The Matchmakers (7 page)

           
Diane sashayed by, her
hips at Nick’s eye level, just as they sat down. Callie’s curious glance
followed the waitress. `She wishes you had a crush on her.´ `I do, a little.´ Nick
gauged Callie’s reaction to his admission. He liked Diane but had no desire to
date her. He didn’t need magical intervention to sense a little desperation in
her. She spent her weekends working here, surrounded by men who were looking
for whatever they could get. She had as jaded a view of love as Nick did, and
he had no doubt that while they might have easily fanned their flirtatious attraction
into something more, it would only dissolve into a race to see who’d hurt whom
first. Callie’s bright expression dimmed. `You won’t lead her on, will you?´ `Diane’s
too smart for that. She knows me. Right now she’s got her dander up because of
you, but she’s no love struck teenager.´ `Hmm. You’re very astute for a human.
Why not put that intuition to good use and tell me who would be a good match
for Diane? She’s looking for true love, but she thinks, like you do, that she’ll
never find it.´ Nick laughed and took a deep draught of beer. `Farley,´ he
answered without hesitation. `He likes to chat up all the women who come in,
but I think that crap about long walks and cuddling is true underneath that
Grizzly Adams exterior. He’d love to go home at night to a loyal woman who
could forgive his schmoozing because it’s part of his job.´ Wow. Nick sat back
and considered what he’d just said. It had come out of nowhere, like suddenly
he was Dr. Phil or Oprah well, maybe more like Dr. Phil than Oprah. He’d never
once considered Farley’s romantic needs. The very phrase gave him a slithery
feeling, sort of like baiting a fishing hook with a particularly lively night
crawler. This was not an avenue he wanted to explore. Callie looked delighted.
She leaned forward over the tiny table, her eyes glowing in the light of the
red glass votive candle that burned between them. `Tell me more.´ `Aw, come on.
I’m just kidding. Farley and Diane? He’s her boss, for chrissakes.´ `So? There’s
no law against it. Well, not here anyway. Then there’s Teresa and John. We’ve
potentially got two out of three already. We just need to figure out a way to
get them to realize it.´ `You’ve got all kinds of magic tricks, right? Why not
get Farley and Diane locked in the storeroom over the weekend? If they didn’t
kill each other, they’d probably come out married.´ Her eyes sparkled, and Nick
couldn’t look away. `Now you’re starting to think like a faerie,śhe said. That
thought bristled him, like rubbing a cat the wrong way. `I am not. I’m thinking
like a man. Being locked in a small space with a pretty girl is a very
straight
male fantasy.´ `I meant faerie
as in Fae, not gay, so don’t get your alpha male homophobia in an uproar.´ `I’m
not homophobic.´ `Sure you are. By the way, a gay couple would count as one of
the three, you know. True love is true love, no matter what form it takes.´ `Fine
by me. I’m just not hitting on any guys.Ćallie laughed. `Noted.Śhe
looked around the bar again and tapped her foot to the music. `This is good. We
have an objective now. Why don’t we come back tomorrow night and get started?´ `Get
started how? Shove Diane and Farley in the storeroom?´ She gave him a guileless
look and shrugged. `Why not?´ `Once again, I was kidding. Who doesn’t have a
cell phone these days? They could call someone to get them out in no time.´ `So
we’ll have to be creative.´ `I’m not liking this idea.´ `Then come up with a
better plan. I’m open to suggestions.´ `How about a butterfly net and a
straitjacket?´ Nick muttered the suggestion under his breath, and somehow, over
the loud music, the din of conversation and the sharp staccato of laughter, she
heard him. She gave him an exasperated look and disappeared. Nick’s jaw
dropped, and he scanned the bar, waiting for the flabbergasted reactions from
those around him. No one blinked an eye or even glanced in the direction of
Callie’s suddenly vacant chair. `Where did you go?´ he whispered to the empty
air across from him, hoping she’d just turned herself invisible to piss him
off. `Get back here.´ Nothing. `Callie?´ No reply. He couldn’t decide if her
sudden disappearance did more to convince him she was indeed a Fae or an
emotional loose cannon. He hadn’t meant anything by his remark after all. It
wasn’t like she didn’t already know he thought she was crazy. How could she
have been insulted? `Callie. Come back.Á woman at a nearby table leaned toward
him. Her date had just gotten up and was strolling toward the men’s room. `Hi!
