Chapter 12
CHAPTER 12
I t had been a long time since he’d talked about Zara or referenced his mother in any way, so saying the words had weighed on him. Other than his therapist, Daisy was the only person he’d ever talked to about what his mother went through. Given that he’d been young when she exited his life, everything he knew had come from his father. Even though he did all the necessary research about what she suffered, most of his thoughts were focused on whether or not it was passed down to children. Because what if he was so depressed, violence was the only choice he had?
The evening he told her about his mother all those years ago, they’d sat on the steps of the Ames brownstone—which was right next door to Daisy’s matching one. He knew she was probably too young to know all the details so he sugarcoated whatever he could. But saying the words out loud helped him. Halfway through his storytelling, they walked to their neighborhood bodega to buy sandwiches and sodas. It had helped to move through the city, with everyone rushing and buzzing around them.
Her empathy as he got all the words out hadn’t surprised him, but it felt good to know that she wasn’t judging him for the thoughts he had. For the way he worried about his own future. She asked questions to help him move forward and even made him smile a lot.
Later that same night, as he lay in bed and stared at his ceiling, Rafferty finally acknowledged his feelings for Daisy. It had been growing for months, but he’d shoved them down as deep as he could. Her beautiful smile, her generous heart and her kind soul had completely changed that.
Now, twenty years later, he was in bed and still thinking about her. The only difference was that he had a drooling kid tucked into his side and a large furry dog snoring at one end. A small smile tugged at the corner of his mouth as he looked them over and then watched the early morning sun sweep through the room. The night before had been quite a surprise for him. Everything from Daisy showing up at his house, the tears, to talking about their exes. Not to mention that highly charged moment before Cal had woken up because of a nightmare.
Apparently the feelings that he had at nineteen were still there, just… different . He had thought about kissing her, but also knew that jumping into something like that so soon after reconnecting was not the right way to do things. Both of them had traumatic relationship history and turning a moment of bonding romantic felt weird. The way he saw it, they were now in each other’s lives and they could figure this out one day at a time.
Besides, he had no idea if she wanted him the way he wanted her.
Even if all he could suddenly think about was the fact that she was sleeping in the bedroom across the hall, her floral scent permeating his entire home and her warm brown skin glowing against the white sheets.
Quit it , he told himself and swung his legs out of bed. Huffing drew his attention to Boots who was stretching and waking up as well. Pulling a T-shirt on over his pajamas, he tucked the covers around Cal and quietly guided the dog out of the room. In the kitchen, he turned on the coffee, grabbed the leash and took his furry companion for his usual morning walk. Once he was back home, he fixed his coffee and started on breakfast.
So far, everything about their reunion had been disorganized. Their first meeting hadn’t been planned, their second was a bit of a mess and their third had been filled with confessions. He didn’t want them to have more awkward encounters, because that had never been them. Even when she was six and had moved into the house next door, their friendship had started smoothly. Sure, she was quiet and shy, but she always turned to him when she needed him. That’s who they’d been to each other, through high school, until that first kiss. It might have taken them time to get back to this place, but he wouldn’t let them fumble their way through it.
“I don’t know what the eggs did to you, but that seems a little extreme.”
Startled, he dropped the whisk. Intending to glare at her, he turned around and froze at what she was wearing.
A white shirt that was two sizes too big—like maybe stolen from his cupboard, but clearly wasn’t—with the top few buttons undone was tucked into dark wash jeans and the sleeves had been rolled above her elbows. Her hair was pulled back in a loose braid, strands fluttering around her makeup free face. In comparison, he looked like a slob in his dark sweats and gray T-shirt. At least he’d tied his hair back so she wouldn’t see what a mess it was in the morning.
“Good morning to you too. Did you sleep okay?” he asked, surprised that he sounded very calm despite the racing of his heart.
“God, yes,” she groaned and his body responded instantly. “That might be the second best bed I’ve ever slept in.”
“I’m glad.” Turning to the eggs to hide himself, he nodded towards the coffee pot. “Fresh pot. Milk in the fridge, sugar on the counter.”
He listened as she moved around behind him and poured the eggs into the pan. It sizzled for a moment before settling as it cooked. In the other pan, he spread out the strips of bacon and turned around as she stepped in his way. Her hand landed on his chest and he reached for her hip, their bodies inches apart. Her eyes glimmered as she smiled, enticing him to do all the things he told himself he couldn’t and wouldn’t.
“Breakfast is burning,” she whispered.
“Fuck.” He turned away, frowning when he realized she was messing with him. “You’re trouble.”
She laughed and hoisted herself onto the counter like she did the night before as he scrambled the eggs and flipped the bacon over. He moved past her to put bread into the toaster and made sure not to make anymore contact. As much as he wanted to know what she felt like in his arms again, this wasn’t the time. Even if the spark between them still sizzled.
