by Jessa Chase
He stepped forward into her physical space, and he noted with growing interest that she didn’t move backwards to safety, even if her eyes widened noticeably and she chewed on her lower lip.
“I know this place is amazing, Daisy. I told you, it was one of my favorite places growing up.” He reached out and held her hand in his, rubbing his thumb in lazy circles over her wrist. He could feel her pulse quicken under his touch and he found great satisfaction in that. Maybe she was feeling the same way he’d been feeling all day.
“You were amazing today. Watching you is like watching an artist at work.”
Daisy laughed. “Now that’s just an awful lie if I ever heard one. I’m no artist. You’re just looking around town and seeing the majority of women here are either married, or twenty years older than you. And usually both.”
He caught her eye and held it. “Not true. Well, that last part might be true, you’d know the population of Madelia better than me these days.”
He tugged her closer to him and drank in her smell. He wasn’t sure what she wore, but it was light and breezy and fit her perfectly. Maybe it was just the way she smelled every day. Whatever it was, he wanted to experience it more.
“But I’m not attracted to you because of a lack of other options. I’m attracted to you because you’re beautiful.” He pressed his lips to hers, gently at first. She didn’t fight him, but she didn’t kiss him back either.
“I’m attracted to you because you’re strong, and you’re intelligent,” as he spoke, his lips continued to lightly graze hers. An invitation, not a command. “And you’re more than a little bit wild.”
“We shouldn’t do this,” she said, but contrary to her words, she opened her lips, inviting him in for a deeper kiss.
He relished her taste, the way she felt in his arms. She was smooth and supple, with long lean arms that exuded the kind of strength he’d been talking about. The kind of strength that came from working hard, every day, at a job that you cared deeply about.
She moaned against him and he nearly lost his mind with need. Cole wrapped his arms around her and pulled her against him, until his entire mind was filled with her smell, the sensation of her closeness overwhelming him and thrilling him at the same time.
“I won’t let this complicate things,” he said after a moment. “But I had to see if you tasted as good as I remembered, or if it was all the alcohol’s fault.”
“Well?”
“Definitely not the alcohol to blame.” He dipped his chin and caught her lips again, walking her backwards in his arms until her back hit the counter.
“Cole,” she said after they both came up for air. Her voice was breathless, and all he could think about was stealing her breath away somewhere they could lay down and get more comfortable.
He ducked his head and nipped the sensitive skin along her neck, eliciting a surprised yelp from her that made him chuckle.
“Cole,” she repeated, her voice a stern warning, but her hands wrapped around his biceps and pulling him closer a contradiction.
“You keep saying my name like that, it makes me think of the other night.” He smiled suggestively, and saw her cheeks color. “I haven’t been able to get you out of my head, Daisy.”
She groaned, and it sounded to him like part frustration and part excitement. Needless to say, he felt encouraged.
The tinkling sound that signaled the front door opening snapped the two of them out of their carnal moment. Cole reacted a little slower than Daisy, who had already squeezed herself out of his embrace and was walking toward the door.
“Oh my, gosh. Hey there, little man,” Daisy said in a high, sing-songy voice. Cole turned and saw her approaching a small child and an older woman. “Thank you so much for dropping him off here today, Linda. I appreciate it so much.”
“Don’t worry about a thing, Daisy,” the older woman replied. “It’s always a pleasure with Mason. I hope everything is going well with you and the diner?”
Daisy shrugged. “As well as can be expected. Hey, Mason, I want you to meet someone...A friend of mine.”
She laid a hand on the boy’s shoulder and faced Cole, and he couldn’t help but notice that the blush was still riding high on her cheeks. “Mason, this is Cole. He is Mrs. Shuster’s great nephew and he’s come to help with the diner.”
Cole gave the child a small wave, ignoring the comment about helping with the diner in favor of observing Mason. He looked shy, and very serious for such a small child. Cole noticed how different he was from Daisy, who was all sunshine and brightness. Her red hair contrasted heavily with his darker locks, but they had the same electric blue eyes.
“Cole, this is my son, Mason.”
“Hi Mason, it’s nice to meet you.” Cole smiled and waved once more.
“I’m sorry to run, but we do really have to be getting home. Cole? Are you okay with going?” She was grabbing her coat off of the coat rack and shuffling Mason out the door, as if asking if he had anywhere to go was just a last minute consideration.
Cole nodded and headed her direction. “I’ll be fine. Let me get out of your way so you can lock up. I did want to give you my number, so we could discuss another meet-up regarding the diner.”
He scribbled out his cell phone number on the back of an old receipt left lying on the table, and as he handed it to her, his fingers brushed hers and her scent filled his nose again. For a brief crazy moment he considered planting another kiss on her lips.
To his delight, he saw a few of those crazy thoughts running through her head as well, and that blush he’d brought up in her cheeks earlier had yet to fade completely.
“Thank you, Cole,” she murmured, her eyes cast downward. “I’ll talk to you later.”
KATE
“And then on top of it all, he kissed me!” Daisy’s voice squeaked down the line as Kate balanced her cell phone on her shoulder. She kept one hand on her daughter’s wiggly torso while deftly removing her diaper.