Were you talking to me?´ `Uh«´ Nick produced his cell phone from his pocket and
held it up. `Sorry. My girlfriend« I must have hit a dead spot in the
reception.´ `Oh.´ The woman turned back to her drink, vague disappointment on
her face. Another lonely heart. She had no interest in the man who’d just
bought her a drink, but she didn’t want to go home alone. Nick grabbed his beer
and took a long swallow. How the hell did he know that? Or was it just
speculation? Was he projecting these sad details onto people because Callie
wanted him to transform into some kind of Middle America version of Mr. Roarke,
granting fantasies to love-starved singles? Next he’d be dressed in white,
offering drinks with little umbrellas and speaking in an overblown European
accent. He had to get out of here and get his head on straight before he
started actually caring about someone else’s love life. If he’d known it would
be that easy to get rid of her, Nick would have invoked butterfly nets and
straitjackets a lot sooner. It bothered him that she’d vanished so abruptly,
but as the hour wore on, he began to think maybe he’d imagined her presence
here tonight after all. Nevertheless, if she wasn’t real, why could he still
recall the scent of roses and the feel of her in his arms when they danced? Nick
dismissed his sudden melancholy as a lack of alcohol. He returned to the bar,
but when Farley lumbered over, Nick decided he wasn’t as thirsty as he thought.
He said good night and left, catching Diane’s eye on the way out and giving her
a crooked grin. She didn’t smile back, but he took the miniscule nod she gave
him as acknowledgment she was over her snit, a snit that was entirely Callie’s
fault. Was his imaginary faerie going to turn every woman he knew against him? Well,
in all fairness, he didn’t need any help in that department. Most of the women
in his life turned against him eventually, as soon as they found out they
wanted more than he could give. Out in the parking lot, a cool-edged breeze
chased the first few dry leaves of autumn across the gravel. The crackling
sound reminded Nick of a wood fire and settling in on a cold night. The end of
summer came fast in Bayerville, and Nick didn’t mind at all. He’d already
decided when the day came that he stopped moving around, he’d pick a place up
north where the seasons changed and the snow fell at the proper time of year.
Who needed bugs and heat and relentless humidity all year long? The crackling
sound grew louder as Nick approached his truck, and for a moment, he feared he
might actually be hearing flames. He looked around for smoke, hoping no one’s
car was on fire or vandals hadn’t started a blaze in Farley’s dumpster again
like they had back in June. Nothing looked amiss, but he decided to do a quick
circle around the truck just to make sure. He found her kneeling in the gravel
by the back wheel of the compact Chevy parked next to him. Dressed once again
in her Pepto-pink coat and blue jeans, she smiled guilelessly at him. Her
frothy gloves sported grease smudges, one of which transferred to her left
cheek when she reached up to brush a lock of hair from her eyes. `What the hell
are you doing out here?´ `Getting started. This is Diane’s car, right?´ `You’re
vandalizing her car?´ Nick lowered his voice after his initial outburst and did
a quick scan of the parking lot. The last thing he needed was someone to think
he was out here by himself slashing tires. `Are you out of your mind?Śilly
question, he realized after he asked it. `I’m not vandalizing anything. She has
a flat tire.´ The challenge in her eyes might have made him really angry had it
not been for that grease smudge. The dark mark on her porcelain cheek made her
look beguiling and young and guilty as sin. All he wanted to do was reach down
and smooth it away with his thumb. Instead he leaned back, crossed his arms
over his chest and gave her his best skeptical glare. `Oh really? How
convenient. Let me guess, you’re fixing it for her?´ `No. Farley’s going to fix
it.´ `No, he’s not.´ `He’ll have to. I did a little recon and found out that
Diane never leaves before he does, and most nights he walks her to her car. Isn’t
that sweet?´ `And how did you find all this out?´ `I talked to Hayden.´ Farley’s
other waitress, twenty-two-year-old Hayden, had a nickname. The locals called
her River, because her mouth ran like one. Nick sighed. `That’s what you’ve
been doing all this time? Why didn’t you tell me where you were going?Śhe
dusted off her dirty gloves and hoisted herself back to her feet before
answering. `You didn’t seem interested. I don’t know how closely Freya is going
to be watching us, but I figure if you won’t help me, I’ll do what I can
myself. I can always say you gave me the ideas, and I carried them out. Not
that I normally operate that way.