“What are we doing today?” she asked.
“ We ?”
“The shop is closed because everyone was at the wedding and I need a day off. You don’t seem to be running off to fight fires, so yeah.”
He smiled and served the food. “Gotta take Cal to school, other than that…I’m free as a bird.”
“No landscaping work today?”
“If I check my emails, the answer will be yes. So I’m not checking my emails.”
She laughed and kicked out her bare feet, drawing his attention to her multicolored toenails. “I’m all for not checking emails. How about we go to a park after dropping Cal off?” Boots barked, signaling that he totally understood the word park and she winced. “Never know what words I’m supposed to spell out these days.”
“P-A-R-K and W-A-L-K are good bets. We’re still figuring out the rest.”
“I like figuring things out.” She sipped on her coffee with a smirk.
“Me too!” a squeaky voice said and both of them looked over as a sleepy Cal stumbled into the kitchen. Grateful for the interruption, Rafferty squatted as his son came over and collapsed into his arms. “I smell bacon.”
“Nobody says good morning anymore.”
Cal giggled and nuzzled into him some more. “Good morning, Dad. I smell bacon.” He heard a soft laugh and his son pulled back to look at her, eyes wide and filled with hearts. “Miss Daisy!”
“Good morning.”
“Did you have a sleepover?”
At her hesitation, he realized that never in Cal’s life had he woken up to someone unfamiliar in the house. Especially one that looked like Daisy. While they hadn’t done anything they couldn’t talk about, it still felt so weird to address it with his son. Thankfully Boots provided a much needed distraction and Cal moved on.
“Phew, that felt too close,” she said, shoulders slumping.
“You did sleep over.”
“But then he might want to know why.”
Chuckling, he nodded and carried the food to the table. “He does have a tendency to ask a million questions, but you’re not a stranger.”
“But I kind of am, right?”
“You’ve never been a stranger in either of our lives. He might have only met you, but trust me when I say that he knows you.”
She chewed on her lip. “I don’t want to cross any lines or confuse him, though.”
Which was exactly his issue, right? His decision to not date back in the city was partly because he didn’t want to bring anybody home and have Cal get attached only to have everything fall apart. His son liked everyone, even those that had stranger danger written all over them. He wanted to believe that Daisy would be different, but they were still figuring them out. She was right to be cautious, because this might not be anything more than a recreation of their friendship.
“I know,” he admitted with a sigh.
“Were you named Daisy because you like flowers?” Cal asked as soon as he shoved food into his mouth.
He’d been teaching his son table etiquette, but when excited, Cal turned into an animal. There were egg and toast crumbs around his mouth, food was on the table between his plate and chest.
“I don’t think so. But your father introduced me to flowers, actually.”
“Are daisies your favorite flower?”
She chuckled. “Maybe in my top ten.”
“You can have ten favorite things?”
“I believe that you can have many favorites, because each thing could make you feel something different.”
It was the most Daisy answer ever and he smiled, sipping on his coffee as he watched his son fall in love with the beautiful woman in their home.
“Cool! So what are your favorite flowers?”
Leaning back, she held a hand out and tapped each finger as she said, “Carnations, peonies and lilies. I also love a flower called ranunculus.”
“They sound pretty.”
She leaned in, grinning at him. “They’re beautiful. I’ll show you one day.”
“How?” Cal’s eyes were so wide, eyeballs ready to pop out of the socket.
“I have a flower shop.”
“Oh yeah!”
“Your nonna showed me how to take care of flowers, so when I was old enough, I opened my shop.”
Breakfast abandoned, Cal leaned forward with a big smile. “Can we go today?”
“I don’t know, you have to ask your dad.”
He almost leaped onto the table in excitement. “Can we, Dad? Can I go learn about flowers?”
“After school.”
His son deflated instantly, slumping into his chair with the most epic of pouts. “But…flowers are more interesting than school .”
Daisy hummed and said, “Actually, you learn everything you need to know about flowers in science class, which will help you explore further later.”
Cal didn’t seem to believe that, but because she held some kind of power over his kid, he nodded and returned to his breakfast. He knew they’d talked about not confusing his son, but it was clear that Cal was enamored by Daisy. On top of that, watching her interact with him warmed his heart. She was being herself, the same girl he’d known back in the city, and she had both Ames men wrapped around her finger.
“What flower do you think I’ll like?” Cal asked.
The smile she directed at him was dazzling and his son pretty much swooned. “I think you’d like lilacs and peonies.”
“Are they pretty?”
“Most definitely. Lilacs can be found in different shades of purple, hence the name. And peonies are the most beautiful.”
Cal’s eyes were wide and sparkling and he totally understood the feeling—she had that effect on him too. “That makes you a peanises.”
