Twice the Match: A Menage Romance (The MFM Dating Agency Book 1)
Twice the Match
An MFM Agency Romance
Marie Carnay
Contents
Twice the Match
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Epilogue
Also by Marie Carnay
About the Author
Copyright © 2016 by Marie Carnay. Cover and internal design © by Marie Carnay. Cover image copyright © Deposit Photos, 2016.
All rights reserved. The characters and events portrayed in this book are fictitious or are used fictitiously. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental and not intended by the author.
The use of stock photo images in this e-book in no way imply that the models depicted personally endorse, condone, or engage in the fictional conduct depicted herein, expressly or by implication. The person(s) depicted are models and are used for illustrative purposes only.
This book is for sale to mature, adult audiences only. It contains sexually explicit situations and graphic language which may be considered offensive by some readers. Please store this e-book where it cannot be accessed by minors.
Twice the Match
What’s worse than a blind date? A double booked one.
A matchmaker isn’t supposed to make mistakes, especially when she’s your best friend. Maddie trusted Harlow to find her a guy worthy of a second date, not double-book date number one. But Clark and Mitch are a pair of perfect matches: sexy, smart, with a sense of humor too. Choosing between them is impossible.
With one look at Maddie, Clark and Mitch know she’s the one. Big city lawyers used to getting what they want, neither is willing to back down. They’ll fight it out in the courtroom of love until one wins or they both lose.
A love triangle is something Maddie never thought possible, but she’s caught between two men who satisfy all her desires. The more she falls for Clark and Mitch, the harder it is to break away. Can these three find a way to make a threesome work? Or is this match too good to be true?
Twice the Match is book one in the steamy ménage romance series The MFM Dating Agency. Series can be read in any order. No cheating, HEA guaranteed.
Chapter 1
MADDIE
The office chair swiveled and Harlow arched an eyebrow in Maddie’s direction. “What do you mean by hopeless?”
Maddie stifled her usual sigh and glanced down at her hands. Suddenly that chip in her nail polish was fascinating. She picked at it as the weight of her best friend’s stare bore down on her head.
At last, she offered a weak excuse. “I’ve accepted fate, that’s all.”
“What?”
Maddie risked a glance. Harlow still stared at her like she’d just confessed to giving up chocolate. Darn it. Having a matchmaker as a best friend had some serious downsides.
She tried to project confidence as she sat straighter in the guest chair. “I am perfectly prepared to be single the rest of my life.”
“So you’re giving up, just like that?”
Her perfect posture sagged. “It’s not giving up if you never started.”
Harlow shook her head, her blonde hair slipping from a high bun. “You are unbelievable. What about that guy you went out with last week? What was his name… Derek?”
“Dwayne.” Maddie almost spit his name from her mouth. “He smelled like fish. Rotten fish.”
“Nothing a shower can’t fix.”
“He lives in his parents’ basement.”
Harlow shrugged. “Frugality can be a good thing.”
Maddie couldn’t believe the lengths her friend was going to over a guy who didn’t even offer to pick up the tab. Not every bad date was a diamond in the rough that only needed a good buffing to shine.
“Give it up, will you? Dwayne is never getting a second date.”
“He doesn’t sound that bad to me. Maybe your trouble is that you’re too quick to kick them to the curb.”
Maddie picked up her coffee from the edge of Harlow’s desk and took a sip. “Did you know he’s quitting his day job to become a full-time fantasy football gambler? He wanted to know how much money I made and whether I’d be ‘in it for the long haul.’ You know, to support him until he struck it rich.”
Harlow groaned and threw up her hands. “Fine. He’s awful.”
“That’s why I’m giving up. Every guy I’ve dated this past year has been another version of Dwayne. I don’t need someone to take care of.”
Harlow nodded. “It should be the other way around.”
“Exactly.”
With a swivel of her seat, Harlow turned toward her computer and started typing. She attacked the keyboard with determination and purpose and Maddie shoved down a surge of panic. Whenever her best friend got that determined look on her face it meant trouble.
“Tell me you’re not doing what I think you’re doing.”
Harlow grinned, but her gaze stayed fixed on the screen. “Fine. I won’t.”
Oh my God. Harlow had been running a matchmaking company on the side for years. It had always been more of a hobby than a full-time job, but lately she’d been putting more effort into growing the business. She’d even talked about starting an app.
The whole concept made Maddie’s hands sweat and her right eye twitch. She couldn’t let Harlow set her up. That kind of pressure was… too much.
Maddie set her coffee back on the desk and scooted forward. Her butt barely rested on the red leather seat as she craned her neck to see the computer.
Harlow’s matchmaking questionnaire filled the screen, half of the blanks already filled in. She threw out her hands in desperation. “No. No way. You are not putting me in your system, Harlow. I don’t need to be set up. I don’t need a matchmaker.”
