I was going through so much trouble for a dating agency profile. Maybe because she’d never been on one herself, but I think that’s because she’s got a thing for her best friend. Her other best friend, the male one, not me; but that’s another story.
Sarah is a gifted photographer and took some very flattering photos of me that I uploaded, and then I filled out the dating profile. I looked at the long list of questions, and took a deep breath. Answering these questions would take all night, but I knew I could do it. After I filled out the questions, I hit submit and waited, wondering how soon it would take for me to start receiving some match emails. What I liked about the site was that it used an internal algorithm that matched you up to potential matches almost instantly, Then the guys checked out their matches and decided whether they had an interest in you, or not. If they had an interest in you, you would receive an email from them and you could express whether you had an interest in them. Then the company would actually set up a date for you, which I thought was pretty cool because let’s be real, most guys do not know how to plan a good first date.
No, I don’t want to go for another coffee at a crowded coffee shop with no pastries and listen to you chat up the barista. No, I don’t want to meet you in a seedy bar for a drink, so you can try and get me drunk and run your greasy hands up my thigh, and no, I’m not coming over to your place for a free massage with coconut oil you bought in Thailand. Yes, these have all been previous dates. And that’s why I didn’t want to stay with those cheap dating services anymore. Yes, I’ve met some nice guys, but I’m also not about to get down and dirty with any guy that’s sharing a studio apartment with five other guys. It would be really nice to date a guy that lived by himself. I was too old to date a guy with roommates. At twenty-eight years old, I was looking for a guy older than me, and any guy older than me should have his own place, and preferably not a studio. I know it’s expensive to live in Manhattan, but a one-bedroom isn’t too much to ask for, is it?
And yes, I would prefer for him to live in Manhattan. I definitely wasn’t going to date a guy in Queens, the Bronx, or Staten Island. They were out for sure, but I may be ok with some parts of Brooklyn. There were some nice parts, maybe if he lived in Prospect Park, Williamsburg, or Park Slope. That could work. I wasn’t a fan of Dumbo or Bed-Stuy. I’m not picky. Yeah. I know. I sound rather picky. Now you’re saying to yourself, I know why she’s single, her expectations are out of this world. I know you’re thinking that because that’s exactly what my grandparents tell me every time I visit them and have to tell them I’m still ringless. They say I’m far too picky. They say, “Hey, if a guy brings you some olive oil, and some olives, and some sardines, and some bread, who are you to say no?” Thank God for me. No guy had ever brought me any of those things, because if they had my grandparents would have me married off before you could say agape three times, which is love, in Greek.
But I, Gemma Doukas, am ready to find Mr. Right. That’s my Christmas wish. And I promise not to be too picky or judgmental. I just want one good man. Is that too much to ask for?
Chapter 2
“So Gemma, you’ve actually done it?” Sarah grinned at me as we ate our lunch of Caesar salads and rolls. I’d really wanted a pizza, but if I was going to be headed out on dates I needed to look my best and pizza wasn’t going to get me there. “You joined that exclusive dating agency?”
“Yeah, I did it. I know I said I wasn’t going to join because I said I wanted to save money, but hey what do savings matter when it comes to love?”
“Yeah, love is much more important than money.”
“I don’t know if that’s true, but I’m willing to be a bad girl for love.” I laughed, while