Dream Date With the Millionaire (12 page)

“Us,” she repeated, her eyes twinkling.

Bryce nodded. He liked the sound of
us
. More than he’d thought he would.

“And, for the record,” he said, running his finger along her jawline, “I like you, too.”

On Monday, the clock still hadn’t struck midnight. Sure, Dani was back in her routine and at work, but she felt as if she were still floating from Saturday night. The entire weekend, really. She’d joined Bryce and his family for brunch on Sunday. All of the Delaneys made her feel so welcome. And Bryce made her feel so…loved.

Forget about falling for him.

She’d fallen, body and soul.

Dani might as well wrap her heart in pretty paper, tie the package with a neat bow and stick a tag with Bryce’s name on it.

Could love happen so quickly?

Marissa and Grace thought so. Dani wanted to believe, too. She didn’t know what else this all-consuming wonderfulness could be.

An emergency meeting at Blinddatebrides.com meant she couldn’t see Bryce tonight, but he’d called, texted and e-mailed her. That had kept a wide smile on her face the rest of the day at work.

At her apartment, Dani found a breathtaking bouquet of stargazer lilies waiting for her with a note:

Happiness consumed her. Definitely love. She held on to the vase and swirled. She couldn’t wait to hop onto chat and tell her friends. A happy ending might be in her future after all. She sure hoped so.

Tuesday morning, Dani sat in her cubicle, thinking of ways to build the Hookamate.com community. Even though she had two job interviews, courtesy of Bryce’s contacts, lined up for later in the week, she wouldn’t allow herself to do a lousy job at Hookamate.com, even if she hated working here. She’d made up for not going on any more dates by writing some killer content for the site that had earned her high fives from the engineers.

But each ping from her e-mail in-box captured her attention. She wanted to hear from Bryce, even though she was meeting him for lunch in less than an hour.

“I knew you were good, Danica,” James said from the opening of her cubicle. “I just didn’t know how good.”

She kept working at her computer. “Is revenue up again this month?”

“Yes, and traffic, too, but that’s not what I’m talking about.” Paper crinkled. “Way to go, getting on the inside. I’ve got to hand it to you, Danica. I didn’t know you had it in you.”

The approval in his voice made her nervous. Made her turn. He held a copy of the
Life
section of the newspaper in his hand. “What are you talking about?”

He showed her the society page, specifically a picture of her with Bryce and his father. The description identified her as the date of Bryce Delaney, CEO of Blinddatebrides.com.

Her stomach roiled. She hadn’t wanted James to find out about her and Bryce this way. Not until she had a new job and was ready to quit.

“Congrats on hooking a really big fish,” her boss said. “What kind of inside info have you found out?”

Inside info?

And then she realized…James thought she was using Bryce for information, not dating him for real.

“Nothing. I—”

“Take your time.” Excitement filled James’s voice. “Get him to trust you.”

Dani raised her chin. “Bryce already trusts me.”

“So soon? You must be good.”

She frowned at James’s suggestive tone. “I’m not dating Bryce to get information. I really like him. Our jobs have no impact on us.”

At least no longer. Thank goodness.

“Perhaps not on him, but you can use this to
our
advantage.”

The emphasis on the word
our
made her straighten. “I’m sorry, James, but I can’t do that to Bryce or myself. I have more ethics than that.”

“Ethics, huh.” James’s features hardened. His eyes narrowed. He stood, towering above her, boldly intimidating. “Don’t forget you signed a non-disclosure agreement and a non-compete clause when you accepted this position.”

“So?” Dani asked.

“So if you’re not getting info out of Bryce, I will have to assume you’re spying on Hookamate for him. And that’s a job-terminating offense.”

Bryce hated seeing Dani so torn up. He sat next to her on a park bench and put his arm around her. “But James didn’t actually fire you.”

“No.” Dani’s voice trembled. She clasped her hands together. No doubt if she hadn’t, she’d be wringing them. “Not yet anyway, but his intent was clear. I use my being your new girlfriend to get info or I lose my job.”

