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She slowly blinked as she processed the words that Austin said. He couldn’t let her starve. That made sense. She thought back to Friday when she’d found out her father was cutting her off. She’d been so terribly hungry. What would she have done had Austin not taken her to get food?
Guilt snaked through her and she turned back to the setting sun. “I’m sorry.”
“What for?”
“For accusing you.” She now felt foolish. What if he was simply helping her because he didn’t want to see her on the streets? What if he were being kind out of the goodness of his heart, and all she could do was suspect him of something nefarious?
He shrugged, then placed his hands on her arms. They were warm, and the contact made her heart stutter. “You have every right to question anyone’s motives. Just p-please…”
He cringed, and her heart went out to him. She knew he only stuttered when he was flustered. He leaned closer and she wasn’t sure how he was going to finish that sentence. He stared into her eyes, and for a brief moment, she was ready to believe anything he said.
“Trust me,” he whispered.
A vision of a young boy materialized in front of her. The one she imagined when Austin was telling her about the incident with the jersey his mother had bought for him, and tears sprang to her eyes. He looked so vulnerable. So open. How could she think he would ever hurt her?
She shoved aside her conflicted thoughts and nodded. “Okay. I’ll trust you.”
The boat docked a few minutes after the sun set, and Austin helped her back onto land and into the golf cart. As she sat down, she asked, “How many days did you rent this for?”
“Until Thursday.”
“When you leave.” Those words sent a wave of sadness through her and she internally shook her head. She didn’t want to think about Austin leaving. She wanted to say it was because she’d have to figure things out on her own, but that wasn’t the entire truth. She liked Austin. She just didn’t want to admit those feelings.
“Yes.” He turned the key and the golf cart sprang to life.
She crossed her legs and looked out at the water. The clouds had parted and the moon was peeking through, reflecting off the surface. She felt like she needed to thank him for taking her out today, but she’d acted so mean to him, she wasn’t sure exactly what to say. In the end, she decided on a simple, “Thanks for today.”
He nodded but didn’t say anything back.
Of course he didn’t. She’d accused him of using her to get an advertising contract. The more she thought about it, the more absurd it sounded to herself. He was right. He was a famous football star. He didn’t need her father to get a contract. How stupid was she? Claire had lied to her. But she was ready to believe it, because…what else could it be? The thought that Austin was simply a nice man hadn’t really occurred to her.
They passed by a park and she motioned. “Want to take a walk with me? I think we need to talk.”
He glanced in the direction she pointed. “Sure.”
They parked and she got out of the cart. A paved pathway cut through the park, going by a water fountain, and through a small garden area. She headed toward the path and Austin followed.
Dani didn’t know what she really wanted to say. She just knew she’d been unfair to Austin today. Her footsteps slowed as she thought about what she wanted to tell him.
“It’s a nice evening,” he said, probably trying to dispel some of the awkwardness between them.
“Yes.” She stopped walking and turned to him. It wasn’t going to be easy for her to tell him, but she needed to. She forced the words out. “Rafael and I met at a party. It was the week before Valentine’s Day, and he was so charming, paying attention to me all night. He seemed fascinated by everything I said. I thought we had a connection.”
She flushed at her foolishness, heat rising to her face. But she pressed on, because she wanted Austin to understand. “He asked me out. He took me to this lovely Korean restaurant and we ordered the bibimbap, which he said was his favorite. I thought it was so cool that we both loved Korean food. Then he invited me over to his place to watch a movie for Valentine’s Day. I was so surprised when he pulled out the DVD. It wasThe Princess Bride, my favorite movie of all time. I was stupid, thinking he and I had so much in common. I found out later he’d simply read an interview I’d done and used that information to make me fall for him.”
Tears sprang to her eyes, and she blinked them back. What a dumb thing to cry over. He had fooled her, but so what? She wasn’t a child. She shouldn’t be crying over something so juvenile. And yet, she couldn’t seem to stop.
Austin let out a breath. “I’m so sorry that happened to you.”
“The worst part is, this wasn’t the first time. Or the last. Victoria and Steph—” Dani sucked in a breath. Oh, no. She wasn’t going to tell him about the video. The last thing she wanted was for Austin to go watch that embarrassing display.
“What did they do?” His voice was so low, so kind, she couldn’t help but feel guilty for not wanting to tell him. But that wasn’t a good reason to spill her guts.
“Nothing.” She couldn’t hold his gaze anymore and looked down at the sidewalk.
“Something.” He gently lifted her chin. “What happened?”
The way he was looking at her softened her, and the urge to tell him rose in her. But it was still so embarrassing, it was hard to admit. “You apparently haven’t seen the video.”
