by Kate Pearce
“Be my guest. Wouldn’t be the first time that’s happened to me. There’s twenty bucks in there. You won’t get far on that.” He perused the menu and then looked up at her. “A slice with everything on it and a bottle of water, which will make your Dr. Tio happy.”
Daisy went inside, placed their order, and came out to join her father in the sunshine. The new medical center building was at the far end of Main Street, near Ted Baker’s gas station and garage. It had a nice view back toward the historic buildings in town, the new fountain celebrating the founders of the town, and the open countryside.
Her dad pointed at the distant fields. “If the Cortez ranch sells to those developers, you won’t see anything but houses over there.”
“I know.” Daisy grimaced. “Adam is really cut up about it.”
He snorted. “That boy needs to get over himself. He can’t fix what’s already been broken.”
“That’s a bit harsh, Dad,” Daisy said. “He can’t help how he feels, can he?”
“Time for him to move on. I didn’t sit around complaining when your mother up and left, did I?”
“I don’t remember much about it,” Daisy confessed. “I was only five at the time. I just cried myself to sleep every night worrying about where she was.”
Actually, she remembered the first morning very vividly. Waking up late and wandering into the kitchen to find her father in a rage, smashing plates and mugs. She’d hidden under the table until Adam found her. He’d helped her get dressed and had taken her to school. When she’d returned home, her mother still wasn’t there. When she’d asked about her, Adam told her she’d gone away. Daisy hadn’t believed she’d be gone forever.
“I’m sorry.” Her father reached out and patted her hand. He’d always been way less hard on her than he was on her brothers. “Leanne shouldn’t have left you kids, but she couldn’t stand me anymore, and I can’t say I blamed her.”
Daisy blinked at him. “You can’t?”
“I was a bad husband, Daisy. I left her to deal with six kids while I was working the land, drinking at the Red Dragon, or going out to compete in rodeos.” His smile was sad. “Sure, at the time I was mad as hell that she left me, but that was over twenty years ago, and I thought I had cause. These days I can see her point of view far more clearly.”
Daisy nodded, aware that she’d never really talked to him about her mother because she’d assumed he was still sore about it. She’d eventually stopped asking when her mother would come back because he would get angry, and she’d been afraid he’d leave her as well. He’d always held his grudges close to his chest and rarely apologized for his behavior to anyone. If he could reflect on the past and finally admit fault, it was a lesson for her that people really could change.
“You did a great job bringing us up,” Daisy reminded him.
“Didn’t have much choice, did I?” He chuckled. “There you all were, wanting to be fed and cared for just like all kids. I was lucky your Auntie Rae came and helped me out until you all got bigger.”
“Auntie Rae is awesome,” Daisy agreed. “She’s coming for Christmas, right?”
“Not sure where else she’d be going.”
Daisy stood and pressed her dad’s shoulder. “I’ll go check on the pizza. I’ll be right back.”
When she returned, bringing their drinks and napkins, Jackson was sitting at the table chatting to her dad like they were old friends. He wore a navy-blue shirt that did wonders for his eyes, his usual jeans, and cowboy boots.
She smiled at him. “What are you doing here?”
“I came to pick up some lumber for Cauy.” He nodded over at her dad, his blue eyes crinkling at the corners. “Mr. Miller was giving me his thoughts about Dr. Tio.”
“Oh.” Daisy sat down. “He’s certainly got a few opinions.”
“So I hear.”
“Hey, Daisy!” Dell Turner expertly skidded to a halt, upended his skateboard, and came over to the table. “I just wanted you to know I’m good for that long weekend of yours. Nancy says she’ll be helping out as well, so there’s nothing to worry about.”
He grinned at her and then moved off, leaving her exposed to the full glare of her father’s unwanted interest.
“You didn’t mention you were going anywhere, Daisy.”
“I was just about to tell you over lunch,” Daisy hedged. “I’m going to San Francisco for a few days.”
