Chapter Nine
DAISY
“Asher,” she mumbled as tears formed in her eyes.
“It’s a simple yes-or-no question. Do you still have things to get at the store?” he asked once again, patiently.
During their whole interaction at the store, he had not sounded angry, annoyed, embarrassed, or anything but calm. She didn’t know how to react to that.
“Come on, Little One. If you still have things to get at the store, I can help you,” he gently offered.
“I should just go home,” she whispered, pulling her face out of his grip.
She had what she needed to have lunch. She could get everything else delivered later.
What would Janelle say when she found out what? If she ever did, Daisy was going to make sure to tell her that she would be moving towns, so nothing like this would happen again.
“Daisy.” His voice was hard and commanding. “Answer the question.”
“Yes,” she exhaled before she could stop herself. “But I don’t want to do it anymore.”
“Why?” he asked.
She looked at Asher in shock. Did he really not know why she wanted to go home? Had nothing embarrassing ever happened to him to make him want to crawl under the bed and never see another human being again?
“No lying,” he said as she opened her mouth.
“Because people are going to be staring and whispering. I don’t want that. So, I’ll just pay for what I have and go home,” she replied.
“Oh, Little One, you think people are going to be mean to you?” Asher gently said. “They aren’t going to do that. We don’t do that in Springfield.”
She rolled her eyes. Everyone judged other people. Even if they told her they didn’t, she would catch them doing it.
“There are a lot of people here who have medical conditions. People in Springfield are gracious and won’t judge you for what you can’t control.
We look after people and make sure that everything is okay.
” He kept his voice steady as he said each word.
“I know I said they were gracious, don’t judge and look after people, but you probably noticed that none of them came up to you to see whether you were all right.
They didn’t because I got to you. They know, if I’m there with someone, everything is going to be all right. ”
Daisy had a hard time believing that the people in this town were that kind. No town she had ever lived in had been that compassionate.
“Now, how about you and I go shopping for the rest of the things you need?” he offered.
“It’s okay, I’m just going to go home. I’ll order the rest online,” she quietly said.
That was what she’d originally wanted to do and what she would stick to for the rest of her life.
“Hmm, I don’t think you should go home when you’re already here. Let’s finish up your shopping, and then you can go home,” he stated, leaving no room for her to argue with him.
“You always get your way, don’t you?” she asked, looking up at him.
He smiled at her. “I do. Is it that easy to tell?”
“Glaringly obvious,” she muttered and pushed her cart.
Asher chuckled before grabbing the cart. “Nope, you aren’t pushing. Hold onto Chilli’s leash and just tell me what you need. I’ll push the cart and guide you .”
Daisy lifted her head to look at him. Did he know?
“What’s wrong?” he asked.
“Did you know I was having trouble finding things before?” she blurted out before she could stop herself. “Never mind. I have a couple more things to get.”
But Asher didn’t move. “I did happen to see you walk down the last aisle and then this one without picking anything up. I was going to offer you help when Chilli started to alert you. I waited. I haven’t been around a service dog before.”
“That’s embarrassing,” she mumbled. “That you saw me.”
Asher gently placed a hand on the small of her back. “There is nothing to be embarrassed about. I know people who have lived here for over ten years, and they still don’t know the layout of the grocery store. Granted, they like to change it once a year.”
“They do?” she asked.
Hopefully, she never had to go grocery shopping again. It sounded horrendous that they would change the store’s layout every year. Did they love inflicting pain on introverts who didn’t like to go out?
“They do. Something about keeping the store fresh and making people walk to see different things that they may not think they need. People love it, so they continue to do it,” Asher explained. “Do you have a list of things you need?”
She held up the piece of paper, and Asher grabbed it.
“Perfect. You just follow along. If I’m going too fast or you need to sit down, you let me know,” he said as he started to push the cart down the aisle. She nodded. “Words, Little One.”
“Yes, I’ll let you know.” But she would be putting up with it for as long as she could take it, so she didn’t have to tell him.
Daisy kept quiet as Asher explained the current layout while they got some of the things she needed.
“Is there a way for you to manage your blood pressure?” he asked.
She shrugged. “The doctor who told me didn’t really explain things, but from the little research I’ve done, I just need to make sure that I eat enough salt, drink enough water, don’t get up too fast, and eat small meals throughout the day.”
“Can you say that first part again?” Asher stopped walking and turned toward her.
