Daisy's Secret Billionaire

by Francesca Lane

  Her mind wandered back to Jake. Her heart did a strange little flip at the thought of him, like she was a teen again and Jake had just emerged from his parents’ house. After he brought her coffee and surprised her by the most delicious kiss she had ever tasted, brief as it was, Jake helped her paint, as promised. Reluctantly, he retreated to his family’s beach house soon after to work on his own kitchen remodel.

  How would she ever keep her mind on all that she still had to do?

  Daisy exhaled and evaluated the living room. She put the couch cushions back in their spot and arranged her mother’s pillows as if she were preparing for a photo shoot in a home magazine.

  Next, she found the pictures that she had removed from the walls and laid them out on the kitchen floor. She had been tempted to buy some inexpensive wall art, but changed her mind. In the end, Daisy wanted her mom to feel the comfort and familiarity of home. So instead she rearranged them in a way that she hoped would make the house feel spruced up—but not like a different home. For the next hour, she re-hung all pictures and artwork throughout the living room and kitchen in a fresh way. She also put away clutter and chose a few personal items to decorate the tabletop, credenza, and bookshelves.

  She’d been so absorbed in her redesign of the room that she barely noticed the screen door opening. Jake entered the house, a goofy grin on his face. “Hey.” His eyes brushed over hers a moment before he turned to admire the room. Jake let out an appraising whistle. “Wow. It’s like a new place in here.”

  “I hope my mom loves it. I didn’t buy anything new. Just rearranged what she had.”

  His gaze swept from one corner to another. “Have you ever thought of being a stager? If you hadn’t told me that you had reused everything that was already here, I wouldn’t have guessed.” Jake slid an arm around her waist. “Impressive job.”

  “Glad you think so.” She noticed Jake’s eyes landed on a set of sea star book ends with a stack of postcards between them. “Those are postcards that I sent to my mom over the years from all the places I’ve traveled. I found them in a drawer with a rubber band around them, so I thought it would be fun to display them. It really touched me to learn that she kept them.”

  Quietly, Jake walked forward and touched the stack, pulling out one of the cards randomly. He flipped it over to the picture of a beach the color of sea glass. Daisy laughed. “Of all the places I’ve gone, that’s probably the closest. It’s a beach just south of Monterey.”

  “Mexico?”

  She shook her head, smiling. “California.”

  He nodded and slid the postcard back into that stack.

  “So,” she said, noticing the pensive look on his face, “I didn’t expect to see you so soon today.”

  He gave her a small smile, that sober expression gone. “Oh, really.”

  “Not that I’m not thrilled to see you, of course.”

  He turned her around until they were face-to-face and smoothed her hair back with one stroke of his hand. “Of course.”

  Her voice became a whisper. “Because I am, you know.”

  “Thrilled to see me?”

  “Mm-hm.” She leaned into him, her temple leaning against his chest until she could hear the beating of his heart.

  “I’m glad you’re thrilled,” he said. He lifted her chin and kissed her softly, sending the fluttering of butterfly wings through her. “I have to get back to work, but I just wanted to do that.”

  He kissed her once more and left. For the second time in a day, Daisy wondered how she could fully commit her attention to the tasks in front of her. She swallowed a sigh and curled up on the couch. How long had it been since a guy left her feeling all swoon-y like this? Truthfully, never. Well, unless she counted the years she pined after Jake in those summers when he was home and ignorant of her presence. All she wanted to do was pull a soft blanket around her body and daydream.

  She glanced around and realized—no blanket in sight. With great effort, Daisy pulled herself back up and padded down the hall. She searched her mother’s linen closet remembering the blankets she’d washed after arriving in Colibri a few weeks ago. Her fingers landed on soft fabric. Daisy pulled the woven cotton throw from the back of the closet and brought it to the couch. She draped it over the side of one arm of the couch. There. Now she could daydream about Jake with a blankie around her anytime she wanted.

