I spoke to Dex for a few more minutes and then went to find Gabby. I explained my need for a guinea pig for my story. As I predicted she would be, Gabby was delighted to help out.”
“You aren’t otherwise encumbered?” I asked.
“Not at all.”
“It’s just that I’ve noticed you noticing Gabe and thought there might be something going on there.” Gabe was a very attractive man who worked part-time delivering newspapers to the businesses in town that carried them.
“Gabe is sweet and funny, and he has to be one of the best looking men in town, but he’s basically a thirty-year-old paperboy. He’s asked me out a couple of times, but I’ve made up reasons to turn him down. If I was twenty again and looking for someone to simply have some fun with, then I might be interested in a fling with someone like Gabe, but when it comes to finding a guy to settle down with, I need someone who is responsible. Someone who has drive and ambition.”
I supposed I could see that. At some point, it really was time to grow up. “Okay then, let’s do this. The first step is to fill out the application and interview. If you’d like, we can do that together.”
“I’d appreciate the help.”
“Okay log onto the site and let’s see what sort of information Ms. Cupid is requiring,” I instructed.
I had to admit the questions asked were not at all what I’d been expecting. Once the basic information regarding name, age, gender, sexual preference, and residence were taken care of, the website launched into a series of questions, which, in my opinion, had nothing to do with your suitability as a potential mate.
“Would you describe me as being more yellow, orange, or red?” Gabby asked.
I raised a brow. “That’s one of the questions?”
“It is.”
“Well,” I tilted my head as I considered the colors. “Yellow is a sunny and bright color. You always appear to be happy and cheerful, and you greet everyone with a smile, so I’d say yellow fits. But you are also passionate about the things you care about, and to me, red is more of a passionate color, so I feel like it fits as well. Orange feels like the most creative of the three colors offered, and you are creative. Wow, this really is a hard question. What do you think? Are you feeling more yellow, orange, or red?”
“Orange. I’m going to go with orange. I bet most people pick yellow or red, and I really want to stand out.”
Okay, I supposed Gabby wanting to choose the least commonly picked color said something about her, which might be the point of the question.
“Flower, shrub, or tree?” she asked.
“Is that the entire question?”
She nodded. “There are three choices, and you are asked to pick one. No further explanation is provided. I’m not sure if the question builds on the previous question, and they’re asking if I feel more like a flower, shrub, or tree, or if they simply want to know which I like better. Or maybe they’re asking what I’d like to be if I had to be one of the three.”
This was insane. “Okay, if you had to be a flower, shrub, or tree, which would you want to be?”
She paused to think about it. “Flowers are beautiful. They are colorful and often smell wonderful, and they bring happiness and a smile to others. I can see myself as a flower, but they are also easily destroyed. People pick them and leave them to die, and children and animals easily trample upon them. A shrub, on the other hand, is sturdy. It may or may not have color or scent, but most shrubs are hearty and well-rooted. They can provide protection from the elements but aren’t really affected by the wind the way something tall like a tree would be, and they aren’t easily destroyed. Trees are tall and majestic, which appeals to me quite a lot. They provide shade and often are home to wildlife. But, as I’ve already stated, they do tend to get blown around, and people cut them down to harvest their wood. I like the idea of being beautiful like a flower or tall and majestic like a tree, but I think I’d rather be sturdy and well-rooted like a shrub.”
I had to admit that in spite of the craziness of the questions, they did seem to cause those answering them to really stop and think about what they wanted from a different perspective. I’d only known Gabby a couple of months and had only interacted with her as a work associate, but in just a few minutes, I’d learned quite a bit about who she was as a person. “So, what’s next?” I asked.
“Earth, wind, water, or fire.”
We spent some time going over what each of the elements seemed to represent before Gabby chose earth. It was odd because had we not answered the previous two questions together, I would have guessed that Gabby would have chosen wind since it was light and breezy or fire for the imagery of passion and intensity. When she read the question, I immediately knew she’d consider all the options, but in the end, based on her answers to the first two questions, that she’d choose earth as her element. Maybe these crazy questions did provide a lot more insight than I’d originally thought.
After Gabby answered all the questions, she submitted her application. Now all she had to do was wait. There was a disclaimer on the introductory page that let those applying know that not all applications would be accepted and not all applicants paired. I knew the odds of Gabby being chosen as a client were slim, but an insider view would be invaluable, so I really hoped she’d be one of the few.
“Thanks for being a good sport and helping out,” I said once we’d completed the application. “I really do hope Ms. Cupid agrees to take you on as a client and can find a compatible shrub for you to spend your life with.”
“Me too,” she smiled. “I really think I’m ready to settle down with my one true love. I wasn’t a year ago, but now, all I can see when I look into the future is a family, complete with a white picket fence.”
“Hopefully, you will be chosen, and we will both benefit from this experiment. If you hear back from Ms. Cupid, call me. I’ll come right over. I think it’s important for my story that I’m involved in every step of the process.”
“I’ll totally call you if I hear back. Are you leaving now?”
I nodded. “I’m meeting with the first of my matched couples, Bill Littleton and Della Newton. After that, I have an appointment with Dale Conover and Lissa Nixon. Do you know any of these individuals?”
“Bill is a dentist. He’s probably around forty-five. Nice guy, but sort of socially awkward if you know what I mean. Bill is recently divorced after having been married for maybe five years. Della owns a boutique in town. She’s in her forties. As far as I know, she has never been married. She has this big city vibe about her. She always takes time with her clothing, hair, and makeup, even when it’s snowing. I’m not sure why she lives in Foxtail Lake. She screams big city all the way.”
I’d never met either Bill or Della, but based on Gabby’s descriptions, I felt I had a good idea what to expect. “And Lissa and Dale. Do you know them as well?”
“No. I don’t think so. There is a woman named Lissa who works at the market, but I don’t know if it’s the same Lissa. The Lissa who bags my groceries is maybe thirty-five. She’s never mentioned a husband or children, but the total duration of our conversation is never longer than it takes for me to check out.”
“I guess I’ll find out if Dale’s Lissa is the Lissa from the market once we speak. Don’t forget to call me if you hear anything.”
“I won’t. I know it’s crazy to even hope I’ll be chosen, but I’m really excited about this.”
After I left the newspaper, I headed down the main street toward the boutique Della owned. I’d decided to speak to Della and Bill separately, although Lissa had insisted that she and Dale be interviewed together. I figured that by the time I met with everyone I’d scheduled for today, it would be time to head to the animal shelter where I volunteered first as a trainer and then as a doggy play companion.