Daisy looked at his face and saw the anger there.
Shit. Most people didn’t really pay attention to her words.
Well, Janelle did and told her to go to another doctor to figure out how she could help it.
That would require Daisy to make an appointment and talk to someone she really didn’t want to.
She also didn’t know anyone in Springfield. Which doctors to go to or avoid.
“I think I would rather not,” she mumbled and looked away.
“Did I hear you right?” There was a pause. “The doctor you saw didn’t explain anything to you. Was he the one who told you to get a service dog?”
She nodded. “He said it would help me not faint as often.”
The doctor was right. Chilli had saved her several times from passing out, helping her get to the ground before she fainted, so she didn’t hit her head.
Asher took a deep breath and slowly let it out. “Do you want to talk to a doctor here about how you can manage it better? I know two doctors who would be more than happy to explain things to you. They are Daddies as well.”
“You shouldn’t tell me their business. What if they didn’t want me to know they were Daddies?” she asked before she could stop herself.
“Little One, look at me,” Asher commanded.
Her eyes wandered over to his. “Stupid eyes following your command.”
“Smart eyes.” He gave her a knowing look.
“I would never tell other people’s information if they didn’t want me to.
Mike and Harold are doctors, and they have let everyone know that they are also Daddies.
I’m not just willy-nilly telling anyone.
They are doctors at the hospital, but on the side, they also see Littles when they are sick. ”
“I’m not a Little.” Lie. She screamed Little, and she knew it. It was hard to keep that side of her locked away.
“You know how I feel about lies.” He arched an eyebrow. “You don’t have to say it out loud. They don’t have to know if you don’t want them to. I just want to say, if you want to talk to a doctor, who people trust, I can contact them.”
Daisy shuffled on her feet, not knowing what to say.
“Think about it. You have my number if you want to talk to one of them or not,” Asher said before he started moving the cart once again. “We have one thing left, and then we can go check out.”
Daisy looked surprised at the half-full cart Asher was pushing. She hadn’t even realized that they had gotten almost everything on her list.
“Though I don’t know how I feel about all of these boxed and precooked meals,” Asher said as he stopped in front of the sugar. “Do you know how to cook?”
“Unless cooking noodles and boxed meals count, then no,” she replied.
Her mother never took the time to teach her how to cook. And when she was on her own and tried to learn herself... well, it was a disaster. She almost resorted to calling in the fire department.
“Do you want me to cook for you every week and bring food over so you don’t have to eat these?” he asked as he pointed to the cart.
“It’s okay. They really aren’t that bad,” she said. “They have gotten better over the years.”
Asher just continued to look at her.
“I’m really okay.”
She didn’t need him cooking for her when she wasn’t going to be staying in Springfield for much longer. If he were a good cook and she found out, it wasn’t going to end well for her. It would be so much harder to leave, and she didn’t need that right now.
“If you change your mind, you can let me know. There was a Little boy who stayed at one of my properties one time. He didn’t know how to cook either. I cooked for him every single week while he lived there,” Asher explained as he grabbed the sugar.
“What happened to him?” she asked before she could stop herself.
“He moved. Recently, he told me that he found the love of his life, who can cook,” Asher said. “Are you ready to go check out, or do you need anything else?”
“That’s all,” she replied.
Daisy wished she would be able to find someone who could cook for her. But first, she needed to find a town that wasn’t going to judge her for having a service dog. She needed to find the town that felt like home... Whatever that was supposed to feel like.
“Oh, do you need anything? I realize you haven’t gotten anything you need,” she said.
“I was here to deliver something, actually,” he replied, pulling into a checkout line. “I was walking out when I saw you. You looked a bit lost.”
“Shh.” Her eyes went wide.
“Did you just shush me?” he asked.
Daisy nodded. “Not everyone needs to know that I was lost.”
If no one but him knew, it would be the best. She didn’t need something else for people to make fun of her about.
“Sorry, I didn’t know you were trying to keep it a secret.” Amusement painted on his face. “But you don’t have to worry. There are a lot of people in Springfield who don’t know the layout of the store.”
“But—” She stopped herself.
Asher started placing her things on the conveyor belt in order from heaviest to lightest, and by whether they were cold or not.
“Asher, how are you doing?” the cashier asks.
“Lucinda, I’m doing great. How about you?”
“Can’t complain too much. Are you paying cash or card today?”
“Card,” Asher replied before Daisy could say anything.