  She glanced out the window toward Jake’s house. Though he had bounded over here with a certain enthusiasm, she had also noticed a tinge of melancholy after he’d come. Like he was preoccupied. Jake hadn’t mentioned much about the troubles he was facing in LA, and she didn’t want to pry, but maybe the stress of it all was weighing on him.

  Daisy’s cell phone rang, interrupting her thoughts about Jake. “This is Daisy.”

  “Hello, Ms. Mcafee. This is Lynette, your mother’s nurse?”

  Daisy straightened, alert to the reality of why she was here in the first place. “Yes. Hi.”

  “Your mother asked me to dial the phone for her. She’d like to speak to you. Is now a good time?”

  “Always. Yes. Please put her on.”

  The phone shuffled and shifted in her ear, until her mother’s thin voice came on the line. “Hello?”

  Daisy frowned. She sounded weak, maybe even a little afraid. “Momma, it’s Daisy. Are you okay?”

  “Oh Daisy! It is you.”

  She laughed lightly, her mother’s response endearing. “Were you expecting someone else?”

  “No, dear. I was wondering, though, if you could do me a favor?”

  “Of course. What is it?”

  “I’d like you to take some cuttings of my lavender bushes to the Morelli house. Grace loved that I brought her some—you know their mother loved my lavender plants, too. Would you take Jake some, darling? You can wrap them in newspaper … oh dear, I suppose all the newspaper is gone from the house now.”

  Daisy grinned. Her mother wanted Daisy to take Jake some flowers, a sure sign she was getting her strength back. “I’d be happy to do that, Mom. Don’t worry about the newspaper—I’ll wrap them in paper towels. Now you get some rest. Pretty soon they’ll let me take you home, but you have to be strong enough, okay?”

  “Okay, dear. Bye-bye.”

  Daisy hung up, fresh happiness washing through her. She’d never felt quite so alone as when she had learned about her mother’s stroke. Even with all of her travels, her mother had only been a phone call away. She stilled, thinking about where her life might take her next, knowing the relief organization she worked for didn’t have any projects near Colibri Beach.

  She sighed and determined not to think about the future right now. Instead, Daisy wandered outside, grabbed a bucket, and clipped some of the healthiest stalks of lavender that she could find.

  Eight

  By the time late afternoon rolled around, Daisy was ready to grab that super soft blanket from her mother’s couch and roll herself right inside of it. The only thing that would make that scenario better was if Jake would join her.

  She peered outside. Lights blazed from inside his house, indicating that he was still at it. A delivery truck from one of the local appliance stores had pulled up a few hours ago and a couple of guys had wheeled some pretty large boxes into the garage. She would have gone over to investigate, but she’d found herself slapping a fresh coat of white paint onto her mother’s bathroom walls. She couldn’t help herself. When she had opened up the room to get it ready for her mother’s return, she was taken aback by how dingy it had become.

  How could she let that go?

  She couldn’t. So she spent the afternoon painting, cleaning up after herself, and grabbing a quick shower. Her pantry was still empty—she was still staying with Jake, after all. So she made a quick trip to the store, grabbed a couple of steaks, a bag salad, and a bottle of red wine, and brought them all over to Jake’s along with everything else they’d need.

  He answered the door with a quick smile and an even quicker kiss on her li
ps. He smelled good, like a man who had been working hard all day. “You don’t have to knock, you know.”

  Daisy shrugged and stepped inside with her bag of groceries and accompaniments. Technically, she was still staying with him—though that would change very soon—but given the shift in their relationship, she wasn’t sure of the protocol. Or was that overthinking things?

  “What have you got there?” He peered into the bag, his eyes quickly finding hers again.

  She slid the bag onto the new island and turned around to face him. Vaguely she noticed shiny appliances that had yet to be hooked up. “Thought I’d grill these steaks. Okay if I use your barbecue?”

  He moved closer to her, a sly grin on his lips. Any closer and he’d have her pinned against the island. Her palms found his chest and rested there.

  He tipped up her chin, the grin still on his face. “Unless, of course, you’re not hungry,” she said, her cheeks warming.

