The Perfect Match

by Melody Summers

  Me: I’d love to go

  Dylan: How about I pick you up in an hour and we can get something to eat first. Blackbeard’s?

  Me: Works for me. Let me give you my address

  Dylan: I have it

  Me: Oh? Have you been stalking me?

  Dylan: Maybe. Besides, you’ve already got mine. It’s only fair

  Me: LOL. OK, I’ll be ready in an hour

  I put my book away with a happy grin. This was going to be even better than I'd thought! I’d find out more about what kind of food he liked and sneak some more questions in while we ate, and be one step closer to figuring out who to set him up with.

  When I started to get dressed I found myself dithering over what outfit to wear and had to laugh at myself. It wasn’t like this was a date or anything. The whole idea was to set him up with someone else, not get him to notice me.

  Why don’t you go out with him? As Dani’s words echoed in my mind I shook my head. That was just silly. I was still hung up on Seth. Besides, it would be weird dating Dani’s ex. Wouldn’t it? I pushed the thought firmly away and tried to forget about it. I was going to stick with my plan and find Dylan his perfect match. I already had a few ideas, and I ought to be able to narrow the possibilities significantly after tonight.

  The weather had cleared up overnight and the day was a bit warmer, but I still couldn’t decide what to wear. I chewed my lip thoughtfully as I picked through my clothes. Finally I decided on a pair of skinny jeans, a burgundy sweater, and my favorite pair of brown leather ankle boots. When I was dressed I studied my reflection critically in the full-length mirror on my door. The outfit was cute—nice, but not too dressy, and I didn’t look like I was going all out to make an impression. Which I totally wasn’t, at all. I made myself picture Seth in all his hotness. That was my dream guy, even if he did have a girlfriend at the moment. Dylan was just a project.

  When Dylan rang my doorbell I almost changed my mind about that, though. He looked all kinds of sexy in dark jeans and a forest green knit shirt under his leather jacket, and the butterflies that had been hibernating in my stomach woke up and swirled in excitement. My heart beat a little faster as I stepped out onto the porch to meet him.

  “You didn’t have to come to the door.”

  He answered with a deprecating smile. “Of course I did. What did you expect me to do, honk for you from the curb? That wouldn't be very polite.”

  My face went hot. It was exactly what most of the guys I went out with did. But then Dylan wasn’t really like most guys, was he?

  We drove to North Beach in his white pickup. While it was older and nothing flashy, it was clean and he obviously took good care of it. Another point in his favor—for once I didn’t have to clear out a pile of old food containers and other trash from the seat before I could sit down.

  Blackbeard’s was bustling and loud, but we were still able to get a table by the window so we had a view of the harbor. Twilight shrouded the world outside in soft shadows, while the Christmas lights on the bridge added to the holiday atmosphere. It felt almost romantic. I winced inwardly at the thought. What in the world was my damage?

  Sharp blue eyes regarded me from across the table. “You all right?”

  I gave myself a shake and pretended to study the menu. “Fine. Just remembering how much shopping I still have to do.”

  “Procrastinate much?”

  His teasing grin made my heart stutter, and I wondered if I was losing it. I needed to stop this nonsense right now. It wasn’t going to happen. It couldn’t happen with Dylan. I stole a glance at him over the top of my menu. Besides, even if it did—and it wasn’t—did I really believe he’d be any different than the other guys who had bailed on me after a date or two? It was safer just to stick to my obsession with Seth and to my plan to find Dylan the girl he deserved. That gave me another twinge, and forced myself to look at the menu. I needed to hurry this matchmaking thing up before I got in over my head.

  “So what are you getting?” I asked him, trying to sound casual.

  “The ribeye and shrimp.”

  I added that to my mental notes. It sounded good to me, too, but I didn’t want to order the same thing he did.

  “How about you?” he asked.

  “The shrimp tacos, I think.”

  “Good choice.”

  I cocked my head and pretended to glare at him. “Of course it’s a good choice. Do you think I’d pick something yucky?”

