Read Online The Matchmakers by Jennifer Colgan - Free Book Online Page B

stirring combination of fresh air,
hard work and spicy, pine-scented soap. She felt his breath on the exposed skin
beneath her right ear, and her body tingled traitorously. `Be careful, Sugar
Plum. Some predators are on the prowl tonight.Ćallie surveyed the bar
crowd as Nick whirled her in another wide circuit of the dance floor. She saw men
watching her with naked anticipation and women with a certain recognizable
suspicion. As a Fae, she had no fear of human avarice. Her only concern was
completing her task and avoiding Freya’s promised punishment. To do that, she
still had to win Nick’s trust and secure his cooperation, and stirring up
rivalries among the locals was not a good start. She made a mental note to tone
down the glamour she’d used tonight so that the women wouldn’t view her with
jealousy and the men wouldn’t view her much at all. She looked up at Nick and
met his ice-blue gaze as the song ended. `I’m safe with you, aren’t I, Nick?´ The
question seemed to startle him. After a moment’s consideration, he replied, his
chest swelling a fraction as large as Farley’s had, `Yes. You’re safe with
me.Ćhapter Eight When Nick and Callie returned to the bar, Farley seemed
to have lost interest in flirting, which Nick didn’t find surprising. The
bartender had two older women vying for his attention, and he spared the faerie
only a passing glance. Frank and Bud had disappeared, probably gone into the
back room to play pool. Their absence made Nick a little calmer. He ordered
himself a beer and Callie another lemon soda and motioned for her to follow him
to a newly vacated table near the jukebox.
                Diane sashayed by, her
hips at Nick’s eye level, just as they sat down. Callie’s curious glance
followed the waitress. `She wishes you had a crush on her.´ `I do, a little.´ Nick
gauged Callie’s reaction to his admission. He liked Diane but had no desire to
date her. He didn’t need magical intervention to sense a little desperation in
her. She spent her weekends working here, surrounded by men who were looking
for whatever they could get. She had as jaded a view of love as Nick did, and
he had no doubt that while they might have easily fanned their flirtatious attraction
into something more, it would only dissolve into a race to see who’d hurt whom
first. Callie’s bright expression dimmed. `You won’t lead her on, will you?´ `Diane’s
too smart for that. She knows me. Right now she’s got her dander up because of
you, but she’s no love struck teenager.´ `Hmm. You’re very astute for a human.
Why not put that intuition to good use and tell me who would be a good match
for Diane? She’s looking for true love, but she thinks, like you do, that she’ll
never find it.´ Nick laughed and took a deep draught of beer. `Farley,´ he
answered without hesitation. `He likes to chat up all the women who come in,
but I think that crap about long walks and cuddling is true underneath that
Grizzly Adams exterior. He’d love to go home at night to a loyal woman who
could forgive his schmoozing because it’s part of his job.´ Wow. Nick sat back
and considered what he’d just said. It had come out of nowhere, like suddenly
he was Dr. Phil or Oprah well, maybe more like Dr. Phil than Oprah. He’d never
once considered Farley’s romantic needs. The very phrase gave him a slithery
feeling, sort of like baiting a fishing hook with a particularly lively night
crawler. This was not an avenue he wanted to explore. Callie looked delighted.
She leaned forward over the tiny table, her eyes glowing in the light of the
red glass votive candle that burned between them. `Tell me more.´ `Aw, come on.
I’m just kidding. Farley and Diane? He’s her boss, for chrissakes.´ `So? There’s
no law against it. Well, not here anyway. Then there’s Teresa and John. We’ve
potentially got two out of three already. We just need to figure out a way to
get them to realize it.´ `You’ve got all