Chapter Four
DAISY
“Y-you went through my phone?” Her eyes were wide as she stared at him.
She felt violated.
“I only briefly looked at the notes and the health app, but I didn’t look at anything else, and I didn’t read any of your notes,” he tried to reassure me.
But that didn’t help one bit.
“Little One, I promise, I would not violate you like that. My mind was only on your health and safety,” he gently said. “I promise.”
Asher took her hands and gave them a gentle squeeze. It calmed her system.
“We can call someone who can vouch for me. I promise I would never do anything to harm or violate you,” he said.
“It’s okay,” she mumbled.
Even if she wanted to call someone, she didn’t want to inconvenience them with this small matter. She wasn’t going to see Asher again after tonight, so she shouldn’t worry about it too much.
“Now, how are you feeling?” he asked.
“Tired and weak,” she replied honestly.
She didn’t know why she felt like she could tell Asher everything, but he made her feel safe somehow. He made her feel like she mattered.
“Good girl for answering. Do you have any health conditions?” he asked.
“Just severe anxiety, and I get panic attacks.” She glanced down at their hands.
He was still holding hers, rubbing soothing circles on the back of her hands.
“You got really anxious when Jerome walked into the office and started asking questions, right?” he asked.
Daisy nodded.
She didn’t want to get anxious and faint, but so much had happened tonight. She was way out of her comfort zone. All she wanted to do was go home and never leave again.
This was one of the many reasons Daisy didn’t have many friends and didn’t go out much. People expected too much of her, and when things got a little overwhelming, all she wanted to do was shut down.
“I’m sorry that happened,” he gently said. “I didn’t think anyone would come back here to talk to me. I’m sorry you got in between all of this and passed out. I’m sorry that I didn’t make sure you were safe and it resulted in all of this.”
“It’s okay,” she whispered.
“It’s really not okay,” he replied. “It’s my fault that you fainted. It’s my fault that your hands got injured. I should have taken better care of you.”
Daisy shook her head. “It wasn’t!”
Asher gave her a small smile. “It’s okay for me to be at fault and for me to apologize. I sincerely mean it when I say, I’m sorry for everything that happened tonight.”
Nerves ran through Daisy. How was she supposed to reply to that? How was she supposed to deal with this so she could just go home?
“I don’t want to make you uncomfortable. Let’s change the subject,” Asher offered, and her shoulders dropped in relief. “How did you get here tonight?”
“I got an Uber,” she replied.
“Hmm, I’ll drop you off at home. I don’t want you going into a stranger’s car,” he said. “Do you have anywhere else you need to go before I take you home?”
“You don’t need to take me home. I’m really fine,” she rushed out.
As much as she wanted him to take her home, she didn’t want to make him go out of his way to do so. She shouldn’t want him to know where she lived and take care of her.
“I want to, though. I’ll be worried about you if you call an Uber.
It’ll keep me up at night, wondering whether you made it home safely.
I don’t want anything bad to happen to you,” he gently said.
“But if you aren’t comfortable with it, could I give you my phone number so you can text me when you get home? ”
Daisy thought about it for several seconds. She really didn’t want to take an Uber home, given how exhausted she was. Car rides were her favorite place to sleep, and she knew she would drop off.
Anything could happen to her at that point.
“Or, if you want to come with me, we can call someone who can vouch for me. I know the sheriff. We can tell him I’m taking you home,” he suggested.
Daisy nodded. “Sheriff.”
A smile blossomed across his face as he pulled his phone out.
“Baxter?” Asher said. “You’re on speakerphone.”
“Asher, what do you need?” a deep voice rumbled through the phone. “I’m about to go out on patrol."
“I’ve got a Little One here who wants you to know I’m taking her home. If anything happens, then you know that I was with her,” Asher explained. “Her name is Daisy.”
Daisy tilted her head as she looked at Asher. He kept calling her Little One, like he knew she was a Little. But how did he know? She hadn’t said anything, and she’d made sure to dress appropriately. But he had said he was a Daddy, so maybe he just knew.
“Daisy, are you there?” the sheriff asked. “I’m Sheriff Baxter. You can trust Asher. He’s a good man, but now I know he’s taking you home. Do you know anyone in town who can check up on you tomorrow?”
Daisy opened her mouth to say Elsha, but she didn’t want to bother her. Who else could she call to check up on her?