“That’s blackmail.” Anger burned. She didn’t deserve to be treated this way. “James is using you to get to me. He’s had it in for me ever since I quit and founded Blinddatebrides.com. That’s the only reason he decided to start his own online dating Web site.”

“Did you know he won’t even say the name of your Web site? He calls it bdb.com.”

“The guy is an idiot.” Bryce pulled Dani against him. “Just quit. I’ll cover your expenses until you find a new job.”

She straightened, drawing away from him. “I appreciate the offer, but I can deal with James on my own.”

Her independence was admirable, but unnecessary. “This isn’t only about you now. I feel responsible for what’s happened. And I know James better than you—”

“Please don’t,” Dani urged. “You’re Caitlin’s big brother, not mine.”

“My feelings for you aren’t at all brotherly.”

Dani’s hair caught on the wind. Simply beautiful.

Who was Bryce kidding? There was nothing simple about her. She was complex, challenging and even difficult at times. He wouldn’t have her any other way.

“I care about you, Dani.”

“I care about you, too, but it’s my job at stake. You remember how I told you my father left us?”

Bryce nodded.

“Well, my mother had relied on him for everything. When he took off, she was left with nothing except the four of us girls. She’d dropped out of college to get married, never worked a day in her life and didn’t even know their checking account number. She learned her lesson and wanted to make sure me and my sisters didn’t repeat her mistakes. She taught us to take charge of our own lives and ourselves. That’s what I’ve been trying to do. That’s what I need to do with James. I can handle this.” Her eyes implored him. “I need to handle this.”

He squeezed her hand reassuringly. “You can handle anything.”

“Thanks for understanding. That means…a lot to me.”

“I do understand, but just know I’m here if you need backup.”

“Okay.”

But, back in his office, he wasn’t so sure. James’s behavior had everything to do with Bryce and Blinddatebrides.com, not Dani. He hated seeing her caught in the middle and wanted to keep her from getting hurt.

Bryce knew she was attending an afternoon training class off-site when he arrived at Hookamate.com.

James didn’t look surprised to see him. “You’re here about Danica.”

Bryce seethed with anger, but losing control wouldn’t solve anything. The last time he’d lost his temper and argued with Dani, he’d almost lost her. He wasn’t about to do that again.

He set his jaw, determined to put an end to James’s dirty dealings, once and for all. “Stop taking out your problems with me on Dani. Keep her out of this and stay away from my company or I’ll bring legal action against you.”

“You have no proof.” James glowered. “No prosecutor would touch the case.”

“They will if Dani testifies.”

“Is that all the wunderkind Bryce Delaney can come up with? A frivolous lawsuit to spend his trust fund on.” James cackled. “You think a jury would believe a disgruntled former employee who’s sleeping with my top competitor?”

Bryce’s blood ran cold. “Former employee?”

“Why, yes.” James smirked. “If there was any wrongdoing, Danica’s involved. What else can I do, but fire her?”

Fired.

Dani’s shoulders sagged and her bottom lip quivered.

Bryce hadn’t listened to her. He hadn’t trusted her to handle James on her own. Even after she’d explained why she needed to.

Carrying the box containing items from her desk and cubicle, Dani trudged up the stairs of her apartment building.

I thought more of you, Danica. I never expected you would send your lover in to fight your battle.

James’s words splintered her heart.

She’d lost everything in one fell swoop.

Because her boss was a jackass.

Because her boyfriend was a control freak.

Because she was a starry-eyed idiot.

How could she let this happen?

Dani had spent her entire life trying to make something of herself. To be someone. To do everything on her own so she’d never be in the same position as her mother had years ago.

Yet she’d trusted Bryce, believed in him and that had cost Dani her job. And…

Her heart.

Tears pricked her eyes. She blinked them away.

Turning the corner, Dani spotted Bryce.

Concern clouded his eyes. “Dani—”

Just for a moment, she longed to sink against him, to have him hold her and make everything better, but that would make James’s accusations true. She wasn’t going to rely on Bryce. She couldn’t.

Dani swallowed around the gigabyte-sized lump clogging her throat. “Go away.”

“We have to talk.”

