Harte Strings: The Billionaire Matchmaker, Part Two (7 page)

Jeremy grinned. “Give me more credit than
that
.” He struggled not to laugh. “I dated her for a week and a half in the
fourth
grade. She sat next to me in class.”

Dylan grabbed Jeremy in a headlock and rubbed his head. “An elementary school crush doesn’t count, buddy. Lazer’s dated mature supermodels.”

Jeremy broke free and pushed Dylan away. “Hey!” He smoothed his hair back into place, grinning. “Hands off the hair, man.” He preened like a peacock. Jeremy was obviously a ham when in a setting where he felt comfortable. “Sh-she was already in a training bra when we went steady for a week and a half she’ll never forget.”

“Oooooh.” Dylan made jazz hands. “Training bra. Hot stuff.”

Jeremy socked him in the arm.

“Boys!” Lazer said in a mock dad voice.

Cam turned to me. “But how did you know?”

I smiled slyly. “I asked.”

“That’s cheating.” But Cam looked at me with awe. “You knew about the game ahead of time.”

Yes, I was both cunning and devious. And extremely socially adept. And a damn good dating coach. Lesson one was sinking in already. At least these guys were sharp and quick learners.

“Was it cheating? To show an interest in all of you and really get to know you?” I glanced around the group. “Be honest, did any of you feel my interest wasn’t genuine? Wasn’t it the tiniest bit flattering? Isn’t asking fun questions that make you think and remember much more interesting in conversation than the mundane, ordinary, ‘what do you do for a living’ type? Were there any painful lapses in the conversation when we were chatting? Times when you felt awkward or stiff? Or did the time fly?”

“Shit,” Dylan said, and slapped his thigh.

The rest of the guys looked at me with admiration. It might have been my imagination, but I thought Lazer paled.

He made a show of taking off his watch and placing it on the table in front of him. He grinned at me, sexily, in that way that made my toes curl.

“Scared?” I asked. “Ready to throw in the towel already?”

“Never,” he said. “Keep going. You’re not the only one who knows how to carry a conversation and get to know people.” He nodded to Lottie. “Bring it on. Next question.”

She smiled at him and read from another card. “Who here was voted rodeo king, largely because he looks good in a pair of chaps?”

None of the men looked like cowboys. But I knew who was. I didn’t know for sure about the rodeo king thing, but I chose my answer with confidence and placed the card down in front of me.

“Let’s mix this up,” Lazer said. “Lottie, give us the answer and we’ll all turn our cards over at the same time.”

Lottie nodded. “Dylan!” She sounded more triumphant than she should have.

“Five for me!” I turned over my card.

It was two for the guys. Which seemed like a suspiciously low score for them. I saw Austin secretly nudge Dylan. Dylan nodded back, grinning.

“I call foul. Dylan’s a cowboy from Omak, sure enough. But does he really look good in a pair of chaps or is that just bullshit? I want to see the trophy.” Lazer nearly jumped from his chair.

“No can do.” Dylan shook his head.

Cam pointed at Dylan with his chin. “Show us your legs, Dylan, so we can judge for ourselves.”

Dylan stood and took a stroll around the table, strutting like a cowboy with his thumbs in his pockets, to a chorus of boos.

Cam cupped his hands around his mouth. “I’ve seen better-looking legs in my grandma’s nursing home.”

“You have to imagine me in a pair of chaps,” Dylan yelled back at the guys. “Chaps show off my legs to perfection and hide my chunky thighs.”

“Sit down,” Lazer said. “We’ve seen enough. I still want to see that trophy.”

Pulled a man from a burning building
—Jeremy? Really? Okay, I’d missed one. But the guys only got one point—Lazer’s, I assumed.

Jumped from a moving helicopter into the ocean
—Cam.

Five for me. One for the men? Now something was definitely off. Austin was smiling to himself.

Lazer glared at his team and gave them a pep talk. “Damn, guys. Everyone knows Cam was in the Navy. Think!”

Jeremy snickered.

Lazer pointed at him. “Keep this up and next time I’ll tell my staff to put two bugs in your salad, buddy. And hide them. No tossing them on top for you to find.”

“You put a bug in my man’s salad?” Dylan came out of his chair.