  “Well… The last girl I brought here ordered the veggie salad and complained because they didn’t have a light vinaigrette dressing for it. Then she stole food off of my plate the whole meal. So you can see why I’m happier with your choice.”

  “Your steak is safe from me.” I laughed at his exaggerated sigh of relief, then asked, “How did you get two tickets to this game?”

  “A friend’s dad is on the team. He got them for me so I could take Elora.”

  His face took on a pained expression and I gave him a playful nudge under the table with my foot. “Not the smartest choice you’ve ever made. How'd you end up with her, anyway?”

  “We hooked up at a party the night of Winter Dance. Her boyfriend had broken up with her the week before and I’d just gotten dumped, so it just sort of happened. I should have known better—did know better, really. But I did it anyway because I was lonely and hurt.”

  “A little lapse in judgment is understandable given the circumstances.”

  “Yeah, I guess. I don’t ever want to have to go through anything like the last few weeks again, though.”

  “You just need to be a little more careful about your choices where women are concerned. That’s all.”

  He gave me an odd, measuring look. “I’m working on that.”

  I took a big gulp of my tea and almost choked on it, flustered again. Had he meant that the way it sounded, or was it just more teasing?

  “So what about you and Seth?”

  His open look somehow compelled honesty, and I gave him a wry smile. “He’s really good-looking, he’s nice, he’s a senior, and it’s never going to happen. Which makes him safe. Does that make sense? I can’t get hurt by someone I can never have.”

  Sympathy shone in Dylan’s blue eyes. “But that’s not really true, is it?”

  “No,” I admitted, and my stomach knotted again as I remembered the dismissive look I'd gotten from Seth’s girlfriend.

  “Allison, if you’re going to get hurt anyway, why not take the risk over someone you can have? It isn’t like no one is interested. I’ve seen you out with plenty of guys.”

  “Who all leave.”

  “Why?”

  “I don’t know.”

  One skeptical eyebrow quirked up. “Come on. You’re bound to have some idea. You’re cute, you’re fun to hang out with, you don’t order salad then steal food. There has to be some reason.”

  I sighed. “Probably because of Seth. I’ve been so gaga over him that I haven’t been able to get into anyone else, and I just didn’t care much whether I saw any of them again. I guess it showed.”

  “No guy wants to go out with a girl who isn’t at least kind of into him. Knowing that you’re nothing to her, totally replaceable? That’s a serious kick in the… ego.”

  “I guess I can see that.”

  When the waiter came by with our food Dylan whipped out his napkin with a flourish. “That’s enough amateur therapy for one day. Let’s eat.”

  Over dinner we kept the conversation to light topics. Dylan asked about my visiting family and laughed as I described my herd of little cousins who swarmed me like a pack of hyenas. In return he told me about his little sister, who was a freshman and insanely smart. He called her The Brat because she said whatever she thought without any concern for the consequences and got away with murder both at home and at school because of her grades and test scores. I kept mental notes on everything, like how his dad was a salesman for a company that made industrial valves and spent more time on business trips than at hom
e, and his mom was a receptionist at a doctor’s office. It would all come in handy later.

  When he asked, I told him about my parents—Dad the manager at a grocery store and Mom a middle school history teacher—and my older brother who was already out of college.

  “He’s working for an oil drilling company in North Dakota. I hardly see him anymore, but he’s older and we’re not really close anyway.”

  “What about you?” he asked as he munched on a French fry. “What do you want to do?”

  “Be a nurse—labor and delivery. I’m planning to go to the nursing school in Corpus. Laney and I are going to be roommates, at least if she ever figures out what she wants to major in. You?”

  He shrugged. “Something in computers, probably. I’m good with them. Maybe games programming. I’m still thinking about it. All I’d ever thought about before was sports, but that’s no longer an option.”

  “How did you have your accident?”

