Chapter 39
DANNY
“Danny!Oh my goodness, what a lovely surprise!”
Eden’s mom pulls me into a hug as soon as she sees me and Eden walk into the ballroom of the hotel where they’re having their anniversary party. I almost drop the gift in my hand, she’s hugging me so hard.
“And what’s this?” Mrs. Shaw’s deep brown eyes focus on the gold-wrapped gift box I’m holding.
“This is for you both. Happy anniversary.” I hand it to her right as Mr. Shaw walks up and shakes my hand after he hugs Eden.
“Danny! So good to see you, son.”
“You too, sir. Congratulations to you both. Thirty years together is quite an accomplishment.”
The two gaze lovingly at each other before embracing.
“It sure is. Can you believe she’s put up with me this long?”
“Oh, honey.” She pats his chest. “I can’t believe it either.”
I join in on their chuckling while Eden rolls her eyes good-naturedly.
“I didn’t know you two were spending time together.” There’s a gleam in Mrs. Shaw’s eyes as she looks between Eden and me.
Eden speaks before I can. “We see each other on campus a lot. Danny’s an art professor at the university, remember?”
“Oh that’s right! How wonderful!”
“I always knew you were a genius, son. Not just a handsome face.”
Mrs. Shaw elbows her husband when he laughs. I chuckle along.
While Mr. Shaw and I chat about work, I catch Mrs. Shaw’s gaze pivot to Eden. She frowns slightly.
“Anak, what are you wearing? What happened to the dress I sent you?”
I catch the muscles in Eden’s jaw bulging as she bites down, likely in frustration at her mom’s comment.
“It looked awful on me. I think this dress looks a lot better.”
Her mom’s focused gaze shifts to Eden’s arm, and I can practically feel her seizing up, even though we’re standing more than a foot apart.
“I prefer the other one,” her mom says. “It’s much more glamorous. Honey, don’t you agree?”
She tugs on her husband’s arm and points out Eden’s dress. Mr. Shaw stammers for a second before making an agreeing noise and flagging down the server to refill his drink. Eden mutters, “God, Dad.”
“Anak.” Mrs. Shaw tsks. She touches Eden’s tattoo. She quickly shrugs out of her mother’s hold. She starts to comment on Eden’s nose ring.
“Mom. Don’t.”
Mrs. Shaw jerks back slightly. I seem to be the only one other than her who picks up on Eden’s simmering frustration. The ballroom is crowded at this point, full of people in tuxes and gowns mingling and laughing around us. Servers decked out in all black weave around the crowd with trays of champagne and elaborate looking appetizers.
“Oh wow, yummy,” I say, grabbing at what looks like a shrimp on a slice of toast covered in gold flecks. “This menu is so impressive, Mrs. Shaw. Did you put it together yourself or did Mr. Shaw have a hand in it?”
The two of them laugh, turning their attention on me as they chat about their menu tasting. Eden aims a grateful stare at me. I smile at her before swiping two glasses of champagne from a passing server’s tray and hand one to her. She downs it immediately and grabs another.
“The décor is stunning too,” I say, gazing at the ten-tiered crystal chandelier hanging from the middle of the ballroom. There’s a mix of standing and sitting tables in the space. All of them are draped in ivory tablecloths with centerpieces. “What kind of flowers are those?” I point to the pink blooms in the vase at the nearby table.
Mrs. Shaw clutches a hand over her chest. “You’re so sweet to notice! Those are peonies, the very same flower I carried in my bouquet on my wedding day.”
Just then an older couple walks up and says hello, pulling Mr. and Mrs. Shaw’s attention from us. Eden motions for me to follow her, and together we head to the bar at the far side of the space.
“Vodka,” she orders.
“Same,” I say.
When we get our drinks, she takes a long swig before wincing and swallowing. She aims a soft smile at me. “Thanks for what you did back there. I thought for sure my mom and I were going to have it out.”
I step closer to her, wishing I could pull her in my arms right now so I could kiss her. If only I hadn’t screwed everything up with Cruz.
“No thanks necessary. Don’t get me wrong, I love your parents, they’ve always been great to me, but it’s not okay how they judge you. You’re amazing.”
I feel like an idiot repeating that to her for the millionth time. Because Eden is more than amazing. There isn’t a word that exists that describe just how incredible she is.
The strain in her beautiful face melts away, leaving behind the softest, sweetest smile. “Thanks for that.” She pulls her phone out of her purse and checks the time. “I say an hour is more than enough time to stick around before making an exit.”
“You really think you can make it an hour?”
I look off to the side at the sound of Cruz’s voice and see him walking up to us. He hugs Eden.
“Don’t act like you’d make it longer,” she teases him.
“I’ll have you know that I’ve been here for an hour already helping Mom rearrange half of the centerpieces to her liking. And keeping a watchful eye on Dad. He keeps trying to eat carrots.”
Eden groans. “God, how many times do we have to tell him that cooked carrots are fine, but to stay away from raw carrots? He’s allergic.”
Cruz replies with a frustrated groan of his own. “Apparently an infinite number of times.”
I hand him my glass of vodka and order another for me.
“Damn, man. You’re looking like James Bond. Such a pretty boy.” He claps my cheek. I laugh and shove him.
“Great idea inviting him,” Cruz says to Eden before turning back to me. “I saw how excited Mom and Dad were when you walked in. Beware though, Mom may try to set you up with one of her friend’s daughters. I heard her talking about it earlier to one of her co-workers.”
“Oh. Uh…”
“Danny, honey! There’s someone I want you to meet.”
I turn around to meet Mrs. Shaw’s eager expression. She’s got a young blonde woman by the arm.
“Sorry, man,” Cruz whispers.
“Danny, this is Gretchen. She’s a paralegal at my office. I heard you were single, and what do you know, Gretchen is single too!”
“Oh. That’s nice.”
“I thought maybe you two could chat a bit?”
I stammer, unsure of what to do or say. All I can focus on is Eden, who’s standing off to the side, her expression indecipherable as she watches her mother try to set me, her boyfriend, up with another woman.