Jeremy shrugged. “More protein for me.”

“Three dirty glasses for you next time, Dylan,” Lazer said with the imperiousness of a king. “Sit down. It was all part of this damn getting-to-know-you crap.” He shot me a quick glance.

“I thought there was something off with the service,” Austin said. “It’s not like your caterers to screw up like that—”

“Gentlemen!”

All eyes turned to me.

“I’ll explain about the bugs and dirty glasses later. For now, can we just get on with it?”

Won a national science fair scholarship in high school
—me.

Five points for me. Hey, everyone should have gotten their own response right. Again, only one for the men. Lazer’s was the only correct vote.

“I’m flattered you know me so well, Lazer.” I blew him a kiss.

The other men snickered.

“You guys aren’t even trying!” He pointed accusingly around the table at them. But his voice was full of good humor. “This is mutiny. My team has turned traitor on me. I won’t forget it. You guys may not know what’s good for you. But don’t worry, men. I’m going to win this one for you. With or without you.” He rubbed his hands together in confident anticipation.

Lottie broke in. “This one’s fun! Looks good in a kilt?” Lottie wiggled her eyebrows lecherously and tried to get a peek at all the guys’ legs.

Cosplay. Swordplay. That had to be Austin. I pictured him as a tall, redheaded highlander.

But the guys looked around at each other, genuinely perplexed.

“We all look good in skirts, don’t we, men?” Dylan punched the air and nodded.

The group erupted in laughter.

I wondered for a minute if they all did cosplay. And decided they must. There was some kind of inside joke going on, clearly.

“Oh, aye!” Cam said. “But the clue specifically says ‘kilt,’ gents. Other skirts don’t qualify.”

The group nodded, ribbed each other, and finally selected their answers.

When Lottie read Austin’s name, they applauded.

“Austin! Show us those legs!” Dylan said.

“No. No!” Jeremy shook his head. “Does he have to? We all know he has butt-ugly legs. Look at those hairy beasts!” He shuddered.

Which encouraged Austin. He stood up and did a catwalk move poolside while the guys laughed and cheered.

“Now all we need is a swish of a skirt!” Cam made a little swishing motion with his hands. “And a wee breeze.”

“A wee breeze?” Lazer shook his head. “Are you crazy, man? You know they go commando under those things?”

“The sight of some wee balls would be good for a laugh.” Jeremy raised his arms in the air like he was going down the hill on a rollercoaster. “Weeee!”

Austin shook his fist good-naturedly at the much smaller man.

“Fuck,” Lazer said. “You guys can never stop bragging about your legs.”

The guys laughed and teased until Austin took his seat again.

I had guessed Austin correctly. Another five for me. Two for the men.

Lazer set his phone on the table and kicked off his sandals. “
Traitors
.”

At this point, I was falling a little bit in love with his friends. They clearly wanted to see their leader thrown in the pool.

Sews like a pro.
Austin again. I got it right. Duh. Cosplay. The men stereotyped the sexes and voted for me. On purpose, I was certain. They grinned and nudged each other. Only two of them got it right.

I was killing it. I would have been winning even without their help. I didn’t need them throwing the game. But I loved that they were so jovially on my side. Soon there was only one question left.

“Run, run, as fast as you can!” I taunted Lazer. “You can’t catch me.”

“We’ll see about that.” Lazer raised one eyebrow. “Lottie?”

Lottie read the question to herself and hesitated. “Ashley’s right.” She put the note card face down on the table and flashed Lazer a sympathetic look.

I thought, besides himself, she was the only one pulling for him.

“There’s no need to read this one,” Lottie said. “Ashley is clearly the winner and queen of the icebreaker. There’s no way you gentlemen can catch her. Lazer”—she put on a serious, pained tone and expression to match—“I’m sorry, but you’re
not
the biggest icebreaker winner. Meet your fate and take your punishment for losing.”

Lazer raised a finger in the air. “Hang on. Hang on! Let’s make this interesting. Give us a chance to catch up. And by us, I mean me.” He glared at his team again and back to me. “Sudden death. Whoever answers correctly first wins. You guess first, then one of us. Then you, etc. If we win, we get to pass on two rules, one time each. If you win, me and my
entire
team go in the pool.” His gaze met mine.

