The next morning Angus was humming as he made his tea. Even though Erin had been missing from their quarters when he’d gotten up, nothing could dim his enjoyment of such a peaceful night’s sleep.

He broke out into song when the cooking machine dinged to signal his breakfast was done. He put his breakfast and his tea on a tray he found in one of the cupboards and carried both to the table. There was a knock on the door and he continued humming as he went to answer it.

“Good morning to ya, Nate. I was just sitting down to breakfast. Care to join me for some tea? I could also fix ya some food if ya like. I think I’ve mastered the cooking box in the kitchen.”

“I’ve already eaten, but a cup of… tea… sounds good,” Nate said, peeking around as he cautiously entered. “This morning I almost wish I had some alien ale to put in it as well.”

“Bad morning?” Angus asked, resuming a low hum even as he caught Nate peering into Erin’s empty bedroom. “If ya are looking for her, I think Erin must have left early because she wasn’t here when I woke. There was no clean mug by the sink either. I don’t think she even bothered with tea.”

Nate nodded. “I saw Erin earlier. She came by and asked me for a stronger stimulant to help her get through the day. She said she didn’t sleep last night. When I tried to ask what was wrong, she told me to ‘mind my own fecking business’ which I decided was good advice to take.”

Angus frowned. Erin didn’t sleep last night? She should have slept like the dead after what happened between them. He might not know much about women, but he knew they slept well after being exhausted by passion. What he lacked in education, his sons had taught him with their questions about why their woman was mad. He’d never had that problem with their mother, but pleasuring their women had always been his advice. And it had always worked.

Nate was staring at him strangely when he finally brought his attention back to him. “Sorry. I was wondering about why Erin might be having a bad morning.”

Shrugging, Nate slid into a chair at the table, laughing when Angus took the tea he’d made for himself and set it in front of him. “Don’t worry, Nate. It’s good. I hadn’t yet drank from it.”

“Did something happen between you and Erin last evening? Something that might have disturbed her enough not to sleep?”

Angus took a few bites of his breakfast before speaking. If he told the whole truth, Erin might actually move out. She definitely wouldn’t want Nate knowing their business to that degree. However, if ya had to bluff, it always paid to stick as close to the real facts as possible. He’d learned that applied to both business and lovemaking.

“I was just thinking that I might actually know,” Angus said, taking two more quick bites. “I just didn’t think it would affect her so greatly. She’s so hard to judge at times.”

Nate lifted the drink and sipped. Angus could tell he was braced for a major revelation of some sort. While sinking inside Erin O’Shea a second time had certainly been one for him, that wasn’t something he planned to share with anyone but her.

Angus set down his fork and rested his bearded chin on his hand.

“Okay. Here it is. I kissed her last night. What probably set her off though is that I made her want me. We still haven’t ironed out all our differences.”

Across from him, Nate visibly relaxed.

“Good god, man. What did ya think I did to her?” Angus demanded, nearly angry at the man’s extreme relief.

Nate snorted. “I didn’t think anything, Angus. I’ve just never seen a woman be that angry… or at least not in a very long time. The way Erin was going on, I thought I’d done something wrong to her myself.”

What started out as a chuckle soon grew into full belly laughter. Angus returned to his food with a smile on his face.

“We call that passion where I come from, but smart men steer clear of it when they’re not heading to bed.” Angus laughed again. “Ya know, I think that Celtic goddess Erin calls on might have gifted her brown head with an abundance of red-haired madness as a joke on us that know her. The woman swears like a fecking man and has a reputation for being as blunt as any angry bloke.”

Nate shook his head. “If I was playing counselor right now, I would guess Erin’s boyfriend getting her pregnant and leaving her caused her to be that way. Of course, your odd relationship with her probably hasn’t brought her much ease with her femininity either.”

“I agree to both points,” Angus said, pointing his empty fork at his breakfast partner. “But that kind of hurt is something a good man can fix in a woman. Erin’s tongue could soften in time, but my guess is that it will take the kind of taming it takes to break in a high strung horse.”

