Daisy smirked. “You’ll have to watch my channel to find out.” She handed him twenty dollars. “Thanks for the loaner. I’ll have it washed before you get back.” She winked. “Go buy yourself something pretty.”
He chuckled. “I’m not taking your money.”
“Why not?”
“Because …” He closed the distance between them and dug his fingers into her hair. She stiffened at first and then melted as he allowed her hair to slip through his fingers like fine silk. “This was totally worth it.”
Her eyes softened. “That was the worst line I’ve ever heard.”
He opened his mouth to protest. He wasn’t feeding her a line. He meant it. He’d go without socks for a month to be able to do that again.
“But, it was the best delivery.”
He scrubbed her fingers against her scalp and her body shivered.
Beckett’s hands moved towards her sides. He wasn’t thinking, only acting on instinct, and all his instincts told him to hold her close.
“Are you two still fighting?” Quinton brushed past them and grabbed his shoes out of his room.
Beckett put space between him and Daisy. She did the same, her back pressed against the wall as she stepped away. He took in a breath, the air colder now that he wasn’t sharing it with Daisy. “Not fighting,” Beckett assured him. “Just a little flirting.” He smiled at the pink dusting that appeared on Daisy’s cheeks.
“Dude—that’s my sister. Don’t.” Quinton smacked the back of Beckett’s head. “We’re going to be late.” He turned to Daisy. “Vivian and Jason are in the kitchen.”
“Great.” She headed that direction and didn’t look back.
Beckett wished she’d looked back. They’d had a moment. Well, he’d had a moment. He thought she’d had one too. He didn’t go around touching women’s hair—ever.
Were his social skills really that off?
He hadn’t been out of the country for that long.
“You ready?” prompted Quinton.
“Just have to brush my teeth.” And forget the feel of Daisy’s hair in my fingers. Because that was one of those things that had imprinted itself into his brain so he could pull it out on dark nights far from home. Although, he had a feeling he’d be thinking about it all day today too.
Chapter Four
Later that morning, Daisy gave her approval for the final cut of her post on the coconut and olive oil hair mask. She ran her fingers through her hair again. It was thick and luscious and not at all heavy like she anticipated the oils would make it feel.
Jason lay across her king-sized bed, reading Percy Jackson for the hundredth time. Though he’d read all the books in the series, he always came back to this one. Daisy kept a tattered copy on her nightstand just for him. It came in handy when he was forced to come to work with his mom for a couple hours.
“Okay.” Vivian hit the button to upload the video and sat back while the progress bar slowly made its way across the screen. “Tell me about this man sleeping on your couch.”
“I—uh. He’s Quin’s friend.”
Vivian drummed her fingernails on the computer table. “Bor-ing.”
Daisy laughed. “What do you want to know?”
“I don’t know. Why am I just finding out about this guy? I’ve been your editor—”
Daisy held up her palm and cut her off. “Best friend and editor.”
Vivian flipped her beautiful black hair over her shoulder. “You know it. So why is this the first I’ve ever heard or seen of a homeless older brother’s best friend? I’m hurt, Daisy, and I don’t hurt easily.” She pulled her shoulders forward, feigning a wounded heart.
Daisy shoved her shoulder. “You’re such a drama queen.”
“Tell meeeeee.” Vivian’s legs bounced. “I have zero excitement in my life—I need this.”
Daisy laughed. Though Vivian had Jason as a teenager, married and divorced his abusive father, she lived the ultimate quiet life. She and Jason both loved to read, so often the only sound in their house was the ticking of clocks and the occasional oven timer to remind them to put the books down and eat. She didn’t like drama in her own life, but she loved to read it in romance novels. Any hint at romance in Daisy’s life was like dangling a steak in front of a wolf.
“I wish there was something to tell. We grew up with Beckett. His parents are ultra strict—like you’re going to Hell if you step a toe out of line. He spent a lot of time at our house and his toes were always out of line. He’s been out of the country for most of the last ten years. I think, and this is just my opinion, but I think he couldn’t wait to get away from his parents—his dad especially.”
Vivian twisted her neck to look at Jason and then came back to eyeing Daisy once she was sure Jason was sufficiently lost in the pages of his book. “He looks rough.”
“That’s because he probably spent the last three months sleeping in the jungle somewhere. I’m thankful he showered before he slept on my couch.” She shuddered.
Vivian made a face.
Daisy wanted to put her friend at ease. Vivian didn’t trust men—especially new ones. Beckett would be around the house on and off for who knows how long; they’d all have to get along. “He’s a real softie inside, though. I mean, he spends his days dig wells and irrigation lines to improve the lives of people in third-world countries. His whole job is to help people he doesn’t know.”
“Really?”
“Yep, he has the heart of a crusader—a champion for the underdog.”
Vivian tipped her head. “He sounds great.” The progress bar disappeared and a smile face emoji filled the screen, indicating that the video had uploaded successfully. “The man bun is bad, though. You should tell him how bad it really is—as a friend.” She typed a summary of the video and added links to follow Daisy’s channel, check out Daisy’s other hair care videos, and order Daisy’s signature lip balm made from 100% all-natural products.
