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you?” Brendan asked.
    “Truthfully? I’m pretty hungry right now,” Suze said. “I was too nervous to eat before I came here.”
    “I’m on it,” Brendan said, turning on his phone to send a quick text.
    “I didn’t mean—”
    “No, I’m glad you said something. I’m starving, too.”
    Suze continued. “Ultimately, the reason I left Craig is that I was bored. He made me boring. I made him boring. Whatever it was, there just wasn’t enough…”
    “Enough cookies?” Brendan said as a server put down a huge tray of assorted cookies that, impossible though it was, seemed to be freshly baked.
    “Exactly,” Suze laughed.
    “But seriously, you broke up over boredom. Does that mean you’ve never had your heart broken?”
    “To be honest, I’m not wired that way. I guess I’m just practical. You know how people say, ‘If it’s meant to be, it’s meant to be’? That’s how I am. I was just born this way.”
    “So no heartbreak, no big disappointments in life?”
    “I aim low,” Suze joked.
    “I doubt that,” Brendan said.
    “Okay, it must be that I pick reasonable goals and work hard to accomplish them. I’m the opposite of a drama queen. So you can see why I have to be careful not to get stuck in a boring life.”
    “What’s the antidote?”
    “To boredom? You know, I think the antidote is being adventurous. I like to scuba dive, skydive, and ski. It’s easier to be brave when you don’t stand in your own way.”
    “I like that!” Brendan said.
    “Kind of like being willing to search through any number of women to find the right match…” Suze was trying to steer the conversation to Brendan. Would he reveal anything about himself? Anything about why he was doing this and where she stood?
    “It might be bravery. It might be cowardice. But, say what you will, it’s certainly not boring.”
    “Here’s to that.” Suze lifted her wineglass, and though Brendan’s glass seemed to hold water, he clinked it against hers.
    “To adventure,” he said.
    This date, Suze told herself, was going very well. “Now how about you?” she tried. “What about your sordid past?”
    “I appreciate you asking—but first I have a few more questions for you.” Brendan was so easy to talk to—Suze found herself confessing far more than she usually would on a first date. This man, this house, she could see herself slipping so easily into this life.…

Chapter 15
    Moments after Suze accepted a second glass of wine, she saw Brendan glance at his watch. Abruptly, or so it seemed to Suze, he excused himself. Suze found herself mystified. Had she said something wrong? What had started to feel like a regular date, even a good one, apparently wasn’t going to pan out that way. Was it over? Brendan had told her to “sit tight.” Suze looked around. The books on the shelves were organized by color and height. The desk had nothing on it besides an elegant leather desk set and some sculptural brass paperweights. All of it suddenly seemed like a stage. She still knew nothing at all about Brendan—whether he owned this house or had rented it to create an illusion.… Suze was lost in speculation when another man walked into the library to join her. He appeared to be in his midforties—not quite as handsome as Brendan, but he introduced himself with a certain quiet charm.
    “I’m Miguel,” he said. “Thank you for enduring this.” He swept an arm across the room as if to acknowledge that although the process was strange, it couldn’t take place in a nicer venue.
    “I’m managing,” Suze said with a laugh. This had to be the guy. Older. A little less perfect. Or…not? What a crazy game this was! Suze took a sip of wine. She didn’t know much about wine, but one thing she knew for sure. This was more complex and delicious than the Pinots Noirs she picked for their pretty labels at Trader Joe’s. Brendan, Miguel, some yet-to-be-presented Bachelor Number Three. What did it matter? Bring on the next!