  “I was riding my cousin’s motorcycle and a car ran a red light. I wrecked when I swerved out of its way. Broke my leg in six places, and now its full of pins and stuff. It works, but it’s not the same. I can’t put too much stress on the knee, and I have to exercise regularly or the scar tissue tries to tighten up on me.”

  “I’m sorry.”

  “I’ll live with it. It definitely could have been a lot worse. Took a while for that to sink in, but I do get it.”

  “That’s a healthy attitude.”

  He winked at me playfully. “Yep. Now if we could only break you of that Seth thing.”

  “I thought we weren’t doing therapy anymore,” I grumbled.

  “Fine. Looks like your time is up anyway. We need to get moving if we’re going to make it before the game starts.”

  Half an hour later we took our seats in the stands. I’d never been to the arena before and looked around with open curiosity.

  “Do you like the Rays?” Dylan asked.

  “No idea. I’ve never been to a hockey game before.” He goggled at me and I laughed. “This is Texas, Dylan. Ask me about football. That I have some clue about.”

  “You’ll enjoy it.”

  “I’ll take your word for it.”

  “Ha! I’ll believe that when I see it.”

  I jabbed him lightly with my elbow. “Jerk.”

  “Sh. The game is starting.”

  I settled back to watch as the crowd began to cheer. During the game Dylan explained what was going on and gave me a rundown of the rules and how the game was played. His enthusiasm for it was infectious, and I found myself enjoying it because he was having so much fun with it.

  “Did you play?” I asked him.

  “Never had the chance, but I love watching.”

  It was obvious that he did, and so we cheered together and laughed and chattered our way through the rest of the game. During one particularly hard-fought point Dylan grabbed my hand. Although his eyes were glued to the rink, every nerve in my body jolted to life at his touch while shivery tingles raced across my skin and the butterflies in my stomach went crazy. Time slowed and the shouting around us faded to a hollow echo. I didn’t know what to do. What was going on with me tonight?

  When the Rays scored Dylan turned his head, a boyish grin of glee lighting up his face, and I was snared by his bright, blue eyes. I’m not sure how long I was lost in their depths, but it felt like hours while my brain whirled over the last couple of days.

  He’d protected me in the café and saved me from being brained by that flying ketchup bottle. We’d hung out and he hadn’t tried to make any moves on me. He teased, but there was no malice in it. Maybe he was different. Maybe he wasn’t like the other guys at all.

  Then Dylan’s eyes darted down to our clasped hands and his grin faded. His fingers released mine and he drew back a little.

  “Sorry. I guess I got carried away.”

  “It’s okay.”

  It wasn’t, though, because I’d wanted him to keep holding it. Outwardly I smiled at him, but inside I was running in circles in panic. What was I doing? This was Dani’s ex. And what about Seth? He’d been the only guy I’d thought about for over a year. I wasn’t ready to give up on him, was I? Could I?

  We turned our attention back to the game, but I couldn’t help taking sidelong looks at Dylan when I knew he was focused on the rink. He was so cute, and he’d been so nice to me. I remembered how good he’d been to Dani, too, and couldn’t help wondering what it would be like or whether it could possibly last.

  The next morning I was so distracted that I severely disappointed my cousins. I just wasn’t in the mood to entertain them. My mind looped endlessly over the events of the previous night to try to make sense of what had happened. Dylan and me? Could there be something there? I kept trying to tell myself no, but I couldn’t stop thinking about it.

  He was different from all the other guys I’d gone out with. Something about him just clicked and although I didn’t want to trust it, at the same time I couldn’t deny that I felt drawn to him. But what was I going to do about it? The fact that he was Dani’s ex didn’t make things any simpler, either.

  My phone dinged with a text and I snatched it up eagerly, hoping it was Dylan. It was only Delaney, though, and I tried not to feel too disappointed.

  Delaney: Are you awake?

  Me: The kids woke me up two hours ago

  Delaney: Good. Come shopping with me

  Me: I’d love to, but I have to stay in bed and watch Netflix all day

  Delaney: Come on. Walker is no fun to shop with

  Me: Of course not. He’s a BOY

  Delaney: Exactly

  Delaney: So get yourself put together and let’s go

  I rolled out of bed with a sigh. I did still have a few last-minute things I needed to pick up.

