“No. Go and record your diary,” Kat said, leading Fiona to a small area that was cordoned off with pipe and drape. Inside was a video camera and monitor with instructions taped to the desk. Kat quickly showed her how to use the equipment. “I’ll be waiting right outside.”
“Okay,” Fiona said after she turned the camera on.
She looked at herself on the video monitor and smiled at her own reflection.
She was wearing a dress from her father’s classic haute couture collection and it suited her well.
She kept Bella Ann tucked in her arms as she leaned forward and pressed the Record button.
“Hello, I’m Fiona McCaw, fashion designer by day, single mom by night.
I signed up with Matchmakers, Inc. because now that I have my beautiful baby girl, I’m ready to settle down and expand my family with a husband who can be a father to her.
I . . . I’ve dated some, but most of the men I meet are married to their jobs or too vain to put anyone else first. There’s only room for two divas in my family, and Bella Ann and I have taken those roles.
I hope my match is tall, handsome and ready for the adventure that life in the fashion world can be. ”
She clicked off the camera and leaned back, looking down at her daughter. “I hope we find a man who can love us both.”
Alex Cannon stood at the bar in the famous Ramsfeld East restaurant and waited for his match to appear.
He’d signed up with the matchmaker because he seemed to be good at meeting women for the short term—usually incredibly beautiful ones who were attracted to his brainy masculinity.
That’s what his last girlfriend, Loni, had called it.
He had no idea what brainy masculinity was, but it sounded stupid to him.
The truth was long term, he seemed to have difficulty sustaining relationships.
That’s when he’d realized that if he was ever going to have a family, he needed help.
The supermodel types who liked the money he had to spend on them and driving around in his Bugatti Veyron were okay for a good time, but he wanted more.
He couldn’t pinpoint when this restlessness had manifested itself, but he knew it had something to do with his mother’s health scare last year.
He wanted his kids to know their grandparents and if he didn’t settle down soon, he was very afraid they wouldn’t.
So he’d gone to a matchmaker and had somehow been selected for this show.
He didn’t mind having his life aired in public on reality TV.
In fact, he was hoping that it would spur sales of his latest gaming app for the iPhone and iPad.
Developing games was his life and he was damn good at it.
Hence, the expensive cars and houses on both coasts.
But money couldn’t buy him the family he secretly yearned for.
Most of his money had been made in first-person shooting games.
Games where the player hunted down the bad guys and saved the world for democracy.
His mom often said that timing was everything and Alex's Terrorist Hunter game had released right after 9/11.
“Hello, Alexander,” a tall, thin woman said as she approached him. “I’m Willow Stead, the producer of Sexy & Single. Do you have any questions before you meet your match?”
“Call me Alex,” he said. “And no. I’m ready to get this started.”
“Great. Did you record your diary already?”
“Yes,” he said, forcing himself not to grimace. He was never going to be 100 percent comfortable talking into a camera about himself.
“Then I think we’re ready. Jack Crown will be in later to record his part with you and your match. Are you ready to see her for the first time?”
He nodded. He was more than ready for this.
He took a deep breath as Willow gave him some last-minute instructions about the cameras and where he was supposed to look.
At that point, she moved out of the frame.
She had straight blonde hair which she'd pulled back on the top in some kind of little clip and then the rest of it feel in waves to her shoulders.
Her eyes were a brilliant blue color...aquamarine, he thought, just starting at her. Then Willow said, “Action!”
He pivoted to face the door and almost stopped breathing entirely. While he was used to pretty women, the one walking toward him was simply breathtaking. She moved like she owned the room and there was no way she didn’t. He knew every eye was on her and he didn’t mind, since her eyes were on him.
She was super-model pretty and moved like someone who was very at home with every eye in the place on her. Had Mona not listened to what he'd said? He was glad he'd gotten a looker for a mate but he was searching for a wife not just another gorgeous piece of arm candy.
He stood up just a little taller, very glad that he’d followed his PE teacher father’s advice and worked out every day. Even though he was basically the king geek in his office, he had made sure he was still in his prime physically as well.
“Hello, I’m Fiona McCaw,” his date said, holding one delicate hand out to him. Her voice was very feminine—slightly high-pitched and just about perfect.
“I’m Alex Cannon,” he said, taking her hand and bringing it to his mouth to brush a kiss against the back of it.
Keeping hold of her hand, he drew it into the crook of his elbow and led her toward the patio where he knew their table had been set for lunch. “What do you do, Fiona?”
“I’m a fashion designer,” she said. “I have my own line within my father’s fashion house, House of McCaw.”
“House of McCaw?” Alex said. “I think I’ve heard of that.”
She laughed and the sound of it made him want to smile. “You more than likely have. He’s in all the major department stores.”
“Would I have seen any of your designs?” he asked, as they crossed the threshold out onto the patio.
“Doubtful, unless you follow high fashion,” she said.
“I don’t,” he admitted.
“Okay, cut. This is great, people, but we need to reset the cameras”“Feel free to talk with each other while I get the cameras set up.”
“Can I go get Bella Ann?” Fiona asked.
“Not yet. I want Alex to meet her on camera for the first time.”
“Bella Ann must be your daughter,” Alex said.
“Yes, she is,” Fiona said, nibbling at the bottom lip of her bow-shaped mouth. “I don’t like leaving her with strangers.”
“Don’t you have a nanny?” he asked, because she seemed like the type to have one.
“Yes, she's out sick today. But that's okay my daughter and my schedule blend perfectly well together,” she said, sounding the tiniest bit snippy.
“I’m sorry if my question was offensive. I really know nothing about you,” he said.
She sighed and then smiled at him. “It’s okay. I’m a little bit frazzled, that’s all. I didn’t mean to take it out on you. What do you do?”
“I’m a computer game developer.”
“Oh,” she said. “What kind of games?”
“Stuff for your iPhone and iPad. I was one of the first designers to create a social game app for the devices.”
“Cool. I want to know more about that,” she said.
“I doubt it,” he said. “Even for me it can get boring to talk about.”
“I don’t think it will be. It’s something that you do and I like knowing about new things,” she said. “You aren’t what I was expecting in a match.”
“Wait! Don’t say anything else along that line until you’re seated,” Willow said.
What had Fiona been expecting?
Alex wanted to tell the producer to shut up. For the first time he felt like he was seeing the real Fiona. He leaned a little closer to her and the scent of her floral perfume washed over his senses. She tipped her head back and he saw the little gold flecks in her blue eyes.
"You’re not what I was expecting either," he said softly.
The wind stirred, blowing a strand of her hair across her face.
He reached up to brush it off her face and his thumb skimmed her bottom lip.
Her lips parted and he felt the warmth of her breathe on him.
He canted his head to one side and lowered his head wanting taste her.
Wanting to know if the attraction zinging through him was one-sided.
"Stop!" Willow yelled. "Don't do that until I have the cameras in place."
Fiona stepped back and gave him an oddly probing look before she walked away. All he could do was watch her leave realizing that this entire television show was going to put a major crimp in his style.