by Kitty Parker
But that is the difference between his situation and Martinez. He has no situation. There is no girl and nothing is going to ever happen and that's how he wants it to be. The kid is cool. He likes the kid. And Daisy's pretty cool, too. She's tough – he knows that much. She would have to be to have a kid so young and raise him on her own. She's brave, too, the way she just walked up to him and kissed him like she had.
Of course with the way he's been acting after she did that, he doesn't see her doing that again anytime soon. And the way she had looked when she saw him that morning, coming down the stairs with Carolina, he didn't know what that look was but he had a feeling that it was sadness. He had already made her sad and they aren't even anything to each other. What will happen if they ever are? He's a Belton. He'll tear her heart up one side and back down the other and she'll never be the same after him.
…
There's a knock on his door and he is reluctant to look to see who it is but he does, going and taking a look through the peephole. It's Matty. Just Matty.
He can't help but open the door with a frown, looking down at the little kid with blonde hair just like his mama's. Matty smiles up at him.
"We had a Valentine's Day party in school today," the kid tells him and then holds up a slim box with candy rattling inside. "Candy hearts. I brought them for you."
"Thanks," Jack says and reaches out to take them. No one's ever given him anything on Valentine's Day. Or any day for that matter before he met his across the hall neighbors.
"Mama's been baking cupcakes all day and she has some extra. Do you want one?" He asks.
Jack's not too sure how to answer that to be honest. Daisy bakes the best cupcakes as much as his opinion matters and just hearing about them now, his mouth is already watering. But what are the odds that she'll actually give him any? He doesn't deserve any, that's for sure.
And for a split second, he wonders if Daisy's sent Matty over here to ask him for her. He almost immediately groans at himself at how big of a dick he really is. Just because he thinks diabolical shit up like that doesn't mean that Daisy does.
"Sure," he answers, his voice rough and he takes a moment to clear it with a slight cough.
Matty turns and goes back across the hall, twisting the knob and pushing the door open. The scents of baking immediately slam into Jack's face as he stands on the threshold, not entering; not feeling right about entering. He can hear the television on in the living room, turned to some cartoon and he can hear the whirring of the electric mixer in the kitchen.
"Jack wants some cupcakes!" Matty can be heard telling Daisy in the kitchen and Jack expects Daisy to tell her son that Jack doesn't get any.
Instead, a minute later, Matty returns and Jack feels disappointed for a split second that Daisy isn't with him. But then he reminds himself that he doesn't want Daisy to see him. Or he doesn't want to see Daisy. He's not too sure anymore which way that's supposed to be.
"Here you go!" Matty exclaims happily as he holds out a white box and unable to help but pull up the lid, Jack sees two cupcakes fitted perfectly inside – one decked in white icing and the other in red with sprinkles on each.
"Thanks," Jack reminds himself to say after a moment and Matty keeps grinning. "Tell your ma I said hi," he then says before he can stop himself.
And then, before he can say anything else, he turns and heads back into his apartment as quickly as he can without looking as if he's running away – though he knows that that's exactly what he's doing.
Tell your ma I said hi? Why is he such a dick?
He almost doesn't have the stomach to eat his cupcakes but as soon as he sits down on the couch and unmutes the television show he had been watching, he eats them both and makes sure there aren't even crumbs left.
…
Around seven that night, he hears a knock on Daisy's door and he's in the kitchen, making himself some mac-and-cheese for dinner. He can't help himself even though he tells himself that it's absolutely none of his business. He goes to the door and peeps through the hole.
There's a guy standing at the door. It's not Matty's dad. The kid is more built than that string bean. It's a guy who looks close to Daisy's age – tall with brown hair and he's wearing black pants, a white shirt and a red tie. When the door opens, Daisy answers and she's wearing a red dress and her hair is braided and pinned up around her head and even through the tiny peephole in the door, Jack can see how beautiful she looks.
