Page 3 of Mr. Hook-up

“Miracles happen,” Grayson shot back.

“What did you end up scoring?” I asked Holden.

He flipped on ESPN, waiting to hear the score of last night’s Sox game, before he replied, “Eighty-nine percent.” His smile was so polished and white and straight, he could score himself a toothpaste commercial. “I’m seeing her tonight.”

Grayson took another long drink of his beer. “This motherfucker will show up with roses and wine, I’ll bet my dinner on it.”

“So?” Holden scratched his two-week-old beard. “I consider that kind of stuff foreplay, and there’s nothing wrong with it.”

“Except the app wasn’t created for that reason,” Grayson said. “Why don’t you save the money you don’t have and just focus on pus—”

“I’m going to let you two hash out whatever this is,” I chimed in, interrupting Grayson. “I have to go message Love.”

“Love,” Grayson roared as I got up from the chair. “Good luck with that.”

I flipped him off and returned to my bedroom, adjusting the pillows behind my back as I loaded the app, pulling up SaarasLove’s profile. What set our app apart from our competitors’ was that instead ofusing first or last names along with photos of the user’s face, we allowed only usernames and body shots or icons to protect everyone’s identities. Within the private chat feature, users could exchange whatever information they wanted—pictures, names, phone numbers—but that was at their discretion.

What I could gather from SaarasLove’s profile was that she lived within a sixty-mile radius of the zip code I’d provided—a distance she couldn’t exceed, or we wouldn’t have matched—and her picture was a long-range, out-of-focus shot of her sitting on a rocky beach, fully clothed.

I needed to know more about her.

I opened the chat feature under my BostonLifer account, a name that had come to me when we’d gotten closer to launch, and typed out a message.

Me:Hey you, my 100% match. I’ve got to say, that’s an impressive number. I’m pretty sure it means we’re supposed to meet up.

SaarasLove:Hiii! Honestly, that number kinda shocked me too. So, who are you, Mr.Boston? Tell me everything, don’t leave out a single detail.

Me:Getting right to the point, I like it. I’m in my last year of grad school, I just started a business with my best friends, I’m an avid Pats and Red Sox fan, I’m pretty athletic myself, and I’m into all things outdoors. Your turn.

SaarasLove:Just finishing up my undergrad and working, like you, but for someone else, not myself. I wouldn’t call myself athletic, but I love to walk. If I could turn traveling into a career, that would be my ultimate dream job—which I do a lot anyway for my employer. I love bad reality TV and ice cream, the chocolate-ier, the better. In fact, if frozen Hershey syrup becomes a thing, I’ll be their top customer.

Me:And it looks like you enjoy the beach, according to your pic.

SaarasLove:I do. I love it.

SaarasLove:Is that scotch in your pic? Whiskey? Are those the same—forgive me, I’m a simple drinker and just stick with wine.

Me:Scotch, yes. When I feel like indulging, that’s my drink of choice.

SaarasLove:Except you’re on a college budget, like me, and drowning in student loans, so you wait until the pub has $2 drafts, amiright?

Me:Lol. You’re definitely not wrong about that.

Me:What are your plans for this weekend?

SaarasLove:I’m actually headed home. I’ve got some things to tie up there.

Me:Is home far?

SaarasLove:It’ll feel like a totally different world from here.

Me: I was going to ask you if you wanted to meet up.

SaarasLove:Mr.Boston, what I love about this new app is that not every student I go to school with knows I’m on it since they can’t see my name or my pic. What I hate about this app is that I have no idea what you look like. Show me something, anything, just so I can have a feel of you to know if there’s any chemistry.

I laughed as I read her message.

If she only knew she was speaking to a co-owner, something I wouldn’t tell her.

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