“To do what?”
“Well—” Daisy glanced desperately over at Jackson. “There’s a floral convention on new designs for weddings I’ve signed up for, and—”
“And the rest of the time she’s spending with me.” Jackson reached over, took her hand, and smiled at her father. “I swear I’ll take good care of her.”
“You’d better,” her dad said. “And don’t let her get involved with any of that tech stuff while you’re there. It isn’t good for her.”
Daisy had a crazy visual of her running up to the Google offices and banging on the glass while Jackson implored her to stop and wasn’t sure whether she wanted to laugh or cry.
She spotted Gina coming out of the shop with the pizza and leaped to her feet, making her dad spill his drink. “I’ll get it.”
She almost wrestled the tray out of Gina’s hands and brought it back to the table. “Do you want to share my piece, Jackson?”
With food around, at least her father’s attention would be diverted from her love life.
“No, I’d better be on my way.” Jackson hesitated as he got to his feet. “Are you up for dinner with me at the Red Dragon after you finish work?”
Seeing as he’d just saved her bacon, she wasn’t about to be difficult now.
“Sure! I’d love to do that.”
“Great. I’ll come pick you up at six.” He bent down to kiss her cheek and then tipped his hat to her father. “Have a good day, Mr. Miller.”
Daisy kept her head down and munched her pizza, all too aware that her father was still staring at her.
“Things heating up between you and Jackson, then?” he finally asked.
“He’s a nice guy, Dad.”
“I know that, or else I wouldn’t be happy about you going out with him, but that’s not what I asked.”
“We’re taking it slow.”
“By going away together?”
Daisy put down her napkin. “The thing is, Dad, in this town there are too many people interrupting us at every moment. By going away, we can get to know each other better and have some privacy.”
Her pointed attempt to shame him into getting off the subject failed miserably and he kept talking.
“You trust him, then?”
“Of course I do!” Daisy finally met her father’s gaze.
“He’s not going to murder me on a romantic weekend when all my family and half the town know where we’re going.”
“True.” He nodded and returned his attention to his pizza. “He’d probably do it a lot more quietly.”
Daisy didn’t bother to reply to that. He was her father, and his concern for her was completely natural, as was his plain way of speaking. Not going home directly after finishing work and hanging out with Jackson meant she’d avoid further questioning from all five of her brothers, who would have heard the news from her father. The thought of getting away from Morgantown without all her relatives hanging around was becoming more and more enticing . . .
* * *
“You owe me one.” Jackson looked down at Daisy as they walked along Main Street to the Red Dragon. The sky had turned a reddish brown as the sun dropped down over the backdrop of the Sierra Nevadas.
“I am well aware of that.” She smiled at him. “You rocked.”
“Thanks.” He winked at her. “Now, maybe before we get to the bar, you could tell me what’s really going on.”
She slowed down outside Yvonne’s and turned to face him. She’d gathered her hair up in a messy bun on top of her head. All Jackson could think about was plunging his hands into her
hair and kissing the life out of her.
“I need to take care of some business in Palo Alto.”
“And you don’t mean for your flower shop, correct?”
She bit her lip. “I have to go. I don’t want to, but if I don’t, the whole project will be in jeopardy.”
“Okay. So will you have any time to spend with me over the long weekend?”
“Yes, I will.”
“Then we’re good.” He leaned in and kissed her nose.
“I really don’t deserve you, you know,” Daisy murmured.
“Yeah, you do.” He angled his mouth and kissed her properly. She smelled like the sweet roses she sold in her shop.
“Okay, maybe I do.” She smiled at him, and his whole body woke up. “Do we have to go to the bar?”
“Yeah.” He sighed with regret. “I agreed to meet Blue Morgan and Jay over there for a drink.”
“Is that why you asked me to come with you?” She grinned up at him. “You needed a bodyguard?”
“I asked because I thought you might have some explaining to do.” He mock-frowned at her.
