Chapter 13
EDEN
“I can’t believewe’re doing this,” Danny says as he strips off his t-shirt in my living room.
“I know,” I rasp, before clearing my throat. “It’s pretty wild, isn’t it?”
On the outside, I let out a casual chuckle and shrug. But on the inside, I’m a five-alarm fire. I’m a Fourth of July fireworks show. Because holy cow, never in a million years did I think I’d have Danny Darden standing shirtless in my living room. But I do—for work purposes.
I avert my gaze from his flawless chiseled torso and squint back at the screen of my phone.
“So, it looks like Laura wants a full-on douchebag for her Dream Date, complete with tasteless half-naked selfies,” I say.
“Noted.” Danny aims his phone at his bare chest. He purses his lips, a look of concentration on his face. “Damn. Decent, but I feel like I should get a few more to be as realistic as possible. Danny the douchebag wouldn’t just stop at just one half-naked selfie, you know?”
Despite how devastatingly gorgeous he looks with that half-smile on display, I burst out laughing.
“You’re the exact opposite of a douchebag,” I say as I take the phone from his hand.
“Aww, thanks. But duty calls.”
Twenty-nine-year-old Laura’s date request is the first of its kind in Dream Guy’s short history. She comes from a privileged background with the most judgmental rich parents ever who have meddled in her dating life since she was a teenager. They’ve hated every boyfriend she’s ever had and she’s scared they’re going to hate her current guy, whom she’s been seeing for just over six months. He’s apparently a sweetheart but comes from a humble background. He’s a middle school teacher who likely won’t be a multi-millionaire like her parents want for her.
So she’s hired Danny to be her fake boyfriend and act like a total douche in front of them at an important family dinner this weekend. That way when she “breaks up” with Danny and eventually introduces her real boyfriend to her parents, they’ll just be relieved he’s not Danny.
Ever since a month ago when Ava’s Instagram post led to that increase in publicity for the app, business has been booming. The app has gotten loads of new users and followers on social media. I’ve been working nonstop to keep the app running smoothly with this influx of new traffic, and all the Dream Guys have been busy going out on dates.
And they have been getting some unique requests. Gavin, to his delight, is now doing naked rock-climbing dates at the request of the women who book him on the app. And Ian has been on a couple of “sexy food dates,” where a date requests that he prepare an array of yummy appetizers or desserts, then serve the food on his bare chest while the date eats and chats with him. So, this request for Danny to be a fake douchebag isn’t all that unusual in comparison.
“It’s genius, really, Laura’s idea to hire you,” I say as I snap a few shots of Danny’s flawless torso, mesmerized by the hard lines and ridges along his body. Christ. He’s got an actual six-pack.
It’s a challenge not to choke on the drool pooling in my mouth but talking helps.
“I’m kind of pumped to be a pretend-douchebag for one night. Oh, hey, what about this?”
He hunches forward slightly, then grips his chin in his fist with his hand, his other arm propped on his hip, like he’s thinking deeply.
I burst out laughing. “Oh my god, that’s the perfect d-bag pose.”
The corner of his mouth twitches. He waits till I finish snapping photos before he lets himself laugh. I hand him back his phone and he swipes through the pics.
“Holy crap. I look like such a cocky piece of shit.”
“Then Laura should love them.”
Danny texts them to her along with a few naughty messages that Laura requested that he send with the photos.
He shows his phone to me, and my eyes go wide. “Sugar tits? Seriously?”
He nods. “Trying to be as offensive and rage-inducing as possible.”
“Well, it’s working.”
I skim another filthy fake message under a photo of Danny’s six-pack.
Babe, just the thought of you makes me hard all over. Fuuuck, I’m horny.
“Her dad is going to murder you when he sees that.” I snort out a laugh.
“Her plan is to leave her phone out while she’s with her parents tomorrow so they ‘accidentally’ see those pics of me and hate me before I even get there.”
I fall back onto my couch, still giggling. “Brilliant. Drink?”
“God, yes. I had no idea that posing could take so much out of me.”
I fetch two bottles of water and hand one to Danny, who’s sitting on the couch still sans shirt, and drop next to him.
Before I can twist off the cap, he stops me.
“We need to toast.”
“To what?”
He tilts his head to me, the expression on his face knowing. “To you and that brain of yours. Eden, you’re a freaking genius. If it weren’t for you and your idea to create this app, I’d still be delivering food as a side job and barely scraping by.”
I can feel the skin on my cheeks and chest ignite. There’s something about the way Danny gives compliments that makes me giddy. Maybe it’s how sincere his eye contact is. Maybe it’s the soft yet firm tone of his voice. Maybe it’s that half-smile he wears like a perfectly tailored suit. Probably all three. Everything about Danny drives me wild.
My gaze falls to my lap. “Dream Guy was actually Kayla’s idea, remember?”
“Oh, come on.” When he nudges me softly with his elbow, I notice he scoots closer to me on the couch. “Kayla would be the first person to say that you deserve all the credit. She may have put the idea in your head, but you executed it. Because you’re a genius.”
“Oh my gosh, stop.” I laugh and cover my face with my free hand before taking a long swig of my water.
When I drop my hand away, I catch Danny grinning at me, shaking his head.
“What?”
“You were always like this,” he says.
“Like what?”
“So bashful. Actually, modest is a better word. Even when we were kids, you had the hardest time accepting a compliment. It was cute.”
Goosebumps flash across my skin at hearing Danny call me cute, but then I process the rest of what he’s said. He’s referring to how cute I was when I was a kid.
God, Eden, don’t read too much into this. He’s just being nice.
“Yeah, well. Old habits are hard to break,” I say softly.
Before I can raise the bottle to my mouth for another sip, he catches my wrist in his hand. “Uh-uh. No way. No more drinks until you accept that you’re brilliant. I wanna hear you say it. Now.”
Aaannnd the goosebumps are back. There’s just something so damn hot about Danny Darden telling me what to do in that low, sexy growl.
He quirks an eyebrow. “Come on, Eden.”
I know he’s being playful and joking in this moment, but still. I can’t help the shiver that makes its way through me at how he’s touching me, how he’s teasing me.
What I would give for him to tease me in my bed right now…
“I’m brilliant,” I say quickly, banishing that naughty thought from my brain.
Danny pumps a fist in the air.
“Wait! This would make a perfect d-bag boyfriend pic to send to Laura.”
I take a quick photo and text it to him. He sends it to Laura, and his phone buzzes almost immediately.
He chuckles. “From Laura: Oh my god, these are exactly what I wanted! Thank you!”
I let my head fall back on the couch as I chuckle. When I twist to look over at Danny, I bump my head against the side of his.
“Ouch!” I rub my hand on my forehead.
He makes a hissing noise while holding his head. “Shoot, sorry, I wasn’t paying attention, I should have…”
I turn to tell him it’s okay and am greeted with his handsome face barely two inches from mine. For a few quiet seconds, we just sit there and stare at each other. I’m so close I can see the gold flecks in his hazel eyes; I can feel his hot breath on my mouth.
Something flashes behind his gaze. He blinks, and I swear the way he looks at me amps up in intensity.
He licks his lips. “Eden…”
My stomach flips. Danny is going to kiss me.