I
should
be the one giving
you
ideas, but
regardless. Now Farley can change Diane’s tire and ´ Nick shook his head. `She
can change a flat better than he can. You should have done this to
his
car.´ `Now you tell me.´ `Well, you
didn’t give me a chance. If I’d known you were coming out here to slash tires ´
`I didn’t slash them. I just let the air out. I guess I’d better take care of
the spare, too, so he’ll have to give her a ride home. Stand here and cover me
while I open the trunk.´ `I will not be your stoolie. I went to high school,
Tinkerbell. I know it’s always the guy with his head up looking around who gets
in the most trouble.´ `Chicken. Fine, I’ll be the lookout and you ´ `No.´ He
took her arm at the elbow and pulled her away from Diane’s car. `This is
unbelievable. I’m not going to help you do this. What happened to the idea
about locking them in the storeroom? Not that it’s a better idea, but I thought
that was your big plan.Śhe gave a long-suffering sigh. `You’re right about
cell phones and besides, an arthritic pixie could break down that door. They’d
be out in no time.Śhe shook her head in disgust, and it was Nick’s turn to
sigh. The crunch of gravel caught his attention again, and he slid his gaze
over his right shoulder, careful not to move too quickly. A black and white
patrol car was just turning into the parking lot, hitting one of the PD’s
regular stops on their Friday night beat. Instinctively, Nick shielded Callie
from the arc of brilliant headlights as the patrol car made a lazy circle around
the lot and eased back onto the road. Thanks to the dumpster fire, Farley had
arranged to have regular drive bys on the weekends. `What if that cop had seen
you crawling around by the tires?´ When he turned around, Nick’s demand fell on
empty air, but Callie’s cheerful voice reached him through the ether.

 
`Seen what?´ `Fine. Fine. Are we
done here? I mean, are
you
done
here?Śhe reappeared. `Yes.´ `Then let’s go.´ `Go where?´ `Home.´ `Your
place?´ Her hopeful tone made his last drink settle in the pit of his stomach
like a rock. `How about your place?´ `I don’t actually have a place. Being
temporarily banished and all.Śhe looked downcast for a moment. `So where
do you go when you µpop’?´ `Somewhere else.´ `Where else?´ `Anywhere. Sometimes
I just turn invisible, but I’m still around. Like today at the construction
site.´ Nick raised his eyes heavenward. He didn’t like the direction the
conversation was taking. `You mean you don’t have an apartment or anything?´ `Nope.
I don’t usually need one.´ `Where do you sleep?Śhe shrugged. `I don’t.
Usually. Contrary to popular belief, faeries don’t spend all their time
lounging around in flowerbeds and napping on toadstools you know. We’re usually
too busy to sleep.´ `Right. Where did you go last night?´ Why did he ask when
he didn’t want to know the answer? `Your place. After you fell asleep. I
watched the Food Channel most of the night.Śhe began ticking off titles on
her fingers. `The History of Garlic, The Idaho Potato Festival, Great Chefs of
the Ukraine«´ `You spent the night on my couch?´ `I’m not allowed back in the
Faerie realm until I’ve finished my task. What? You have that look again.´ `What
look?´ He tried not to glare but found it damn near impossible. `Like you have
something caught in your throat. Your eyes are bugging out a little.´ Nick
chewed the inside of his cheek in an effort to stay calm. It felt more like his
throat was caught in something, like a noose. A small, sarcastic part of his
brain suggested taking her back to his place, but his more logical self
recognized the inherent badness of that idea. At the very least, it wouldn’t
look good on the police report.
