Page 1 of All For You

CHAPTER 1

Darcy

“God’s sake,” I spat out. “Have I died and gone to hell?”

In front of me, a small, denim-clad group gyrated to a brain-numbing beat and unintelligible lyrics. Surely we weren’t expected todancethis bloody weekend?

My brother Wills and I hovered awkwardly in the large kitchen of a sprawling 1920s Cotswolds manor house. We’d arrived late to the matchmaking weekend, been greeted, shown our rooms, watered my dog Max, and had been led downstairs to the kitchen where the rest of the singles had already arrived and everything was in full swing. The others were learning a hip-hop dance as one of the meet-and-greet activities. Ugh.

At my irritated words, Wills scratched his head of messy red hair and rolled his bright-blue eyes to the Italian glass chandelier. “Darcy, keep your bloody voice down.”

“I’m sorry, I can’t hear you over the music,” I joked.

Instead of presenting me with his usual cheerful grin, Wills exhaled a long-suffering sigh.

“Oh my God, Darcy, you are such a grumpy bastard,” he said between his teeth. “We’re staying in a beautiful inn, set in green and daffodil pastures. Look at this magical room.”

He swept his hand over the colorful, eclectic kitchen, featuring a blue AGA stove, intricate pastel ceilings, and plump pink sofas around an old fireplace. Not something every bloke would notice and appreciate, but we were property developers.

He went on. “We’ve been greeted with music, the promise of cocktails, and the chance to meet some fun, beautiful women. What’s your problem?”

Max, my Irish setter and beagle mix, whined in sympathy and peered up at me as if to say,Yeah, dude. What now?The little traitor clearly didn’t care that I fed him his meals.

I loosened my tie, took a wide stance, and crossed my arms over my suit jacket. “Let’s see. For starters, we’ve driven two hours for a weekend themed ‘Must Love Animals.’ For animal-loving singles who want to meet their soul mates. Pets welcome!”

My brother turned to me, mystified.And?

I squeezed the bridge of my nose.“Themed.A word which should never be spoken. And there is no such thing as a soul mate.”

Wills snorted. He’d heard my theories about love.

“At least you get to spend the weekend with your favorite creature in the whole world,” he said, his eyes still trained on the dancing group in front of us.

I looked at him skeptically.

“Max,” he said. “I would never suggest you would afford your little brother that accolade.”

That got a chuckle from me. A small one.

“Wills, even you must agree,” I insisted. “I mean, look.”

The cluster of men and women lunged with their hands in the air and shook their hips.

“It’s…hip-hop,” I said. “The schedule said line dancing, but that is not this. And even if it were, I don’t like any kind of dancing. I have essentially given up my weekend to learn hip-hop from someone who draws a pension.” I swiped a hand in her direction. “Someone dressed head-to-toe in sparkly leopard and red cowboy boots.”

And blond extensions and thick eyeliner.Creatively dressed, my kinder brother would say. Then, he always was the sweet, positive one. I was the supremely arrogant arsehole, according to the press, online comments, and friends. But I was always honest.

“Why are we here?” I pressed my lips tightly. “Remind me?”

He groaned. “Darcy, you know why. We’ve been advised that we need to allow the public into our lives if we want to build a community for kids around West City. You agreed on TV to attend this weekend if the public matched your donation to build the clubhouse. Nearly everyone we know pledged money because they want to watch your bad-tempered arse on this dating show—so that’s on you.”

He was right. We’d recently completed a big shopping and housing development, which had created jobs in a previously scrappy area in London. But the clubhouse, a free after-school program for underserved kids, was what made me feel I was doing some good and certainly the only reason I was standing here at the Amor Inn on this bloody dating weekend.

“Being filmed on a matchmaking reality show is the exact opposite way I want to live my life. C’mon, even you have to draw the line. My eyes are burning from the shoulder-shaking and hip-popping. I say we hit the local for a whisky by the fire and stay at that place nearby.”

“What are you talking about? And leave all these gorgeous women?”

“What gorgeous women?”