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“Geesh, Dani, what happened? What did I do? You look like you want to rip my throat out.”
She folded her arms across her chest. “No. I just want to rip the Adidas off your feet.”
Confusion clouded his brain. Was she spouting nonsense on purpose? Did she get hit in the head on the way to the restroom? “What does that even mean?”
“It means I know about your desires to get an advertising contract.” She gave him a once-over, a look of disgust on her face.
“Wait, what?” He was hoping to land a couple more contracts, but what did that have to do with this conversation?
“That’s right. I know all about it. So, you can drop this act of yours.”
“I’m so confused. What do advertising contracts have to do with you being mad at me?”
“Claire told me everything. You’re just using me to get an in with Adidas. Admit it.” She pushed on his chest as her voice cracked, and she blinked back tears.
“Claire?” Things were starting to make sense. Whenever Claire got involved with anything, things got messed up. He should have known it had to do with her. “Don’t believe anything she says. She’s a manipulator and a liar.”
“That’s what she said about you.”
“And you believed her?” He ran a hand through his hair. How could Dani think he was using her? He was helping her. Couldn’t she see that?
Dani gripped the railing, her knuckles turning white. “I don’t know what to believe.”
“So, you believe that I’m trying to take advantage of you?” That seemed extremely unfair given all he’d done for her.
“Why else would you help me? You don’t even know me.”
He swallowed and dared to put his hand on hers. “I do know you.”
“But you didn’t when we first met. Before. You took me out to dinner, and gave me a place to sleep. You took me shopping, and…” She shook her head. “How can I think anything else? It doesn’t make sense for a person to do all that.”
Austin had no words. She was probably right. He had no reason to do anything for her in the beginning. He actually hadn’t wanted to take her out to dinner. That had been an accident. But then, he couldn’t let her stay in a dangerous place. And then she fell asleep on his couch, and he was stuck. He had to let her stay with him. After that, he got to know her and she grew on him. He liked her tenacity, and her determination. He realized there was much more to her than a spoiled brat. And now…well, his feelings had deepened.
He drew in a deep breath, then exhaled, unsure of how to say all that. “I know. But I’m not what you think. How could I be? I had no idea you’d be stranded here.”
She paused and dropped her gaze. “I know.”
“It makes no sense that I would do all kinds of things for you in order to get a commercial. I’m the quarterback for the Los Angeles Demons. I get offers to sponsor products all the time. Why would I need your father, who isn’t even involved with Adidas anymore?”
Dani blinked and her shoulders fell. “Then why are you being so nice to me?”
Austin shifted closer to her. A sudden wave of sadness enveloped him and he put his hand on her shoulder. Dani had endured people taking advantage of her for years, maybe even her whole life. How depressing that she couldn’t take his kindness at face value. “I can’t just be nice because I was raised that way?”
“No.” Her brown eyes searched his. “That doesn’t make sense. You’re doing so much for me. You feed me. You’re letting me crash at your place. You even took me on this day cruise so I wouldn’t feel so creeped out.” She squinted at him. “Why are you doing all this?”
“Because I…” He stopped before any more words could come tumbling out like clowns from a car. He hadn’t realized what he was about to say until the words were almost out.He loved her.The realization struck him and he blinked. How had that happened?
He didn’t know. All he knew was that right now his heart was racing at his close proximity to her. He desperately wanted to pull her into his arms and kiss her lips. He wanted to protect her from the paparazzi, and from the world. He’d fallen completely for her. But he couldn’t tell her that. She’d reacted so poorly to the kiss and his confession earlier. She would definitely think he was crazy.
“Because you what?” She looked at him with such an accusing gaze, he balked and stepped back.
“Because I…” He searched for something plausible to say. Something that didn’t sound like he was a lunatic, because who fell in love with someone in three days? That was ridiculous. And yet, he was definitely falling for Danica Jordan. Just looking at her, he knew. He loved that she tried to clean a Jacuzzi tub with concentrated soap, filling the room with bubbles. He loved the way she jammed out to her music as she cleaned. He loved the way she’d squared her shoulders and taken on her circumstances, even though she was an heiress. She was bright and funny, and he loved her.
But right now she was looking at him like he’d just confessed to eating newborn kittens for lunch, so he cleared his throat and tried again. “I couldn’t let you starve to death, or sleep on the street. What else was I supposed to do?”
Chapter 25
Dani stared at Austin as he worked his jaw. “You had no money. No place to go. How could I not do anything? And now that you know who I am, you can understand, right? I felt guilty not helping you.”
