Page 21 of The Valentine's Bet

But after a few scrolls, I spot a pair of familiar blue-green eyes. I click on the picture and pull up his profile. It’s beenyearssince he’s posted, but still. He’s handsome in his profile picture.

I note his job title states software engineer, and when I click on the employer page, I see a big promotion post honoring him.

He’s smart.

And very cynical.

Closing out of the app, I set my phone on the nightstand and shut my eyes. For some reason, I start mulling over how my date with Parker went. I don’t make it past replaying the first part of our conversation before I drift off to sleep.

“You have adatetonight?!” Eliza gasps, her mouth dropping open on the FaceTime screen. “I can’t believe it! How exciting!”

“Yeah, I mean, what’s more romantic than an evening coffee in SoHo?” I beam, blotting foundation on my face. “I think he might be just the kind of guy I’m looking for. He’s super nice, and he asked for my number. He works on Wall Street, too, so he must be intelligent.”

“For sure,” Eliza agrees. “What does he do for fun?”

“Oh, I’m not sure,” I answer. “He didn’t really talk about anything other than work, but I think that’s okay. It’s great to see a man with so much drive.”

“Of course,” Eliza says. “But does he do anything other than work? I mean, I guess it doesn’t really matter. Nick never did anything other than work and hang out with his mom and Daniel. In retrospect, I guess he was kind of a hermit.”

I burst into a fit of giggles at the same time she does. “There’s nothing wrong with that. You’re kind of a hermit, too.”

“You’re not wrong. So, what does Nate look like? Did you creep on his social media profile? I’d love to see a picture.”

I open my mouth to say something to her but then stop. “No ... I didn’t, actually. But Ididcreep on Parker’s...”

Her eyebrows raise. “Parker? That’s the super cynical guy you ran into that first night, right? What made you look him up? Did you see him again or something?”

“Oh. My. Gosh. I totally forgot to tell you!” I sigh, pausing to blend the blush and highlighter on my cheek. “He was oneof my dates at the event. Can you believe that? I had to spend thirty minutes with him—and then he had the audacity to buy my food after torturing me the entire time.”

“Wait ... he bought your food? That’s really sweet.”

“Only so he could rub it in my face.” I roll my eyes. “He walked me back to my apartment, too. I don’t know what to think of him, honestly. I mean, he has these moments where he’s notcompletelyinsufferable—and it feels like we couldmaybebe friends. He’s just so anti-love ... and ... grumpy.”

“But he paid for your meal and walked you home?” Eliza makes a face. “That sounds like a super nice guy.”

I wave her off. “You wouldn’t say that if you met him. Trust me. Anyway, I did take a peek at his Facebook—which he seemingly hasn’t used in years—and saw that he works as a senior software engineer at some huge tech company.”

“That’s just about as cool as Wall Street.”

“Maybe.” I snort, shaking my head and focusing in on my smokey eye. “But he’s not my type. I know that much.”

“And whatisyour type?”

I pause after dabbing on a little more gray eyeshadow. “Oh, that’s easy!Nate.”

Eliza bursts into a fit of giggles. “Girl, you’re hilarious. I seriously hope you have the best time tonight, though. You deserve to have fun and find that connection you’ve been longing for. I know I say it all the time, but I really mean it.”

“I know,” I say with a smile. “How’re things with Nick?”

“Good as usual,” she chirps. “I think we’re gonna go sledding tomorrow. There’s fresh snow falling outside and I’m pretty stoked about it. I think it’ll be a blast.”

“You’re such a kid at heart. I wish I could find fun in sledding. These days, I think I’d probably break a bone if I tried.”

“Oh stop,” she chides playfully. “I bet you’d have fun. Besides, once you fall in love, you’ll find that the things you didn’t like to do before are more fun than you thought.”

“I guess I’ll see then. I better go, though.” I glance down at my smartwatch. “I still have to get dressed and fix my hair.”

“Sounds good. Have a great time tonight and let me know how it goes.”

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