“Hey! Wait a minute,” Dylan said. “We didn’t agree to that.”

“
Et tu, Brute?
” Lazer shook his head at Dylan and laughed. “Without some skin in the game, you guys are going to throw it.”

The guys shook their heads. And, in a show of complete and utter lack of faith in their fearless leader, removed their watches, wallets, keys, and phones from their pockets.

“Put those away!” I said. “You’re not going to lose.”

Cam held his hands palm up, like,
What can we do?
He hitched his thumb at Lazer and shook his head.

In a show of solidarity, I put my phone and watch on the table, too.

Lazer turned to me.

I had no idea what that note card said. But someone here knew that their last card hadn’t been read yet. I hadn’t counted cards, so to speak. But since I knew it wasn’t mine, it had to be one of theirs. One of them knew what it said. It was a bit of Russian roulette as to whose it was and what order the men would answer in. Could I guess it first?

However, unless I missed my guess, that last card was Lazer’s. Which explained his confidence. Either that, or he was a phenomenal bluffer.

I bit my lip. “I don’t recall there being a sudden-death clause in the rules.”

“My team turned traitor on me. Defected. You owe me a chance. Come on. How about this—just you and me. One guess each. You go first. Winner takes all.” He made exaggerated puppy-dog eyes at me and pointed at his team. “I’m doing this for you, my best friends.” He thumped his fist against his heart, really playing it up.

He turned to Lottie and arched an eyebrow. “Just to make this more interesting, if Ashley turns down my generous offer, destroy the card. No one but you will ever know what it says.” He smiled at me triumphantly. “Your move.”

Lottie shook her head ever so slightly, warning me off. I trusted Lottie’s judgment implicitly. Whatever was on that card was going to deeply embarrass someone. But who, including Lazer, would write something like that? And what could it be? I was dying of curiosity. But I couldn’t let my curiosity sway me. People always came first.

I shook my head. “No dice, Lazer. You lost fair and square. Me and my team”—I grinned at the men—“insist you jump in the pool.”

The guys applauded and whistled.

Lazer set his jaw and stood. He paused before Lottie and put his hands on her shoulders as he leaned down and whispered something in her ear. She nodded. He gave her a friendly pat. “I forgive you, Lottie. I know it’s just your job to carry out the sentence.”

He walked solemnly to the edge of the pool. “I’ll never understand you guys. Why? Why!” He shook his fists in the air.

“Because they’re serious about finding a match.” I beamed at them. “I’m so proud of you, men!” I turned back to Lazer and pointed to the water.

Lazer shook his head and walked to the diving board like a man condemned. Clearly, if he was going in, he was going in big.

We got out of our chairs and gathered by the edge of the pool to watch. He walked the diving board as if he was walking the plank. When he reached the end of the board, he jumped up and did a picture-perfect cannonball so fast that we didn’t have time to run. I watched as if in slow motion, fascinated, cursing myself for being so stupid.

Too late, I covered my head with my arms in a futile attempt to stay dry. If I’d been rating the splash, I would have had to give it a ten. Lazer was a cannonball pro.

Dylan looked around at his buddies, kicked off his flip-flops, and cannonballed in after Lazer.

After Dylan’s cannonball splashed me, I was completely drenched.

Cam, Austin, and Jeremy let out a battle cry and ran for the diving board.

Oh, why not?
I was right on their heels.

When we reached the diving board, Austin held the other guys back with his arm. “Lasses first.” He winked at me.

My thin cotton sundress clung to my cold, budded breasts and to my legs and had gone nearly transparent. The sooner I hit the water, the sooner the show was over. I took the board in a few long, quick steps, bounced at the end, flew into the air, and cannonballed with all my might. Cam, Austin, and Jeremy went in right behind me. I saw them in the water as I fell to the bottom of the pool and kicked back up. I broke back to the surface, brushing the wet hair out of my face, with my dress weighting me down.

Lazer pulled off his wet shirt and slapped onto the edge of the pool with a
thwop
. He saw me struggling against my skirt and caught me in his arms, his naked chest warm against me. “That was beautiful.”

Water droplets clung to his indecently long eyelashes. His lips were moist and full. Everything in me screamed to kiss him.

