Orchid Read Free Page B

intimidation,” Rafe said smoothly. “I was talking about persuasion.”
    “Persuasion?” Hobart looked skeptical.
    “Give me the chance to convince some potential spouses that their preconceptions about people with my kind of talent are wrong.”
    A surprisingly steely gleam appeared in Hobart’s eyes. “Before you consider trying to talk a lady out of her preconceptions about strat-talents, there is another course of action you might wish to consider. One that would greatly simplify things.”
    “What is that?”
    “You could try dropping a few of your extremely narrow personal requirements.”
    Exasperation shot through Rafe. “I do not consider my personal requirements excessively narrow. I’m not choosy about eye or hair color or even bra size. I thought I made that clear.”
    “I refer to your insistence that your wife be a full-spectrum prism, among other things.”
    “I realize that a lot of matchmaking agencies don’t think that full-spectrums and high-class talents make good matches, but as we just discussed, I’m only a class six. There should be no problem on that score.”
    “No, no, that’s not the issue.” Hobart flapped one beringed hand in a dismissive motion. “As it happens, I have recently confirmed two very successful matches involving full-spectrum prisms and very high-class talents. I no longer place much credence in the old theory that the two types never make good marital alliances.”
    Rafe raised one brow. “I’m acquainted with Lucas Trent and Nick Chastain. I attended both of their weddings.”
    “I see. Then you do understand.”
    “I understand that they each found their own bride but that you later verified the matches, Batt. You signed off on them even though many professional matchmakers would have hesitated because of the old thinking on the matching of unusual talents and prisms. That’s one of the reasons I requested your services. You’re supposed to be the best and you’re willing to accept new data.”
    Hobart looked gratified. “I like to think that I’m good at what I do. Indeed, I consider my work a calling. And my experiences with Mr. Trent and Mr. Chastain did teach me to keep an open mind when it comes to some of the more traditional thinking on the subject of scientific matchmaking.”
    “So my request for a full-spectrum prism shouldn’t bother you too much, Batt.”
    Hobart grimaced. “I might be able to find you a full-spectrum prism, although I confess I have no idea why it is so important to you.”
    It was important, Rafe thought, but he could not explain why to himself, let alone to Hobart. His inner certainty flew straight in the face of the results of all of the syn-psych research on the subject as well as conventional wisdom.
    It was assumed, not without some evidence, that there was a natural antipathy between high-class talents and full-spectrum prisms. Powerful talents were vaguely resentful of full-spectrums. They did not appreciate the fact that nature had made them dependent on prisms for extended, full range use of their own, personal psychic energy.
    Most full-spectrum prisms, on the other hand, found high-class talents arrogant, rigid, and demanding. In addition, full-spectrums were said to be extremely picky when it came to choosing spouses.
    But for some time now, Rafe had become increasingly convinced that he needed a woman who could link with him on the metaphysical as well as the physical plane. All of his strat-talent instincts urged him to that conclusion. That was one of the reasons he had been driven, albeit reluctantly, into a state of celibacy for the past several months. He was tired of the self-enforced loneliness but he could not work up any enthusiasm for a casual affair. In some fundamental, primitive manner he did not want to investigate too deeply, he knew that it was time to find a mate.
    It wasn’t supposed to be this way. Paranormal abilities were supposed to be gender neutral. The rules of the metaphysical