Page 27 of The Billionaire Mismatch

“Hello?” Luca asks. “Livv?”

I glare at my friends, realizing I have no choice but to talk to him. But before I do, I run my fingers over my lips in a zipper motion.

“Livv? Are you there?” he asks.

“Yes. Luca. Hi,” I grimace.

“Did I call at a bad time?” he asks with his usual dryness.

“Nope. I’m here,” I say awkwardly.

“Why do you sound funny?” he asks. Not that he’s laughing.

“My voice or the connection?” I ask nervously.

“All of it,” he says. He’s not wrong. My voice still sounds quirky, and I know he can hear it. I take a second, gather myself, and realize that there’s no going back now.

“Sorry. I’m at work and it’s…a brick building,” I say, and Henry stifles a laugh. “You know, bad reception.”

“Right,” Luca says before getting to the point. “I had a good time last night.”

Kiersten arches an eyebrow, and I bite my lip.

“I did too,” I say as naturally as possible. Not that any of this feels natural at all.

“I think we should see each other again,” he says, and my friends lose it. Silently, of course.

“You want to go on another date?” I ask.

“We have an entire bottle of petite Sirah we never finished,” he says, and my cheeks flush hard.

“So you want to see me again, or you want help drinking that wine?” I tease.

But when Luca responds, there is zero humor in his voice. “I don’t need help with anything. But I want to see you again. I’ll pick you up at seven.”

“Tonight?” I blurt out.

“Is tonight a problem?” he asks, and I can’t believe this guy. He’s not even asking. He’s telling.

“Let me…check my calendar really quick,” I say, muting him. Then I turn to my friends, forgetting momentarily that we are still live.

“He’s so demanding,” I say. “That is a huge red flag,”

“Of course it is,” Keirsten says. “Catfish behavior at its finest. This is something to watch for, ladies,” she adds, and I remember we are on air. People are listening.

“Shouldn’t I say no then?” I ask.

“Not in this experiment,” she says. “And the purpose of this experiment is to show our listeners the patterns of deceitful dates.”

She wants me to go out with him again, knowing he’s a jerk. For the podcast. And I remember that I’m doing this for Sadie. I also remember Luca is waiting, probably impatiently.

“Sorry about that,” I say after I unmute him. “But it looks like I am free tonight after all,” I say.

“Good,” he answers. “Seven, then.”

The line goes dead, and I melt back into my seat, my heart racing.

“That,” Kiersten says, “for anyone who didn’t pick up on it, was our very own Olivia Ramone being asked out on a date. But not just any date. A second date with a man who we are very certain might be a catfish at its finest.”