Raw pain stabbed her heart. Dani fought against the sting of tears. She was suddenly six years old, standing on the driveway as her dad loaded his suitcases in the trunk.
I love you, Danica. I love all of you. I’ll come back. Promise.

But he hadn’t and didn’t.

Her dad had said one thing and done another.

Just like Bryce.

Her chest tightened as if being squeezed by an extra-large vice grip. “Why should I believe anything you have to say to me now?”

Bryce’s gaze sought hers. “You’re upset.”

“Damn right I am.”

He pressed his lips together in a thin line. “I don’t want to argue about this. Fighting won’t solve anything.”

His coolness and rationality irritated her. Her heart pounded. Her heart ached. Every nerve ending shrieked. And he stood there acting like Mr. Cool. “Neither do I.”

“Good. Let’s—”

“You don’t get it.”
Or me.
The unspoken words scorched her throat. “I don’t want to talk to you.”

“Don’t do this, Dani.”

Dani fumbled with her keys, opened the door and hurried inside. She dropped the box. It thudded against the floor. Sort of like her heart had done when James told her Bryce had stopped by and she was fired. “You cost me my job.”

“James cost you your job.” Bryce followed her inside the apartment and closed the door behind him. “That guy is a sleaze.”

“That guy is—was—my boss.”

“You deserve a better one.”

“Maybe. Or maybe I deserve a better boyfriend.”

His expression froze for a moment. “I have a lead on a job opening. A great opportunity for you. I talked to a friend this afternoon—”

“You mean you went behind my back. Again.”

He frowned. “If you mean James, I did you a favor.”

“A favor?” She squared her shoulders. “You did the exact opposite of what I asked you to do.”

“Yeah.” Bryce exhaled. “I’m sorry. I was trying to protect—”

“Your company?”

“My company, my employees. And you.”

She took a deep breath, trying to keep herself together, when all she wanted to do was shout and cry. “I don’t need you to protect me.”

“Yeah, you do.”

“I don’t want you to protect me,” she clarified.

“What you want and what you need are two different things.”

She rubbed her tight neck. “I told you I needed to take care of this myself.”

“I told you, I was trying to protect you.”

His calm manner sent her temper soaring. “You don’t want to protect. You want to control. Me, Caitlin, every single one of your clients on Blinddatebrides.com with that stupid matching program of yours.”

His mouth twisted. “That program said we were highly compatible.”

“There must be a bug in the code.” Dani stared down her nose at him. “I need someone who respects my independence.”

His eyes darkened, the green turning into that of a stormy sea. “You care more about your damn independence than our relationship.”

“What relationship?” she countered, crossing her apartment to put much-needed distance between them. “You want me to trust your judgment about James and my job, but there’s no commitment between us. You’ve said we’re dating, but you’ve never called me your girlfriend or asked us to be exclusive or said…”

“Those are just words.” He took a step toward her, then stopped. “What I do is more important than what I say. I did what I thought was best for you today.”

Tears choked Dani. “You have no idea what’s best for me.”

A muscle throbbed at his temples. “I can fix this.”

“You’ve done enough.” She stood in one corner with an ocean of room separating her from Bryce. “I’ve fallen in love with you, but being with you has never been about what your wealth and influence could do for me. By going to James the way you did, you acted as if it was. As if I were no different than any of the women your father marries and divorces.”

Bryce’s nostrils flared. “I’m nothing like my father.”

“No, you’re like mine. Promising one thing and doing another.”

He made a fist with his hands, then stretched out his fingers. “You won’t let me do anything for you.”

“That’s because you want to do everything for me.”

Dani waited for him to deny it. He didn’t.

“I…” Her voice cracked. “I want you to go.”

Bryce’s jaw clenched. “I know I overstepped, Dani, but is this what you really want?”

No. She wanted him to say he loved her, even though she was angry with him. She wanted him to say he would never leave her, even though she’d told him to go away.

She wanted…the impossible.

Her pounding heart felt as if it might explode.

Dani might want those things from Bryce; she might want him. But she didn’t need him; she didn’t need anyone.

She raised her chin. “Yes, I want you to go.”