Dear Hungry Wolf: The Matchmaker Series Read online

  Dear Hungry Wolf

  The Matchmaker Series

  Vivian Ward

  Copyright © 2018 by Vivian Ward

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  Contents

  Vivian Ward Newsletter

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Epilogue

  Vivian Ward Newsletter

  Get a sneak peek of His Best Friend!

  His Best Friend

  Vivian Ward Newsletter

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Vivian Ward Newsletter

  About the Author

  Also by Vivian Ward

  About the Author

  Also by Vivian Ward

  Vivian Ward Newsletter

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  Chapter 1

  Cole

  “What are you so damn chipper about?” I ask Tyson as he hums, pouring his coffee. He never does this but it’s particularly annoying this morning.

  “Sorry,” he says, stirring sugar into his coffee. “Natalie, our wonderful assistant, finally closed the deal on the catering for the Valentine’s party next week and I’ve decided that I’m going to propose to Krista that night.”

  My jaw drops. “Seriously? You’re really going to tie the knot? You’re only 37-years-old.”

  “Yeah,” he nods, looking up at me. “And it’s about time I settle down. Aren’t you tired of being a bachelor? Don’t you want a woman to hold every night and wake up to every morning?”

  Gag. Here we go with the relationship talk.

  “Are we doing this again?” I ask, slumping my torso across my desk. “I’ve told you, I like being single. Why can’t you just accept that?”

  If Tyson wasn’t my business partner and best friend, I’d tell him to go to hell with all of his love talk but I know he’s head over heels in love with his girlfriend. And I’m happy for him, I truly am, but I wish he wouldn’t try to push it down my throat.

  “Cole, my friend, what if you could find the perfect woman? What if she isn’t like anyone you’ve ever met before? Wouldn’t you want to keep her forever?”

  I laugh, “You know I keep girls as long as I keep around cars, and I never keep them forever. I barely keep them for a few months. That Bugatti that I bought right before the holidays? I’m going to pick up a 2019 Ferrari tomorrow afternoon.”

  “Yeah, and that’s your problem. You’ve got too much money so you blow it on cars and sex. It’s time you find a woman to settle down with and start a future. Maybe take someone home to your mother and plan some vacations.”

  “I do go on vacations!” I laugh, reminiscing the cruise I took at the end of summer with some blonde twenty-year-olds. “And they’re always very fun.”

  “No!” He says, shaking his head. “Not those kind of vacations. Family vacations.”

  I sigh, groaning at his suggestion. “Do you have any idea how hard it is to find someone? It’s not like my identity is secret. Everyone knows my name and my face has been plastered in Forbes, Fortune 500, and American Oil.”

  “You don’t think I had the same problem? That’s why I used Grace Graham from What the Heart Wants. She’s the best matchmaker in history. I swear.”

  Rolling my eyes, I say, “You got lucky. I’d never find the kind of girl I’m looking for on something like that. All the women I meet are only interested in my money because they know who I am.”

  “Exactly! And if you use Grace, she can keep your identity secret. In fact, you have to write a handwritten letter for your first correspondence after she matches you. The woman won’t even know anything other than what information you give her and you can keep your true identity from her until you decide you’re ready to expose yourself.”

  It does sound tempting to find a girl that doesn’t know who I am and only wants me for me but it seems so far fetched. Sometimes I wish I were an ordinary guy instead of a wealthy oil tycoon but then my life would be completely different.

  “I don’t know about all this. A handwritten letter? Why?”

  “Trust me. She’s been running her matchmaker services for more than thirty years and knows what she’s doing. How do you think I met Krista?”

  It never occurred to me how he met her but I’m intrigued by the idea but I’m still reluctant. “Okay,” I begrudgingly agree. “Where do I get started?”

  A wide smile spreads across his face as though he’s won the lottery. “Allow me,” he says, walking over to my laptop. “I’ll show you everything you need to know.” He types in the website and I see all the couples with testimonies which gives me a glimmer of hope but I’m still doubtful. “And you just click here to sign up,” he says, hovering the mouse of the sign up link.

  “Okay, I’ve got it,” I snap. “But I seriously don’t think this will work.”

  His brows arch and he says, “It worked for me. Krista will be my fiancé in less than two weeks when I propose to her at the party.”

  Grumbling, I mock him. “Yeah, yeah. You and your fiancé.”

  “Seriously, Cole, just make your damn profile and QYB already.”

  Puzzled, I ask, “QYB?”

  “Yeah. Quit. Your. Bitching.”

  I flip him the bird and tell him to get out of my office. Once he’s gone I get busy setting up my profile. Even though I’m skeptical, I’m still a little hopeful. How nice would it be if I could find an innocent girl to ruin and spoil? It would be awesome if we could have a DDLG relationship. I know a lot of women who think it’s sexy to have an older man and I could pamper the hell out of the right girl.

