Page 64 of Failure to Match

“I mean... this isn’t”—My hand flapped between me and Jackson as I tried to think of the right words—“It, uh, I’m his dating coach.”

Thatone I regretted saying altogether.

I couldn’t see Jackson’s expression from this angle but the gloomy cloud of disapproval forming around him was making the hairs on the back of my neck rise.

“You’re his dating coach?” Daniel gave an entertained, disbelieving laugh. “What does that mean?”

“Oh, it’s um... long and boring to explain. Sounds more exciting than it is.”

“I doubt that,” he said. “Truffle butter lobster sashimi.”

It didn’t escape me that Jackson hadn’t touched his last two dishes. He also made no indication that he was going to try this one.

“Tell me, how close is the real thing to the Will Smith movie?” Daniel asked.

“Hitch,” I supplied with a polite laugh. “And not close. I actually work at Charmed Elite. It’s a matchmaking…”

I trailed off when his expression changed.

“No way.” He crossed his arms, soft brown eyes lighting up. “One of my investors met her wife through you guys. She’s been pushing me to sign up for a while.” Then, “You got a card on you?”

Um. I did. Yes.

But I hesitated as something unpleasant snaked through my gut.

Technically, this wasn’t a real date. And even if it was... it wasn’t like Daniel was asking for my contact information for personal reasons. Asking for someone’s business card because you were interested in their professional services was not the same as asking for their number.

So, this was fine. We were well within respectable boundaries here.

“I don’t have any on me. Sorry.”

Under the bar, Jackson’s knee brushed my thigh gently. A praise.

My cheeks darkened for literally no reason. I’d lost my mind.

“All right, well, take mine.” After wiping his hands, Daniel quickly nabbed a sleek white card out of his back pocket and placed it in front of me.

Just like that, I had Daniel Omori’s direct contact information staring up at me, ready for use. Ria was going to die when I told her.

“Call me, yeah? We’ll set up an appointment at my restaurant if you want, so you can cross it off your list. Janice said you guys are willing to fly out wherever?”

Wherever. Whenever.

It was all covered in the hefty signup fee for members.

I took the card. “Sure. I’m on a full-time case for the next few weeks, but I can connect you to?—”

I cut off when he shook his head. “I’m not in a rush.”

Okay, but I also wasn’t planning on staying at Charmed once the Immersive was over. But, at this point, it felt like more excuses would push things into awkward territory and make it seem like I was actively discouraging a potential client from signing up for our services, which I really shouldn’t have been doing.

So, I slipped the card into my phone case with a smile and said, “Cool. We’ll be in touch.”

On a completely unrelated note, Jackson didn’t say anything else for the rest of the meal.

17

The helicopter rideback to the apartment was arguably even more scenic than the first, what with the dark skies and city lights. Unfortunately, it was also excruciatingly more silent.

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