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Dani ran her hand along the smooth, wooden railing, her feelings in a jumble. Why did life have to be so difficult? Couldn’t she find someone who liked her for who she was? Not because she was a famous man’s daughter, or someone who could help get them attention or notoriety. Some days she just wished she could disappear into the world and become invisible.
Chapter 23
Austin pulled the chair out for Dani before he realized what he was doing. Some things were just too ingrained in him. Luckily, she didn’t get upset with him. She simply sat and he took a seat opposite from her.
They were seated on the top floor balcony so they could see the water feature that was lit below. The place was so nice, Austin felt a bit underdressed. He unfolded his napkin and smoothed it out over his lap. Live piano music played from below.
Austin once again chastised himself for that stupid confession after kissing Dani. What had he been thinking? How many flashing neon signs did Dani have to put in front of him to let him know she wasn’t interested?
But he had gotten confused with her telling him to go ahead and kiss her. What had that been about? She’d seemed to get into it, too. But as quickly as she’d warmed up to him, she’d flipped and turned cold. Had he done something wrong? Or was she simply afraid of getting hurt again?
He picked up his water and gulped down half the glass. Things had been very uncomfortable since he decided he was going to tell Dani exactly how he was feeling. If he could stuff those words back into his mouth, he would in a heartbeat. But there was no way to do that, so he just had to ignore it had happened. Which was about as effective as ignoring a gaping hole in your chest.
Dani pointed at her menu. “I’m torn between the shrimp scampi with crab legs and the spicy salmon cakes.”
Relieved to get his mind off his wallowing, Austin scanned the menu. “I can order one, and you can get the other, and then I’ll give you some of mine so you can try them both.”
Dani wrinkled her nose. “Are you sure? There’s not something else you want?”
“No, both of those sound good. I’ll order whichever one you don’t.”
“We could split them.” She hesitated. “That is, if you don’t mind sharing with me.”
He smiled. “I don’t mind. That sounds good. Then I can try them both as well.”
“Perfect.” She closed her menu and sat back in her chair. The conversation waned again, and the awkwardness seeped back into the space between them.
Austin fiddled with the corner of his napkin and tried not to look like he was avoiding eye contact. Why couldn’t he think of something to say? Polite conversation. That’s all he needed. But anything he thought of sounded stupid, and he didn’t want to talk just to fill the air with drivel.
Dani let out a breath. “So, how is your knee?”
He leaned forward, grateful for anything to talk about. “It’s feeling better. Every once in a while I still feel a twinge, but it’s not so bad. I’m sure after this week it will feel even better.”
“No surgery?”
He shook his head. “Thankfully, it wasn’t that bad of an injury. It just needs rest. That’s why I’m here.” She knew all that. He was now grasping at straws. “To rest the old knee,” he finished lamely. What was he, seventy?
“Will you be able to play when you get back to LA?”
The longing to be on the football field constricted his chest. He’d tried to push it out of his mind, but right now he would trade everything he owned to be out on the turf listening to the crowds cheering. “Not right away. But the doctor was hopeful I’d be back in the game by the end of September. I’ll have to take it easy, do some exercises, and such. But the prognosis is very good.”
“I’m glad.”
He wracked his brain to think of something else to say about his injury, or football, but nothing came to mind, so the conversation stalled again. It went on like this for the next hour, with spurts of irrelevant chatter and long pauses of awkward silence. Dani finally excused herself to use the restroom and Austin slumped in his chair.
This was not how he had hoped the day would go.
* * *
Dani weavedher way through the tables to the restroom. Why did she feel like she was on fire? Was it that hot in the restaurant? Or was she just having an anxiety attack?
She opened the bathroom door and walked to the first sink, sticking her hands under the faucet. Cold water sprinkled out. She slapped some water on her face and tried to calm down. This whole thing was her fault. She never should have kissed Austin. It messed with her head.
The bathroom door opened and a woman walked in. Dani stuck her head down by the sink and splashed more water on her cheeks. When she straightened up, she was startled to see Claire standing at the sink beside her.
“Oh, Claire. I didn’t notice it was you.” She quickly grabbed a paper towel to wipe the drops of water from her skin.
“Are you having fun?” Claire asked, her gaze sharp.
