Page 13 of Matchmaking the Rival

"Wow. That was a nice talk," Meredith mumbled under her breath.

"Disagree with her?"

She shrugged. "I think the point of a competition is to win it. Knowing you participated and did your best isn't really the point, right? Otherwise, there wouldn't be a winner."

"You and I are more alike than I thought," I said.

Despite my best intentions, I didn't get to talk to Meredith alone for long. I hadn't bothered to look at the agenda for tonight. I’d assumed, since they spent good money asking us all to be here, that they'd actually give us an opportunity to socialize and enjoy the evening. The complete opposite was true. Every member of the committee seemed determined to give a speech, and each was more boring than the previous one. They also informed us of the steps of the competition. After the tasting week was over, they’d announce which of us would advance to the next level. The committee didn't want to waste time with any applicants who didn’t meet the taste criteria.

The waiters served the food in the brief pauses between speeches. "It's a waste of this ballroom, if you ask me," I told Meredith amid bites of grilled salmon.

"Will you look at that? Something we can agree on," Meredith said. She'd watched the stage intently, but I saw her eyes glaze over a few times. "They’re putting a dent in your plan, aren't they?" A smile was inching across her face.

I couldn't get over how gorgeous she was. Had she always been this pretty? I'd never paid attention to her in high school. Our friendship had been born out ofmynecessity. I'd been too busy being cool to pay attention in class, so when I asked her for help one day, I had no idea she'd ever agreed to tutor me. I was the proverbial jock who only got serious about life after my family imploded.

"Fuck yes, they are," I admitted. "I didn't come here tonight to listen to them."

She swallowed hard, fidgeting, and said, "Why did you come?"

"Told you. To catch up with you. By the looks of it, these old farts are determined to talk our ears off until the end."

She parted her lips, dipping the tip of her tongue between them.

My cock twitched at her action.Fucking hell. I moved closer, leaning toward her shoulder. "Let's bury the hatchet, at least for tonight."

"I was thinking about that too," she said, drumming her fingers on the stem of her empty glass. She hadn't asked the waiter for a refill. "But I'm reconsidering it."

“Based on what?" I teased.

"Your behavior."

"Is that so?" I straightened back up in my chair.

“Yeah. I felt guilty about roasting your ass the other day at the booth, but you deserved it."

"Do I get any credit if I admit that I did?"

She jerked her head back, clearly surprised. "Yes. Yes, you do."

"Good. We're inching closer to burying that hatchet and getting out of here."

Meredith sighed. "Yeah, but it'll have to be after the last speech. God, why do they all need to go on and on?"

"My thoughts exactly."

After the last speech, which coincided with the cheesecake dessert, the organizers announced that the evening was over. As far as events were concerned, this one was atrocious. You didn't just dismiss your guests after you'd bored them to tears the whole evening. But Meredith and I had been ready to go for the last hour anyway.

"Why did they even mention fraternizing with the enemy? We didn't have time to do any of that," Meredith said as we all crowded toward the entrance.

“Give me your coat number and I’ll get them both,” I offered.

Meredith didn’t hesitate. She reached into her purse, handing me a metal plate with a 27 on it.

“Thanks a lot. I’ll wait for you here.” She stepped into the corner between the two doors, shivering. I immediately took off my suit jacket, draping it around her shoulders.

“Cade—”

She sounded belligerent, and I wasn’t having it.

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