Chapter 2

Sophie had barely finished her third cup of coffee when she received the text. It was from Ethan, of course. Who else would be texting her at 9 AM on a Tuesday?

Ethan D'Angelo: You're gonna love this. Blind date tonight. 7 PM. Don't let me down. – Ethan

Sophie blinked at the message, rubbing her temples. "Blind date? What the heck does that even mean?"

Her phone buzzed again.

Ethan D'Angelo: And please wear something nice. No, not like that last time. No sweatpants. I beg of you. I can't show my face in public with you looking like that.

Sophie groaned, clutching her head. Didn't he just call me a fashion disaster yesterday?

Of course, she couldn't refuse. Ethan had already made plans, and she had no choice but to be his professional matchmaker. It was her job to ensure that he had a successful blind date. But success, in Ethan's world, was like finding an honest politician—rare, and probably not something you wanted to keep around.

She walked over to her closet and stared at it, as though it had personally wronged her. What does one wear to a blind date with Ethan D'Angelo? She was sure it didn't involve anything that would make her look like she belonged at a village party.

After a few disastrous outfit choices (a red dress that made her look like a tomato and a black jacket that screamed "I'm trying too hard"), Sophie settled on something that screamed, "I tried, but not too hard." She figured Ethan could tolerate it, though she wasn't sure he'd actually see it since he spent the whole night scowling at his date.

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By the time she arrived at the upscale restaurant, Ethan was already there, looking as if he had just stepped out of a magazine. Seriously, the man had an unhealthy relationship with clothes that made him look like he came from a fancy family.

"Hey, are you sure you want to do this?" Sophie asked as she slid into the chair next to him. "You know blind dates are basically speed dating for people who can't get their act together, right?"

Ethan glared at her, his eyebrow arching. "You're supposed to be my wingman, not my therapist."

"I'm not your wingman, I'm your date whisperer. There's a difference."

Ethan sighed and glanced around the room. "I swear, Sophie, if this goes as badly as the last one—"

"That was your fault! You didn't even try to talk to her about anything other than your business!"

Ethan rolled his eyes, leaning back in his chair. "I was trying to impress her with my interests, okay? Not everyone wants to talk about politics and whether or not the moon landing was real."

Sophie snorted, trying not to laugh. "I don't think real estate is going to be the hot topic at dinner tonight either."

Just as she finished speaking, a woman appeared at the table, her heels clicking with confidence—a confidence that Sophie immediately recognized as overcompensation. She had clearly spent hours on her hair and makeup. It was the type of "effortless glam" that screamed, "I tried to look like I wasn't trying, but I'm clearly trying."

"Hello!" the woman said, practically sitting down before anyone had a chance to greet her.

Sophie gave her a quick nod and turned her attention back to Ethan, who was giving her a side-eye. This was already going badly, and they hadn't even started the appetizers yet.

"Jenna," the woman said, extending her hand to Ethan. "So nice to meet you. You're even more handsome in person." She gave a little wink, clearly flirting.

Ethan stared at her hand as if it were a poisonous snake. "Uh... hi."

Sophie held back her laughter, watching the scene unfold. "So, Jenna," Sophie said, cutting in, "what do you do?"

"Oh, I'm a social media manager," Jenna said, "I handle the Instagram accounts for some pretty big names."

Sophie almost choked on her water. Here it comes, she thought. The inevitable conversation that was about to make everyone uncomfortable.

"So, like, influencers and stuff?" Sophie asked, the words practically dripping with sarcasm.

"Yeah!" Jenna chirped, her eyes practically glowing. "I actually worked with—wait for it—Jade the Influencer last month. You know, the one who does the makeup tutorials on YouTube. I helped her get her brand off the ground!"

Ethan's face twitched. He opened his mouth to say something but then shut it again. Sophie had seen this look on his face before—it was the look he gave when he didn't know whether to jump out of a window or break the table in half.

"Well, that's... great," Ethan said, his tone dry as dust. "Jade. She must be really talented."

Sophie could see Jenna didn't catch the sarcasm. She was busy tapping away at her phone, probably liking some influencer's "motivational quote" post.

The date was already a disaster, but then Jenna dropped the bombshell. "So, I actually saw your profile on that dating app last night," she said, eyeing Ethan. "I gotta say, the whole 'I'm rich but not a snob' thing? Kinda sexy."

Ethan's face turned an interesting shade of purple, and Sophie almost fell out of her chair from trying not to laugh.

"Sophie, help me out here," he muttered, his voice a low growl.

Sophie gave him the most reassuring smile she could muster, which, to be honest, was more like a smile of impending doom. "You know, Jenna, I think you two have so much in common. I mean, you both like... social media? And, um, shallow compliments?"

Jenna stared at Sophie, confused. "What do you mean by that?"

Sophie waved her hand dismissively. "Oh, nothing. Just giving some friendly advice. You know, in case this date lasts longer than my last attempt at cooking noodles, which was... about five minutes."

Jenna blinked, looking slightly unsettled. Sophie immediately regretted saying that out loud, but it didn't matter because Ethan was now sliding down in his chair in a desperate attempt to avoid any more awkwardness.

Sophie had to admit, her matchmaking skills were on point.

As the night continued, Jenna babbled on about her favorite makeup brands, while Ethan tried his best to look interested. Sophie, on the other hand, was thoroughly entertained—this was comedy gold.

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And thus, Sophie's professional matchmaker career continued... though she wasn't sure how many more of these "successes" she could handle.