Chapter 16
DANE
I’d been having a relatively normal Friday until I made the critical error of leaving my office at precisely the wrong moment.
The marketing department had commandeered the conference room closest to my office. The glass walls gave me a perfect view of Heidi gesturing enthusiastically at a presentation screen while her team nodded along like disciples receiving wisdom from on high.
I should have turned around and gone the other way.
Instead, Heidi spotted me and waved me in with way too much enthusiasm. It was too late to pretend I didn’t see her. When I was younger, I always wanted an invisibility cloak. That would have come in handy a lot.
“Dane! Perfect timing. We were just about to come find you.”
I stepped into the conference room, and the energy immediately shifted. Her team sat up straighter and the air got thicker. It was a particular kind of tension that came from people about to pitch something they knew I probably wouldn’t like. I had come to know that feeling all too well.
“What’s this about?” I asked, remaining standing near the door.
“We’ve been analyzing the metrics from the Valentine’s campaign,” Heidi said, pulling up a slide covered in graphs and numbers. “Engagement is through the roof. Website traffic is up 67%. App downloads are up as well. Social media mentions of Cupid’s Arrow have increased.”
“I’m aware. You email me these numbers daily.”
“Right, but what you might not be aware of is why the numbers are so high.” She clicked to the next slide, which showed a compilation of social media posts, all featuring the grainy photos of me and Ina from our two outings.
“The public is obsessed with your relationship. Not just interested—obsessed. There are Reddit threads dedicated to figuring out who the mystery woman is. Fan accounts posting theories. People are emotionally invested in your love story.”
“It’s not a love story. It’s a marketing campaign.”
“Same thing,” Heidi said, undeterred. “To them, it’s the ultimate romance—the bachelor who helps everyone else find love finally finding it himself. It’s catnip for our demographic.”
I crossed my arms. “Get to the point.”
“We want to do another commercial. A longer one, maybe ninety seconds. Something that showcases the entire Cupid’s Arrow process from start to finish.
” Her eyes were bright with the kind of fervor that made her excellent at her job and occasionally terrifying to work with.
“We’d show your profiles, footage of our matchmakers working to pair you up, clips from a date, the whole journey.
Make it feel authentic. We want to give people a behind-the-scenes look at how Cupid’s Arrow actually works. ”
I stared at her for a long moment, waiting for the punchline.
When none came, I laughed. “You can’t be serious.”
“I’m completely serious. We ran a survey with our target demographic and the response was overwhelmingly positive. People want more of this story. They want to see how it happened and how the algorithm brought you together. They need to see how it works so they can believe it.”
“No.”
Heidi blinked. “I haven’t even finished explaining.”
“No. Absolutely not. The answer is no.” I held up my hands. “One commercial was more than enough.”
“Dane, if you’d just listen to the projections.”
“I don’t need to see projections to know this is a terrible idea.” I could feel my temper rising. “We agreed to one commercial. One controlled appearance. We did not agree to turn Ina’s life into a reality show.”
“It’s not a reality show, it’s marketing.”
“No.”
Heidi’s expression shifted from enthusiastic to frustrated. “I’m going to get Lucas. He can explain this better than I can.”
She left the room before I could stop her, leaving me standing there with her marketing team, who were all suddenly very interested in their laptops and phones.
Two minutes later, she returned with Lucas in tow. He looked like he’d rather be anywhere else. That told me he wasn’t fond of the idea either. At least I had one ally.
“Explain to Dane why this extended commercial is a good idea,” Heidi said.
Lucas nodded. “The public interest in you is at an all-time high. Since the photos started circulating, you’ve been trending on three different social media platforms. The original commercial hasn’t even aired yet and people are already talking about it because they’ve connected the dots.
The mystery woman from the photos is probably the woman from the commercial we’ve been teasing. ”
“So the plan is working.”
“The plan is working too well.” Lucas leaned against the conference table. “Heidi thinks we should capitalize on it. Strike while the iron’s hot. Give people more of what they want before Valentine’s Day.”
“And what about what Ina wants?” I asked, looking at Heidi. “Have you asked her if she’s okay with this? With having her face plastered all over another commercial? With giving up more of her privacy?”
The silence in the room was deafening.
“I’ll take that as a no,” I said quietly.
“We were going to approach her after we got your approval,” Heidi said.
“My approval? You don’t have my approval. You don’t have anything close to my approval.” I could hear my voice getting harder, colder. “This has gone far enough. We did the commercial. We’re doing the public dates. That’s what we agreed to. Anything beyond that is crossing a line.”
“Dane, if you’d just look at the numbers.”
“I don’t care about the numbers! Ina is my assistant.
She agreed to help with a marketing campaign, not to have her entire life turned into content.
If people figure out who she is, her life will never be the same.
And for what? So we can squeeze out a few more percentage points of engagement?
I pay all of you very well to figure out how to get good numbers without dragging other people down. Innocent people.”
