Better Than Before (RightMatch.com Trilogy) Read Online Free PDF Page A

of the ballgame on one of the huge TV screens. The Sox were down by nine and the game had turned boring. It didn’t take his mind off the brutal shift he’d just put in at the precinct, as he’d hoped it would.
    A call had come in after five, and Joe and his partner, Shelly, had sped over to a small house on Orange Street. A break-in by a thief who was long gone when they got there had caused an elderly woman’s heart attack, and she’d died at the hospital. Thoughts of his inability to keep everybody safe had him ordering a shot of whiskey as Cole walked in through the door.
    His genius brother, who looked a little Patrick Dempsey, dropped down on a stool as if he didn’t have the strength to keep himself upright.
    “Hey, kid. You okay?”
    “Punchy from lack of sleep.” Cole rubbed a hand over his scratchy jaw. “Thank God Mom took her namesake for the night. I should be home in the sack, but I haven’t been out in months and am going stir crazy.”
    He clapped his brother on the back. “It’s worth it though, isn’t it?”
    The expression on Cole’s face transformed into pure, unadulterated joy. “Yeah. I never knew I could love somebody so much.”
    “I felt the same way when my girls were born. Think Spence will ever experience that?”
    “Nope. He’s a lost cause in the husband and father department. Too bad his dad did such a number on him.”
    Bradley Wickham had been an absent father, cold and shrewd, and had left their mother right after Spence had been born. In the years following, Spence spent some weekends with him and usually came home sullen. Joey thought those times had formed parts of his personality, and not for the good.
    “How’s the online thing going with him?”
    Cole rolled his eyes. When the bartender came over, he ordered a beer. “Five down, one to go. He swept them off their feet with little effort. I’m gonna lose the bet.”
    “You know why he’s really doing this?”
    “Not just to best me. Beneath his tough exterior, I think he feels bad about striking out in the relationship department. He’s never failed at anything else. Lying on the site, and being successful at it, vindicates his cynical outlook on true love.”
    “Maybe. Man, I wish somebody would hook him. Make him fall hard and fast, and then have to grovel to get her.”
    Chuckling, Cole knocked back a gulp of beer. “Don’t hold your breath. But I wish that would happen, too.”
    From behind Cole, Joe saw two women approaching. “Hell,” he muttered as they descended on him and his brother.
    “Hey, Joey,” the blonde in a skimpy-back T-shirt said. “Who’s your friend?”
    “Hi, Stacey. This is my brother, Cole. Bro, this is Stacey and…?”
    “KiKi.”
    “You guys want some company?”
    Joe caught Cole’s subtle shake of the head. “Nah, my brother here has a baby and is on one of his free nights out. We’re just hangin’, but thanks.”
    After the women had left, Cole asked, “That happen to you often?”
    “Yeah, I guess. I think it’s the cop thing. You sure you don’t want company?”
    “God, no. Besides, what woman’s gonna want to spend time with me these days? An infant does serious damage to your love life.”
    “You could blow off steam. Have a one-night stand.”
    “I’m not into that, and neither are you.”
    Joe directed his gaze to the TV. “No, not anymore, at least.”
    After injuring his knee, Joey had screwed around with woman and booze. Finally, with the help of his brothers, he’d been able to clean up his act. “I do wish I could meet somebody, but bars like this aren’t the place.”
    Cole swiveled on his stool, already looking more relaxed. “I know you said you didn’t like dating sites, but I think you should join RightMatch. We’ve taken precautions so it’s safer than the average service. You’re forty-four and single, so you qualify.” He chuckled. “If I could go on it, I would. I’ve seen some interesting profiles.”
    “Aw, too bad you’re