The stretched-out, faded T-shirt and frayed cargo shorts Beckett wore when he left the house came to mind. “If I were really his friend, I’d give him a head-to-toe makeover,” Daisy said.
Vivian spun in her chair. “You should! And we should film it.”
“Wait, what?” Daisy buzzed her hands through the air.
“We’ve been wracking our brains to come up with something out of the ordinary to draw in the executives at KPaka. We know they’re following you and the sales rep was all over getting you a line of lip products to go with your balm. We should totally do a segment on men’s beauty tips.”
“Men’s beauty tips?” Daisy repeated dubiously. “That has nothing to do with makeup.”
“Think about it.” Vivian went back to typing and adding links. “Your target audience is women between the ages of 21 and 55. These women have men in their lives, and what is more attractive to a woman than a man who looks and feels his best?”
Daisy mulled over the idea. “Maybe a small segment—like four episodes interspersed with my regular beauty tips, might work. It’s definitely outside the box.”
Beckett did have hottie potential. He was so good-looking as a teenager. He already had the facial hair; it just needed to be sculpted. There was a barber uptown who might be willing to trade a style for free publicity … The possibilities flowed freely now that she’d opened herself up to the idea. She grabbed a pad of paper next to the keyboard and began writing.
Vivian finished up with the video and made it public, then began posting links on social media sites. Since she could do these tasks in her sleep, Daisy started talking.
“Okay, I think this would be good for ratings—especially if Beckett comes out as cute as I remember him or even better.” She frowned. “He used to be on the thin side, but he’s filled out.”
“Digging ditches does a body good.” Vivian wiggled her eyebrows.
Daisy’s chest grew warm—another dreadful side effect from her fair skin. Her chest blushed when she was truly embarrassed. Thinking about the way she�
�d ogled Beckett’s bare chest this morning was one of those moments. She really needed to banish that image from her consciousness.
She cleared her throat before going on. “I also like it because Brittany hasn’t done anything like this—ever.” Her rival constantly accused Daisy of stealing her ideas—no, wait, she didn’t say steal; she said recycled. As if that made the accusations any less slanderous. Brittany was a one-woman show. She didn’t hire an editor or videographer. She did everything on her own—a fact that she used to poke fun at Daisy through snide comments in her videos, who hired Vivian when the workload got to be too much.
Hiring Vivian was the best business decision Daisy had made to date. Vivian helped Daisy maintain balance in her life. MyHeartChannel would easily take over every corner of Daisy’s day.
Vivian not only did editing, posting, and manage social media; she brainstormed ideas, managed the production and distribution of Daisy’s lip balm, and courted sponsors. This, in turn, allowed Daisy to stay active in her comments section and interact with her subscribers, which was a major reason for her continued success. No matter how popular she became on the Web, she put her subscribers first.
“Do think Beckett would go for it?” asked Vivian.
Daisy tossed the pad of paper on the desk. “No. He’s such a guy’s guy, there’s no way he’d spend an afternoon talking beard cream.”
“Would he at least let you get him a haircut? We could get one good episode out of that.”
Daisy bit her thumb as she thought about how much convincing she’d have to do. The Beckett she’d grown up with would have laughed in her face and told her to buzz off. He seemed like the same guy this morning, stalking her to get his sock back. She’d played along, but she’d grown and changed over the last ten years; perhaps he had too. There was only one way to find out. “I’ll talk to him about it.”
Her stomach immediately swirled with nerves. Getting up close and personal with Beckett had all sorts of possibilities. Her head still tingled from his fingertips in her hair. She hadn’t anticipated his deep and abiding attention, nor his confession that he flirted with her—especially in front of Quinton.
The best scenario would be a full-on man makeover for four episodes. The worst scenario would be a huge drop in ratings and her heart getting all tangled up in a ten-year-old crush and one that was quickly growing.
Chapter Five
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Beckett suppressed a growl. “What do you mean, it could be weeks before I can get into Cambodia? I thought everything was already in place.” He shifted the phone so he could see his boss better. Since his boss, Kelly Thane, was rarely in the same state—let alone the same country—as the people she oversaw, Kelly insisted on video calls. She believed they provided an in-office, personal experience creating a team environment.
“It was,” said Kelly, “but a small militant group started a revolution last night and we’ve got to wait it out.”
Behind him, Daisy was watching a Sweet Home Vermont video on making brownies on her phone in the kitchen. She’d made the same brownies two days ago and the pan was already clean. He may have had a hand in making them disappear.
Every once in a while, he’d hear the clink of a bowl on the countertop or the light whooshing of ingredients being added to the batter. He liked having her close by. She had this perpetual energy and enthusiasm for life that spilled over into his thoughts and made him smile for no reason whatsoever.
He lowered his voice. “Is there somewhere else you can send me in the meantime? I don’t want to overstay my welcome.”
Daisy began humming quietly. The tune was familiar and catchy. After spending a couple days helping Quinton build stalls behind his clinic as payment for taking him in, Daisy gave Beckett a list of movies he absolutely must catch up on. Top of the list was The Greatest Showman. That’s where the song came from. Something about rewriting the stars …
Sheesh—he was going soft. He needed to get back to work—back to being useful in the world. His eyes hurt from staring at the screen for so long and his body felt like a puddle of sludge from sitting around.