“What’s a horse?” Nate asked.

Angus tilted his head and blinked in shock. “Ya don’t have horses here?”

“I don’t know. Describe them,” Nate ordered.

“Horses. Big animal. Four legs. Can hold a man. Ya put a saddle on their back and ride them around where I come from,” Angus explained.

Nate thought. “Oh. Quad peds! Yes. We have quad peds. I bet they’re the same thing. People ride them. I never have, but I’ve seen recordings.”

Angus grinned. “Ya know… I’m really starting to enjoy our visits, Nate.”

Nate chuckled. “Me too, Angus.” He took another sip. “Should I stop worrying about Erin then?”

Laughing, Angus nodded. “Yes. Worrying is a waste of yer time, but I’d still stay out of her way for a day or two. Erin always needs a bit of time to sort things out. I’ll see if I can speak with her and direct her venom my way. I’m planning to kiss her again, so she and I are going to have to come to some sort of terms about our disagreements on important matters.”

“What will you do if Erin doesn’t want to kiss you back?” Nate asked.

Angus stood and smiled. “Then I will just have to change her fecking mind. I’ve been stupid about her too long. If she can embrace our second chance together, then I guess so can I.”

Nate chuckled. “Second chance. Yes, I figured it was something like that.”

Angus walked to the kitchen and made two more cups of tea. He brought them both back to the table. He sat and crossed his legs.

“Let’s clear the air once and for all. I think it’s okay that ya fancy her, Nate. Erin is a good woman. But truth be told, she was never meant for ya. However, I bet she can find ya someone who is. Matchmaking really is her specialty. There are good reasons the townsfolk called her the Best Matchmaker in Lisdoonvarna.”

Nate threw back his head and laughed in surprise. When he straightened, he met Angus’s grinning gaze. “So you get Erin and I get a consolation woman?”

“No. No,” Angus said, shaking his head. “Ya are not setting yer sights high enough. Ya are going to get a better woman than ya could ever have found for yerself.”

“So who matches that well with Erin? You?” Nate asked.

Angus grinned at the grinning man across from him. “If I can stay out of yer fecking cooking box long enough, I might be able to answer that for ya in the next little bit.”

Both of them turned as the door opened without invitation. Toorg stuck in his head.

“Toorg! Toorg! I am Toorg!” he said anxiously.

Angus jumped up. He couldn’t imagine what it took to alarm the blond giant, but he didn’t doubt it was serious. “It’s okay, Toorg. Whatever it is, we’ll help take care of it. Let’s go, Nate.”

Snorting over his lack of surprise, Nate took a last sip of his drink. “This place used to be orderly and calm. The other matchmakers were not like you and Erin.”

“Ya got that fecking right,” Angus agreed.

Outside, Angus’s legs stretched out to keep pace with the excited alien as they strode down the hall. He couldn’t help snickering a bit when a puffing Nate had to nearly run to keep up with him and Toorg who was moving at top speed.

The doctor was definitely not fit to handle a woman with needs like Erin’s. Luckily, after the cooking box, he was. Now he just had to convince her one more time that he wasn’t the horse’s arse she thought he was.

* * *

Toorg threw open the door to the alien common area. Angus strode in without stopping, looking around for the problem. He found it in two aliens circling each other and glaring viciously. Scratches on both of them were leaking what he assumed was blood. Everyone else was just milling around watching the action, including pointy-eared Darcone, who seemed amused by it all.

Angus lightly punched Darcone’s arm as he moved by him and headed straight to the middle of the men. “What the feck is going on here?” he demanded.

Both aliens started speaking quickly. He couldn’t understand either of them.

“Seltz!” Angus yelled over the babbling.

Nearly faster than the word could travel the air, the alien he’d named appeared at his side.

Angus pointed at the bleeding and beat up fighters. “Can ya explain that shit to me in a way I can understand?”

“Both want woman,” Seltz said, shrugging.

