Mismatched

Ch. 5

"Go away, Lesley," I snarled, getting up from the desk with a stack of papers to file in the cabinets.

She had been following behind me in the store all morning, whining and pouting like one of her kindergarteners.

"Come on, Nate! Are you seriously not going to tell me how your date with the tall, dark, handsome stranger went?"

I slammed the filing drawer shut and turned around to face her, crossing my arms across my chest. "It wasn't a date, it was a business transaction."

"I don't think that's the kind of business Aunt Judy is running," she teased, poking me in the arm.

"Let me be clear, nothing happened. We did the escape room, we didn't kill each other, and we went home individually. And now that he's not threatening to ruin Judy's reputation or demanding a refund, I'm back on my mission to find his real match," I explained, returning to the desk.

So far, I was still turning up empty. I scoured all the new questionnaires, even the online profiles, to see if I could find anyone that seemed like Riley's type, but nothing yet. It had only been a few days, so I still had hope I could figure it out.

"So, you're doing the whole sex on the third date then? I've always thought that was a good rule," she continued with a smirk. I stared at her with a look that could kill.

"No. I'm going to find his real match, so I never have to see him again," I replied, turning over another data sheet in my hand.

"You mean, aside from right now?" Lesley said, and I turned to see her eyes fixed on the store window. And of course, there was Riley, about to pull open the door.

My stomach sank. Had I misread that moment in the parking lot? Was Riley coming back to tell Lesley he still had an awful time with me and wanted his money back after all?

Why did that thought hurt?

I decided to chalk it up to my large ego and the fact that I couldn't imagine either gender not finding me charming and attractive.

Lesley didn't hesitate this time, immediately approaching the door towards Riley while I slowly sunk under the desk again. I should invest in a larger desk with how much time I was spending hiding underneath it.

"Is that a smile I see?" Lesley said, oozing charisma.

Wait. He was happy?

"I just wanted to come by to say thank you," Riley started. "I know I was skeptical, but I think you were right. I definitely felt the start of a connection with Nate."

"I'm so happy to hear that! And don't tell him that I told you this, but I happen to know that Nate feels the same way," Lesley said, and it took everything in me not to roll out from under the desk and knock her to the ground.

"Really?" Riley asked, and I felt a pang of hurt in my heart that I hoped Lesley felt too. He was a real person with feelings that we were playing with.

"How could he not! I mean, look at yourself!"

At this point, I was so unbelievably lost. I couldn't tell if Lesley was just doing this because she was preying on my downfall to permanently secure her place as the second-worst Hughes child, or if this was some weird attempt to flirt with a gay man. I knew that it would have Riley blushing regardless.

"Also, sorry to always be coming in like this. I just haven't had very good luck with the person who usually answers the phone," Riley said.

"Oh, don't get me started on Todd. Yeah, I fired him. Don't ever hire your nephew as a favour, it never ends well."