Her best friend raised an exasperated eyebrow. “What is it about having some help that freaks you out? Do you know how many weddings I’ve helped make happen? You should trust me, Maddie.”
How could she tell her best friend that was exactly what she was afraid of? Weddings. Commitment. Forever.
Everyone in her family failed at marriage. Her parents divorced when she was two, and both had gone on to fail again and again. Her mom had an engagement ring for every finger on her left hand and was doing her damnedest to fill the right.
Her father had more exes than he could keep straight. Half the time he even forgot their names. They’d been reduced to vague descriptors like “the bouncy one” or “the one with three kids.”
It wasn’t a life Maddie wanted. If she was destined to fail at a relationship, she’d rather do it on her terms with guys she met the old-fashioned way.
“Matchmaking is for people who know they want to settle down. People who are ready for marriage. I don’t want the white picket fence and the cookie-cutter house in the ’burbs and the husband who stops finding me sexy after two kids.”
Harlow rolled her eyes. “So instead you’ll take terrible dates with douchebags who don’t even know what to do with their equipment?”
Maddie pursed her lips. They’d had this argument before and it had ended the same way: both of them grouchy and Maddie no closer to finding a guy she could go out with more than once.
/> She picked her mug back up, running her finger along the rim as she thought it over. Harlow always told her that not every guy in her program came looking for a wife. Maybe some were just like her—commitment-phobic but sick of going home to an empty bed.
“Do you have any guys on that list that don’t want to get married on their second date and start on babies yesterday?”
Harlow licked her lips, blue eyes sparkling with excitement. “Do I ever.” She closed the questionnaire and opened a new file. “Come over here and let me show you.”
Maddie stood up and took a deep breath. She couldn’t believe she was even considering it. But Harlow had a point. Finding a guy on her own hadn’t exactly worked out. She might not be ready for marriage and children and the stable, settled-down life, but a boyfriend who took her out to dinner and knew his way around a bedroom would be a dream come true.
Perching on the edge of the desk, Maddie watched as Harlow scrolled through her list, clicking on a profile here, enlarging a photo there. It seemed like the list never ended. “I didn’t know you had this many clients.”
Harlow nodded. “You’d be amazed how hard it is to find someone these days.”
Huh. Somehow through all of the forgettable dinners and bad movies, Maddie always assumed it was just her—she was the one with the problem finding someone to date—not everyone. “Guys, too?”
“Oh, yeah.” Harlow’s head bobbed as she scrolled down her list of eligible men. “A lot of my clients are busy. They don’t have time to go on ten bad dates to have one good one. They want better odds from the start.”
The more Maddie thought about it, the more it made sense, but she still couldn’t shake the belief that the only men who signed up for a matchmaking service were the ones more interested in a wife than a girlfriend.
After a few more minutes, Harlow leaned back in her chair with a smile. “You ready?”
“Do I have a choice?”
Harlow’s smile deepened. “You’ve got two. Both are single, looking for a girlfriend, but not ready to tie the knot, successful, and local.”
“So they’re middle-aged, balding, and overweight, right?”
Her best friend laughed. “You tell me.” Harlow pulled up two photos, and Maddie had to catch herself from sliding right off the edge of the desk. Her best friend couldn’t be serious. “You’re joking.”
“Not even a little bit.”
Maddie swallowed. Both had dark hair, but that’s where the similarities ended. One was square-jawed, with deep-set eyes that said he knew what he wanted and never failed to get it. The other was lighter, more carefree, with a hint of a smile and stubble coating his jaw.
Drop-dead gorgeous, the pair of them. “These can’t be their real photos. Watch them show up and one is blond and shorter than me, and the other is twice my age.”
“Not a chance. I meet every client in person before I accept them into the program.”
“Seriously?”
“Yep. That’s why I haven’t found a way to expand. It’s too much work for one person, but I don’t have anyone else I can trust.”
Maddie stared at the two photos. If her best friend attracted men like these two, then she needed to find a way to turn her hobby into a career. “You should hire someone.”
“Are you interested?”
Maddie laughed. “You do remember why we’re staring at Adonis and his brother, right?”
“You have a point. So, which is it?”
Maddie tugged on her lower lip and tried to find something about either one she didn’t like. “What are their names?”
Harlow pulled up their data sheets and laughed. “Would you look at that?” She pointed as she read them out loud. “Clark and Mitchell Hill.”
“Are they brothers?”
“I don’t think so. Hill’s a pretty common last name. It’s probably just coincidence.”
Maddie nodded. She wasn’t any closer to making up her mind, and matchmaking was Harlow’s thing, not hers. After a moment, she shrugged. “I can’t decide. How about you pick for me?”
“Are you sure?”
“It is your business, after all.”
“Okay.” Harlow clicked the photos closed and turned to her, resting her hands on her knees. “But you need to promise me that whatever happens, you have an open mind. And you show up.”
“What if he’s not the one?”
