Operation Soulmate by Diane Hall Read Free Book Online

no choice but to wait for him...however long he takes to get here. I really do, Ben, and I don’t want anything or anyone else, I really don’t, and where is he!!! Why isn’t he here, yet?? Oh God!! I’m gonna be thirty!!! And I know it’s not old but, it feels, so, old ....Oh God, I’m such a mess. I’m sorry Ben. I know you’re trying to help me, but, don’t you see... there’s just no hope for me. You’re the best person at doing this, in the country, probably in the world and even you can’t help me, even you think I’m nuts. I’m nuts aren’t I?”
           Ben looked at her worried face, and wrestled with himself again. How honest could he really allow himself to be? Geraldine was her own worst enemy, there was no question about it. She was gorgeous, bright, fun to be with, caring and absurdly generous ...to everyone but herself. Yet, in all the time he’d known her, he’d never once seen her with a decent guy, not for long, anyway. The decent ones were all given their marching orders, within a few dates, for being either too boring, too controlling, too young, too old, too perfect, even. He’d hardly been able to  believe his ears when he’d heard that one! Too perfect!! "Too good to be true. There must be something wrong with him; I just haven't found it yet." !
        The fact was, that she was obviously terrified of commitment, just in case she got hurt again by some guy like Andrew who, as it turned out, hadn’t even known how to spell the word commitment, and certainly didn’t know how to make or keep one. The more he thought about it, the more convinced he was that there seemed to be an ex like Andrew in every woman’s past. The one that got away, but who first made sure to take a backward glance or two in order to be absolutely certain that, before leaving, he’d managed to turn a good woman really bad, or to at least made sure that any future guys would have to work very, very hard to get even a little bit close. Geraldine had, unfortunately, not managed to escape the rogue ruination, and now all the guys she really went for were losers, as far as he was concerned and, of course, safely unattainable. What a catch, an unattainable loser. Ben felt his heart melting as he watched her fall apart.
           “Aw, honey, you’re not nuts, you’re beautiful. The rest of the world is nuts, not you. You keep your dream. Never stop having dreams, no matter what. No one else has to understand them, except you. And do you want to know something...?”
          “What,” Geraldine, sniffed, dabbing at her nose and daring to glance up at him.
          “I think everyone has that dream, secretly, it’s just that very few of them has the guts to admit it. And even fewer have the courage to keep believing in it, and that makes you very, very special.”
          “Really?”
          “Absolutely. And I’ll tell you something else: what you’ve got on that list isn’t really so far-fetched ...at all . You can easily, easily find that guy, and I’m going to help you to do just that.
           “Really, Ben...you’re not just saying that to make me feel better?”
           “Gerry, all you’re looking for is a feeling of real connection, with someone who won’t let you down. You could find a guy who gives you all of those feelings, in a few weeks, I’m sure of it. In fact I will guarantee you, that if you still haven't found him three months from now, on the day of your thirtieth birthday, I’ll marry you myself!”
          “Oh Ben, don’t be silly. Do you really, really think you can help me to find him?”
           “I promise.” He said placing his hand on his heart. “So do we have a deal then?”
    Geraldine had such complete faith in Ben. He had such integrity, and everything else he had ever set out to achieve had been a forgone conclusion, even before he’d started. She just knew, without a shred of doubt, that if it was even remotely