He then frowns. She's going on a date? With who? Jack's never seen this guy before – not that he keeps tabs on who's around Daisy's apartment but the walls are thin and he knows whenever someone comes to her door. And going out on Valentine's Day? That seems pretty serious. She's dating a guy? Then why the hell did she kiss him just weeks earlier?
"Hi," Daisy smiles up at the man.
"You look beautiful," the man says in return and Daisy's cheeks turn pink in a blush.
"Thank you."
Jack frowns and tells himself to stop watching but he can't seem to get himself to. Maybe this is good for him to see. He's able to see the kind of man that Daisy should be spending her time with. He can see that him being a dick to her was for the best because it's gotten her to stop kissing his cheek and his lips and she's going out with a clean-cut looking guy on Valentine's Day.
"You all ready?" The man asks.
"Yep," she smiles and nods. She then turns back towards her open door. "Good night, Matty! Good night, Shawn!"
"Night, mama!" Jack then hears Matty yell from inside the apartment.
Jack watches the guy put his hand on the small of her back and Jack sees the way Daisy smiles up at the guy and they then head away and Jack can't seem them anymore.
He pulls his head back from the peephole with a heavy sigh and a heavy stomach and he goes back into the kitchen. He pulls the pot of almost boiling water off the burner and dumps it down the sink. He's not feeling that hungry anymore.
…
Cletus comes back – finally – and he's grinning when he shows up at the garage to see Jack. And Jack actually is so happy to see him, he can't stop himself from hugging him.
"Where you been?" Jack asks even though he stopped asking that years ago. Cletus drifts around. That's what Cletus does. He's never been able to stay in one spot for too long.
"I've been 'round lil' brother," Cletus just grins. "What time you get out of here?"
"Couple more hours," Jack glances to the clock and then back to him. "You gonna head to the apartment?"
"Figure I'll crash for a lil' bit. We'll head out later tonight. Go to Joe's for a drink."
Jack nods and doesn't argue. He already knew that's what Cletus would want to do.
He reaches into his pocket and pulls out the key for the apartment and Cletus grins, taking it, and without a word, he turns and heads down the street.
Normally, Jack is always a little nervous when Cletus shows up again. Cletus has a way of throwing everything in his life in chaos but for once, Jack is excited for the distraction.
…
There's a small park next to the apartment building and when Jack gets home from the garage, he pulls his pickup truck into one of the spots and sees Matty on the monkey bars, Daisy sitting on the nearby bench, reading a book.
Jack gets out of the truck and watches them for a moment. He needs to get upstairs to make sure that Cletus hasn't completely trashed the place in just a couple of hours but he can't seem to move his feet. Instead, he just stands there, listing to Matty laughing to himself as he runs around and plays and he watches Daisy as she reads, turning pages in her books and tucking strands of hair behind her ears.
He doesn't understand how he can miss them.
But he does. He can actually – finally – admit that to himself. And now that he knows she's seeing some other guy, maybe that's what helps him to finally take steps towards them. He knows she won't be wasting her time on wanting something with him.
"Jack!" Matty sees him coming from on top
of the slide and he sees the way Daisy stiffens slightly and turns instantly to see him coming.
"Hey," Jack greets them both and he stands next to the bench, looking down at Daisy. She's looking up at him and he hasn't been this close to her since that night she kissed him. He hopes she's regretting doing that. It's not like the kiss wasn't a nice one. It was really nice and he thinks about it at least once a day. He's just not the guy a girl like Daisy should kiss.
"Jack!" Matty exclaims and then slides down the slide and comes running to him. "Jack, my birthday's coming up. Will you come?"
Jack looks down to the eager little kid. "When is it?"
"Next weekend. Will you come?" He asks again.
"Matty," Daisy closes her book and stands up. "I'm sure Jack is too busy to come."
"How old are you gonna be?"
"Six!" Matty exclaims, practically bouncing on his toes. "Come! Please come! It's at my grandma and grandpa's farm and mama's baking cupcakes!"
Hell, even if he didn't like the kid, he would show up just for some of Daisy's cupcakes.