She snorted and reached out to dust Cal’s face. “Pee-uh-knee,” she said slowly, nodding as Cal repeated it back to her. “There you go. One peony, two peonies.”
He snorted. “Pretty flowers have weird names.”
“Son, you need to finish up or we’re going to be late,” Rafferty said and Cal grunted, shoveling the last of his eggs into his mouth. When he took his things to the dishwasher, he felt Daisy watching him. “What?”
“It’s hot. You being a dad.”
“ Daze ,” he grunted, feeling warm all over.
“What? You’ve always been hot, the girls in school liked reminding you of it often.”
“ You never said that before.”
“I’m saying it now.” She shrugged and stood up. “Come on, finish up or we’re going to be late,” she added with a wink and joined Cal at the sink.
She’s going to be the death of me .
As expected, it took some more convincing to get Cal to school. Rafferty promised that they would visit the flower shop afterwards. It was only once Indigo arrived that Cal got out of the car, everything and everyone else completely forgotten at that point.
At Wildes Fields, the largest park in town, they put Boots on his leash and let him set the pace for their walk. Being an older gentleman, the dog liked to stroll and stop often, sniffing and staring at absolutely nothing. When they reached the cordoned off section where dogs were taken off their leash, Boots was nervous then excited once other dogs came over to sniff him.
Backing away, they sat down on a bench outside the fenced area. Daisy bumped her shoulder against his and said, “Boots reminds me of my first day of school in New York.”
“Are you saying I need to get him a friend?”
“Wouldn’t hurt. It helped me.”
“Don’t even think about putting this idea into Cal’s head.”
She smirked. “I can’t make any promises, but I’ll try.”
Shaking his head, he leaned forward and rested his elbows on his thighs. The breeze wrapped her lavender scent around him and he sighed happily. They sat quietly for a while, the sound of dogs interacting and people chatting carrying the weight.
“Wanna do lunch with me sometime? Or even dinner?” she asked.
He glanced over and saw the earnestness in her eyes. “Are you asking me out, Daze?”
Pink tinged the tops of her cheeks and she nodded. “If you’re into that sort of thing.”
“With you? Always.”
“Good. Lunch or dinner?”
“Lunch might be easier. Unless Cal is invited too?”
She hesitated and flashed him a sheepish smile. “Maybe just us this one time?”
“Of course. I only asked so I can make babysitting plans.”
“You sure?” she asked and he could see the worry in her eyes.
“Absolutely.”
She nodded, lips split into a smile. “This weekend?”
“Yes. Wait,” he muttered and pulled his phone out of his pocket. He remembered adding a bunch of things to his calendar. When his eyes landed on the three day blue banner, he sighed. “I can’t this weekend. How about sometime during the week?”
“I can make that work. What’s going on this weekend?”
“I have to be in New York for a client meeting.”
She tilted her head. “Why don’t you sound excited about it?”
“It’s a three day trip and I haven’t decided if I should take Cal with me or not.”
“Does he not want to go back to the city?”
He shrugged. His father would probably be able to keep Cal entertained if asked, but he didn’t want to disrupt his son’s routine. Besides that, he was driving up and Cal would not enjoy the two hours he’d be trapped in the car.
“Okay, tell me about this client.”
He smiled, glad that she still understood his long silences. “She’s one of those wealthy Upper East Side ladies, lots of money and doesn’t know what to do with it. Or at least that’s what the folks at the office insist. I think she’s doing something great with her money, especially since she’s got this plot of land in Harlem and her foundation wants to build a community garden for the families they work with.”
“That sounds amazing.”
He nodded, rubbing a hand over his beard. “The plans I drew up are also pretty awesome, if I say so myself. Now I need to get them to sign off on everything so we can start the work.”
“So that’s why you’re going to the city, to convince them.”
Chuckling, he straightened up. “Something like that.”
Her hand landed on his arm and squeezed. “Use your dad voice . Everything will work out.”
“My dad voice? What the hell is that?”
She laughed and pulled her hand away, he missed her touch instantly. “It gets low, rough and sexy, all serious-like. But I think you could modulate your tone for these rich pricks.”
“Sexy, huh?”
“It’s hot,” she admitted in a whisper.
“That’s twice in one day, Hero. You got a thing for me or something?” he joked and she shrugged, eyes fixed ahead as pink crawled up her neck.
I have a thing for you, if that helps .
Boots was suddenly up against the fence, front paws attempting to lift over the top. Rafferty leaped off the bench and rushed over to open the gate for him instead. Clipping his leash on, he brought the dog back to where they were seated and Daisy was instantly loving on him. Boots looked happy as shit, tail wagging like it might propel him off the ground. It didn’t surprise him at all that all the men in the Ames household were taken by this woman.
And now he couldn’t wait for this weekend to go by quickly.