Kade rolled his head and Brodie assumed he was trying to work out the tension in his neck. “It’s not exactly the conversation I planned on having.”
Brodie’s heart bounced off her ribs. She shouldn’t voice the words on her lips but she had to—it would drive her nuts if she didn’t. “What would you have said?”
Kade stepped closer and curled his hand around her neck. “I would’ve said that I had a great time and I would’ve asked if we could do this again.”
Yeah, that’s what she’d thought and that’s exactly what she couldn’t do. She’d liked it too much, liked having him around. She needed distance and a lot of it. Matching him would give her that.
“We can’t,” Brodie whispered. “It’s too complicated. And, if I’m going to be setting you up...too weird.”
“That’s not confirmed yet. I’ll try my damnedest to get out of it.”
He’d come around, Brodie realized. It was too good a story to pass up, too good an opportunity to give the fans something to smile about. And Kade always, always put the Mavericks first.
Kade pulled her forward so her cheek lay against his chest. “If I do this, and I’m not saying I will, when it’s done, can we...?”
Brodie knew she should just kill this...thing between them but she simply couldn’t. “Let’s just play it by ear.” She pulled back and looked up at him, forcing her lips to curve into a smile. “You never know, one of those women might be the love of your life and another one-night stand with me will be the last thing on your mind.”
“Not freakin’ likely,” Kade retorted.
Brodie stepped away and folded her arms, trying to remove herself from him mentally and physically. She had to stop feeling and keep thinking. “We will have to meet professionally, though. I need information from you to find out what you are looking for.”
Kade glared at her. “You’re talking like this is a done deal! If this happens, be very clear, I’m not looking for anything, with anybody! Find me three women who are marginally intelligent, someone who I can talk to for two hours over dinner.”
“This is my business, Kade. If we do this, we will do it properly...”
Kade swore and started to roll back his sleeves, revealing the muscles and raised veins in his forearms. Brodie imagined those hands on another woman’s skin and felt sick. Now she was adding jealousy to her messy heap of tangled emotions? Wasn’t there enough crazy on that pile?
She took a breath. Seeing him with someone else would be good for her. It would put even more distance between them. And that was what she was trying to do here.
“That’s the way I work, Kade. It’s not up for negotiation.”
“Dammit, crap, hell,” Kade muttered another string of swearwords under his breath as he finished rolling up his other sleeve. When he was done, he placed his hands on either side of Brodie’s face, gave her a hard kiss and picked up his jacket. “We’ll talk about this again.”
Brodie touched her lips as he walked out of her kitchen, leaving as quickly as he’d arrived.
So that was that. Well, then.
She was now Kade’s matchmaker.
Five
Three weeks later Brodie sat in her usual seat at Jan’s waiting for Kade, her trusty tablet on the table in front of her. How was she supposed to ask Kade all these intensely personal questions knowing he’d touched, caressed and kissed every inch of her body?
What had she done to piss off the karma fairy?
Brodie placed her cheek in her hand and swallowed down her nausea. Her stomach roiled and she tasted bile in the back of her throat every time she thought about this upcoming interview. She’d had twenty-one days, thanks to Kade’s insane schedule and Wren wanting maximum publicity, to feel this way. Three weeks of restless sleep, of feeling on edge, miserable.
Angry.
Once you’ve done this interview and you’ve entered the relevant data into the program, you can find his three dates and get on with your life.
Her donation to the auction only included three matches. She wouldn’t have to set him up again if none of those woman suited. One batch, she decided, was enough.
And then, when it was done, she’d walk away for good and Kade Webb would be a memory of the best sex she’d ever experienced.
As she’d predicted, Wren had made a charming PR story of Rory’s matchmaking gift. Every few weeks, depending on Kade’s schedule, a new “date” for Kade would be introduced to the public. Their likes and dislikes would be posted on the Mavericks’ website with their photos. Pictures and short video clips of their date would be uploaded and the public could comment. Once all three women had been on a date with Kade, the public would vote on their favorite match.