Chapter 34 Daisy
I can’t get the image of Isaac lighting that match out of my head as I look over my shoulder at the bakery before Miles and I head home.
Coupled with the heat of the fire and the sound of the powerful streams of water that doused the flames, it clouds my thoughts, making the opening of the bakery take a backseat to it all.
While Eli said the building’s structure was spared, it certainly looks worse for wear as Miles and I stand outside looking at it. Neither of us says anything, his arms tightening around me as I let out a ragged sigh.
The paint is peeling and bubbling up. All that hard work that Miles and I, along with our friends, put into this place feels like it’s been ruined.
Curled up and burnt is the adorable pink and white striped awning, and all the custom-made floral garland that was supposed to for last years, is blackened and soot-covered.
Around the outside of the building is bright yellow caution tape; an investigation will begin tomorrow to determine the cause of the fire.
The city doesn’t need to investigate. I know what caused the fire, and I know who.
While all of this was reported to the police and the security footage was turned over to them, they still have to do the investigation.
This way, I can submit the claim to the insurance company and hopefully get reimbursed for all this damage.
“Why do you think he did it?” I absentmindedly ask Miles.
My body is trembling in his arms, the fear still lingering.
He could come back at any time, try to burn our house down instead, and while I was hell-bent on getting out of the bakery as it was burning, I’m not sure I have it in me to fight again.
I let out a yawn. My body feels like it’s run a marathon, exhausted and defeated. My mind wanders to all the what-if scenarios.
Sloane and I could have died in there, all because I made the worst choice of my life to get into a relationship with Isaac. That stupid piece of paper, that restraining order, meant nothing to him, and I knew that.
“Daisy, I wish I had an answer for you,” Miles whispers, his voice soft and soothing. “But even if I did, would it make any of this better?”
“No.”
It wouldn’t. Knowing Isaac’s reasons won’t bring the bakery back. It won’t heal the trauma Sloane and I will now endure because of it. It won’t stop my racing thoughts or my fear of him.
“Are you okay, baby?” Miles now asks. It’s a question asked out of concern and sympathy, but he already knows the answer.
I lean into him more, my hands clutching his T-shirt, the smell of smoke permeating his clothes, but I still find so much comfort in his touch and in being near him.
“That was a stupid question,” he murmurs. “Of course you’re not okay.” He lets out a hard sigh, and I feel the tears begin to well up in my eyes.
Spilling over, I let them fall, not realizing that I haven’t really cried or mourned the loss of what was supposed to be. I’m trying to see beyond the wrecked building, beyond the damage and the thoughts of Isaac.
I’m trying to remember how much energy and love I put into this and how Miles was with me every step of the way, and I smile through the tears. A reminder that despite all of this, there’s still a building standing there, waiting for me to fix it.
This is a place I grew to love long before it ever became mine, and I will not give up on it. It’s what brought Miles and me back together, healing all of our broken pieces with a dream we shared.
“It’s not a stupid question. It shows you love me, and you’re scared and worried about all of this.
” I flick a hand in the direction of the mess in front of us.
“But I’m going to be okay. The bakery will be okay, and us, Miles, we’re going to be the greatest love story this little village has ever seen. ”
“Fuck, Daisy,” Miles whispers into my hair. “You are the strongest person I’ve ever met, and I am so damn proud of you.”
“Thank you for being here for me. For taking me home after all this and for—I don’t even know anymore. For just being everything I need you to be,” I say, holding him tighter.
“Always, Daisy. Always.”
We head around back to our little cottage that was luckily spared by Isaac’s wrath, but I’m sure that was intentional. Had I been in the house, he would have tried to burn that down instead. With him, it was always about trying to hurt me.
But just as we’re walking into the house, my phone starts to ring. It’s late, and I’m guessing it’s Alana or Sage checking in, but when I fish my phone from my pocket, I see a number I don’t recognize.
“Don’t answer it,” Miles barks, taking the phone from me. He answers it instead.
He doesn’t say anything for a few seconds, my heart racing, the adrenaline spike from earlier is back, and I can feel my palms start to grow sweaty as heat creeps up my face.
“Hello?” he rasps out in a harsh question, and I can hear a voice on the other end, a muffled tone. “Oh, yeah, hi. Sorry, here, let me get Daisy.”
Handing the phone back to me, he whispers, “It’s the police officer.”
“Hello?”
“Hi, Miss Carmichael, it’s Officer Benson. I’ve been assigned to your case. I have some good news for you,” he says, and as if my heart wasn’t beating fast enough already, it kicks it up a few notches.
“Okay.” Trying not to get my hopes up, but all I really want for tonight is for Isaac to be caught.
He left the bakery as soon as the sirens started, fleeing just like I knew he would and avoiding being caught. Not only did he violate the restraining order, but he tried to kill Sloane and me.
“We were able to locate the suspect,” the officer pauses, and I can hear papers rustling in the background, “Isaac Meyers, and we have arrested him for violating the restraining order. He will be held until tomorrow when he sees the judge, but we hope to have more evidence against him. The investigators will be out early tomorrow to look over the building, and I currently have a team going over the security footage.”
