Page 94 of The Deal Breaker

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A few minutes later, Iris grabbed her drink and sat at a table. The interior was small enough that anyone who walked in could see her.

A text notification buzzed.

She glanced at her phone.

Hadley:Relax and have fun. It’s just coffee.

Iris:I’m trying.

Hadley:I’ll check in later.

Iris:Thanks.

Seeing an email notification, she clicked her inbox.

“Iris Jacobs?” a familiar male voice asked.

A shiver ran along her spine.

No, it couldn’t be him.

Slowly, as if she could avoid the inevitable, she glanced up from her phone. Not surprised, a smiling Dash stood next to her table.

Still, her mouth gaped. She felt dizzy.

Where had he come from? What was he doing here?

And why did he look hotter?

Okay, he’d always been gorgeous, but this appeared to be Dash 2.0. He looked…healthier, as if he’d been working out and spending time outside.

This so wasn’t fair.

Wait. That couldn’t be Dash. She had to be hallucinating.

Iris blinked. Once. Twice.

Nope. He was still there.

“Dash?” Flutters erupted in her stomach. She glanced around, but didn’t see any other men entering the shop. Good, her date must be running late. “What are you doing here?”

“Hi.” He extended his hand, but she was too stunned to shake it. “I’m EC.”

“You’re Hadley’s client?” she screeched.

He nodded.

Iris didn’t know if she should laugh or cry. Or why Hadley would have done this. It had to go against the matchmaker’s code. Well, if one existed. “Why did you do this?”

“Ask me what EC stands for?”

Iris swallowed around the lump in her throat. “What does the EC stand for?”

“Embracing Change, but you can call me Dash.”

She stared, dumbfounded.

“You already have a drink,” he said, acting as if what was happening was normal. “I’m going to order something. Please stay.”

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