Page 36 of The Renegade Billionaire

Braxton’s laughter has everyone watching us, not that they weren’t before, but now they aren’t even attempting to hide it.

“It’s fine, I promise.”

Just then, Clover and Savvy walk in and sit at my table with matching curiosity gleaming in their eyes. Braxton not only returns his attention to his laptop, but he gets up and moves a few chairs down.

Huh.

“So, tough day?” Savvy asks, drawing my attention away from my mercurial houseguest. Her expression is wily—she already knows every gory detail, probably with some embellishments thrown in too.

“You could say?—”

“Miss Madi! Miss Clover! Miss Savvy! Where’s Miss Elle?” Ethan barrels toward us in a way that makes me worry he won’t be able to stop. “This is too much, too, too much.”

“Ah, what’s up, Ethan?” Clover asks while simultaneously backing her chair away.

He holds up a brand-new MacBook Pro in one hand and the box in the other. “Thank you. I—I can’t accept this, but the fact that you would even think to do it—well—it means the world to me.”

The big teddy bear is tearing up, and I have no freaking clue what he’s talking about. The girls and I trade confused glances.

“I’m not sure what you’re talking about, Ethan.” I look from him to Braxton, who’s watching us with a scowl.

Ethan pauses and looks down at the card in his hand. “It’s from the DDDs.”

The three of us share an embarrassed chuckle. “Um, but…”

“I thought the logo looked different than the one on your wine night glasses, but it’s the DDD for sure,” he says happily.

“Can I see the card, Ethan?” Savvy asks, and he hands it right over.

She places it on the table in front of us.

Dear Ethan,

The DDD wishes to congratulate you on all your accomplishments and award you with this gift. Your compassion, work ethic, and community outreach make you our DDD.

Keep up the good work.

Sincerely,

DDD

I spin the card toward me and look at the logo. There’s no mistaking the three Ds, but it’s not our font, and it’s not our signatures. Then something catches my eye, and I notice that the ring around the Ds actually says something. Pulling it closer, I read it out loud, “Discreet Daily Deeds.”

“What the heck is that?” Clover asks, snagging the card away from me.

Farther down the table, Braxton is hard at work, his fingers flying over his keyboard.

Savvy is focused on her phone. “The website says Discreet Daily Deeds is a nonprofit organization doling out daily good deeds. It was founded ten years ago, and the corporate office is in Seattle. How the hell…”

“Sorry, Ethan.” Clover leans in and whispers, “This didn’t come from The Darlings of Disastrous Dating. It came from Discreet Daily Deeds.”

Braxton’s fingers stop their frantic typing and hover over his keyboard.

“I told you it was a dumb idea to give us a club name,” I tell the girls. “We’re too old for that, and it sounds ridiculous out loud.”

“But it was the best idea we’ve ever had after three bottles of wine.” Savvy rolls her shoulders back. “I’m proud of our club.”

I drop my head onto the table in front of me.