Yes,
Officer, I invited her to stay
with
me
 
despite my overwhelming suspicion that she was completely insane
. `Come
on,´ he said, whirling around toward the driver’s side of his truck. She clapped
her hands and hurried to the passenger door. `Great! Now we can brainstorm all
night.Ćhapter Nine Nick said little as they pulled out of Farley’s parking
lot and headed back into town. He kept his eyes on the road and tapped his
fingers impatiently on the steering wheel at every red light. `Okay, maybe not
all night,Ćallie offered after ten miles of awkward silence. He hadn’t
even turned on the radio this time. When he didn’t respond, she peered sidelong
at him. `I’m sorry I didn’t tell you I stayed at your place last night. I
promise I didn’t snoop around.´ `No problem,´ he said finally. The set of his
jaw said otherwise. A muscle twitched just below his temple. `I’m very quiet
most of the time. You won’t even know I’m there. And for breakfast I can make
garlic crepes. I learned how last night.´ `I like my eggs scrambled, hold the
garlic, thanks, but that’s beside the point. Here we are.´ The glowing neon
sign for the Minuteman Motel had a short in the L, which caused it to blink in
time to the hot pink letters of the word VACANCY. Callie’s spirits plummeted,
and she berated herself for thinking she’d gotten through to Nick so easily. `It’s
not a bad place. The rooms are cheap and fairly clean. I stayed here a couple
nights when I first got into town.´ He kept his gaze on the dashboard as though
he couldn’t even bear to look at her. She opened the passenger door and climbed
out, holding her head high. `Thanks for the ride.´ `Do you have some cash?´ He
looked embarrassed by the question, and Callie was glad of it. `I’m a Fae,
Nick. We’re all independently wealthy.´ He obviously didn’t believe that. She
shut the passenger door as he shifted in his seat and dug his wallet out of the
back of his jeans. `Come on. I’ll pay for your room. This place really isn’t
all that bad.´ `Who are you trying to convince?´ He ignored her pointed
question and held out some rumpled twenties. She glared at the bills but didn’t
take them. `I don’t need money, Nick.´ `Look, why don’t I come by tomorrow and
we’ll talk about this some more. We can come up with a better plan for«you
know, this matchmaking thing. No more flat tires, okay?´ `Sure.´ `Okay.´ He
dropped the bills on the passenger seat and tried to catch her eye, but she
wouldn’t meet his gaze. `How’s nine? I’ll buy breakfast.´ `Fine.Śhe turned
away from the truck and started toward the brightly lit motel office where a
balding man stood sipping from a can of root beer. `I’ll see you then,´ Nick
called. `Fine.´ `Good night.´ `Good night, Nick.´ Nick hated himself for not
waiting while Callie went into the motel office. He hated himself for not hanging
around and making sure she got a decent room. He despised himself for pulling
back into the motel parking lot after three fruitless trips around the block while
he called himself vile names and questioned his intelligence. He swore as the
truck careened into the first parking space, barely missing the neon yellow
buffer pole that protected the brick wall of the office from fender scrapes. The
engine sputtered and the flywheel screeched a little as he yanked the keys out
of the ignition. Inside the office, the night manager, Carl Rogers, looked up
from his chilidog and root beer dinner as Nick vaulted out of the truck. Carl
shoved his horn-rimmed glasses higher on his long nose and pushed his
half-finished dinner aside as Nick swung the office door open. `Hey, Nick.´ `Hey,
Carl.´ Nick wasn’t sure what to say next. Should he ask for Callie’s room
number? Demand it? Get back in the truck and go home? Second guessing himself
had never been one of his hobbies. From the day he’d packed his bags and walked
down the winding, oak-lined driveway of his father’s house in Lafayette, he’d
never questioned his own decisions. If he couldn’t please the old man with his
plans and dreams, he’d just please himself. He’d run on autopilot for the past
decade, letting the wind guide him wherever it wanted him to go, answering to
no higher authority than his own whims. Sure, he had regrets now and then. He’d
often wished he’d left Tijuana sooner rather than later, and he still
daydreamed about the red Mercedes coupe he could’ve picked up for a song at
that dealership in Tuskegee. If it hadn’t been for the bullet holes in the
driver’s side door, that car would’ve been his baby. He might have called his
mother more, but her questions were always the same.
