Chapter 12
Chapter Twelve
Daisy
I tucked Laila in and gave her a kiss on the cheek.
“Another story?” she asked, her eyelids droopy and her voice groggy.
“We already read four. You need some rest.” Her week of adventures had worn her out, and now that she was back in her own bed, she’d been ready to conk out for hours. The new carpet had gotten nothing but an approving grunt from her. Tomorrow, she’d return to daycare, and I’d go back to work. Alder would too.
Right now, he was upstairs tearing out carpet. I could hear the scrapes along the ceiling. He was working in the room above Laila’s. His parents had gone, and Laila had actually high-fived them on their way out.
Leave it to Weston and Magnolia to win over my naturally suspicious daughter within minutes. Heck, they’d made fast friends with Jason. He and Weston and Alder had talked all things oil industry for the two hours he’d been over. By the time Jason had left, Laila had come to terms with the transition from Dad-time to Mom-time.
I reshelved the book. Laila’s eyes were closed and her mouth was slack. I closed her door and brushed my suddenly sweaty palms down my pants. Thunks of tools hitting the floor resonated through the ceiling. Should I tell him Laila was in bed so he’d keep it quiet?
She’d sleep through everything, and then I’d be left with the reminder I was alone with Alder. His parents weren’t here to provide some sort of separation while also throwing us closer together.
Tonight, I would be going to bed alone in his absurdly comfortable king-sized bed.
I wandered into the living room. It was too early for me to go to bed. I’d gotten such better sleep in the last five nights that I wasn’t tired.
Five nights of solid slumbering because there was a furnace in bed who breathed so deep and so evenly that I went under with him despite the pillow wall. The only thing that had robbed me of some sleep was when I woke up needy, my body demanding. Alder was right there. Why couldn’t I let him make me feel good again?
The stupid thrum was starting between my legs. It didn’t take much at all. Thinking of him. Seeing him. Hearing him. I was ready to go. There’d been more than a few long baths and cold showers since that first morning we’d woken up together.
I went to the couch and huddled in the corner. Alder must’ve figured that Laila was in bed. The tool thumping had ceased.
He didn’t come downstairs.
I tucked away my disappointment. How quickly had I gotten used to sitting snug against him while chatting with his parents? At the table, he hadn’t sat on the end. He’d been next to me there, too, with his parents across from us. I’d had his company. Watching an old British series about serial killers was a lot lonelier now.
I yawned. Finally. I was tired enough to go to bed. I shut off the TV and stood. Just as I crossed the kitchen, Alder came down the stairs. His gaze softened when he spotted me.
My feet stopped of their own accord. I had him to myself, if only for a few moments. “Thanks. For today.”
“Don’t mention it. I’m glad it went as well as it did.” His smile was all in his eyes. “It’d be a long year if it hadn’t.”
“Right.” I let out a weak chuckle. “Well…good night.”
The humor in his eyes was extinguished. His gaze flicked to look down the hallway. “Sleep tight.”
“I will. It’s a nice bed.” I winced. “You might not have the best night.”
“Oh, come on. Dad only said that the bed upstairs made him feel eighty-five instead of sixty-five.”
Laughter burst out of me. “Then I should feel sixteen again sleeping in yours?”
“If you were sixteen again, we wouldn’t have been trying to have my parents see us go to bed together.” Heat lit his eyes. “I would’ve been cornering you everywhere I could in this place.”
“And out in the shop.”
He grinned. “And the shed.”
Tingles spread over each inch of my skin. I couldn’t keep going along this route or I’d remember how we used the excuse of taking the horses for a ride so we could make love in the pasture and get mosquito bites on our asses. “Until Clover busted us when she was refilling the chicken feed.”
“The feeder was probably full. Clover was just nosy.”
“All your siblings were nosy.”
“They still are. Poppy and Clover are constantly asking how this is going. Twice a day before Mom and Dad left.”
I laughed. This lightness between us was just like before— No. It was better than before. When we were teens, I was self-conscious for so much of our relationship. I couldn’t believe a guy like Alder, the guy all the other girls wanted, was with me. Me! I hadn’t had attention like his ever. Then after we’d married, there was the resentment flowing between us, a steady back and forth, each fueling their own.
But this time we were on equal footing. I had my life. He had his. We were working together and then we’d go our separate ways. Living in the same town. Working at the same company.
The refinery was like a small city most days. Employees commuted from the surrounding areas within a fifty-mile radius, sometimes more. But Coal Haven was small. I’d see Alder around. Maybe he’d hang at one of the downtown bars.
Except he hadn’t yet. It’d only been a month, but he hadn’t gone out unless it was to pick up food from Rattler’s. He didn’t park himself in front of the TV either. Alder hadn’t quit working on the house since we’d moved in.
“I’m done with the TV,” I said. “You can watch it.”
He checked his watch. “Nah. I’m going to bed too.” He swatted his stomach. “Damn nerves are getting to me.”
As if I couldn’t be endeared to him more. “Butterflies in your stomach for your first day?”
“Yes, dammit. I was just coming down to get my lunch ready.”
“Hmm. You’re packing in? I guess I thought the top always just catered in or went out.”
“Then it’d be a lunch hour and a half.”
“Not if it’s catered.”
“I don’t make that much money.”
“Yeah, you do.” I snorted. “If I made what you do, I wouldn’t have worried about a place to live. I could’ve paid off all the debt I got stuck with in a few years.”
His gaze sharpened. “What debt?”
Shit. I swallowed my rising shame. “Student loans.”
I could practically see the calculations running through his head. We’d had to split the two years of loans from when we’d been married, leaving only two years I’d had to get loans in my name only. Those should be almost paid by now.
“Vehicle loan,” I added.
“And what else?” His voice was hard. “Did someone get you into trouble?”
“No.”
“Daisy.”
“Alder.” I started for the hallway.
“I know it’s not my business, but I care about you.”
I turned, my fingers clutching the ends of my sleeves. “I know you do. You’re a good man, Alder, but this isn’t your problem.” It was just another story of how I had messed up my life, and I had to deal with it.
“I might be able to help.”
I made a point of looking around the house. “You already are. Have a good day at work.”
I scurried to the bedroom just shy of a sprint. I closed myself in and took a deep breath. He might not let the subject go. He’d already walked in on Jason’s near meltdown because I hadn’t been able to leave him when I should’ve. Alder didn’t need to know about more instances when I should’ve known better. Especially since he was the prime example of how I’d given up too soon.