Heidi’s Botox barely allowed for a frown, but the fact I could see a crease in her forehead told me she was really pissed. “This is a business, Dane. Sometimes we have to make sacrifices.”
“Not her. We’re not sacrificing her for this.” I left the conference room before I said something I’d regret.
Lucas followed me into the hallway. “Dane, wait.”
“No.” I kept walking toward my office.
“She’ll probably say yes,” Lucas said, jogging slightly to keep up. “Ina’s a team player. She’ll want to help if she thinks it’s good for the company.”
That stopped me in my tracks.
I turned to face him. He took a small step back at whatever he saw in my expression.
“That’s exactly the problem,” I said. “She’ll say yes because she thinks it’s her job to say yes. Because she wants to help. Because she’s too nice to tell Heidi to back off. And I’m not going to let that happen.”
“Why not?”
“What?”
“Why not?” Lucas repeated, studying my face. “Why are you so protective of Ina specifically? You let the marketing team do whatever they want with everyone else. You’ve never cared this much about employee privacy before.”
I grabbed his arm and pulled him into one of the empty offices on the floor.
“Is there something you want to get off your chest?” Lucas asked with a small hint of a smile.
“What are you implying?”
“I’m not implying anything. I’m asking directly. Is something going on with you and your fake girlfriend?”
“She’s my assistant.”
“That’s not an answer.”
“That’s the only answer that matters.” I ran a hand through my hair, pacing the small space.
“This has gone too far. It should have been a simple marketing play that wouldn’t affect her actual life.
But if Heidi gets her way, if we put Ina’s face and name out there for everyone to see and dissect and obsess over, she’ll never be able to use Cupid’s Arrow the way it’s meant to be used.
She’ll never be able to actually find what she’s looking for. ”
“And what is she looking for?”
“Love.” The word felt scratchy on my throat. “Real love. The magic, overwhelming, makes-you-do-stupid-things kind of love. That’s what she wants. That’s what she came to New York for. And I’m not going to ruin that for her just to boost our stock price.”
He looked confused. “Have you seen the company stock prices lately?” he asked finally.
My jaw clenched. “Yes.”
“Then you know we’re at an all-time high. The company is worth nearly double what it was worth a year ago. Isn’t this what you always wanted? Success? Recognition? Proof that you made it?”
“Not like this.”
“Not like what?”
“Not by throwing people under the bus. Not by using someone who can’t say no to me because I’m her boss.
” I stopped pacing, facing him directly.
“If you and Heidi are seriously going to put me in this situation, then pull the commercial with Ina and reshoot it with someone else. An actress, a model, someone who knows what they’re signing up for and can handle the public scrutiny.
I’ll go along with whatever plans you have.
But Ina cannot be involved anymore. Not beyond what we’ve already done. ”
Lucas shook his head slowly. “Fine.” He moved toward the door, then paused with his hand on the handle. “Oh, and I figured out that you’re my Secret Cupid.”
I blinked at the change in subject. “What?”
“You took over from Keith.” He grinned slightly.
I shrugged, not confirming or denying.
“Keith was supposed to be my cupid,” Lucas corrected. “And I’m grateful you took over, because as much as I theoretically like Keith—which isn’t much—I knew he’d be shit at presents. You, on the other hand, are surprisingly good at thoughtful gifts when you actually try.”
“You’re the Secret Cupid grandmaster,” I said. “You already know who was paired with who.”
“Well, yes, but I could tell it wasn’t Keith. I was wondering if there had been some trading.”
“And you’re my Secret Cupid,” I said. “The joke book, the hat. They’re very you.”
Lucas looked genuinely confused. “What joke book? What hat?”
“The three gifts I’ve gotten. The pompom box with the joke book. It’s your sense of humor.”
“Dane.” Lucas was staring at me like I was an idiot. “You haven’t figured it out yet?”
“Figured what out?”
“Ina is your Secret Cupid.” He said it slowly, like explaining something to a child. “The entire office is jealous because she’s the best at gifts and somehow you got lucky enough to have her again.”
I opened my mouth and then closed it.
Ina, who saw me clearly enough to know exactly what would make me smile.
“The entire office knows?” I asked.
“Pretty much everyone’s figured it out by now. Yeah, it’s obvious.” He left, finally, closing the door behind him.
Ina was my Secret Cupid.
Which meant for the past month, we’d been in this bizarre dance where she’d been giving me thoughtful, perfect gifts while she got shit on by Keith.
But I’d known, on some level, that the gifts I was receiving were too perfect to be random.
I went back to my office, closing the door this time, shutting out the chaos of the floor.
The “I Hate Everything” hat sat on the corner of my desk where I’d left it.
I picked it up, turning it over in my hands, thinking about Ina finding it, buying it, probably laughing to herself as she imagined my reaction.
She knew me.
Better than anyone had known me in years.