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Before Zoey could say anything in response, the door swung open to reveal her mother

Melinda Forde still looked every bit the striking beauty queen she had been two decades ago Her long, jet-black hair shone under the light Her eyes were intense, radiating a fierce pride The deep, golden-brown irises always made Zoey think of seled face was nearly flawless, with only a fen lines and a tiny bit of puffiness under the eyes In the flowing, cri less than royalty

“Good uiltily clicked away fro your first client of today through personally You’ll find the gentleistry Over the past few years, he has beco of a leader in his field, and I’ve assured him that, as our finest expert, you will be best placed to address his needs”

With that, Melinda turned to face so in the corridor “I hope you have a pleasant day,” she said as she swept back through the door

By this time, Zoey had turned to her office desk and the coistry, she saw that her first client that day was a man called Alexis Manolas

The gentleht tan His black hair was slicked back and crowned a strong face that looked at once rugged and spangled with boyish charm He wore slacks, a black turtleneck, and a brown jacket through which Zoey could easily spot a toned midsection

Not bad at all, she thought appreciatively as he shut the door and took a seat on the black leather ottoled in front of her desk

Under Zoey’s desk, tucked out of sight, was ainto this, she produced a chilled glass of chane

“A cone, Mr Zakiridis?” she asked, holding it out to him

He accepted the offering with a sh “I suppose the assuize for the deception, but the Post and the Daily Neould have had a field day if they found out I was here”

“You can rely on our co her hand, “Welcome to Melinda Forde, Mr Zakiridis”

Theto be Alexis Manolas was, in fact, Mr Stelios Zakiridis, a property ht years ago, as best as Zoey could remember, he had taken over his family’s business, the Dolphin Realty Group, and in his short tenure as CEO, had overseen unprecedented growth, est billionaires

“When there are billboards with your face on theuise your identity,” Zoey said with a smile

“Yes, I suppose you’re right about that,” Stelios answered mirthfully “I’m afraid your mother failed to explain how this process works”

“Why don’t you begin by tellingfor in a partner?”

“Well, I’ve just turned thirty-two, so I feel I’in to question what I’ve been doing all this time I’ve spent so much time in the salt mines that it didn’t occur to me until recently that I’d like to have soent wo personality ill appreciate me for who I really am”

Boy, are you ever in the wrong place, Zoey thought, but she didn’t allow the s to waver

Her ency catered specifically to the wealthy, and Zoey was used to sitting across from millionaires on a daily basis Even by Melinda Forde standards, however, Stelios was a huge client—one that could take the entire agency to new heights, if handled correctly Zoey had to ignore the knot that had for Stelios speak so plainly about his needs She knew that very soon she would have to saddle him with one of the women on her list, any one of whom could quite easily ruin his life and shatter his faith in love

“That’s a very nice sentiment, Mr Zakiridis,” she said with fake perkiness “I’d like to ask you a few questions so I can build a profile for you That way, through a coorithm, I can match you with someone ill fit your needs exactly”