When are you
coming
 
back
home to start a real life? When are you going to settle down?
Live and
learn. Nick had lived, and he thought by now he’d have learned to trust his
instincts. Why then, when his instincts said to put as much distance between
himself and Callie as possible, did he find himself back at the motel feeling
lower than dirt for leaving her here? Just what did he think he owed this girl,
anyway? What if Carl had put her in room nine with the leaking toilet and the
faulty lock on the bathroom window? Carl always gave out-of-towners that room.
What if some drunk knocked on her door in the middle of the night? `Damn.´ He
kept up the litany of recriminations in his head as he approached Carl’s faded
linoleum counter. `How’s it going, Carl?´ `Pretty good. Quiet night.´ `Yeah«uh.
Did a girl come in here earlier? Pink coat, long brown hair?´ `Callie?´ `Yeah,
that’s her.´ `Yep. She said she was a friend of yours.´ Nick nodded. `Can you
tell me what room she’s in?´ `Normally I wouldn’t, her being a girl alone and
all. But for you, Nick, and since she said she knows you«Ćarl made a show
of checking the guest book, as if it might be hard to recall a number from one to
ten. `She’s in five.´ `Thanks.´ Nick left the office and crossed the parking
lot to room five. The thick privacy drapes blocked any light from the room, but
he heard the television through the door. At least he didn’t have to feel bad
about waking her up, on top of everything else he felt bad about. He knocked
and waited a full three seconds before he did it again. `Callie? It’s
me«Nick.Áfter a moment, the door opened a crack, and she peered out at him
through the links of the brass security chain. `Is it nine already?´ Her
impertinent tone should have irritated him. Instead he noticed immediately that
the smudge of grease was gone from her cheek. `Can I come in?´ `What for?´ `To
talk. I’m sorry I dumped you here.´ `It’s all right. I know you don’t feel
comfortable letting me stay with you. I understand. Besides, this place really
isn’t too bad, now that I’ve done some redecorating to make it more homey.´ Nick
laughed, but his amusement died when she unlatched the security chain and let
him inside. He looked around in stunned silence. When she said she’d
redecorated, she wasn’t kidding. Callie stepped back to allow Nick over the
threshold of her temporary home. The look on his face was priceless. Maybe now
he’d start to believe she was telling the truth. `Uh«´ His comment died
unspoken. His gaze bounced from the sectional sofa and forty-two-inch plasma
screen TV to the brushed chrome kitchenette and the landscaped, jungle-themed
Jacuzzi tub. She’d considered making it all go away before she let him inside,
but for one thing, she couldn’t bear to go back to looking at the dingy brown
carpeting and the mold-colored spreads that had covered the sagging twin beds
in room five. For another thing, if there existed the slightest chance her
banishment from the Faerie realm would end up being permanent, she wanted to
take full advantage of her Fae abilities while she still had them. `You’ve been
here thirty minutes,´ Nick managed after gaining control of his sagging jaw. `This
took me five.´ Just as Callie predicted, Nick’s gaze returned to the big screen
TV and lingered there. Men. `There’s a
Die
Hard
marathon on channel seventy-two. Can I get you some popcorn?śhe
asked, drumming her fingers on her hips. `I’m not seeing this.´ He shook his
head, but never took his eyes off the TV. `I’m not seeing this.´ `What exactly
is the barrier here, Nick? Why won’t you trust me?´ He finally tore his gaze
away from a battered and bloody Bruce Willis and gave her an incredulous look. `I’m
not one of those people.´ `What people?´ `The ones who believe in faeries and
leprechauns and little green men.Ćallie snagged the remote from the end
table she’d conjured and shut off the television. `I don’t know any little
green men, but I can arrange to fly in a leprechaun if that would help convince
you that I’m telling you the truth about everything.´ `Come on.´ `Say the word,
and I’ll have Seamus O’Malley here before sunrise.Śhe used the remote to
gesture to the luxury suite she’d created in room five. `What else do I have to
do?´ His upper lip curled in a devilish smirk that served to remind Callie of
all the reasons Freya had chosen Nick Garrett as her punishment. She braced for
what she knew was coming.