And I would have…I wanted to so desperately…

But if I wanted him, I would have to play harder to get. I couldn’t let one simple cannonball sweep me off my feet.

I forced a smile. “Skeptic! Best icebreaker ever, am I right?” I looked around to the guys for confirmation.

A
shley

We splashed around in the pool until our teeth chattered, our lips were blue, and the stars came out. Lazer jumped out first and grabbed a stack of fluffy towels and robes from the bathhouse at the corner of the pool. He slipped into a robe and headed back to the pool with his arms full.

“We have a pool boy, too! Now this is service,” I said.

“We’re a full-service establishment.” He leaned down to give me a hand out. “I’d be happy to turn down your bed and warm it up for you, too.” His voice was deep with innuendo. “Give you a private massage.”

I laughed and shook my head at him. “You’re incorrigible.”

“And relentless in pursuit of what I want.”

Why was my heart pounding so loudly?

He gripped my hand and pulled me out of the pool, wrapping me snugly in a robe, restoring my modesty. Never wear white to a pool party. He handed me a towel. “Sorry about the dress.”

I shrugged as I toweled off my hair. “It washes.” I cuddled into the robe, wishing I were warming myself in his arms instead. “You have to admit, that was fun.”

“The night’s young. We could have still more fun,” he whispered in my ear.

“You’re such a tease,” I whispered back. “You know the rules. You don’t get a pass. Not even with me.”

The staff had lit the fire pit and laid out a spread of homemade marshmallows and graham crackers, and premium chocolate bars from some of Seattle and Portland’s finest chocolatiers. Along with a selection of metal skewers and slender sticks.

Dylan rubbed his hands together and headed for the fire pit. “S’mores! No one does them better than Lazer.”

As the men headed to the fire, I walked past the table to grab my phone, hoping to snag that note card with that last dangerous question. Or at least get a peek at it. I was pretty sure Lottie hadn’t destroyed it.

I found it tucked beneath my phone. I knew I could count on Lottie. I slipped it into my pocket, but not before getting a glimpse of it.

Proposed to the first girl he fell in love with. And was resoundingly, and publically, rejected. Answer: Lazer

It was written in Lazer’s block printing and signed by him. I felt like I’d been kicked in the stomach. Lazer? Proposing marriage? And turned down? Who would turn him down? I wanted to meet this woman.

There had to be a story here. Was this a joke, like Jeremy and his supermodel? Lazer proposing to someone in kindergarten, maybe? Little kids are so cute at that age when they pick out their future spouse. “I’m going to marry that girl, Mommy!” Yeah, we’ll see about that.

The key to Lazer’s story had to be “first girl.” That was probably another of those asked-a-girl-to-marry-me-in-first-grade kind of things.
I hoped.

I joined the group by the fire, my mind spinning with possibilities as I watched Lazer joke with his friends.

He glanced up at me. Our eyes met. I must have given myself away, because he gave me a questioning, amused look. He nodded very slightly, almost to himself, as if he was pleased with himself.

Lazer made space for me close to the fire and patted the place next to him. “You’re shivering. Get in here and warm up.”

As I sat, the note card in my pocket crinkled.

He heard it and gave me a quick, searching look. For a second I thought he was going to say something. He let it go, handed me a skewer, and passed me the marshmallows with a casual air, as if there was nothing amiss. But I was certain he knew what I had in my pocket and was trying to gauge whether it mattered to him or was just a joke and nothing at all.

“My chef makes the best marshmallows in the west. I never eat store-bought marshmallows anymore.” He leaned in and whispered in my ear, “Be careful. They’re so fresh, they melt off the skewer and fall into the fire if you turn away for an instant.” He covered my hand with his and guided my skewer into the fire, near the coals, where the marshmallow could brown and not burn.

The air grew suddenly cold and crisp with night. The stars twinkled overhead. I inhaled deeply. The mountain air was fresh and clean, natural in a way you forgot when you were in the city. I toasted my marshmallow, listening to the men joke. The heat soon made me pleasantly drowsy. By the time I had made my s’more and taken a few bites, the long day was catching up with me. I fought to stay awake. It was three hours later in New York. I knew better than to think about what time it was at home, but the thought just popped in there.

“Am I going to have to carry you to bed?” Lazer touched my arm, startling me.