“So, explain this all to me again,” Kate replied, reaching across the changing table for a fresh diaper. She’d only very recently mastered the one handed diaper change, but she found it was coming in handy more and more often as Ella became more mobile.
Daisy sighed, and Kate thought she heard shades of herself a few years before. The frustration of an attraction that confused you, excited you, and scared you.
“I met him before, at McGinty’s. We, uh, well we spent the night together. Then Mrs. Shuster gets sick and suddenly he’s here and he’s talking about closing down the diner.”
“And he kissed you.”
“And he kissed me. Yes. And my brain is all over the place, I don’t know up from down. I’m just…”
“Twitterpated?”
“Ha-ha. No, I wish, at least that would be less complicated. I don’t know what I’m feeling to be honest. He makes me mad, but he makes me hot under the collar too. That man can kiss all good sense out of you, I’m telling you.”
Kate chuckled. “I know a man like that.”
“Oh, he’s nothing like Logan. Logan is a good, sweet, caring man. Cole is…well he’s from Chicago and he’s an accountant of all things. And he doesn’t care about Madelia at all, I don’t care what he says.”
“What do you mean?”
“I guess he spent some time here as a kid, with Mrs. Shuster. And he talks like they are good memories, but how could he have any good memories of this place and then come along and close down the diner?”
“Well,” Kate hedged. “I mean it’s definitely possible to have mixed feelings about this town. I know you love it here, but more than a few people had a rough time growing up in such a tiny town.”
“You mean Logan and Daniel?”
“Well them, definitely. But I can’t say I loved this town when I was younger. I love it now, I love living here and seeing the town prosper. But it wasn’t always a fairy tale.”
Daisy sighed heavily. “I can see that. Thank you, Kate, for giving me another perspectiv
e. Am I being childish about this?”
Kate picked up Ella and she cooed against the phone. Before Kate could answer, Daisy squealed with delight.
“Oh my, gosh! Is that Ella I’m hearing? Hi there, pretty baby!”
Kate laughed. “Ella says hello back. She just dropped me a nasty diaper, so she’s in a pretty good mood.”
“Oh man, I don’t miss those days,” Daisy replied. “Might be worth it for such a cutie-pie though.”
“Thinking about another baby?”
“Oh, God no. No, no no. I love Mason with all my heart but I was crazy thinking it’d be so easy. Such a silly teenaged idea, I guess. I can’t believe how lucky I got with him, he’s such a good kid.”
“He’s pretty special,” Kate agreed. “His momma should take a little more credit, I think.”
“Well, aren’t you sweet? Thank you, Kate. This is rapidly turning into the ‘call Kate and tell her thank you a lot’ phone call, isn’t it? I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be sorry. It’s Danny and Logan’s boys night out tonight so Ella and I are just hanging out, enjoying each other’s company.”
“You’re a good momma, Kate,” Daisy said. “I’m lucky to have a friend like you to talk to.”
“Hey, you’ve always been an ear for me when I have had problems in the past. Seems only fair I’d be the same for you.”
Kate shifted her weight and plopped Ella on her hip so she could finish cleaning up the changing table. She’d wiped down every available surface, but she was pretty sure she’d have to take the diaper pail outside and burn it to get rid of the offending odor.
“Any advice on what to do about Cole?”
Kate smiled. “I’d say, don’t be too quick to judge him. He might have hidden depths you haven’t seen yet. And don’t beat yourself up for enjoying those stolen kisses. You’re a grown woman and you’re allowed to enjoy yourself.”
“I needed to hear that,” Daisy said after a moment. “I definitely needed to hear that. I think after my surprise with Mason, I had pretty much put men in general on the back burner. Of all the men I had to have a stupid one night stand with, it had to be Mrs. Shuster’s grandnephew. Because of course.”
Kate chuckled. “What did you used to say about Daniel and Claire? Star-crossed lovers? Sounds like you might have a little of that going on yourself.”
Daisy scoffed. “I don’t know about that. I mean, he’s gorgeous and he has really soft lips. And he didn’t seem like meeting Mason was all that scary. I don’t know.”
“Not knowing is sometimes the most fun part. Just relax, and see what happens.” Kate laughed out loud at that. “Okay, I know I’m the least likely person to ever say that, but just hear me out. You have enough on your plate, worrying about Mrs. Shuster, worrying about the diner. Don’t let yourself worry too much on Cole and his soft lips. Just see what you think about leaving that particular part up to fate.”
“That does appeal to my hopeless romantic side,” Daisy said. “I have to go, before Mason completely riots for a lack of dinner. Thank you, again, for everything Kate. It means the world to me.”
“Anytime, Daisy. You have a good night and say hi to Mason for me. We should have you two over for dinner one of these nights. You deserve to have somebody else wait on you for once.”
Daisy laughed. “I’ve never been one to say no to a dinner invite. We’re pretty flexible, so any night that works for you and Logan sounds great.”
They finished with their goodbyes before hanging up. Kate looked at her daughter, her tiny, beautiful bundle of joy, and had to smile herself.