  Me: All right, fine.

  Delaney: Sweet!!! Come over to my house and then we’ll go to the mall in Corpus

  Me: I’LL DRIVE

  Delaney: Whatevs. Just get over here

  Me: Half an hour. Bye

  Delaney: Love you babe! Bye!

  So I drove, and since it was the week of Christmas the only place to park was at the far end of one of the longest lots. Inside the mall was packed even worse, and I was having second thoughts about being there the moment we pushed through the glass doors. By then it was too late, though. We thrust our way through the crowds, browsing through stores so full we could barely squeeze through the aisles. Eventually we took a break and grabbed some Chinese in the food court, and I dropped into a chair at an empty table, thrilled to be out of the crush.

  “So what’s wrong?” Delaney asked around a mouthful of noodles.

  “Nothing.”

  “Bull! It’s like you’re not even here today.”

  She was right, and she was my best friend. I couldn’t talk to Dannika about this, but I needed to talk to someone.

  “I don’t even know where to start.”

  Delaney sat up like a cheetah who had just spotted a gazelle, eyes aglow in anticipation. “This is about a boy!”

  “It’s complicated.”

  “Boys are simple.”

  I shook my head. “Not this time.”

  “So who is it?”

  This was it. I took a deep breath. “Dylan.”

  “Dylan?” Her eyes went wide. “Dani’s Dylan?”

  “No,” I said, irked by the totally unnecessary reminder. “She dumped him.”

  “You like him!”

  “I’m not sure.”

  “You do! It’s written all over your face when I say his name.”

  So I filled her in on everything that had happened in the last couple of days, all the time we’d spent together. I tried not to give away too much about the feelings I’d been trying to suppress, but Laney didn’t let that stop her. She heard what she wanted to hear.

  “Allie, that’s awesome! I’m so happy for you!”

  “Don’t make it into some huge deal. It’s really nothing. I’m pretty
sure it’s just a friends thing, not a he really likes me thing.”

  “Don’t be dense. Of course he does. I told you that guys are simple. If he acts like he likes you, then he likes you. If he didn’t he wouldn’t have asked you to dinner and a hockey game.”

  Was that true? I wasn’t so sure. “Anyway, he’s Dani’s ex. Wouldn’t that make things weird?”

  “Maybe. But it doesn’t have to. We’re all friends and it will work itself out.”

  “Well, don’t say anything to Dani. I’m still not convinced it’s anything. And there’s Seth…”

  “Who you won’t even talk to.”

  “Regardless. This stays between us.”

  “All right. I'll keep my mouth shut. But if it turns out to be real then you’re going to have to tell Dani, you know.”

  “I know.” It just wasn’t a conversation I was remotely looking forward to.

  We finished our shopping and began the long trek back to my car. Neither of us could remember exactly where it was, so we spent a while wandering back and forth while I tried to beep it with the lock remote. Finally Delaney saw the lights flash.

  “There it is,” she said, pointing off to our left.

  As I looked in that direction there was a loud crash from the other side. A silver Nissan had backed into another car, smashing a headlight and buckling its hood and fender.

  “Glad that wasn’t mine,” I said.

  Instead of stopping, the Nissan straightened out and screeched away.

  “Hey!” Delaney yelled. “They can’t do that!”

  I kept my mouth firmly shut, because in that split second the driver’s side had faced me I’d recognized the driver. She was Seth’s new girlfriend.

  Chapter Four

  By now I felt that I had enough to go on to find someone suitable for Dylan. Late that night while I was in bed I jotted down a list of everything I could remember that he liked or disliked. When I finished I was surprised at how long those lists were already. We’d only spent a few hours together, after all. I chewed on the end of my pen as I studied what I’d discovered, running through the lists again and again until I had a general idea of the kind of girl I was looking for.