His suggestion would have been sexy if I hadn’t been totally exhausted.

“You almost fell asleep with a bite of s’more in your mouth. You
must
be tired.” He caught my elbow.

“You’re right. I’m beat. I think I’ll head to bed.” I set my dessert down and stood.

“I’m going on an early morning hike,” he said. “Come with me. We’ll be back in plenty of time. The naming and branding presentation isn’t until ten.”

I nodded, barely aware of what I was agreeing to.

“Meet me in the living room at six.”

I nodded again and staggered into the lodge to my room. When the door was safely closed behind me, I pulled the note card from my pocket and read it again, just to make sure I hadn’t hallucinated it. No. It was still the same. I couldn’t imagine any woman turning Lazer down. Ever. I was going to have to get to the bottom of it. Even if I embarrassed myself doing so. It was probably a joke and Lazer would laugh at me.

Tomorrow. When I wasn’t so tired. I hoped it was a joke. Just a joke.

I was such a softie when it came to love and romance. The thought of a man, any man, on bended knee with a ring held out to a woman with his heart on his sleeve, and her cruelly rejecting him—

I shuddered at the thought.

If a relationship is strong and marriage-worthy, the couple has discussed it ahead of time. The man usually knows that the woman will say yes before he proposes. Even given that the man could have been socially clueless and totally misread the signs, if he’s out there with his heart on display, a little kindness is required.

L
azer

I was driving Ashley mad with curiosity. She’d pocketed the note card with my revelation about that ill-fated marriage proposal. She didn’t know I’d instructed Lottie to put it with Ashley’s phone on the table. I wanted to see how she’d react to it. Whether she’d confront me or not. What
would
she do?

She was mulling the possibilities over. Was this a joke? What kind of game was I playing? Why would I reveal something so personal and humiliating if it wasn’t? Whenever possible, intrigue a woman with your mysterious nature. A little mystery is good for a relationship. Either way I played this was a win for me. Women liked men with a good sense of humor. And they felt sympathy for a man jilted in love. So which was I? That’s what she was wondering.

The public didn’t know about my ill-fated marriage proposal when I was young and naïve, but it was no secret to my friends. They’d all been active participants in my humiliation. That proposal had seemed like such a good idea at the time. I shook my head, laughing silently at my folly.

If Ashley had let Lottie read the question, my guys would have won. Ashley would have learned one more key thing about me. Win-win. Unfortunately for her, she didn’t know that.

I imagined her parsing the situation. Was this the reason I was down on marriage? Had my young heart been irreparably broken? Had I been rejected by my one true love?

Let her ruminate on it. I’d “taken one for the team” by showing my vulnerability. Show no mercy. Play to win.

Lottie had misinterpreted my note card. She thought I’d revealed a deep, dark, upsetting secret. That was why she’d warned Ashley off. I was sure of it.

Ah, well. I’d tried. Ashley was going to try to get the details out of me. Would I tell her? I probably should, before she got the wrong idea. On the other hand, it would be amusing to see how she tried to pry it out of me.

A
shley

I arrived wide awake and ready to go in what was really more of a grand lobby/great room than a living room. Lazer’s home away from home was larger than many small office buildings. He was talking to a member of his staff, looking chipper, and animated, especially considering the early hour. I was still on New York time, which should have felt like sleeping in. But he was acclimated to Pacific time and
still
ready to go.

Early risers!
I did a mental eye roll. Was being an early bird enough of a deal breaker to turn me off him?

No, apparently not. My heart raced at the sight of him.

He was dressed in hiking boots and shorts that showed off his legs. Was I a leg woman? Maybe. In my opinion, with those strong thighs and toned calves, he gave his handsome-legged friends a run for their money. I would have paid to see Lazer in chaps or even a kilt. I smiled at the thought.

He looked up and waved at me. A backpack sat at his feet. His gaze travelled the length of my body, appraising and appreciative at the same time. Flattering. How could any woman he looked at like that resist him? How could I? And yet that was exactly what they, and I, had to do if they wanted to catch him.

Was it possible to reform a player? That was the billion-dollar question. I was certainly willing to find out, one way or another. I was going to use everything in my arsenal. I smiled seductively back at him and returned his wave.

