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Damn it! She wasn’t attracted to the man! In fact, she seriously disliked him! Mentally, she reminded herself of his snide dismissal of her profession. He thought psychology wasn’t as relevant as chemistry. He was an arrogant, smug bastard.
Tim glanced down at her, fisting his hands in his pockets to keep himself from reaching out. He wanted to wrap his arms around her and pull her back against his chest. He wanted to lean in and bury his nose in her hair, to enjoy the strawberry scent of her shampoo. He wanted to feel her soft curves against his body, to feel her press that irritatingly lush ass against his hips, maybe even brush his forearms against her breasts as he held her close.
He shifted slightly so that she hid his body’s immediate reaction to the images flitting through his head.
Why the hell was he even thinking about wrapping his arms around her? Raven Markley was a woman who spouted nonsensical psychobabble and introduced people, crossing her fingers in the hopes that they would hit it off. She presumably charged exorbitant rates for doing nothing more than facilitating a date.
So, why the hell was he here? Why hadn’t he simply told her that he didn’t need her “skills”. A simple thanks, but no thanks was all the communication required.
He was just trying to be nice, he thought. He’d buy her a cup of coffee then politely tell her that he was fine, that he didn’t need a partner. Afterwards, he’d simply leave and get back to work. He had about fifty emails from his staff and vendors that needed answers. He should review the latest data from the testing they’d done earlier in the week. Expanding Larmpo’s product line was the only way they would stay in business. No, it was the only way to stay ahead in their business.
Tim ordered a cup of coffee, black with none of the frou-frou stuff. He hated that coffee had become “an event” instead of a basic way to stimulate one’s mind. Coffee was coffee, damn it. Adding all of that extra stuff just bastardized something that was perfectly fine on its own.
As soon as he ordered and stepped aside, pulling out his wallet to pay, Raven stepped forward to put in her order. “I’ll have a chai latte with soy and a single pump of sugar free vanilla syrup, please.” And before he had a chance, she’d already tapped her credit card to the payment module.
He scowled at her, not sure if he was more irritated by her frou-frou coffee order or her paying for their drinks. Or perhaps he was more irritated by her triumphant smile.
Whatever, he followed her, carefully not looking at her sexy ass as they walked to the end of the counter to await their order. He crossed his arms over his chest, trying to ignore his annoyance.
Psychology. He nearly snorted with disdain. Could there be any valid argument that psychology was a real science? Body language and feelings…that was all loosey goosey stuff that didn’t have a finite result. One couldn’t test a hypothesis. One couldn’t properly duplicate the experiment in order to validate one’s results. Humans were too inconsistent, always changing their minds and actions. Plus, how could one replicate an experiment in real life? In a laboratory, Tim could mix the same chemicals in the precise same sequence and amounts, and validate the results. Humans…that wasn’t possible. The variables were infinite.
In other words, not real science, he mentally decided.
“Black coffee!” the barista called out. The woman who handed him his coffee didn’t even smile, obviously irritated by a drink with zero creativity. Tim almost chuckled as he lifted the cup and stepped back. “Chai latte!” she called out next. Tim watched as Raven moved forward, smiling at the woman as she accepted the coffee. “Thank you so much,” Raven whispered to the barista. Sure enough, the barista beamed in response. “Have a great day,” she replied, then moved away to prepare the next customer’s order.
“I guess only the weird orders get a smile,” he grumbled, gesturing with his coffee cup towards a table near the wall where they could talk in relative privacy.
Raven led the way, winding through the tables, but over her shoulder, she said, “I’m not sure if a person’s order is the impetus for a smile.”
He grunted and sat down. But apparently, Raven wasn’t finished. “There are numerous studies that demonstrate that a retail person’s attitude, polite or rude, is precipitated by the customer.” She peeled the top off her coffee cup and blew on the steaming brew. “In other words, if you’re rude to the person first, they are going to be rude back to you. Conversely, if a customer initiates kindness, they reciprocate.”
Tim glared at her for a moment, noting that she didn’t appear irritated by his grouchy response. “I get your point,” he replied, leaning back in his chair. He didn’t bother to take the lid off of his coffee cup. He preferred his coffee hot. The burn was part of the drinking experience in his mind.
She simply smiled, then reached into her giant tote bag and pulled out a notebook and pen.
Raven did an odd little flip of the pen, then leaned forward, obviously eager to get started. “Okay, so tell me a little about your ideal woman. What traits are you looking for in your future wife?”
He shook his head. “I’m not looking for a wife,” he explained, trying to soften his voice. “I was trying to tell you that before.” He sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. “I don’t want the complication of a relationship. My life is perfect, just the way it is.”
She tilted her head and Tim felt as if she were seeing all the secrets that he valiantly tried to hide from the world. He was a very private person and didn’t want people prying into his business. And he definitely didn’t want Raven Markley seeing his personal thoughts.
“Is it?” she asked, her tone soft and she added a gentle smile. “You say that your life is perfect just the way it is. But,” and she tilted her head again, “I see a restlessness in your eyes. A yearning for something.” She paused and he froze, staring at her. “Am I wrong?”
He started to nod, then shook his head. “Yes,” he snapped, then sighed. “No.” He leaned forward, cupping the hot coffee in his hands. “I’m struggling to find a balance now that Bailey and Matteo are expecting their first child.” He shook his head. “It’s nothing more complicated than that. My world is changing and I need to adjust to those changes. Adding a relationship into the mix would only complicate things more.”
“Or…” she started, still trying to be gentle, “a positive, romantic relationship with someone might be an excellent person to talk with at the end of the day. Someone who will listen to and understand you. Someone who might grasp how life’s changes affect you.”
Tim didn’t have a response to that. Especially since it sounded…nice.
As soon as the thought passed through his mind, he dismissed it. “I’m fine,” he replied tersely. “How is your coffee?”
Raven glanced down at the chai latte, noted that it was still too hot and smiled at the rigid, almost angry, man sitting across from her. He didn’t think he wanted her help, but Raven had seen the signs. She’d seen the yearning in his eyes when she’d suggested having a partner to talk with at the end of the day. Doctor Timothy Armstrong was a brilliant scientist, but he was clearly struggling with the human side of his world.
Thankfully, that was Raven’s expertise. Suddenly, her anger over his dismissive comments about her profession dissipated. For some reason she wasn’t going to examine too closely, Raven wanted to help Tim more than she’d wanted to help any other client. He was stubborn and completely unaware of his feelings, and that was okay. Because she “got” feelings. Human emotions were fascinating to her!
“Okay, how about this,” she started, changing tactics. “Why don’t you tell me what you didn’t like about the women you’ve dated in the past? I can use that information to weed out some of the candidates.” She lifted her hand, stopping his obvious protest. “I know. You don’t want a partner. But your business partners hired me to find you someone and I’m going to do it. You don’t have to marry anyone. All I do is sift through the possibilities and come up with potential women that might suit your hopes and dreams for the future.”
“What’s the difference between what you do and a dating app?” he asked, looking blank again.