“I was going to call you this evening and ask for your help,” Daisy said. “I just wasn’t expecting everything to come out over lunch.”
He chuckled and she kissed him, which led to more kissing, until Daisy stepped back, her cheeks flushed and her hair now falling down over her shoulders.
“We really have to stop doing this.” Daisy fussed with her hair.
“Why?” Jackson asked. “I like it.”
“Because we’re in public?”
“I didn’t even notice.” He smiled at her. “One taste of you and I’m a goner.”
Her expression changed and she cupped his cheek. “Don’t say things like that.”
“Why not?”
“Because we agreed to keep this casual,” Daisy reminded him.
“That was casual,” Jackson argued back. “I didn’t use the L word or anything.”
“There is that.” Daisy grabbed his hand, and they set off again for the bar. “What does BB Morgan want with you?”
“I have no idea. He went all mysterious on me when I asked and refused to say anything until I met him in the bar with Jay.” Jackson reminded himself not to care about the relief on her face when he’d stepped back off the dangerous ledge of romantic commitment. “I’m meeting him at eight, so there’s plenty of time for us to get dinner.”
He held the door open for her and nodded at Jay Williams, the owner, who was alone behind the bar.
“Evening, Jay. We’re going through to eat, okay?”
“Sure. I’ll come find you when BB arrives.” Jay nodded. “Can I get you something to drink to go with the food?”
“Two beers,” Daisy spoke up. “Thanks, Jay.”
Jackson took his seat and spent a while studying the menu. He was more attracted to Daisy than ever, but she wanted things to stay casual. How could she even say that when they were already way beyond that? What wasn’t he bringing to the table? He hated not being good enough.
“Are you okay?” Daisy asked.
“Yeah, I’m good, thanks.” He briefly met her gaze and then looked down at the menu again. “I’m thinking of trying the crab cakes. Have you had them?”
Daisy reached across the table and took his hand. “Are you mad at me?”
“Nope. I’m just wondering what BB wants to talk to me about.” Jackson wasn’t going to get into a stupid fight he’d already lost when he’d agreed to the terms of their relationship. Maybe when they were away together, he’d get a chance to have that conversation again. Jeez . . . He almost wanted to smack himself. Why couldn’t he stop wanting things he could never have? Did he think he was somehow magically going to become acceptable or something?
“Jackson . . .”
He put down the menu. “I’m definitely going to try the crab. How about you?”
Daisy held his gaze, but he didn’t let his smile waver, and she eventually looked away. She didn’t want to have the discussion any more than he did because he was helping her out in a difficult situation after all.
As if she’d been reading his thoughts, she started speaking again. “You don’t have to come with me to San Francisco.”
“If I don’t, your dad will want to know why, and I don’t want to have to lie to him,” Jackson countered evenly. “I’ve got a couple of friends in the Bay Area. I can look them up while you’re busy working.”
Jay appeared with their beers and took the food order, giving Jackson a welcome break from the awkwardness of keeping his mouth shut. He had no right to feel aggrieved. He’d signed up for this, so he’d better stick it out or give it up.
“I don’t like lying to my family,” Daisy said quietly after Jay departed. “In fact, I hate it.”
“Then why don’t you just tell them the truth and get it over with?” Jackson wasn’t in the mood for laughing the whole thing off yet.
“Because in a few months’ time the project will be completed and I’ll be able to move on.”
“Move on to what? Something else?”
“No.” She held his gaze. “If this works, I’ll never have to go back there again.”
“I believe you said that before—in fact, you promised your family you wouldn’t go back.”
“I know I did, but this . . .” She hesitated. “Means everything to me.”
“More than deceiving your family?” More than any potential relationship with me? His heart bleated, but at least he didn’t say it out loud.
“Yes.”
“Why?” Jackson was way beyond being polite and respectful of her boundaries now. “I don’t get it.”
She took so long to answer, he thought she might up and leave him stranded again.