  While setting up my profile, I can’t decide on my screen name. I don’t want to make it anything too obvious for someone to figure out my true identity, so I opt to make it fun and predatory and decide on Hungry Wolf. When I’m finally finished 30 minutes later, I close my laptop. The hardest part of my day is going to be not checking my email every hour to see if I have a new match. After three hours, I finally give up and decide that this thing won’t really work before I head to my mid-morning meeting and push it to the back of my mind.

  Chapter 2

  Tillie

  You’d think in my final year of college that I would’ve had some adventure during the last four years of school, but I thought wrong.

  Growing up, my parents kept me very sheltered and having a big brother didn’t help, either. After finishing high school at an all-girl school—and not being allowed to date—I thought I’d finally be free when I started college. I was looking forward to all the fun college parties that everyone always talked about, the crazy boys, and maybe getting into a little trouble. Not too much trouble though.

  But when I graduated, my parents set me up with a nice Christian boy—not that there’s anything wrong with Christian or religion—who thought just holding hands was a sin. Looking back, I can see why they allowed me to date him before I went to college. Mom and dad thought that we’
d hit it off and I’d wait to marry until I earned my degree and then tie the knot with Mr. Goody-Two-Shoes.

  They were wrong.

  I didn’t know what kind of boyfriend I wanted to have but I knew he wasn’t it. I didn’t want someone as straight and narrow as my folks and I certainly didn’t want someone who was a complete omega! I’m surprised Simon—that was his name—didn’t ask me to open his doors or pull out his chairs. He practically tripped over his own feet and I hated the way he pushed his thick glasses up his greasy nose.

  Sadly, here I am four years later, about to earn my degree in fine arts and still have my big brother, Ethan, breathing down my neck. It doesn’t help that mom and dad made me move in with him when I left for college. They refused to pay for a dorm room, saying that I might be tempted to ‘be wild’ and insisted that I live with him since he lives less than two miles from campus.

  I thought since we were older, he’d be on my side about dating and partying but nope, I was wrong. He watches my every move and if he even thinks I am or will be doing something wrong, he calls dad right away. It’s so annoying but working part-time doesn’t allow me to live on my own so my options are very limited. By the time I pay for my phone service, personal items, and a few other things, I’m usually asking my mom to slip me a few bucks until my next check.

  But dang it! Valentine’s Day is in a couple of weeks and at 22-years-old and graduating college, I think I deserve to go out on a ‘grownup’ date—and not one that my parents set me up on. I want to find someone on my own.

  Someone who’s dominate, knows what he wants and isn’t afraid to take it. I want someone who knows the ropes and could maybe teach me a few things in the bedroom. I want to lose my freaking virginity before I graduate!

  And I’m going to find him.

  Today when I was walking to my art class, I saw these flyers hanging up about a matchmaker service so I grabbed one and shoved it in my bag. Now that my brother has finally left to play basketball with his friends, I can get online and see what it’s all about.

  Everything looks so cute and I love all the testimonials about how they found true love—not that I’m exactly looking for true love but it stirs butterflies in my stomach just to think about it. All the couples look so cute together and the matchmaker, Grace, is adorable. Knowing that I won’t have much time before Ethan comes home, I quickly fill out my online profile and am a little shocked when it immediately says that I have a match.

  Either this thing is broken or it’s complete bologna. There’s no way I could already have a match! But, who knows? Curiosity kills the cat and I decide to take a peek. My jaw drops when I see the screen name: Hungry Wolf. Butterflies quickly return and I suddenly feel giddy. What kind of man would use that for a screen name?

  THE ONE I WANT!

  I can’t see much about him other than his screen name, that he’s older, and that we both like art, music, and horror movies. There’s no way to exchange online messages and I’m surprised to see that our first correspondence must be a handwritten letter which worries me a little. There’s no way I can get mail without my brother seeing it and he’ll definitely want to know who it’s from. But I have to take a chance—I need to take this chance.

  And then I remember that I have a PO Box at the post office, and I’m the only one with a key. My mother insisted that I open a post office box so that no ‘nut jobs’ could ever get my real address, so I decide to use that to correspond with Hungry Wolf.

  Gawd! Just thinking about his screen name and knowing that he’s 15 years my senior makes palms sweaty and I can’t wipe this stupid grin off my face.

  My mind races with all the possibilities of meeting the Hungry Wolf. I wonder what he looks like, if he’ll be okay with the fact that I’m only 22, and what his life is like? Is he married? Is he a bachelor? Is he a player? Is he a weirdo? Is he good looking? Why is he on a dating site? Will he write back? There are so many questions that I have but I’ll never know any of the answers if I don’t take a chance.