Angus nodded. “Well, okay. Now we’re getting down to it.”

Angus pointed between them. “So which one of ya does the woman want?”

They both pointed at themselves and that made him laugh. “She probably does want both of ya, but she can only have one. That’s the rule as I understand it. What we have to figure out is how to make her pick one of ya before the two of ya take down the whole fecking matchmaking program.”

Angus felt his eyes crinkle in amusement when all the other aliens in the room immediately turned to glare at the two fighters. He turned to Seltz with the straightest face he could manage.

“Do ya know the woman’s name?”

“Mia,” one of the fighters said reverently, ignoring his opponent who was glaring at him.

Angus nodded. “Mia. Yes. I know her. I’ll talk to Erin this morning and see what the hold up is on her making a decision.”

The tension immediately dissipated from the room. Angus grunted. “Now that’s a lot fecking better. Have some dignity, lads. Hell, have some alien ale and think about something else.”

He turned to look at Nate. “I’ve got some ideas about how to speed up this fecking courting process. Let me clear them with Erin and then we’ll talk.”

Angus looked back at the fighters. “Neither of ya want Mia if ya are going to be her second choice, do ya?”

When the one who said her name raised his hand, Angus laughed. “No matter how appealing a pussy, ya don’t want it controlling everything in yer life. And it can, boy. A powerful pussy certainly can. I know of what I speak.”

“Erin,” Toorg said succinctly from behind him.

Angus swung around in shock. “New word, Toorg? Or are ya just keeping me honest?” The big blond smiled and clapped him on the arm.

Grinning, Angus turned back to the rest of the group. “Okay, yes… fecking Erin O’Shea controls me… when I let her. But I work real hard not to let her know that she does. Relationships with human women have to be equal partnerships. So Mia needs to choose and the one not chosen needs to move the feck on.”

As the group shrugged and went back to their previous activities, Angus turned to find Nate staring at him. “What? Did I do something wrong?”

Nate shook his head. “I don’t think you realize how dangerous these aliens from other planets are, Angus. We equip the guards with devices that can subdue them. I wear a wrist band that will paralyze everyone in this room with an ultrasound wave, including me. We’ve had to use it many times to keep the peace. That’s why you have guards always following you and Erin around. But you just made the aliens stop fighting without doing anything but talking to them.”

Angus snorted and turned back to look at the fighters. He swept a hand out and pointed to them. “Look at them, Nate. Do they look like trouble to ya? Of course not. Because they’re good lads. We’re all drinking buddies, right?”

He glared hard at the two brawlers until they both reluctantly nodded.

Angus turned a smiling face back to Nate. “See? Good lads. They’re just a little anxious about Mia’s choice. All very understandable in their circumstances.”

When Nate nodded, looking unconvinced still, Angus put an arm around his shoulders and guided him out of the room.

In the hallway, Angus waited until the door had completely closed before speaking.

“Tell ya what, Nate. Maybe you want to give me one of those fancy bracelets just in case my words lose their power over time. I intend to be spending a considerable amount of time with the alien lads.”

“Because they’re your drinking buddies and they have alien ale?” Nate asked.

“No,” Angus denied, with as much innocence as possible. “My doctor told me I wasn’t allowed any ale for a couple of months.”

“Six months, Angus. I said six months,” Nate said firmly. “Two months will put you back in the rejuvenation cylinder.”

“Ugh… I am Toorg,” Toorg said sadly from behind them.

Angus looked over his shoulder and grinned. “I appreciate yer sympathy, boy. Ya can drink my share until I can have some again.”

Toorg smiled widely. “I am Toorg,” he said, back to his usual friendly self.

Angus just laughed when Nate rolled his eyes.

* * *

“No, Angus. Mia gets one fecking chance to choose and then she’s stuck with an alien for the rest of her natural born days. In what blessed universe do ya think she shouldn’t take all the bloody time she needs? Because it’s not wrong in this one. Before I ever started matching here, I read all the rules, not just the ones that served my fecking purposes.”