"Yeah, I can make it. Only if your mom won't mind havin' me there," he says and then dares a peek towards Daisy.
She's hugging the book to her chest and looking down at her son. "It's next Saturday at one," she says, not looking at him and looking at Matty the entire time. "I'll put the address in your mailbox. Come on, Matty. We should go and get dinner started."
She puts a hand on Matty's shoulder and gently turns him towards the building and without looking at Jack even once, she walks away.
Jack stands there and watches them leave. He deserves Daisy's coldness. He's not going to act all hurt and offended by it. He hurt her. She had liked him and he thought she was an idiot for that so he made sure she wouldn't like him anymore. How lame would it be if he told her that he wants them to be friends? He doesn't have much experience with women. Hardly any at all. Especially a girl like Daisy. Does she even want to be his friend? She obviously wanted to be something more so why wouldn't she want to be his friend?
…
Jack and Cletus go to Joe's, their usual bar for a few beers. A few for Cletus and just one for Jack. He always likes to keep himself sober and aware when around Cletus. His older brother tends to get in trouble and Jack likes to be able to handle any mess that he gets himself into.
Carolina's there and she smiles the instant she sees Jack and she stays by his side all night. Cletus finds it hilarious, teasing that his baby brother finally went and got himself a girlfriend and Carolina smiles as if she's never heard anything better but Jack just sips at his bottle and doesn't say anything. Carolina's not his girlfriend and he's not looking to have one. They have hooked up a few times but that's all it is and that's all Carolina should expect from him. He doesn't know how to have that conversation with a girl either though.
When he finally gets Cletus out of the bar and home, he has a hell of a time getting him up the stairs, his brother insisting that he can walk himself even though he's banging into all of the walls as he walks. Daisy will definitely know his brother is back now.
He gets Cletus to collapse on the couch and he's passed out within a second. Jack drops tiredly into his own bed and expects to fall asleep just as quickly. But instead, he lies there and blinks up at the ceiling for what feels like hours.
He doesn't know what's going to happen now. He doesn't know how long Cletus will be staying here and if he leaves again, will Jack go with him this time? He likes living here in this town. He likes his apartment and his job and he feels like he's finally getting his life together for being a nearly forty year old man.
And being a nearly forty year old man, Jack should be able to tell his older brother finally no every once in a while. Because just a few days ago, the answer would have been different. Yeah, if Cletus had asked him to leave this town with him, Jack would have gone without a second thought. But now, he wants to stay. He knows he wants to stay. He wants to see if he and Daisy can really be friends because suddenly, being her friend and going to Matty's birthday party next Saturday are two things that he needs to see to.
…
As promised, Daisy has put the address of the party in his mailbox and luckily, Cletus hooks up some old friends of his and he's distracted enough for the next few days where Jack can leave without Cletus asking him where he's going.
The Greene farm is set on land for as far as his eyes can see and the house is large and white and currently, being overrun with kids running around. There are balloons and streamers and there is a picnic table set up beneath one of the large oak trees.
"Jack!" Matty spots him and exclaims, running to him at full speed.
Jack finds himself smiling a little when the kid plows into him and hugs his waist.
"Hey, kid. Happy birthday," he pats the boy on his back. "Got 'ya a present."
"Thank you!" Matty takes the box in his arms and his eyes are wide with excitement despite the other presents Jack can see on the porch, waiting to be unwrapped. "Come on!" He then snatches Jack's hand and pulls him towards the picnic table.
Jack recognizes the adults there. Her parents, Annette and Johnathan, brother Shawn, brother-in-law Nathaniel sitting with a tall, thin woman with short brown hair and Matty introduces her as Aunt Maybelle. Rosita's there, too, and Daisy is there, arranging a wide array of cupcakes on a large tray – each cupcake decorated with some sort of dinosaur theme. That guy from Valentine's Day is there, too, and he can't seem to stop looking at Daisy.