“You’re looking much more awake and alive this morning,” he said. “I was afraid you’d decide to sleep in and stand me up.”

“Stand you up?” I shook my head. “Never!” I laughed. I was wide awake. And just as curious as ever in the dawning light of day. “Besides, I couldn’t sleep. I had no choice but to get up. I’m still jetlagged. It feels like nine to me.”

I had dressed appropriately in shorts, T-shirt, sweatshirt—mountain mornings could be cold, too, I’d been told—and hiking boots. Lazer had warned me to bring all of them. I’d had to run out and buy a pair of boots. I didn’t have much need for them in Manhattan. I’d always been more of an urban girl, anyway, not really the outdoorsy type. So maybe this hiking was going to be my deal breaker for him. Kill the thrill I felt when being around him.

I doubted it, though. That was probably just wishful thinking. Ruck had been outdoorsy. In the beginning, I’d humored him and gone along. After a while, when he did his outdoor thing, I did my thing. It worked for us.

Lazer picked up his backpack and slung it over his shoulders before handing me a water bottle. “Let’s go.”

I followed him out of the lodge and onto the front porch, which sounded quainter and homier than it was. It was mammoth in proportion. The morning air was crisp, cool, and loaded with dew. I wasn’t a morning person, but once I was up and about I enjoyed it. Being jetlagged was the way to enjoy the mornings, I decided. No tiredness, all the pleasure.

The sunny morning lighting was absolutely stunning. It made everything vibrant and the shadows long. Birds called and flitted through the trees as I followed Lazer in companionable silence across the driveway to the edge of the woods.

He pointed. “The trail is this way.”

“You have a trail?”

“Of course we have a trail!” He grinned at me. “My groundskeeper maintains it.” He pointed up the mountain. “It’s a steep climb. Taxing. Especially at altitude if you’re used to sea level. We’ll be climbing several hundred feet up. The view is worth it."

I looked around. “Where are the guys? Aren’t they coming?”

Lazer shook his head. “They’ve climbed the trail many times. Today they’ll want their beauty rest.” With that, he headed up the trail.

He wasn’t kidding about the trail being steep. It switchbacked up the mountainside. Lazer took off at a quick clip, hiking briskly and purposefully, outpacing me even handicapped by the backpack. He was right. I was a flatlander. At first the air was refreshing and cool against my skin and in my lungs. And tinged with the scent of dew, fir and cedar trees, dust, and foliage. It wasn’t long before I broke into a sweat and my lungs burned. This was unlike any of the workouts I did regularly at the gym. I’d
thought
I was in good shape.

I did my best to keep up. Pride pushed me along. I knew he was slowing his pace for me. Even at that, it wasn’t long before he was far ahead of me. He stopped and waited. Gave me a hand and pulled me over a tricky spot where water ran over the trail. But then he was off again and I was left with a tempting view of his backside. But too far away from it to make any move. Like to kick his butt.

He was showing off. Showing me how in shape he was. Damn him. I took a swig from my water bottle and trudged on, too out of breath for conversation. Which gave me plenty of time to think about how I’d approach the topic of his failed marriage proposal. Once I caught enough breath to form words again. At times like this it was seriously crazy to realize how much breath talking took.

I could see him through the trees up the mountain about three switchbacks above me as he removed the backpack and set it down.

“Come on, Ashley! You’re almost there. It’s a few feet ahead.” His grin was positively roguish. “You can do it!”

He was just ribbing me now. When he started clapping, I wanted to kill him. But I didn’t have the strength. He, however, had all the breath he needed. I was struggling so much I’d stopped paying attention to the view, to anything except the trail before me. Even to my fear that Bigfoot or a cougar or bear would step out of the woods.

I wasn’t sure I believed in Sasquatch, but the other beasts were all too real. Fortunately, we only scared a few squirrels, who ran up the trees and chattered noisily, scolding us. And startled a buck and a couple of does in the brush. Which nearly gave me a heart attack. This was why I wasn’t thrilled with the outdoors.

When I reached the last switchback, Lazer set his backpack down and jogged down the trail with an exaggerated lope. He grabbed my hand, pulling me up the mountainside. Even at that, I didn’t move fast enough for him. My legs felt like jelly.