“Listen, I know you’re busy,” Brady said. “I just wanted to check in with you and say good morning, and see if you had plans for tonight. I was thinking we could go to that dinner place with live music in the West Village that you like so much.”
“Finn’s?”
“Yeah, that’s the one. It would be a double date.”
“A double date? Who’s the other couple?”
“My buddy Matteo.”
It felt like the needle on a record had screeched to a halt, along with my heart. “Matteo has a…date?”
Brady chuckled. “He doesn’t know it yet. I thought I’d ask my sister to set him up with one of her friends. We had lunch yesterday, and he’s really down over some woman. Figured it would help cheer him up.”
My eyes widened. “A woman?”
“Yeah. The one he’d mentioned that he met on his road trip. Sounds like she’s jerking him around. He could definitely use a fun night out. And music is his thing. The poor guy is walking around like someone ran over his dog.”
Heaviness settled into my chest. “So Matteo’s…sad?”
“Yeah, he is. So whadda you say? Double date tomorrow night?”
There were so many reasons to decline. First, the thought of Matteo on a date with another woman made me feel sick, much less a date I’d have to watch up close and personal. Second, Matteo and I still hadn’t spoken, so I had no idea how we were supposed to handle things. Though obviously, he’d followed my lead and was still pretending we didn’t know each other. A double date with Matteo and Brady would very likely be a colossal disaster. Yet…I couldn’t get him to return my calls, and I had no idea where he was staying to go knock on his door. So, as much as I knew more things could go wrong than right, I found myself feeling desperate.
“Okay. Yes, I’ll go.”
I heard the smile in Brady’s voice. “Thanks, babe. You’re the best.”• • •Since Brady was already in the city, the plan was for me to meet him and Matteo at Finn’s.
I’d taken the train in and arrived early. Unfortunately, Brady’s sister’s friend, Kimber—Matteo’s apparent date—had also arrived early and was already sitting at our reserved table. To my dismay, Kimber had supermodel looks—long, blond hair and long legs to match—and that made sense because she was—surprise, surprise—a model.
I was stuck making small talk with her until the men arrived.
“So, where are you working, Kimber?”
“Right now I’m waitressing in between modeling jobs.”
“That’s exciting…being a model.”
She shrugged. “Everyone always told me I should be a model, so I figured I might as well.”
Looking around the room, I muttered, “Yeah.”
I had zero to say to her. Then again, my jealousy over the fact that she was here to meet Matteo might have skewed my opinion of the whole situation just a tad. Let’s face it, she didn’t stand a chance with me tonight. I was going to hate her no matter what.
For a while, there was nothing but dead air between us as we sipped our drinks. My eyes kept wandering over to the door, hoping Brady and Matteo would walk in.
Kimber excused herself to visit the bathroom, and I let out a sigh of relief to not have to stare at her face for a few minutes.
I immediately picked up my phone, calling Brady to find out where he was.
He answered, “Hey, babe. Got out of work a bit late. Just headed over to Dunc’s hotel now. We should be there within a half hour.”
I let out an exasperated breath. “Great. I was hoping you’d say you were right around the corner. I’ve been sitting here with your sister’s friend.”
“How is she?”
“She seems young and shallow.”
“Sort of like my sister…” He laughed. “No wonder they’re friends.”
“So, you don’t care that you’re setting Duncan up with someone like that?”
He chuckled. “I don’t think Dunc is going to care. She’s attractive and will hopefully get him out of the funk he’s in.”
“Do you really think setting him up with someone who can’t offer him more than a pretty face is helpful?”
“Trust me, what he needs right now is a good lay. I told you, he’s hung up on that chick he went on a road trip with—the one who went back to her boyfriend. He needs a distraction. He doesn’t need to be getting involved with someone right now while he’s traveling. He just needs someone to get his mind off things. From my understanding, based on what Leah told me, Kimber’s perfect for that.”
I was so frustrated. And the fact that Matteo had discussed me cryptically with Brady made me uneasy.
“Okay, well…try to get here as fast as you can.”
“I’ll do my best.”
I was just about to hang up when he said, “Hazel?”
“Yeah?”
“I can’t wait to see you.”
I sighed. “You, too.”
Brady was still being so sweet and considerate. But I couldn’t appreciate it tonight. I felt sick to my stomach as I tried to remind myself why I was here. It was my opportunity to see Matteo, to read him, and to make sure he was okay.