Part 6 (2/2)
She wasn't going to sit by and let a good friend hurt. It was difficult for Hailey to make intimate friends.h.i.+ps; she sometimes felt as though she'd never learned how. That's why her friends.h.i.+p with Julia was so important to her.
They'd met at a networking business event and they'd talked a little and laughed a little and exchanged business cards. She was startled when Julia had called her a couple of days later and suggested lunch, but she'd been pleased. They chatted about the industry, about their ambitions and then about men.
She liked Julia's frankness and honesty. Within a couple of weeks they were seeing each other regularly for a yoga cla.s.s, a drink after work, shopping and brunch. Julia had a big, noisy family who'd lived at the same address for fifty years. She had friends she'd known since kindergarten. She had everything Hailey had never had and always craved.
She watched as Julia, her sisters, brothers and mother would argue, sometimes squabble like kids and then hug and joke minutes later. Julia took her in, made Hailey part of her life. Almost forced her to open up and share. At some point she realized that Julia was her best friend. Probably the closest woman friend she'd ever had.
And if there was one thing she could do to thank Julia for teaching her what a friend was, it was to be one. So she said, ”You are not giving up.”
”I knew when I saw the photograph that he was too good-looking for me.”
”That wouldn't be his real photo,” Rob said. ”You know that, right? He's probably a twenty-two-year-old Nigerian kid with a degree who speaks good English. They steal pictures of male models and hope n.o.body notices.”
”I didn't,” she moaned. ”And I thought his accent was so cute. He said he'd been born in Manchester and moved around a lot. That's why his accent was different.” She smacked her forehead with her palm. ”And I believed him. I fell for the whole scam, hook, line and sinker.”
”No. You didn't,” Rob said. ”You didn't send any money. So he didn't gain anything.” Rob was a lot more direct than Hailey would have been but she could see that his blunt words had an effect. Julia looked slightly less beaten down. While she watched him talking to her friend she realized he was a truly nice guy, and watching his lips move reminded her that he was a great kisser.
And she hadn't been kissed in a long time.
He'd awakened her l.u.s.ty, s.e.xy side and she didn't think it was going back into hibernation anytime soon. What she was going to do about this, she had no idea.
She wasn't a casual woman and she didn't do casual s.e.x. Still, an image of Rob and her in that big bed upstairs kept intruding. She pictured the two of them, limbs entwined, and a feeling of heat began to spread through her.
”Scammers only win when they get-”
He paused, turned to stare at Hailey, and she felt him sharing her fantasy as surely as if the two of them were naked and entwined at this very moment. The look he gave her was searing, intense. She touched her chest, her fingers resting on her collarbone, and his gaze followed as though he were the one touching her there.
Julia's expression was still bleak. ”He gained my trust. I believed the guy. That's what hurts so much. I consider myself an intelligent woman. How could I be so stupid?” She shook her head and her red curls bounced. ”Anyway, I'm done with LoveMatch.com.”
Julia's pain broke the moment of intense l.u.s.t and Hailey returned her attention to where it belonged.
”No,” Hailey cried. ”You can't give up so easily. Then the scam artists really do win. Come on. You're not going to let one bad apple wreck the whole orchard.”
”I'm giving up on apples.”
”Come on. Get your computer out. We're going to get you a date with a real guy who may not be the love of your life but who exists.”
”Wow. How my standards are dropping. I used to think I couldn't date anyone who didn't appreciate Frank Gehry. Now all I ask is that he actually breathes.”
Hailey laughed. ”It will be fun. You'll feel a lot better once you put this behind you.”
”I guess.” Julia allowed herself to be persuaded to open her computer and log on to the site. Hailey leaned over her shoulder, watching every keystroke. ”What about him?” she asked, pointing when Julia's possible matches appeared.
”I hate beards,” she said, and deleted the guy's picture.
”What about him?”
Julia snorted. ”The only good thing I can say about a guy that ugly is at least he's not a scammer who stole a male model's photo.”
Hailey squinted to get a better look at the profile photo. ”He's not that ugly.”
Julie glanced up at her. ”Would you go out with him?”
”Oh, look,” she said, ”Somebody's sent you a message. Two in fact. Click through.”
Julia did. ”Bigbrownbear? His handle is Bigbrownbear? I am so going into a nunnery.” She clicked the message open anyway. It showed a man who could have been one of Santa's elves. His profile stated he was sixty, but he appeared a decade older. ”Not big, not brown, not a bear. My luck continues,” Julia said.
”He's a sculptor,” Hailey read. ”That's interesting. He says he'd like to meet for coffee.”
”Maybe he wants to adopt me.”
”Oh, look, another message just came through.”
”From hotboy.” She clicked the email icon and up came the message. She read aloud. ”Lookin for a rockin' older gal. Do you go for younger guys?”
No one said a word when she clicked Delete.
”Okay, let's try John2012.”
”What do you bet his name isn't even John?” Julia clicked on the message. A nice face looked out at them from the guy's profile photo. He'd sent a short message that said he'd be interested in getting to know her a little better.
Instead of deleting him, Julia clicked through to the man's online profile. He said he was recently divorced and worked in the computer industry. His hobbies included sailing, ethnic restaurants and reading. Hailey held her tongue and waited for Julia's verdict.
”He looks boring,” she said. ”And he has no style.”
Hailey read over her friend's shoulder. ”He sounds nice. And you both like to eat out. You have that in common. What have you got to lose?”
”He probably thinks Frank Gehry is a football player.”
”Julia, at least meet the guy for coffee.”
”Hmm. I don't know.” All the same she pulled up each of his three photos and studied them.
”Julia, go for coffee with this man. It's only coffee.”
”What if we hate each other on sight?”
”Order an espresso so you can gulp it down if you have to. You can always talk about books.”
”I don't know.” Julia made to close her laptop. Hailey prevented her. ”Do it. Send him a message back. Immediately.”
”You are so bossy. If I have a terrible time I'm billing you at my hourly rate.”
She squeezed her friend's shoulder. ”There's someone wonderful out there for you. I know it.”
Rob said, ”Let me take a look.”
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