Page 11 of Matchmaking With Cupid

"Yes. Good. Erm, thank you."

"Any time." I smiled at her before heading into my office and letting out a sigh. What was I thinking in making this some kind of business dinner? I wanted to get to know her better, especially with the matchmaking system claiming that we'd be a good match, but I was hardly going to manage that when there were boxes of Indian food between us and talk was focused on a god with an attitude problem.

I sat at my computer and ordered the food. It didn't matter what or how I'd gotten into this situation, I wasn't going to go back on my word, especially when it still meant getting to spend more time with Eloise. Despite knowing I was supposed to be focusing on my job, I couldn't help my mind from wandering and my attention kept going to the door in anticipation of when Eloise would appear there.

Eventually, my phone lit up, indicating that the food had arrived. I buzzed them into the building and went out to collect it. I gave the delivery guy a tip and made my way back into the office.

"Food is here," I said to Eloise.

"Okay. Do we need anything?"

I shook my head. "The Indian sends everything."

"That's fancier than any Indian takeaway I've ever had," she said.

"It's from the Indian down the street."

Her eyes widened. "That's so expensive."

I shrugged. "It's on Jinx. Shall we?" I gestured to my office.

She nodded and got to her feet, following me back inside. I set the box of food down on my desk and started unloading it while she swiped a couple of things on her tablet, reminding me that we were supposed to be discussing the situation with Hades and not just having a relaxed meal.

"Do you have any potential matches for Hades?" I asked as I set her food down in front of her.

She nodded. "Three potential dates, but I'm worried about them all. Have they delivered takeaway on real plates?"

"They don't really do takeaway," I admitted. "They mostly do it as a favour to Aine."

"She must be a good customer." She looked down at her plate.

"She's a wealthy and powerful goddess with lots of people to send on dates," I responded. "That's pretty much all there is to it."

"Ah."

I sat down and lifted the lid from my plate, letting the delicious scent rise from it. Eloise seemed to realise that it was time for her to eat too, and she opened her own.

"It smells good," she said.

"It is good," I promised. "So, Hades?"

She sighed. "I don't really know how to describe it."

"A gut feeling?" I asked.

"Yes, something like that." She ate some of her food, a thoughtful expression on her face. "I don't know, none of them seem quite right. I have their profiles, if you want to look?"

"Perhaps after we've eaten," I suggested. "What about the date setup he's asking for?"

"I guess I'm confused about how we can set that up without knowing who he's matching with," she admitted. "I'd hate knowing that the date didn't have anything to do with me."

I raised an eyebrow. "Oh?"

"Well, it's just that a date should be about both parties, right? Maybe you like skydiving, and that's the date Jinx has arranged for you. But I hate skydiving. That would make it a terrible date for me, even if it's great for you." She cleared her throat. "Hypothetically," she mumbled, looking down at her plate, but not fast enough to hide the flush on her cheeks.

"I'm not a fan of skydiving, so that wouldn't be our hypothetical first date," I responded carefully, trying to gauge how she responded. I was determined to leave the decision of what to do about our Jinx match in her hands, but that didn't mean I wasn't interested. I'd written the program, I believed that it made good matches, now I just needed to figure out why it thought Eloise and I were a good one, without invading her privacy.

"Did you look at it?" she asked.

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