My words are caught in my throat, an overwhelming sense of relief washing over me, but I’m still so angry.
How could someone who claimed to love me do something so evil, so destructive and so vindictive? All I want is for it to come back on him, for Isaac to face the consequences of his actions, because in the end, breaking up with someone isn’t a crime, but what he did is.
“Thank you,” I mutter, not sure what else to say. This day, this night has taken everything I have left to give.
“We’re sending an officer out tonight too. We’d like to have someone on the scene to make sure there aren’t any break-ins. We’ve found that after an event like this, people are curious.” He says that last part with a hint of sarcasm, letting out a soft chuckle.
“Thank you,” I reply again. “I really appreciate it.”
My emotions are a mess as I end the call with the officer. I want to drive over to the station and beat the fuck out of Isaac, but I also want to crawl into my bed and cry. I want to be grateful that no one was hurt, but I also want to wallow in the very real fear that we could have been.
More than any of this, I want to forget it ever happened. I want to wake up tomorrow and have this all be a terrible dream.
“They found Isaac,” I tell Miles, leaning into him as we walk into the quiet stillness of our house. Nothing has felt better than being here, the solace and comfort it brings.
Miles tenses against me, and he blows out a slow breath. He feels the same sense of relief, and if I had to guess, he’s cycling through the same thoughts I am.
If given the opportunity, Miles would threaten Isaac within inches of his life, possibly beating him bloody. But that isn’t the way to solve this. It never has been, and we both know that.
“Thank fuck, because I wasn’t going to sleep tonight,” Miles admits, closing the door and locking it. “I think we both need a shower and to sleep for the next twelve hours.”
“Totally.”
The next morning, we wake early, dealing with the stress the best way we know how: out on the water with our boards.
With the sun barely up, we catch wave after wave, silently, but together. It’s companionable and calming, and when Sloane and Owen join us, it feels perfect. Even better when Kai shows up with Nate, followed by Alana and Flynn.
And we surf together, just like when we were younger and would all meet out here before life got too busy. All we’re missing is Sage, but she’s back at the house getting breakfast ready for everyone.
“Sage said she’d rather be at home than out here today,” Nate says, all of us bobbing along on our boards, waiting for waves.
“Dude, for real?” Kai quips, shaking his head. “You gotta get her out here more often so she’s not afraid of these big ones.”
Looking over his shoulder, he tips his head in the direction of the incoming waves, calling it, and we all sit back and let him take it. We watch as he rides it all the way in, tossing up a shaka in response.
After that, we all catch wave after wave, riding them into the shore, ready to start our day.
“How are you doing?” Sloane asks me, just as I’m about to ask her the same question.
Smiling, I reply, “I was just about to ask you that.”
“I’m okay. Sleep was a little tough last night, but I’m going to be fine. Always am.” She winks at me, linking her arm through mine as the guys carry our boards back to Nate and Sage’s.
“I don’t want you to have to be okay, so if you’re not, please let me know,” I tell her, hating that she’s always had to be resilient.
And now I’ve put her in a position that compromises her safety, something Alana and I put above everything else when Sloane lived with us. She needs stability and safety, and I hope she knows that I would do anything to help her through this.
“Things are better now, Daze,” she says, her words a little quieter. “I don’t worry so much anymore, and things with Owen are great. He’s the reason I can sleep at night; the reason I can overcome things like this.”
“Yeah, but—” I start, and she cuts me off, her words louder and firm this time.
“I won’t let you blame yourself for this. He’s to blame, not you. No guilt. We’re both safe, and Owen said the bakery is going to be okay too.”
I nod softly, but the guilt is still there and probably always will be. If it wasn’t for me, Isaac wouldn’t have…
It’s always there in the back of my mind. All the things he’s done lead me to this thought. But I have no idea what the future would have held if none of it had happened. If Miles hadn’t gone on tour with the band. If we hadn’t broken up. If Isaac had just disappeared.
So many thoughts.
“I’m sorry,” I now say, needing to get it out. “I never meant…”
“Daisy, seriously, I don’t blame you, and I’m not going to let you apologize for something you had no control over.”
She stops walking, looking at me. She rests her hands on my shoulders, and we stand together, the tears collectively welling up in our eyes. Eventually, they spill over, and I reach out and wrap her in an embrace.
“I hate that he did this,” I whisper, not wanting to give him any more attention, but he consumes my thoughts.
“Me too,” she rasps back, taking in a slow, ragged breath. “But he doesn’t get to win. Not now, not ever. So after this, we don’t talk about him and what he did.”
“Agreed.”
“I do have some good news,” Sloane now says, as Miles looks over his shoulder at me, stopping, but I flick a hand, telling him we’re fine.
“What’s that?”
“I got my grade on my final project,” she starts, and a massive smile spreads across her face.
“And?”
“And I got a ninety-eight. The highest grade in the class, but even better, my professor asked if he could use my designs in his course presentations in the future.”
I squeal so loud that Owen, Nate and Miles stop, turning around to find Sloane and me jumping around, celebrating.
“I’m so proud of you, Sloane,” I tell her, pulling her in for a hug.
“Back at you, Daisy.”