Page 7 of Tessa's Trust

I blinked. “Alpacas?”

“You bet,” he said. “They have a minimal negative environmental impact, and they’re a lot of fun to have around. I’ve chosen wisely when it comes to the different colors of fur.”

I didn’t think I’d ever seen a real alpaca up close. “Well, that’s nice,” I acknowledged. “How long have you been speed dating?”

“They do it every other month here at McCloskey’s. I’ve been a few times, but I haven’t found my soulmate. I usually end up with somebody for the night or weekend, though.” He waggled his eyebrows. “Looking down this line, I’ve seen and talked to most of the people. Not that gal three down, though.”

I leaned forward to peruse the long length of the many tables. “Whoa. That’s Kelsey Walker,” I murmured.

He jerked his head. “Walker? As in the gal who killed Danny Pucci?”

“That’s her sister.” If I remembered right, she’d attempted to help remove a bomb from my sister’s leg and then stayed with Anna, even as the ATF guys were trying to dismantle the explosive. “She’s a nice person. You should talk to her.”

“Huh. She’s pretty.”

She was pretty. All the Walker girls were. She was blond with crystal-blue eyes. I’d heard she’d had a rough time of it. In fact, she dated Danny after I did, so I knew she had a rough time of it. That was one of the reasons her sister had killed the bastard.

“I guess I should just lay it out there.” Bobbo stretched his mammoth arms. “You want to come home with me tonight?”

I lifted my glass and took a deep drink of the bubbles. “Nope.”

“Huh.” His jowls moved, and he scratched his beard. It must be a nervous habit. “Was it because I brought you speed dating for our date?”

“Sure.” I drank half my prosecco in two gulps. “Also...” I might as well give him the truth. “I don’t think you can really meet somebody based on a contract.”

“Sure, you can,” Bobbo said. “A lot of people have arranged marriages. It’s rare not to. We’re the odd ones here in this country.”

The man had a point. “I guess that’s true.”

“Now will you come home with me?” Bobbo patted his stomach. “I’ll give you a good time and cook you a great breakfast in the morning.”

I was a sucker for a good breakfast, but not that much. “I appreciate it, Bobbo, but I’m not going home with you.”

“I wonder if I could change your mind,” he said thoughtfully. The buzzer went off, and relief flowed through me. “All right.” Bobbo shoved his chair back. The thing almost fell over, but he caught it. “I’m not done yet,” he told me. “I’m coming back.”

I just smiled. It was warm in the bar, and the champagne was already going to my head, so there was no doubt I was staying with Nonna tonight. “My grandmother is right over there,” I said. “She’d throw a fit if I went home with some man on the first date.”

Which, incidentally, was something I had never done. Out of the three of us girls, for some reason, I’d been thought of as the wild one until recently. I didn’t know why. I was a free spirit, but I rarely dated, and I worked all the time.

Maybe it was because Donna was automatically type-A, the eldest and hugely successful. Then Anna, my younger sister, had been lost for quite a while—but that was another story. So, I guessed people just put me into a slot. The important thing to remember was that I could do what I wanted with it.

Nick side-stepped Bobbo and pulled out the chair to sit.

“You skipped several people,” I murmured dryly.

“I don’t care. You’re the reason I’m in this mess.” Nick settled in, looking sexy in a black button-down shirt and faded jeans.

I smiled. I kind of was the reason he was in this mess. “You can’t blame me for what our grandmothers planned.” We’d been fairly successful in avoiding their matchmaking attempts these last few months. They’d even put us on a charity board before the holidays, but neither of us had made a meeting. We’d both been working.

Bobbo glared at Nick and winked at me. “I’ll be back.” He moved down to sit across from Kelsey Walker.

Apparently, there wasn’t any sort of seating order at McCloskey’s. I’d seen speed dating on television and thought the moving party had to shift to the next table. Apparently not. I scrutinized Nick. “Well?”

“Well, what?” he muttered.

“You’re supposed to charm me.”

He cocked his head, looking way too handsome under the soft lights above the tables. “I’m supposed to charm you?”

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