  Rushing to my drawer, I grab a pen and paper and begin writing but my mind goes blank. How should I start the letter and what should I say? I start to have second thoughts that maybe I should wait and see if he writes me first but I’m afraid that I’ll never hear from him if I don’t start the process.

  Dear Hungry Wolf,

  I was surprised when you popped up as an immediate match but after seeing your screen name, I had to write you. We have some of the same interests such as art, music, movies, and more.

  I do want to let you know that I am a bit younger and am only 22-years-old, which I hope isn’t a problem for you. The fact that you’re older than me has me intrigued. There are many things that I’d like to know about you, so I’ll tell you about myself and, hopefully, you’ll write back to tell me more about you.

  First, I’d like you to know that I’m only a few months away from graduating college with a degree in fine arts. I’ve lived a somewhat sheltered life and am looking for an experience of a lifetime! I’ve not been with many men and am a little worried that I may not be your type (given your age and screen name) but, supposedly, this is one of the best matchmaking services out there so I hope the odds are in our favor.

  Aside from that, I’m your typical girl next door. I have long brown hair (it’s straight but has a lot of body and volume so it’s kind of wavy), I’m about 5’6, average weight, I have a good sense of humor, and love to laugh. Some of my favorite bands are Shinedown, Hinder, Papa Roach, Staind, Breaking Benjamin, and Seether. As far as movies, I love horror (Stephen King is the best but Rob Zombie is better!), rom-com, drama, and thrillers.

  I hope to hear from you soon!

  xo,

  Tillie

  My heart races as I drop it in the mailbox and I bite my lip, hoping he’ll write back.

  Chapter 3

  Cole

  I couldn’t believe it when I received an email the day after I signed up for the matchmaking service saying that I had a match but I suppose crazier things have happened. Such as getting a letter in the mail this afternoon from my potential match!

  When my assistant, Natalie, collected the mail and brought it to me, I thought it’d be the same old stuff that I usually receive. But there was a handwritten letter from an unknown sender. At first, I thought maybe it was someone asking for donations, we get a lot of those considering we own one of the biggest oil conglomerates in the US, but when I opened it, my eyes bulged out of my head when I saw, “Dear Hungry Wolf,”.

  This is insane. How could I have a match so soon and how do I already have a letter? I open it up and read it in its entirety and the thought of a young, 22-year-old who’s lived a sheltered life piques my interest. After rereading it several times, I decide that I will write back to my potential match, Miss Innocent. I do have to say, I love the name and this might be what I’m looking for.

  After everyone leaves the office for the day, I stay behind and lock my office door after I draw the blinds. I feel silly writing a handwritten letter but this is how we must initially communicate and she did take the time to write me first. I don’t know that I would’ve written the first letter so maybe this is a sign.

  Dear Miss Innocent,

  I received your letter today and have to say that I was very interested in what you wrote. Personally, I admire a woman with a degree and would like to get to know you better as I believe we’re looking for a lot of the same things.

  Your taste in music is a bit different than mine but your love for movies is spot on (minus the romantic comedies). One of the things that intrigued me the most about you is that you said you’re the typical girl next door, yet you’ve lived a sheltered life. What does that mean?

  I’d love the opportunity to give you an experience of a lifetime as I know how to have fun in many ways. You said you’ve been with a few men but I imagine that none of them are anything like me. I think our screen names say a lot about who we are and the fact that yours is ‘Miss Innocent’ has def
initely attracted my attention. But I have one question for you: Do you think you can handle what an older man can offer you?

  You said you’d like to know more about me but I believe a little mystery makes things more interesting, however, I’ll give you a few hints about me. I’m a professional 37-year-old, am above average looks, and joined this service at the insistence of a friend.

  I’ll be eagerly awaiting your response and look forward to messaging with you as soon as we’re approved.

  Cole

  Once I’m finished writing her letter, I drop it in the mail and hope that the matchmaker will approve us to chat online because I’d like to taint little Miss Innocent. I’m not exactly sure what she means by her screen name but I can definitely say that she seems to be the complete opposite of the women I normally meet.

  I hate to admit this, but Tyson might be onto something with this Grace lady. She seems, so far, to have done very well with pairing me with someone younger, educated, and sexy. The fact that I get to hide my identity for a bit longer makes me wonder how far this thing will actually go. Maybe, for once, I can find a girl who likes me for me and not my bank account.

  Of course, I won’t tell him that he’s right. And for the first time, I’m excited about all of this. I just hope she’s as innocent as she claims to be because this all sounds too good to be true.