“Golf is good. Anything else?”
He pulled back his shoulders. “Books.”
She scribbled something. “Reading is a definite plus. What were the last three books you read?”
“The Kama Sutra. The Claiming of Sleeping Beauty. Fifty Shades of Grey.”
The pen stilled. Her mouth opened, and her tongue slid over her lower lip. Ah yes, he’d finally elicited a feminine reaction. He tamped the flood of satisfaction. She was his matchmaker, intent on finding him his soul-mate. No reason to muddy the waters by crushing on her like a schoolboy. Still, he enjoyed the dilation of her pupils as she processed his statement. “Interesting. More research?”
“Yes. Research.” Once he got a woman into bed, he intended to keep her there. Part of his study to understand women included a range of erotic novels and how-to manuals to guarantee perfect sexual stamina and performance.
She regained her composure and clasped her hands together, index fingers touching. Her nails were dark purple today. An intricate silver ring flashed in the light. He wondered if she had a lover. He wondered if she had many.
“I’d like to change your name to Nate.”
He waited a beat. “My name is Nathaniel. My nickname is Ned.”
She seemed to choose her words carefully. “Ned evokes a certain image. Think of this as a reinvention. Since your birth name is so beautiful, I think we should go back to Nate as a nickname.”
Ned analyzed her statement. He’d always preferred his real name, but the kids in school hadn’t let him use it. They loved to torture him, calling him “Ned the Nerd.” He never thought of taking back his birth name after high school and claiming it for his own. He nodded. “A good idea. Nate it is.”
She smiled. Her front tooth was slightly crooked, which only made her even more appealing and emphasized her hot pink lips. She was so very . . . colorful. “Wonderful. I think that wraps up most of my questions, so I can begin working on some initial matches. I’d like to start tomorrow evening at six. Meet me at the following address.” She handed over a business card. It held an address, phone number, and the word MING.
“Who’s Ming?”
“A miracle worker. I know you have a demanding work schedule, but I’ll need you to have open availability after work for the next two weeks.”
Could he do this? Put himself in the hands of a stranger and trust her to find him happiness?
Yes. He hadn’t come this far to quit now. If he kept his focus, it would all be worth it.
“Okay.”
Her smile grew, and he admitted he’d do just about anything to see it again. She was a definite witch, with her apparent power to spellbind him with a single gesture or facial expression. “Great. Trust me, and I’ll take you all the way.”
The innuendo almost made him groan. But he refused to go down on the first round. He dropped his voice and pretended to be in control.
“I’m looking forward to it, Kennedy.”
He caught a flare of unease in her eyes, before smoothing back to her polished social director demeanor. But Nate suspected there was a lot more to her beneath her surface. And he wanted to find out just what those layers held. Maybe he’d even show this beautiful woman a lot more than she ever suspected.
Maybe.
He stood. “I’ll see you tomorrow at six.” He left without looking back, wondering how it would all turn out.
four
NATE EYED THE bright red door with suspicion, but his eager guide for the evening gave him no time to think. Just pushed him through until he popped into an empty waiting room. The lights were dim, and there was only one large counter set up. No magazines, no water, no snacks. When he’d first heard he was going to a spa, he figured a little pampering couldn’t be so bad. Images of hot towels, long fragrant massages, and a beautiful woman rubbing his feet flickered in his head. But this was a dump.
Located on the edge of Verily, hidden up a steep hill, there seemed to be neither foot traffic nor pedestrians. Just a broken-down building with a bright red door. Elizabeth Arden it was not. How did this place get clients?
Kennedy motioned for him to take a seat as she walked up to the desk. The woman frowned at her instead of giving her a welcoming smile and launched into a tirade in heavily accented Chinese. Kennedy listened, nodded a lot, and basically seemed to try to suck up to her. What type of establishment was this? If this was the type of business Kinnections patronized, he may have made a terrible mistake.
Kennedy did a slight bow and returned. Sweat beaded her brow. “Thank God. Ming will see us.”
“Who is this person? There’s no customer service. No nice amenities. And they seem rude. We should leave.”
She dropped her voice to a fierce hiss. “You do not make any negative comments. One complaint and we’ll get thrown out. Ming is the best, and she’ll return you back to normal. Above normal, actually. You’ll never be the same.”
His unease grew. He pulled at his lab coat and noticed the new stain of mustard on his lapel from eating lunch at his desk. Again. It had been hell getting out on time, but he was looking forward to beginning his journey toward his future wife. Who would’ve thought it would begin in a crappy underground dungeon with a woman named Ming?
“What is she going to do to me?”
Kennedy pointed a finger at him. “Whatever she wants. You need to follow all her instructions exactly. This is very important.”
“I’m not stupid.”
“No, but you like to argue, and that will get us thrown out.”
He had no time to respond. The door behind the desk swung open without a sound. He caught an impression of an elfin figure dressed in a Japanese robe, shrouded in shadow. One long, bony finger drifted out and beckoned him forward.
“Go,” Kennedy whispered.
Crap, why was he scared? A little old lady couldn’t hurt him, and if he didn’t like anything, he’d just walk out, no matter what Kennedy said. He straightened his shoulders and stepped through the door.
She led him down a dim hallway. The small woman moved lightning fast, practically floating over the ground as they turned right and made their way deeper into a maze of unending hallways. He itched to throw bread crumbs or mark a wall to find his way back, but there was no time. He stumbled twice just keeping up. Finally, she stopped and entered an unmarked door.
A long, flat limestone table took up the center of the room. Towels were placed around the site, and a luxurious open glass shower was set up in the corner. The walls were a pristine white and bare of decoration except for a few shelves that displayed an array of glass bottles. Music drifted softly from the speakers. He caught a flute, birdcalls, and the sound of rushing water. The air was moist and smelled of clean soap and the faintness of lavender. Ming headed toward a small bamboo-type desk with a large white basin and began prepping. Nate watched as she busied herself like a doctor preparing shots, lining up jumbo-size containers and pouring liquid in. Finally, she turned and faced him.