  He bent his face close to hers. “Oh, I’m hungry … really hungry.”

  Daisy laughed lightly at this. She wadded up the fabric of his tee with one hand and rose up on her tiptoes, leaning into his kiss, the effect of it causing her body to simultaneously weaken and gain strength. He pulled back only to kiss her again with even more fire than before. When they parted, she stared up at him, disoriented. “Um, so the steaks?”

  He chuckled and took one of her hands, kissing it before walking her to the back door that led outside to the deck. “I’m starved. I’ll clean myself up and meet you back here soon. Want to eat out here?”

  She nodded. “Yes. Perfect.” He went back inside and she glanced out to the sea. The haze of the day had blown inland just in time for the sun to provide its nightly entertainment. Its descent had already begun, blazing up the sky in scores of red, orange, and a dash of pink. She’d seen this many times as a kid, but had she appreciated it the way she did now?

  Daisy fired up the propane and let it warm the grill. She opened the wine to let it breathe and tossed the salad in the ceramic bowl she had brought with her.

  When the grill sizzled, she salt-and-peppered the steaks and set them over the flame. The aroma brought back memories, particularly of her father who always preferred being outdoors to staying inside the house. He’d often come home from work, search around the house for her, and prod her to join him on a walk to the water. “Gotta get some salt air in you, Daisy,” she remembered him saying. “It’s good for the soul.”

  Maybe that’s why she chose to work for a relief agency that focused on coastal areas. Not that she spent all that much idle time at the beach, like she had when she was growing up. Her parents had always taught her the value of hard work, of accomplishing something by the end of each day. She had carried those admonishments with her into every project, thankful that her father had left her some money to fall back on—if she ever needed it.

  Jake joined her outside wearing a fresh T-shirt and shorts, his dark hair looking towel dried. He held two wineglasses in one hand. “What’d I miss?”

  “Your timing is perfect because these bad boys are ready.” She plated two medium-well steaks and put them on the table.

  “Such service,” he said, pouring them each a glass of wine. He handed one to her. “Cheers.”

  They sat next to each other at the wooden table that had probably been in this same spot for decades, the watercolor sky showing off before them. “This steak is perfect,” he said. “You always been such a great cook?”

  Her eyes popped open wide. “Um, I grilled steak and opened a bag salad. I’d hardly call that the method of a great cook.”

  “Don’t underestimate yourself.” He swallowed another bite and washed it down with a sip of the wine. “Was I really a jerk to you when we were kids? I mean, other than that time I turned down your invitation to the dance.”

  “And the castle versus ranch house incident.”

  He frowned. “Oooh.”

  “Yeah, you kind of were.” She laughed and shrugged. “I can’t really blame you. Not anymore, at least.”

  “Oh no?”

  “One thing I recall about you as a teenager is how fast you moved.” She paused, sipping her wine and looking out to sea, remembering. “I always thought you were just, I don’t know, ignoring me on purpose. And maybe you were at times.”

  He groaned. “I wasn’t.”

  “Okay.” She smiled at him. “But really, now that I see how quickly your mind moves, how you always seem to have something to occupy it—and how successful you have apparently become—I’m realizing that what I interpreted as willful evasion was probably you just being you.”

  He winced. “Ouch.”

  Daisy laughed. “That wasn’t meant to be an insult. What I’m saying is that you were probably thinking about all you were going to do with your life, about your future. I was a kid with a big crush.” She gave him a shy smile. “I understand now that it wasn’t personal.”

  The sun, golden orange, hung over the sea directly west of them. Jake slid closer to her, their conversation quieting as they stared at the horizon. As a kid, she too had many goals, though most of them revolved around her ability to shape wet sand into something magnificent. But there was something even more perfect about a moment like this, where beauty and silence entwined with one another to draw two people close. Beneath the old wooden table, Jake’s hand, warm and strong, found hers. Together they watched the day sink into the sea, the glow of it shooting its swan song into the night sky.

  “I’m sorry that I ignored you back then.” He squeezed her hand. “Don’t deny that I did. Forgive me?”

