Page 59 of The Dating Pact

She deserved the world.

“She wants to get married,” I told my friends, and they filled in the rest.

“What are you gonna do?” Dylan asked, fist by his mouth, gaze narrowed on me. He’d been in my position. He had only wanted a fling too and found Genevieve.

But I didn’t intend to find anybody, and I knew what I had to do. I slipped my cell phone out of my pocket, tapping on the app.

“What?” Nate peered over my shoulder. “What are you doing?”

“Finding a date.”

“Didn’t you…” Liam glanced over to the table with the girls then back to me. “Don’t you like Brooke?”

I nodded. That was the exact problem. I liked her and couldn’t continue to steal all of her time and energy. We needed a reset. Get back to our original goals.

Nate motioned to my cell phone as I scrolled. “You sure about this?”

“Emma,” I said, clicking on the profile of a woman I’d matched with, “is a Libra who loves good conversation and Taylor Swift.” I turned my screen to show the guys. “She’s cute.”

They didn’t agree but didn’t disagree either. All of them stared at me with various dubious expressions.

I typed out a quick message to her, not even thinking about how it sounded or second-guessing tone. Hey. How’s your day going?

By the time Emma responded, the boys and I had finished our burgers and moved on to a discussion of who’d win in a fight: shark versus orca.

Hi! It’s going great, she messaged. I took my dog to the park this morning, and I’m about to grill up some dinner.

You grill?

Yeah. I love to grill. My dad was big into BBQ, and I love some good smoked meats.

I sniffed a laugh. I like a girl who knows her meats.

LOL. That’s me. What are you up to today?

“What’s she saying?” Nate asked, leaning over for a peek at my phone.

I shrugged. “She seems cool.”

I’m having a Shark Week party. I snapped pictures of the decorations and the Slip ’N Slide, sending them to her.

THAT’S BRILLIANT, she sent with a ton of laughing-face emojis.

Thank you. *Tips hat* My kids love it.

That’s adorable. You’re adorable, she messaged, and I grinned.

I didn’t know if it was my newfound confidence or desperation, but I took a leap. I know this is a little fast, but would you want to grab dinner tomorrow? Maybe find some good barbecue?

You know what? It is a little fast, but there’s something about you. So, sure. Let’s get dinner.

I interrupted my friends in the middle of an argument over whether an octopus could kill a shark. “She said yes.”

“Who?” Nate lurched back. “This new chick?”

“Emma. Yeah. We’re going to?—”

“What’s going on over here?” Brooke popped up out of nowhere, looking like sunshine and smelling of lavender.

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