Page 74 of Just Playin'
“Don’t you Presley Wilson Carlton me. I didn’t do a single thing your eyes are accusing me of. We ate pizza and played ball. I kept my hands to myself.”More than you’ll ever know, but I keep that snippet of information to myself.
Danny cocks his hip, his dramatics not unusual. “You’re five minutes early. You’re never five minutes early.”
“I had to drop by Willow’s school. Traffic was good. Sue me.”
His jaw hangs even more profoundly. “Willow spent the night at your condo?!” He slaps my chest more times than acceptable for a man who relies on me for his income. “You have five days to go—”
“Four, but who’s counting?”
Me, I’m fucking counting.
“Then why screw this up now? It’s four days, Elvis. Four goddamn,why has it been eleven long months for me?days.” His change of topic isn’t uncommon either. Even if a conversation has nothing to do with him, it soon becomes about him.
Happy to keep the focus off me and what he assumes I did wrong, I ask, “Has it really been eleven months since you. . . you know?”
Danny leans his head on my shoulder like a dog wanting a scratch behind the ears. “Yes. I’m hurting, Elvis. I can barely squeeze my balls in my y-fronts anymore.”
“Well, there’s your issue. Who wants to date a man who wears Y-fronts?” I question through a bout of breathless laughter.
When he pouts, I rub his head like he’s a dog. “There, there, it’ll be okay. If things get too bad, take matters into your own hands.”Trust me, it’s a lot of fun when done with the right person.
His head pops off my shoulder, his eyes widening like he’s never considered the possibility of taking care of business himself. “You’re right! Who says I need a man? I’ve got everything I need right here.”
“He means himself,” I assure two of my teammates walking past us, eyeballing our exchange with a curious glance. “Not that there is anything wrong with being gay. I’m just not.”
Danny rolls his eyes as his shoulders slump. “Thanks for the reminder. I thought we were starting something beautiful.” He laughs when I shove him away from me. “What? You were raking your fingers through my hair, Elvis, what did you expect me to think?”
I give him a stern finger point. “You’re. . . You’re. . .”I’ve got nothing.
He clasps his hands together, rests them on his chest, then swivels on the spot like he’s just been crowned Mr. Gay 2020. “Beautiful? Perfect? The man of your dreams—?”
“Have two seconds to point me in the direction of the shoot before I donate your portion of our negotiation to the charity bringingLove Boatback on air.”
He pauses for a moment to consider my terms before reluctantly dragging his hand across his body. “This way, Mood Killer.”
Like he can talk. I was walking on clouds before I bumped into him. Now I feel like I’m walking into a storm head on, and I don’t just mean figuratively. Lillian is standing in the middle of a conference room that has been transformed into a studio. She’s wearing a microscopic tank top and running shorts. Her outfit—if you can call it that—leaves nothing to the imagination. She may as well be wearing nothing.
“What is she doing here?”
“I don’t know.” Danny’s shock is as high as mine. “Let me find out?”
He waits for me to nod before making his way to the lady who headed up our negotiations months ago. I can’t recall her name. It starts with a D.Danielle. Daphne. Delilah.That’s it—Delilah! How could I forget? I always thought Delilah sounded sweet until I discovered a face behind the name. Don’t get me wrong, Delilah is attractive, but her personality could certainly use some polish.
When Danny makes his way back to me, I meet him halfway. “What’s the deal?”
He swivels his tongue around his mouth like his words are hard for him to deliver. I understand why when he mumbles, “Lillian’s doing the shoot with you.”
“What?! That wasn’t part of our arrangement.”
“I know.” His eyes beg me to calm down. “But this is separate from our deal. Lillian forged her own negotiations with Delilah after bumping into her last month.”
“Then we’ll shoot them separately. Easy.”
Danny drags his hand down his face, his expression pained. “Delilah wants this to be a joint collaboration. She thinks consumers will respond better to a couple than they will you as an individual.”
“No!” I hit him with the same stern finger point I gave him earlier. “It’s not happening.” I shift my finger to Lillian, who’s pretending not to watch our exchange as she completes a handful of reps under a set of bright lights.Who warms up to shoot a commercial?“She was not a part of our deal. If they want to add her name into my contract, they’ll have to remove my name first.”
Danny shadows my brisk exit from the conference room. “We can’t do that. You signed an agreement to endorse their product.”
