The Meltdown Match (A Romance Novella) by Rachael Anderson Read Free Book Online Page A

couple of months.
    Every day had been as close to perfection as she could have hoped. She’d spent her days writing and the evenings hanging out with Mitch. They did everything together. Fishing, 4-wheeling, biking, hiking, shopping, rappelling, swimming—even hunting, although Courtney wouldn’t let him actually shoot anything, so it was more like animal watching. They played games, cooked dinner, hung out with family and friends, and read books together. The added romance had catapulted a good friendship into something truly amazing, and Courtney had never felt more connected to anyone. Which was exactly why she couldn’t wait to see him now.
    She rounded a corner and smiled when she spied his secretary. “Hey, Alyssa, how are you?”
    Alyssa twirled a pen between her fingers as she returned the smile. “Better and better, thanks to you.”
    “Me?” Courtney asked, unsure as to why she’d been given credit for Alyssa’s good day.
    “I now have the happiest, most pleasant boss in the world.” Her eyes narrowed as she peered at Courtney through her glasses. “Don’t you ever dump him, or I might kill you.”
    Courtney laughed. Only yesterday, Hannah had pretty much told Mitch the same thing. “Why would I dump him? According to the sun, he’s my perfect match.”
    “The sun and a whole lot of salt,” Alyssa muttered, returning her attention to the paperwork on her desk.
    Courtney’s smile faltered as she tried to make sense of Alyssa’s words. Did she mean “Salt”, as in her , or the stuff people sprinkled on French fries? Either way, it didn’t make sense. “What does salt have to do with anything?”
    Alyssa glanced up. “Didn’t Mitch tell you? We added salt to the water to make your vases melt faster.”
    “Oh.” A heavy feeling slammed into her as she strained to keep a semblance of a smile on her face while Alyssa continued talking, saying words like romantic and sweet .
    Courtney was suddenly eight years old again on Christmas Eve—the much anticipated night that she finally got to stay up to see Santa Claus instead of having to go to bed. For years, she’d how magical and life-changing it would be. Would Santa bring some of his elves? Would she get to see Rudolf and his glowing nose? Would he give her a hug, set her favorite toy under the tree, and tell her she’d been a really good girl? She’d thought of him all year long.
    Turned out it was none of the above, because Santa wasn’t real. Just like The Meltdown Match wasn’t real.
    Her heart felt as though it had been poked with a pin, and now it slowly deflated, wrinkling like a balloon.
    “Courtney, are you okay?” Alyssa’s voice sounded through the fog.
    Voices approached from somewhere down the hall, and two men appeared—Mitch and someone else.
    “Hey, beautiful, what are you doing here?” He put an arm around her and kissed her cheek before making introductions. Courtney was vaguely aware of trying to smile and shake the man’s hand before he left, his footsteps sounding loud as they descended the hard, marble stairs.
    Courtney tried to talk herself out of her emotions. The Meltdown Match was a silly contest. It didn’t mean anything. She and Mitch were meant to be together because they were meant to be together, not because some huge ball of fire decreed it so. No one in their right mind would place any stock in it at all.
    No one except her.
    Mitch smoothed his hands up and down her arms. “Hey, something wrong?”
    Courtney shook her head slowly, trying to clear it.
    “I, uh, need to go make some copies.” Alyssa was out of her seat and down the hall in seconds.
    Unable to put a stop to her overreaction, Courtney blinked at Mitch, needing to say something. “The Meltdown Match... you added salt... to the water?”
    His face took on a sheepish expression as he nodded. “It gave me the courage to finally ask you out. You’re not mad, are you?”
    “No.” What Courtney felt didn’t resemble anger, more like a