“The woman was the cause of an alien fight today,” Angus argued.

Erin snorted and shook her head with purpose. “No, she fecking wasn’t. Mia was right here chatting up Prudence and trying to keep the woman from staring out the window all day long. If Kor-el and Jex fought each other, it was for their own fecking reasons.”

Angus snorted over her attitude and paced the room. “What’s taking her so long to decide?”

“It’s not been all that long. It’s only been a few weeks.”

He lifted a hand in the air. “Mia hasn’t entered the trial time with either of them. Both of them want her and she’s just dangling them both while they have to manhandle themselves.”

“Mia’s not a prostitute we’re pimping out. She’s a regular woman deserving of their care.”

Angus narrowed his gaze. “I read her file. Mia was some man’s kept kitten. It’s not like she’s an untried virgin worried about her first time. We need to find out what she’s wanting in her match and try to get that for her.”

Erin slammed her hands on her desk. “Fine. Ya think ya can bully Mia into deciding? Have a go then. When she cries all over ya, yer aliens will be doomed to be put back in the queue.”

“Seems like ya are awfully sure I’ll fail. What do I get if I win?” Angus asked.

Erin lifted both hands. “Ya get the satisfaction of doing good for Mia.”

Angus crossed his arms. “I want something else. If I get her into a trial time with one of them today, I want a whole night with you tonight to make things up for falling asleep. Ya don’t even have to worry about being in the mood. I’m an expert at making a woman horny. It’s a latent talent. Do we have a deal?”

Erin leaned back in her chair. “Since I don’t trust ya, I would be stupid to promise ya anything, now wouldn’t I?”

“Is the Best Matchmaker in Lisdoonvarna afraid of taking my bet?”

“No, but I’ll not be taking yer dare either. There were no aliens in Lisdoonvarna.”

Angus shrugged. “Ya don’t know that for certain. Most look just like us. Everyone there could have been one for all ya know. Remember Delbert Clancy? His ears looked just like Darcone’s.”

Erin crossed her arms and glared. “Delbert went out in a bloody ice storm without his hat and lost pieces of his ears to frostbite, ya eegit. Stop fooling around. If ya don’t talk Mia into making a choice, what do I get when ya lose?”

“A foot rub,” Angus offered instantly. Her sputtering laugh brought a smile to his lips. “Plus a tongue lashing ending in a glory hallelujah that ya won’t forget soon. See? Either way with this bet… ya can’t possibly lose.”

“I’ll not be won with promises of more disappointing sex. No woman with any sense wants to be let down again and again. Last night was fine for the whole ten seconds it lasted. But it ended nearly as badly as our last go at each other. All I got for my trouble was yet another sleepless night alone in my own bed while ya snored away happily in another room.”

Angus rose from the desk and grinned. “I admit I wasn’t my best last night, but I’m more than ready today. Maybe you won’t be won by sex, because ya are a hard woman, but I’m guessing Mia Johnson might not be so big a challenge for the one she picks.”

He walked over and opened the door to the common area and yelled. “Mia Johnson, I had to break up a fight this morning because of ya, woman. Get yer arse in here. We need to talk.”

There was a commotion and a female yelling “What did I do?” before the crowd around got busy buzzing with worry and concern. Angus grinned over the commotion, thinking about the women wanting to mob him for yelling at one of them. He’d be as apt to use Nate’s fancy bracelet on the draftees here as he would on the aliens.

Behind him, Erin called out his name as she chastised him for summoning Mia in such a fashion. It was a sweet benediction to know she was at least talking to him today. Next time she froze him out, he wouldn’t be headed for alien ale. There was a much better distraction between Erin’s legs and he was thinking of making it his personal property.

“Angus MacNamara, ya are a crazy, bloody bastard. Stop yer yelling.”

Angus nodded. “Aye… I’m crazy alright, but I’m also the best matchmaking partner ya are ever going to have, Erin O’Shea. Ya can thank me properly later.”