Chapter 9
Chapter
Nine
Riley
At the Bluejay Café, gets down to business the second after Bianca takes our brunch orders.
“So, are you ready for the gala?”
The art gala is tomorrow, and I was hoping this brunch would help me take my mind off of it.
I’ve been hunkered down with my paints since Rowdy left yesterday, trying to come up with something to wow the donors.
So far I’ve come up empty, and I’ve psyched myself out.
Sometimes solitude doesn’t serve me so well; I get all up in my head.
“Yep,” I say. “ I’m picking up my dress from Lulu right after this.”
Maddie bounces up and down in her seat. “Can I come with you and see the dress?”
I agree and then shift the conversation away from me.
“I heard that we got a record number of items for the silent auction this year,” I say. “Your daddy’s garage is donating a brand new set of tires.” Maddie nods with a sly smile and sips her coffee.
“I donated something, too.”
I sit up straight.
“You did? What?”
Maddie has a business degree, but she hasn’t really figured out what she wants to do, aside from bookkeeping and reception at her dad’s garage.
She leans forward. I know this look. Maddie and I have been friends since preschool. And when she gets that look on her face, she’s cooking up something huge.
“I took the plunge. Officially on Monday, I am hanging my shingle.”
“Tax service?”
She shakes her head. “ Nope. You’re looking at the owner of Swan Matchmaking Services.”
I have so many questions, but mostly, I’m excited for her.
“Like online dating?”
She puts up her hands. “No. Nothing online except my website and the questionnaires. I match everybody personally after one-on-one face-to-face interviews, consulting with counselors, astrologists, and friends. It’s a whole personality assessment.
I already have consultants on contract to help me with the personality tests and readings. ”
It sounds like she’s put a lot of thought into all this. “How long have you been working on this?”
She takes another sip of coffee and then drops the bomb. “About a year.”
I’m stunned.
“And you didn’t tell me?”
She looks a little sheepish and says, “You’ve been getting over a cheating ex. And you’ve been spending a lot of time alone. I didn’t want to upset you with details about my ideas centered on romance.”
I’m a little hurt, but I take in what she’s saying.
“I’m sorry if I’ve been a little distant. You can talk to me about this kind of stuff. I’m so happy for you.”
I reached across the table, grab her hand and squeeze.
I’m a little surprised that she’d be interested in making a career out of her favorite pastime, considering how her marriage to her high school sweetheart, Ewan, ended.
I don’t dare speak his name to her, though.
No one does. But surely, she sees the irony in this chosen profession.
“But wait. What are you donating to the silent auction?”
“A free matchmaking session. The whole works. From the questionnaire through the first date. I figured it would be a good way to get word of mouth out there.”
I nod in approval. “I think people will eat that up at the silent auction, especially since Valentine’s Day is coming up.”
“I sure hope so. Since I just registered my business and secured office space, I had to go to a planning meeting for the downtown association. And I don’t want to scare you, but Wilson Rogers III is coming to the gala.”
I choke on my rye toast.
“That troll?”
Both of us know exactly who he is. His daddy is worth a fortune and covers a massive chunk of the base salary paid to members of the arts guild. Wilson the Third is not a fan of the arts and is a notorious back-door dealer.
“Why in the world would he be coming to this?”
Maddie says, “I’ve heard he’s been trying to stack like-minded board members at The Rogers Foundation. He’s trying to steer it in the new direction.”
“Let me guess. Politics.”
“Yep.”
Suddenly, I don’t know whether I want to stress-eat or if I’ve lost my appetite.
“That means I’m gonna have to talk to that idiot at the gala, aren’t I? This is even worse than I imagined,” I moan.
And somehow, Rowdy is going to help with this?
What was I thinking?
Rowdy is a good guy, but this is going to take a whole other level of finesse. I can’t think of anyone in Songbird Ridge who knows how to play nice with that man. His daddy? Sure. But not the heir apparent.
I’ve made a terrible error.
Quickly, I pay my bill and scoot out of the café with Maddie on my heels.
“What’s going on with you? Why are you in such a hurry?” Maddie asks.
These monthly brunches have been a much-needed touchstone for years. Usually, we linger at the Bluejay for an hour. Two, sometimes.
“I have to rethink things. I have to practice talking to strangers. And I have to uninvite Rowdy.”
Maddie follows me as I march down to Lulu’s to pick up my dress.
“Aren’t you going to try it on?” she asks once I’m inside, already with my credit card in hand.
I shake my head as I wait for Lulu to bag up the dress.“I need to go home and think things over before I call Rowdy and break the news that he can’t come with me to the gala.”
“ I think you’re making a mistake,” Maddie says. “And you should listen to me. I have a long history of getting people together. He’s a Leo. You’re a Taurus. It makes perfect sense, and you know I’ve done your birth chart.”
“And?” I ask, wondering what that has to do with anything.
“Rowdy and you are the perfect match.”
“That’s irrelevant. It’s not a real date. I just need help talking to people. But not Wilson Rogers III.”
Maddie gestures to the owner. “You talk to Lulu just fine.”
“I used to babysit for Lulu. She’s a friend of the family.”
“And the two of you are going to look marvelous together,” Lulu swoons.
I look at Lulu incredulously. “How did you know what kind of suit Rowdy rented?”
Lulu cocks her head like I should know better. “Because Ed at the rental shop told me all about it. And he paid full price, by the way. Rowdy didn’t rent. And it’s the most expensive designer suit they could order in such a short amount of time.”
Maddie snorts, amused at the way everyone gossips in this town.
Outside, I confide, “Maddie, sometimes, just sometimes, Songbird Ridge can be a bit suffocating.”
My garment bag is slung over my shoulder as we walk up the hill toward the gift shop.
Maddie clucks at me and shows me how to hold it properly so I don’t wrinkle the dress. “You’re just crabby because I told you about Wilson Rogers III.”
“I am,” I sigh, giving my friend a side hug. “I’m gonna go upstairs and pour my stress into a painting while I figure out how to uninvite Rowdy without hurting his feelings.”
Maddie looks pouty as she says, “No such thing exists. He’s going to be devastated when you break up with him.”
“I’m not breaking up with him! Because there’s nothing to break up!”
I say goodbye to Maddie and head upstairs, then stop short when I see something on the top step that wasn’t there before.
My blood runs cold. Who’s been in my apartment?
As I approach, I see it’s a reusable shopping bag. I open it to find not a bomb, but all my favorite snacks.
I know exactly who this is from.
I double back down the stairs, knowing what I have to do.
I have to nip this in the bud before he gets hurt even worse.
And even now, knowing I have to hurt him, I get a fluttery feeling all over my body simply at the idea of seeing him.