Harlow’s whole face lit up. “Easy. Then you go out with guy number two.”
Chapter 2
CLARK
The restaurant was one of those trendy spots Clark hated. All stainless steel and glass with preposterous names for their drinks and appetizers that wouldn’t satisfy a hundred-pound weakling of a man.
He nursed his scotch and glanced up at the door. The only benefit to the joint was the huge glass window stretching the entire front. From his seat at the bar, he could see every car that pulled up and watch every patron walk inside without looking like a stalker or a guy on a blind date.
For a first date arranged by a matchmaker, it couldn’t have been better. Clark wasn’t one for surprises.
“Funny to find you here.”
He glanced up as a familiar voice called out to him. “Mitch!” He stood up and clapped his former colleague on the back. “It’s been too long.”
Mitch tugged out the barstool next to him and sat down, his large frame almost too big for the seat. “They need bigger seats in this place. My ass is hanging off like a dog out a car window.”
Clark chuckled. Mitch always had a way with the one-liners. It had been months since he’d seen him last. Way too long. They’d met in law school and hit it off right away. With the same last name, becoming friends had been inevitable since they sat next to each other at the start of every class.
Fast forward a decade and they now both lived in the city with stable jobs at two of the best firms downtown. Being a partner in a law firm didn’t afford much time to socialize, and over the years they’d regrettably lost touch. I should fix that.
Mitch ordered a drink and once it arrived, Clark raised his own in a toast. “I heard you’re next in line to be the head of estate planning at Dewberry. Congrats.”
“Been in charge for about six months, actually. Estate planning and tax, but don’t get too excited.” Mitch took a sip before continuing. “The firm’s done some restructuring this year. The partners want to move to a boutique model. It’s strictly mergers and acquisitions from here on out. I’m in the process of looking for a better fit.”
Clark sipped his scotch with a nod. That seemed to be the way of it these days. Firms restructuring, merging, and dissolving. With a practice as strong as his, Mitch should have no problem finding a new home, but it still stank. “It’s not like it used to be, is it?”
“Nope. What about you? Last I heard you were still at Gregson Hastings.”
Clark nodded. “I’ve been a partner for a few years, corporate litigation, mostly.”
Mitch’s eyes went wide. “I thought you liked the white-collar crime stuff?”
“Not much of that at Gregson anymore, I’m afraid.”
“Still, that’s impressive. I know how hard it is to make partner over there.”
“Thanks.” Clark could have regaled his old friend with war stories of recent cases until the sun came up, but he wasn’t the bragging sort. Plenty of other lawyers loved to wow anyone who would listen with tales of cases fought and won in the trenches of the courtroom, but Clark preferred a lower profile.
It was one of the reasons he had more work than he knew what to do with. He didn’t throw his ego in front of him like a gauntlet; he preferred to let hard work and talent lead the way.
“So why are you here? Have a hot date to impress?”
“With this place?” Mitch shook his head. “Not a chance. What are their entreés, like the size of my pinky finger?” He sucked down half his drink and glanced up at the window. “I’m on a blind date.”
Clark blinked. “The Don of
dating in law school is on a blind date?”
Mitch rubbed at his stubble-coated jaw. “Don’t remind me.” He drained the rest of his drink and motioned at the bartender for another. “How about you? Date night with the girlfriend?”
“Nope.” Clark couldn’t believe they were both so desperate. Maybe what people said about working in a big firm really was true. It sucked the life out of you, in a way. No time for friends, a social life, falling in love. There was a reason so many lawyers married other lawyers. At least they understood the grind.
He finished his scotch as the bartender showed up with Mitch’s drink and handed him the empty glass.
“Want another?”
“Why not?” He exhaled as the guy walked away. “Don’t laugh, but I’m here on a blind date, too.”
“No way.”
Clark shrugged. “Great minds think alike, huh?”
“So who set you up?”
He forced himself not to groan as the bartender delivered a new lowball brimming with scotch. “You won’t believe me.”
“Try me.”
Clark took a sip and let the alcohol fuel his courage. “I used a matchmaker.”
Mitch erupted in laughter next to him and Clark scowled.
“It’s not what you think. I’m not desperate.” The words might have come out a bit gruff, but Clark didn’t like being laughed at.
His friend bent over as tears leaked from the corners of his eyes. “That’s… not… why… I’m… laughing.” He choked the words out between heaving guffaws. Tugging on his back pocket, Mitch pulled out his phone and swiped it open. “Guess we have more in common than just law school.” He scrolled through his email before holding it out for Clark to see.
“According to my matchmaker, Madeline is perfect for me.”
What the hell? Clark’s anger flashed as he stood up and slammed his drink on the bar. Scotch sloshed over his fingers and he cursed. “Are you spoofing me or something?” He glanced around. “Is this one of those reality shows where people come out and laugh in your face? Because I swear to God, Mitch, if you’ve set me up—”