"Jack's here!" Matty exclaims as if they couldn't see that for himself.
The Greene's all greet him and he's introduced to Daisy's older sister, Maybelle, and the boyfriend, Spencer.
Shawn asks him how his lungs are and then hands him a packet of green balloons.
"Mama, can I have a cupcake?" Matty asks.
"Not yet," Daisy answers with laughter in her tone and it's obvious that the boy has asked her this more than once today. "Matty, go put Jack's present up with the others."
The boy instantly runs off to obey and Daisy's eyes finally look to Jack.
"Thank you for coming. It means so much to him," she says.
Jack gives a nod. "Thanks for invitin' me."
"Matty invited you," she then says and Jack's not sure why her reply seems to make him sting. It's true – Matty did invite him – but maybe he just doesn't like hearing Daisy make sure that he knows she doesn't want him there.
And suddenly, Jack wonders why he is there. It's a birthday party for a six-year-old boy. A boy who's not his blood or kin. He really has no reason to be there and isn't it creepy? A grown ass man showing up to a kid's birthday party like this?
Daisy's got a boyfriend and he's here. And that's what he wanted. He wanted Daisy to have another guy in her life so she would stop getting ideas in her head about the two of them. The boyfriend has every right to be here. He, on the other hand, doesn't.
But just as he's ready to make up an excuse about leaving even though he's just arrived, Johnathan speaks to him.
"You hungry, son?" He asks, standing up. "Come with me to the grill. We'll get you somethin' fixed up."
Jack almost refuses but he has a feeling that Johnathan is not the kind of man to be refused too often so Jack, still holding the packet of green balloons, falls into step beside him as they cross the grass to where the grill is set up.
"I'm sorry about Daisy," Johnathan breaks the silence once more.
Jack shakes his head. "You don't gotta apologize and neither does she. I deserve it."
"I'm not sure why she's reacting coldly to you," Johnathan admits. "This whole morning, she's been fretting, wondering when you would get here and worried that you wouldn't come."
Jack shakes his head again and his eyes float back across the yard to where Daisy is at the table and she's laughing now, looking light and so damn pretty as Spencer leans into her and says something with a smile on his face.
And that's what he wanted. He wanted Daisy to forget about
him. And it looks like that's what she's done.
So why the hell is his stomach churning as if he's jealous the longer he watches her?
…
Spencer is nice. Perfectly nice. His niece is in Matty's kindergarten class and Daisy meets him when he comes to pick her up after school and they run into one another in the hallway. He is her age – a couple of years older – and he seems funny and nice and when he asks her out for a cup of coffee the next morning, Daisy tries to think of a reason to refuse his offer but she can't think of one. There is none to be had. There had been a guy – the first guy she had shown any interest in since Matty was born – but he has shown her since she felt brave enough to kiss him that she would only be wasting her time on him.
Jack is clearly not interested in her. He barely acknowledges her existence and him coming down the stairs in the morning with some blonde latched on his arm certainly showed her that he's fine with kissing women – just not her. Message received.
Spencer doesn't mind spending time with her. He wants to spend time with her. He likes talking with her and making her laugh and they've gone out a few times – out to dinner and walks around town and he will always walk her back to her door at the end of the evening where they will smile up at one another and he will kiss her chastely on the lips and never tries to push her into doing anything more. He is nice. Perfectly nice. And he likes her.
But he doesn't give her butterflies – like someone else does – and a part of her almost hates herself because there's no reason why Spencer shouldn't give her that feeling, too.
And Matty doesn't seem to hate him – which is probably the most important thing. Spencer doesn't seem that comfortable around him but Daisy knows that not everyone is a natural around small children. She knows that not everyone can be like Jack. Spencer is good with his niece – obviously – but he seems a little awkward around Matty; like he's trying almost too hard. But he doesn't stop trying and that means so much to Daisy. If Matty did hate him, Daisy wouldn't see him anymore. As simple as that. And Spencer must know that and it must be why he's trying so hard to win the little boy's favor.