Page 20 of The Merry Matchmaker

Time for dessert!

Frankie brought out the pie, along with coffee, and both men vacuumed theirs up.

“I could eat that entire pie,” said Mitch.

“Me, too,” said Brock. “Frankie, you could have your own cooking show.”

The way he grinned at her, it was...nothing. No more than a sugar-induced sappy grin.

“Cougars in the Kitchen,”quipped Stef.

She’d said it lightly, but it came off snotty, and no one so much as chuckled.Way to put your best foot forward, Frankie thought, irritated.

“Nothing wrong with those big cats,” said Brock. “Cougars are sexy.”

Brock was definitely under the influence of sugar.

The way Mitch’s eyebrows were dipping into a V, Frankie could tell he was under the influence of something else. He was obviously not enjoying the company of his new manager.

“More pie, Mitch?” she offered.

His expression fell back into polite lines. “Absolutely,” he said.

“I’ll take some more, too,” Brock said. “This is the best thing I’ve had in a long time.”

Frankie set out more pie for the men. Everyone stayed at the table, drinking coffee and talking.

Actually, mostly Brock was talking...about everything from his college football days to his new truck. Stef threw out compliments where she could. Mitch turned into a clam about his own life although he certainly could have bragged about his own accomplishments. Frankie knew that, like Brock, he’d played football in college—had gotten a full-ride scholarship. Earlier in the year, he’d picked up his third Ironman medal. Instead of chiming in, he simply sat, eyeballing Brock.

Elinor wasn’t eyeballing anyone. She was simply looking at her coffee cup.

Frankie switched topics, hoping to pull in all her guests by polling them for their favorite movies. Sports and action movies topped the list for the men. Stef mentioned a favorite rom-com, and Frankie threw in a couple of serious movies that had stuck with her.

“Although I love all those classic sports movies, likeThe Blind Side,” she finished.

“Can’t go wrong with football,” said Brock.

Frankie turned to Elinor. “How about you, Elinor?”

“I’m not much into movies,” Elinor said apologetically. Then added, “The books are always better.”

Conversation faltered as the others all nodded politely.

“It’s always better to be out living life than watching it,” Frankie tried.

“Yeah, but it’s hard to pass upDie Hardat Christmas,” Brock joked.

“True,” Frankie agreed. She and Mitch had watched it the year before with one of his sons who’d come up for the holidays.

“My ex loved to watch that movie,” Stef muttered. “I always thought it was too far-fetched.” Then she frowned and took a gulp of what was left of her coffee.

“I guess everyone’s got an ex,” Brock said. “But I learn from my past mistakes and move on.”

“Oh, I’ve moved on,” Stef insisted. Her scowl and tone of voice implied that in the process she’d trampled Richard with the highest spike heels she could find.

“Good. ’Cause you never know what you might find right around the corner. Or in a new town,” Brock said, and grinned at Frankie. Which didn’t have Stef looking happy.

“I should be going,” Elinor said.

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