Counting the Days (Counting the Billions 1)

Were we getting in over our heads already? Probably. But I couldn’t seem to stop myself, and Austin seemed sure that Daniel liked me as well.

Fortunately, Daniel himself came back to the table just then. I couldn’t help looking at him with new eyes. Maybe the media hadn’t gotten it wrong when they said that Daniel was an arrogant asshole. Maybe not entirely, at least. That could be the front that he showed to the rest of the world so that they could never hurt him the way that he once had been hurt.

But somehow, I seemed to have gotten beyond that layer of his personality and gotten to really know him. I didn’t know how that had happened, but it made me wonder even more about him. What had messed him up? Was it a previous relationship?

I knew all too well how much love could hurt.

I had to put those thoughts aside, though, as Daniel suddenly caught my hands. “Come on, I love this song,” he said, dragging me toward the dance floor.

I laughed and shook my head. “I can’t dance!” I protested.

“Sure you can,” Daniel said. “Just follow my lead.”

I had never really been a fan of dancing, but I had to admit that dancing with Daniel was fun. Freeing. It let me forget about Leanne and Matt’s warnings. It let me forget about Austin’s cryptic words from before. It let me just focus my attention on Daniel—sexy-as-fuck Daniel.

My face felt as though it might split in half from the force of my grin. But Daniel looked just the same.

Chapter 25

Daniel

I HADN’T REALLY INTENDED for tonight to end with dancing, but I couldn’t stop myself from dragging Abby out onto the dance floor with me. She had changed after work, before meeting Austin, into something more fitting for the club. The low-cut green top and black jeans weren’t quite as sexy as the dress that she had worn the previous week, but I didn’t really care either way. She was Abby.

I had sat close to her as we sipped our beers, close enough that my knee was pressed against hers, my hand resting on her thigh. I could tell that she and Austin were getting along, and I couldn’t help feeling relief at that. I knew it was probably too early in our relationship for her to be meeting my friends, but I couldn’t help wanting her to know Austin and wanting Austin to meet her.

At the moment, as far as I was concern

ed, they were the two most important people in my life. If Austin hadn’t liked Abby or hadn’t thought that she was good enough for me, I would have had no choice but to listen to him. On the other hand, if Abby hadn’t liked Austin, I didn’t know if I would ever have been able to trust her business advice again, unfortunately.

I felt kind of bad dragging her out with me like this too, knowing that she was having such a difficult time convincing her brother and her friends that I was the right guy for her. I hoped she didn’t see this as a slap in the face, like my friends were better than hers. But she didn’t seem to think that at all. Instead, she seemed happy just to come along with me.

I was enjoying the evening with the two of them. I felt like I was learning more about Abby than I could possibly have learned on my own. He was asking questions that I never would have thought of. I filed away all the information in my head, already planning the next date with her based on what she liked and disliked.

I really hoped there would be a next date.

I hated that I’d had to take a work call in the middle of the evening, but it was with one of our high-profile clients, and I didn’t want to keep him waiting. Abby knew just how important that was to me. I had glanced back in through the window to see her and Austin laughing with each other anyway, so there was no reason to be so worried.

Something about knowing that she and my best friend got along with each other sealed the deal for me. It made me want to make things with Abby work out, even more so than before.

I dragged her out on the dance floor, ignoring her protests that she didn’t know how to dance. Anyone could dance if they were comfortable enough with the person they were dancing with, I was sure. And Abby didn’t let me down. We moved together, through one song and the next. My hands were all over her body, touching her curves, and I was aching to take her home again.

She spun away from me, shaking out her hair as she sang along to the lyrics. The way she swung those hips of hers had me unbelievably hard.

But suddenly, as we spun back toward each other, someone caught her arm and pulled her away from me. I stared in surprise when I saw who it was. “Get your fucking hands off her!” I snapped at Gerrard as he led Abby away from the dance floor.

He paused off to the side, where it was a little quieter, giving me a look of disgust before turning his full attention on Abby. “You don’t want to do this, trust me,” he said in a low, earnest voice.

Abby put her hands on her hips, looking back and forth between me and the newcomer. “Who the hell are you?” she asked Gerrard.

“I’m his former advisor,” Gerrard said, his mouth twisting. “And all I wanted to say was that you should be wary of him. He fired me without cause. He’ll do the same to you.” He looked her up and down. “Unless you give him a cause to fire him.”

Abby’s hands clenched into fists at her sides, but Gerrard had continued before she could say anything.

“Daniel here just uses people to get what he wants and to stay relevant. You’re nothing but a piece of ass to get Daniel back on the front pages of the papers. That’s his media ploy, didn’t you know? That’s how he keeps people interested in McGregor Enterprises, and how he makes sure that he stays at the top of the search results.” Gerrard smiled nastily at me.

I swallowed hard, my eyes only for Abby. Surely she couldn’t believe that was all she was to me, could she? She must have heard the truth in my voice when I told her I cared about her. She must have seen it in my eyes. I wouldn’t have brought her to meet Austin if I didn’t care about her.

But I could also remember the day she had first told me that her brother was worried about her working for me, the way I had joked about that. I had told her that I used the paparazzi to keep my business at the top of the search results, and I had told her that it was all just a game to me.