The woman in front of me is a pretty blond who smiles at me ever so often. I smile back, but I have no intention of connecting with her tonight. My only objective is to get in front of the woman sitting beside the blond.
“Mind if we change seats?” I ask the guy sitting next to me.
“Sure,” he says and happily stands so he can slide in front of the blond. This switch lands me right where I want to be.
The game leader announces, “Okay, everyone, you have five minutes with each person, and then you will hear a buzzer. The men will get up and move to the woman sitting to their right at that time. Make the best out of your five minutes with the person you’re with, and make sure to check your Heart Match cards.”
I glance at the nameless beauty whose essence alone pulled me into this room. Her curly hair is pulled up into the center of her head, and rings of curls fall into her lightly made up maple-colored oval face. Her natural beauty glows remarkably. And, she’s thick. With her shapely, shimmering thighs and big hips, she definitely has something to hold onto. Her heels snap shut with a diamond-like clamp at her ankle, showcasing her feet as if she were a runway model. Everything about her is beauty personified. I just want to eat her up, starting with her luscious lips.
As soon as the buzzer sounds, I move close to her as if I’ve been waiting for this moment my whole life. “Hi, remember me?” I ask with my signature smile, which is half-smile, half cocky expression that displays my confidence.
“Hello,” she responds with an unreadable expression. Her straight, damn near poker face does not clue me in to what she is thinking. This is so much different than the first time I met her when her feelings were on her sleeve.
“My name is Omega Johnson.”
“And, I’m Astalia Morgan.”
“Astalia, I should start this conversation by letting you know you’re not talking to anyone else tonight,” I tell her. “I’m the man that you’re looking for.”
“So, I don’t get a hello, how’re you doing, or what’s your name? Just an order not to talk to anyone else and a declaration that you’re all that I need? Possessive much?”
“Oh, it’s not just that I’m all you need. You’re all I need, as well. And, trust me, I’m going to ask you all of those questions and more, but first and foremost, you should know you don’t need to talk to any other man. We’re the heart match.”
She inches away from me as if she’s afraid of hearing the truth. “And how do you know that?”
“I know this because the first time I laid eyes on you, I knew you were the one. And now that I have you where I want you, I’m not letting you go.”
“Is that right?”
“Yes.”
“What if I don’t feel the same way?”
“Do you?”
“Depends. Do you tell your women what they are to do and when to do it, as well?”
“No, but when I see something I want, I go for it, and I don’t take no for an answer.”
“Is this something you do all the time?” she asks.
“First time speed dating, but I go after what I want every day. For instance, I came here to go to the bar with my friend. I only came to speed dating because I saw you in here.”
“I’ve done speed dating before, but I didn’t like the experience.”
“Why?”
“There wasn’t anyone there I felt compatible with.”
“How about now? What made you come back tonight?”
“Um.” She looks around the room at all of the other people who are talking to strangers and hoping to find something in common on which to build a connection. A nervous look enters her eyes before she looks back at me. “Well, to be honest, I— I need a date for a Christmas dinner.”
“No, you don’t.”
“Excuse me?”
“You don’t need a date for Christmas because I’m your date.”