As I walk in to the restaurant, I see my friend, Jen, at a table with 4 others: her husband John, two men and a woman. I now know that this dinner is another set up by the matchmaker herself. I approach the remaining seat next to my friend and she instantly jumps up to hug me.

She quickly introduces me to the group. The other couple on the far end of the table are married. The attractive man across from me is Pierce, which suits him well with his piercing, blue eyes. His hair is dark brown - almost black - and perfectly styled. He looks a little nervous. As Jen is introducing us, he stands up and extends his hand.

“Come here, give me a hug.” I demand. He embraces me for a quick second and I can tell instantly that this man is in shape. I can feel his hard muscles on his back and biceps. Jen did good this time - at least physically.

As I sit down, the server approaches the table. “What can I get you to drink?” She asks me. I quickly look around to see what everyone else is drinking. Pierce has red wine in front of him.

“I’ll take the Pinot Noir.” I casually state. It is my favorite wine. Jen immediately squeezes my hand.

“Do you want to try it first?” Pierce asks me while handing his glass to me. “Pinot Noir is my favorite wine.”

“Sure.” I take a sip and know instantly that it’s one of my favorites. “This one is great. I’ll take this one.” I tell the server as I squeeze Jen’s hand back.

As the dinner progresses, I notice that Pierce hasn’t said much about himself but has been observing me. It almost feels as if he’s analyzing my every move. The server is clearing the table and asks how we’re doing the checks tonight.

“I’ll take the whole check.” Pierce responds quickly. Everyone looks at him and tries to object. “It’s fine, I enjoyed meeting everyone and dinner. I’m taking the check.” His piercing blue eyes look at me like a panther that’s ready to pounce.

The server brings the check and he hands them a card. The married couple get up and thank Pierce. Jen stands up to say her goodbyes and hugs me hard.

“As soon as he contacted me, I knew he’d be perfect for you.” Jen whispers as she’s embracing me.

“Thank you.” I whisper back.

Jen and her husband leave after thanking Pierce for dinner.

“Pierce, you haven’t really spoken much. Tell me about yourself.” I ask him. “Unless you have somewhere to go.”

“I have somewhere we can go” he expresses as he grabs my hand to guide me. Of course, I’m intrigued so I follow.