It wasn’t so long ago that Kate had been completely unable to picture herself as a wife or a mother. She’d had a very different life planned for herself, before fate landed her back in Madelia and back in Logan McAllister’s arms.
She’d learned pretty quickly that you didn’t just say no when fate had other plans for you.
Kate hoped her young friend wouldn’t have to learn that lesson too harshly. She liked watching Daisy and her son grow and mature over the years, loved hearing about life from the younger perspective. She hadn’t had a chance to meet this Cole yet, but she hoped that he would be good for the town.
“What do you think, little missy?” Kate cooed at Ella, who blew bubbles in response. “Do we need to do something, try and help auntie Daisy out?”
Chapter 5.
DAISY
Exhausted, Daisy flopped face-first onto her bed at the end of the evening. It had been another busy day at the diner, and Mason had been full of energy and questions when she’d taken him home. She found herself full of questions as well, a burning desire to find out exactly what Cole meant by wanting to get together for another meet-up.
Her rational side said he had to mean the diner. After all, wasn’t discussing the future of the diner the entire reason he was even in town? But in the darkest regions of her heart, she hoped, just a little bit, that he had meant he wanted to continue the discussion they were having before Mason had walked in.
Daisy felt her cheeks burning when she thought about that discussion. There hadn’t been many words exchanged, but man, she was pretty sure she heard him loud and clear. He’d wanted her, just as much as he’d wanted her that night at the bar. Did she want him? Did she want all the complications that came with a man like that?
Feeling bold, she fished her cell phone out of her pajama pocket, along with the scrap of paper on which Cole had written his phone number. Like a lovesick puppy, she’d carried the stupid thing around an entire day.
Before she had a chance to change her mind, she tapped out a quick text.
This is Daisy. Wanted to give you my number too.
She waited for a reply, her heart in her throat. She hadn’t been so nervous about speaking with a guy since, well since high school. Back then, every new interaction with a boy had been exciting, a little bit of dangerous fun. She’d felt invincible at the time, as if the attentions of men gave her strength, gave her power.
She’d learned the truth behind that lesson the hard way, she thought ruefully. The attentions of men hadn’t given her anything except a swollen baby belly and a sudden change of address. Her mother had kicked her out not long after the two little lines had showed up on that gas station pregnancy test. She was 16 years old, in absolutely no position to raise a child, but at the time it hadn’t seemed like there’d been any other choice.
Looking back, Daisy was glad she’d made the choice she’d made, because she couldn’t imagine a day without her little Mason in her life. He brought her joy, he made her life so much brighter and happier than it had been before. He also gave her a reason to be strong, a reason to push herself further.
Lost in thought, the message notification sound of her phone made her jump.
Thanks.
Short. To the point. And completely infuriating. Daisy groaned and tossed the phone onto her mattress before burying her head in her pillow.
She knew she should be trying to sleep now that she’d gotten Mason off to bed, but she suddenly could not will herself to think about anything other than the maddeningly sexy Cole and all the temptations he’d offered her.
And thinking about that man led to absolutely nothing that resembled restful relaxation. He’d pushed just about all her buttons the other day in the diner, and she’d played right into his hands. His presence, his very existence brought about old fears and uncertainties that she thought had been long since buried.
Fears and uncertainties about men, about her desirability or lack thereof. Fears about this one man in particular, since it seemed that the more she got to know him to more she wanted to know. Daisy might not have had a lot of worldly experience, but even she knew it was a desperately stupid idea to get involved with a man like Cole.
And yet.
And yet.
She growled with frustration as her body recounted how it had felt to be in his arms, even as her mind rebelled. It had felt good, being with him. It had felt nice
to be wanted, to have a man interested in more than her ability to bring him a steaming hot cup of coffee.
Before she could change her mind, Daisy grabbed up her phone again and began to type.
COLE
He’d texted Thanks. Cole looked back at his phone for the fiftieth time, willing her to respond but knowing he hadn’t given her anything worth responding to.
A million different replies had swirled through his head when he’d gotten her text. A million better, more suave, more sexually compelling replies. And he’d gone with Thanks
He was about to head into the kitchen for another beer when his phone beeped. He had a message. He flipped past the lock screen and felt his heart skip a beat when he saw Daisy’s name pop up.
So about the other day…
Cole’s mouth felt as dry as cotton when he read her words. Even after his last stupid response, here she was, attempting to connect. Attempting to continue a conversation.
I’m not sure if I should apologize or ask you out on a date.
He’d typed it out impulsively, not even pausing to read what he’d written before hitting the send button. This wasn’t him, this just wasn’t who he was. But something about Daisy just made him crazy.
The feeling appeared to be at least somewhat mutual, when her reply came back in less than a minute.
I don’t know either.
He sighed, and sat the phone down. He was really wading into dangerous territory with this woman. He’d somewhat hoped that she might have felt more confident than him. After all, she was the single parent, she was the one who had to think through all the pros and cons of this. He had no one waiting for him at home. He had no one he had to consider other than himself.
And maybe that was the problem. Only fairly recently had he found himself even longing for someone else in his life. He’d spent most of his adult life focused on his career, on climbing the ladder and making the most of his working years.