Kelly squinted at the screen and moved to the side, trying to see around him. “Looks like you’ve got it cush for now.”
He lifted his eyebrows but refused to comment. Living with Quinton and Daisy was cush. They had more food in the fridge and pantry than the three of them could eat in a week. The fresh fruits and veggies were top-notch—nothing bruised or wilted. The house was spotless and welcoming. And, he was really starting to enjoy the mint shampoo—it tingled. If he didn’t get out of here soon, transitioning back to his real life was going to stink.
Kelly leaned back in her chair. “Look, we may only have a small window to get you in and out if the country remains unstable. I don’t want to risk having you get set up somewhere else only to have to pull you out again. Hang tight.”
“What if I came in and worked on grant proposals? We could always use the extra funds.”
Kelly snorted. “Like I’m going to let you do that.”
“Why not?”
She paused. “You’re not trained for it.”
Though he’d happily run away from home after high school graduation, he hated that people didn’t see him as smart. Just because he didn’t have a college degree didn’t mean he was illiterate. “I can learn.”
“Not in a couple days.”
Daisy hit the chorus and sang with gusto. She had no idea he was on a video call with his boss or she probably wouldn’t use a wooden spoon as a microphone. Then again, this was Daisy, so maybe she would. A smile tugged at his lips. Her rendition was just as sweet as her brownies.
“Who is that?” Kelly asked loud enough that Daisy’s singing stopped.
The next thing he knew, Daisy was hanging over the back of the couch and over his shoulder. Her long, luscious hair fell forward like a curtain of red silk. All shiny and straight, the strands tickled his arm. She smelled of vanilla and, oddly enough, beeswax and honey. He wondered what it would be like to have her lean over the top of him, her hair falling across his chest …
“Hi, I’m Daisy.” She smiled at the phone propped up on the coffee table. Before Kelly could respond, Daisy ooohed. “You have the most amazing eyelashes! They’re so thick and dark.”
Kelly blinked in surprise. “Thanks. I didn’t put on mascara today.” She said it like she was making an excuse for the way she looked. Almost like she felt subpar. Which was silly, because she was just talking to Beckett—she didn’t need to get fancied up for him. In fact, he preferred it if she didn’t.
“You don’t need it—not with those butterfly wings. Try some Jamaican castor oil at night and you’ll never have to wear mascara again,” said Daisy.
“I’ll do that.” Kelly laughed lightly and her fingers went to her lips. “Will it work on lips too?”
Beckett stared in wonder at the two of them. Seconds before, he’d been having a professional conversation about civil war, and now they were trading beauty tips. He’d never seen Kelly be anything but a hard-nosed boss. But now, she looked … fun and a little vulnerable.
“Send me your address and I’ll send you some sweet almond oil lip balm. It has vitamin E to speed up the natural healing process—you’ll love it.”
Kelly shook her head. “I don’t want to be a bother.”
“I promise it’s not a problem.”
“If you’re sure.”
Beckett cleared his throat. “Can we get back to figuring out how to get me out of the country?”
Daisy turned her face towards him. He could feel her b
reath on his cheek and struggled to remain focused on the phone. “Geeze, Oscar. No need to grouch.” She turned back to the phone. “I’ll tell you who could use some calming essential oils …” Daisy hooked her thumb in his direction.
Kelly laughed. “He’s mad because he’s grounded to the States for a while.”
“Uuuummm, are you staying here?” Daisy bit her full, pretty bottom lip and her eyes darted around the room.
“I could get a hotel,” he offered. The ends of her hair brushed his arm as she tucked it behind her ear. He thought back to a couple days ago when he’d buried his fingers in her red tresses. It was silky then, and it didn’t look near as soft as it did today.
“Not necessary.” Her hand pressed down on his arm, doing some funny things to his pulse. “I mean, let’s talk about this situation for a moment.”
He twisted, pulling away from her so he could think clearly. “What’s there to talk about?”
“Well, you are taking up primo real estate on my couch.”
“Yeah?”
“I don’t know if you know this, but couch rental isn’t cheap.”
He waited without comment. Daisy was getting at something and he had a feeling he wasn’t going to like it.
“Since you’re my brother’s best friend and all, I’m willing to work a trade.”
“What do you want?” He folded his arms.
Her eyes dipped to his biceps and back up to his face. She licked her lips. “I want to give you a makeover.”
Kelly burst out laughing. Beckett simply burst out a laugh. “You’re kidding.”
She smiled easily, as if she expected his reaction. “I’ve actually given this a lot of thought. I’d like to do four episodes for my channel, each one detailing the process of making you over from head to toe.”
“Yeah, no.” He resisted the need to comb down his beard. It was getting too long, even for him. He’d look like some backwoods moonshiner if he let it get any longer. He could cut it himself, though—no need to plaster his face all over some girly vlog.
EveryDayLove!: A MyHeartChannel Romance Page 3