The Rules According to Gracie Read Free

eyes for the fairer sex, but I don’t put myself on display when I’m wooing a girl. I do my best work in private.
    Des
    Gracie licked her lips; the thought of Des doing any kind of private wooing sent a trickle of heat down to her belly. She’d never had the chance to see him put moves on anyone, since the only time she saw him was when he was working.
    They had formed a solid friendship over the months she’d sat at his bar, relaying her dating failures as he’d listened and occasionally offered advice. It was mostly useless advice, but advice none the less, and she appreciated it. Still, she’d never seen him outside work and never spoken to him over the phone. Only her visits to First and their mid-week email dates kept them connected.
    Gracelyn Greene
    Subject: Scaredy Cat
    That’s no fun, I expect tales of dating woe next week. You can’t leave me out here feeling like I’m the only one who sucks at this! Seriously, with all the failed dates I’ve had, it’s enough to make a girl question her sanity.
    Gracie
    P.S. I’m giving myself a year, if I don’t find someone decent in 12 months I’m calling it quits and adopting a houseful of cats.
    Des Chapman
    Subject: More of a dog person
    Why don’t you let me get at your dating profile? I could help you attract some more interesting guys. Better yet, why don’t you come to the bar without a date and see what happens? You know, like people used to do before the internet.
    Just a thought.
    Des
    P.S. Is “houseful” a unit of measurement for cats?
    She’d thought about visiting Des on her own, as in, without first bringing a date. But what excuse would she have to do that? If she went to the bar on her own, then he would know she’d come specifically for him.
    No, she couldn’t do that. It would give him the wrong idea and make things messy. She didn’t want to deal with the possibility of turning him down if he asked her out…or worse, not being able to say “no”.
    Gracelyn Greene
    Subject: Re: More of a dog person
    “Interesting” is not what I’m going for. Successful? Yes. Educated? Definitely. Interesting is a cover word for weird…or creepy. I’ll send you my checklist and you can tell me what’s missing.
    Gracie
    P.S. Maybe it’s a collective term rather than a unit of measurement, i.e. a gaggle of geese, a flamboyance of flamingos, a business of ferrets…a houseful of cats?
    Gracie frowned, biting down on her sandwich as she contemplated her problem. Maybe something was missing from her checklist? She knew from her work experience that the right candidate was always out there—she simply had to flush them out. Dating was much the same, although at this point she was starting to wonder if her Mr. Perfect was simply a figment of her imagination.
    Des Chapman
    Subject: Re: Re: More of a dog person
    Tell me you don’t actually have a checklist for looking through online dating profiles. I think I found your problem.
    Des
    P.S. You’re making those up. Why would I assume all flamingos are flamboyant?
    Of course he would think a checklist was a bad idea. Des was more of a “gut feel” kind of person. In other words, he liked to fly by the seat of his pants.
    Gracie shook her head. This was another reason—in a list of many—why they would never work as a couple. Imagine how he would react to her Christmas shopping list, sorted by family member and price point, and color-coded by shopping medium? Trying to organize him would be like herding llamas.
    Gracelyn Greene
    Subject: Making a list, checking it twice
    What’s wrong with having a checklist? If you go to the supermarket you take a list with you, and that’s only food! Finding a partner is way more important than shopping for groceries. I need to know I haven’t missed anything. Don’t