“No one who will come to the house,” she mumbled.
“Anyone who can call you?” he asked.
“Juliet or Grace,” she said. “One works at the coffee shop, and the other is a bartender, I think.”
Daisy didn’t really know them well, but she had their phone numbers. She hoped, if she texted them, one of them could make sure she was okay in the morning.
“Juliet and Grace are good girls. Why don’t you text one of them to give you a call in the morning to make sure you’re okay? If they don’t hear from you, they’ll contact me,” he explained. “But I can assure you, Asher isn’t going to do anything.”
Asher smiled at her. “Thank you, Baxter.”
“Any time.”
He hung up the phone and looked at Daisy. “Why don’t you text one of them, and then we can leave?”
Daisy nodded and brought up Juliet’s phone number. She pretended to be typing before she turned locked her phone and looked at him.
“All sent?” he asked.
She nodded once more, not trusting herself not to give away that she had lied.
Asher didn’t like lying, but she didn’t want to bother Juliet.
It was late at night, and Juliet could have a shift tonight or have to wake up early in the morning.
She just had to make sure Asher didn’t find out she had lied.
“Do you need anything before we leave?” he asked, standing. “Do you need to go potty or a snackie?”
She shook her head. Daisy had already taken up so much of his time, and she didn’t need to do anything more. She didn’t need to be indebted to him more than she already was.
Asher held his hand out. “Come on. I’ll take you to my car, and you can tell me where you live.”
She placed her hand into his warm one and walked out of his office and through the bar to the front door. Once they were outside, Asher turned around and zipped up his jacket on her before they walked to his car.
“I want you to remember to bring a jacket next time.” He gave her a pointed look. “I don’t want you getting sick.”
“Sorry,” she mumbled.
She had contemplated many times whether she should have brought a jacket, but ultimately she decided not to. She was in the Uber and then in the bar, not really standing outside much. Not until Asher came barreling into her life.
Daisy also didn’t know if the bar would have a cloakroom to hang jackets or how warm it was going to be inside.
This was why Daisy didn’t go to unfamiliar places.
“It’s okay, but from now on, you bring a jacket, no matter what,” he said. “Hop in.”
Asher helped her into his car and buckled her up before she could even attempt to. She hadn’t ever had someone take care of her like this, and while it was uncomfortable and she didn’t know what to do, there was something blossoming inside her.
She wanted it to happen more. Him taking care of her and just being with him.
She wanted Asher to be the one to take care of her.
Daisy lightly tapped her mouth. “No. We don’t think about that.”
Asher got into the car and tilted his head. “Are you okay?”
She forced a smile. “Yes.”
He sighed and gently grabbed her hands. “You don’t have to lie or make yourself be okay. You can be yourself around me. I’m not going to judge you.”
Daisy looked down at their hands before nodding. She understood what he was saying, but she didn’t know whether she would actually be able to do it. It was so ingrained in her to be okay in front of people.
“What’s your address?” he asked.
She rattled off her address, a small home she was renting. She had never met the landlord, but she had his number. She didn’t even know his name or what he looked like.
“You’re my new tenant?” he asked.
Her eyes went wide. “You’re my landlord?”
Shit. How was she going to get out of this?
He nodded. “I wasn’t in town when you moved in last year, so I had my friend give you the keys.”
“Oh,” was the only thing she managed to say.
She gently pulled her hands out of his and turned her body so she didn’t have to look at him. This was becoming more and more awkward.
“I’ve been meaning to go over and introduce myself, but work has gotten a little busier, and I haven’t been able to. Is everything okay?” he asked. “Do you need anything repaired?”
She shook her head. “Everything is fine.”
The toilet liked to overfill, but she always turned the water off and back on when needed, watching it like a hawk so it didn’t overflow and flood the place. It had just started, but she wasn’t going to tell him about that.
“You have my number, correct?” he confirmed, and she nodded. “If you need anything, and I mean anything, text or call me. I’ll come and fix it.”
“Okay,” she whispered.
She felt bad for lying to him, but she didn’t want to bother him any more than she already had done.
“I mean it, Little One. The house is old. I know things are going to break eventually, but I won’t know until you tell me. It’s your space. I’m not going to invade it unless you give me permission to come in,” he said.
She nodded again, and Asher pulled out of the parking lot. As she suspected, her eyes slowly started to close as he drove down the road.
Comfortable.
Safe.