  She whispered, “I already have.”

  Then, a catch in her throat reminded her of the little girl who sat on that great big expanse of sand out there, hoping her prince would arrive and, well, at least notice her. Daisy smiled knowing that he finally had.

  Jake hoped his sisters wouldn’t notice just how fine the lines of the new cabinets were. Nor did he care for them to figure out the retail cost of the upgraded stainless steel appliances that now outfitted the beach house kitchen. He had made the purchases with a brief phone call to a vendor he worked with often, charged them to his business account, and quickly painted the space while waiting for everything to arrive.

  Now that the room looked more like the kitchen it would eventually be, he wondered if his sisters would question his choices. Daisy, for her part, had swooned when she saw how the new space had emerged. Though it was still a work in progress, even he had been pleased with the results. Jake had not built anything with his own hands in years. The peaceful sense of accomplishment that working on this project brought surprised even him.

  A rapid knock on his door pulled Jake out of his reverie. He traversed the space and opened the door.

  “Well, hello there, Jake!” Lillian Madsen stood on the porch, tiger-eye sunglasses framing her eyes. She reached a hand out to him, her voice suddenly turning sympathetic. “How are you, dear?”

  Jake wiped a hand on his jeans before shaking her hand. “I’m well, Lillian. Can I help you?” He didn’t care to waste time having small talk with the town busybody.

  “Cut to the quick, okay. I understand. Well.” She swung a look around, briefly landing her gaze on the Mcafee’s house. “I’m looking for Daisy. Have you seen her lately?”

  Jake resisted the urge to close the door to a sliver-size opening. As a matter of fact, he had seen the beautiful Daisy Mcafee today. She was taking a well-deserved siesta—he’d practically forced her to lay down after she had the idea to paint yet another couple of rooms at her mother’s house. He wasn’t about to let old sell-em-while-the-body’s-still-warm Madsen disrupt her.

  “Haven’t seen her in a while, but if there’s a message, I can pass it along when I do.”

  Something stirred behind him and he turned. “Jake?”

  Daisy’s hair looked deliciously disheveled. He took in her cut-offs, short tee, and bare feet and bit back a swear. The last thing he wanted to do right
now was share the gorgeous, half-asleep woman in his house with Madsen.

  Lillian gasped. “Oh there she is,” she said, her voice in mock surprise. “How perfect that you are already here. Now Jake won’t have to play messenger for me.”

  Daisy rubbed a hand over her face, reality dawning. She stepped closer to the front door, though Jake had made no effort to invite the visitor in. “Hey, Lillian,” Daisy said, stifling a yawn.

  “Oh my. Have I disturbed you two?” Her crayon-red lips uncoiled into a smile that would make the Joker jealous. “Would you like to, perhaps, get dressed before we meet?”

  Daisy frowned, tilting her head to the side. “Excuse me, Lillian, but I think there’s a mistake. I-I’m not aware of any meeting.”

  “Well, I will have to get back to my office and fire my scheduler.” Lillian tsked and sighed, not looking surprised at all. “I apologize for the oversight but I really must speak to you today.”

  Jake cut in. “What is this about?”

  Lillian shrank back with a flare. She moved her dramatic wide-eyed gaze from Jake to Daisy. “This is a private matter between my client and myself, Jake. Unless, of course, Daisy would not mind if I spoke about it for both of you to hear?”

  Daisy put her hand on Jake’s shoulder, suddenly looking fully awake. “I’ve got this,” she said, commandeering the door. “Just tell me what it is, Lillian. You can say it in front of Jake.”

  Her face lit up. “Well, I have got an offer for your mother’s home!” She held up a folder with the logo of Madsen Real Estate & Investments emblazoned across it. “All cash, dear, so you will want to move very quickly on this. I can’t say for certain how long these buyers will wait for a decision.”

  Jake grabbed the door. “Are you out of your mind?”

  “I beg your pardon? Tsk, tsk.” The woman shook her head, her comical lips pursed. “Jake Morelli, if your lovely parents could hear you now!”