“It’s a very personal project for me, but I believe it will make life better for a lot of people.”
“In what way?”
“Medically.” She swallowed hard. “If someone I cared a lot about had access to this kind of technology, he probably wouldn’t have died.”
“He?”
Daisy huffed out a breath. “Trust you to zoom in on that part. I warn you, Jackson, if you start questioning me right now, I’m going to burst into tears and embarrass myself.”
“Will you talk to me about it when we’re in San Francisco?” Jackson asked.
“Yes.” She didn’t shy away from his direct question or his gaze. “I promise you.”
He sat back and picked up his beer. “Then let’s enjoy our dinner and talk about something else.”
* * *
The trouble was, he still wasn’t over it when they joined BB and Jay in the bar. Daisy excused herself to talk to Nancy, and Jay sat down with the two guys at a corner table, where both of his companions could keep their backs to the wall. If BB was a hard man, Jay Williams was even worse. A retired Navy SEAL who had been invalided out after an explosion in Afghanistan, he took no prisoners and never had any trouble in his bar.
“Okay.” BB sat forward. “I’ve been talking to Sam about this as well. She thinks it’s a great idea, but she’s not interested in camping out under the stars right now.”
Sam was engaged to BB’s brother HW and had served in the army. She’d met Jay in the rehab hospital after they’d both been injured, and they’d remained good friends.
“Makes sense.” Jay nodded. “She’s still dealing with a lot of flashbacks and PTSD.”
“Aren’t we all?” BB muttered as he took a swig of beer.
“Could you explain what you’re planning?” Jackson asked. “Because at the moment, I still have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“I want to add a survival camp kind of thing to the ranch programs,” BB said.
“Like boot camp?” Jackson frowned.
“I wish, but no, more taking them out, showing them how to start a fire, build a shelter, that kind of thing—survival skills for after the zombie apocalypse.”
“It sounds great, but there’s no way I�
�m crawling around Morgan Ranch with my bad leg,” Jay spoke up. “I’m happy to advise and talk it through with you, but I wouldn’t be able to actively participate.”
“That’s pretty much all I’d need from you, Jay.” BB nodded. “What about you, Jackson?”
“I was in the air force.”
“So?” BB raised an eyebrow. “You must have been through basic training.”
“Sure, but—”
“Could you at least help me out until I can get the thing up and running?”
“If you really need me, yeah, of course.” Jackson nodded. “I’d love to.”
“Great. I’m thinking that if this thing works out, I’ll be able to employ some retired military guys to run it for me.”
“Nice.” Jay finished his beer in one swallow.
“And there’s one other thing I think you could help out with, Jackson.” BB obviously wasn’t done with him yet. “Guided trips.”
Jackson perked up. “Like hunting trips?”
“Possibly, but I was also thinking about historical ones, like up to the ghost town, with a campout overnight. Or what January calls environmental trips to see the fauna and flora.” He rolled his eyes. “Whatever that means.”
“I’d definitely be interested in helping out with those,” Jackson said. “I’d have to square it with Cauy, though, because at the moment he needs me on the ranch, but I’m up for that.”
“Good.” BB nodded, his bright blue eyes gleaming. “I’ll even pay you.”
Jay snorted. “I should damn well hope so. You guys must be raking it in up at the ranch.”
“Most of it goes right back into the old place to stop it falling down, but we’re doing okay.” BB grinned. “Better than we expected, so I can’t complain.” He drank his beer and rose to his feet. “I’ll be in touch.”
Jay gathered up the empty bottles. “Do you want another one, Jackson?”
“No, thanks, I’ve got to drive home.” Jackson looked around to see where Daisy was, and offered Jay some beer money, which was waved away.
Jay took the bottles out to the back, and Jackson went up to the bar. The place was almost full of regulars watching sports on TV or playing pool, but he couldn’t see Daisy.
“Hey, Nancy, is Daisy around?”
