Dreaming of Daisy (A Red Maple Falls Novel, #6)

by Theresa Paolo

  And there it was, the truth. Nick had been so focused on holding onto the things his dad had built, the home he made, the truck he kept going for all these years, but in reality, he was terrified if he let them go, he’d be letting the memory of his dad go too. The house and the truck kept him alive in his mind. To get rid of them would be to get rid of his dad piece by piece until he was nothing more than a distant memory. And in time, he wouldn’t be able to remember him at all.

  “You won’t forget.”

  “How the hell do you know that?” Nick asked. Was there some secret he didn’t know about? And how the hell was Tyler privy to this information and he wasn’t?”

  Tyler’s casual demeanor turned serious as he met Nick’s gaze. “I just do.”

  His words weren’t all that reassuring. He wanted, no, he needed a guarantee that his dad’s memory wouldn’t fade, before he made such a massive decision.

  The waitress brought over their burgers and fries and Nick was grateful for the interruption. He didn’t want to talk about the house, or Daisy or his dad anymore. He nodded to Tyler, remembering his phone call the day at the bus station. “What did you want to talk about the other day?”

  Tyler’s eyes widened with excitement. He put his burger down and wiped his mouth with a napkin. “I need you to keep an open mind,” Tyler said and Nick held back a laugh. So many of their conversations started this way. Tyler was always coming up with new business ventures he’d be excited about for a month then Nick would never hear about it again. Still, he humored him.

  “Go on.”

  “Have you heard about those online listing sites where people rent out their houses. It’s a huge thing right now. So I was thinking, we buy a few houses in the area and get in on the action. Red Maple Falls, while small, is close to a lot of vacation spots. We have the ski slopes right outside the town limits, the fall festival, and those weird people who come to look at leaves, and not to mention the brewery. Then there are people who want to get that small-town experience and what better way than good ol’ Red Maple Falls.” Tyler continued on about the pros of this venture never once touching on the cons. Still Nick listened with an open-mind. Finally, Tyler looked at him hopeful. “So what do you think?”

  “It’s one of your better ideas, I’ll give you that. But how are you going to afford to pay a mortgage on multiple properties? Not to mention the upkeep; it’s not cheap.” Nick would know. Just this past fall, he had to replace his boiler and it set him back a pretty penny. Luckily for him the Hayes brothers helped him out, and he paid for the labor in beer.

  Coming from money, Tyler never thought about the expense part.

  “The houses will pay for themselves. Once I get them up on that site, they’ll be booked up.”

  “But what if they aren’t? It’s great to be optimistic, but you have to measure risk. You can’t ignore it. Maybe you should wait a year until you have access to your trust fund.”

  Tyler shook his head. “I don’t need that money.” Tyler’s determination to prove to his dad that he could run a successful business without his help, would be his downfall.

  “I just think you should take a minute and weigh the pros against the cons.”

  Brooke Marshall spun around on her barstool and smiled. “Another harebrained scheme you got going on there, Carrington?” she said, sliding off her stool and coming over to the table.

  She had a line of freckles across her nose that gave her a look of innocence, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. Brooke never hesitated to speak her mind, especially when it came to Tyler.

  Their feud had been going on since middle school, but despite being Tyler’s best friend, Nick had no idea what started it. It’d been going on for so long he didn’t even think they knew anymore.

  She plucked a fry off of Tyler’s plate and took a bite. Most nights she was waiting tables at Calhoun’s, but she must’ve had the night off.

  “At least I’m trying to do something with my life. But I guess you’re content waiting tables, Hearts.”

  She wrinkled her nose at the nickname. “Not everyone can live off of Daddy. Some of us actually have to work for a living.”

  “Oh, because I don’t work?”

  “Working part-time for your father, who probably pays your bills too, isn’t exactly working for a living.”

  Tyler’s jaw clenched. “You have no idea what you’re talking about.”

  Nick could let this go on—hell, it wouldn’t be the first time these two had had their claws out—but he’d already dealt with enough drama for one day. “While I’d love to play referee for you two, I really need to get going. I have an early day tomorrow at the brewery since Mason will be at the hospital.”

  “Poor Betty,” Brooke said then her dark gray eyes turned curious. “I heard through the grapevines you and Daisy had a run in. How is our girl doing?”

  “Don’t know. Don’t care.”

  “Oh Nick you’re as transparent as you were back then. You’re hooked on a bad habit you can’t quit no matter how bad it is for you.”

  “That’s what I said,” Tyler added, and Nick cut a sharp glance in his direction.

  “Now you’re going to take her side. Seriously?”

  “What can I say? She makes a good point.”

  Brooke pressed a hand against her chest, fingers splayed. “I don’t say this often, so savor it. Thank you.”

  Nick tossed his napkin on the table and threw down a few bills. “I got to go. You two can rip each other’s throats out for all I care.”

  “All of this built up hostility,” Brooke said. “Can make for some great sex.” She held her hands up when he turned his glare on her. “Just saying.”

  “I could say the same to you.” He looked from Brooke to Tyler.

  Brooke turned to Tyler, lip curled in disgust. “God no.”

  Nick laughed. “Goodnight.” He grabbed his coat and headed out the door, even though he knew he’d never sleep now that the vision of Daisy naked beneath him was firmly planted in his head.

  Chapter 8

  Daisy put a plate of French toast on the table for her grandfather. Her roommate, Penny, made amazing French toast and after so many times of watching her she was able to pick up the gist of it. She went back to the bacon sizzling in the pan on the stove and turned the heat off.

  Harold came into the kitchen, his white hair, still wet from the shower, combed and parted to the side. His green flannel shirt was wrinkled, probably because he had no idea how to iron.

  “Morning, Grandpa,” Daisy practically sang as she kissed his weathered cheek. She might’ve gone a little overboard with the coffee, but she was not used to being up at the ass crack of dawn like the rest of her family. She preferred to sleep in, but it was the day of her grandmother’s surgery, and she needed to be up for her grandfather. She also needed to keep her spirits up or she wouldn’t be able to get through the day.

  “What is this?” he asked, lifting the plate with his finger and letting it clank back onto the table. One of the sliced strawberries slipped off the bread and landed on the table.

  “French toast. It’s delicious.”

  “I don’t like French food. It’s too fancy,” he grumbled.

  “It’s not French food. I don’t think.”

  “Your grandmother makes me two eggs, bacon, and baked beans.”

  “And I’m sure it’s delicious, but since Grandma isn’t here, I thought I’d make you something different.”

  His lips pressed into a flat line, his wrinkles getting more defined as he stared at the plate. “You know… I’ll grab something on the way to the hospital.”

  Daisy let out a sigh and pointed at his chair with the spatula. He was so damn stubborn sometimes. “Sit down and I’ll make you eggs.”

  “I don’t have time. I need to get to the hospital before—” His words cut off, and Daisy understood completely. Her grandfather was a little rough around the edges, but he was always more teddy bear than grizzly tow
ard her. The stress of her grandmother’s surgery was weighing down on him.

  She rested her hand on his shoulder. “She’s going to be okay,” Daisy said, even if she wasn’t so sure she believed the words herself. After her grandmother’s talk about complications, every time Daisy thought about the surgery, she couldn’t help but think of the dreaded D word.

  Harold pulled out of her grasp. “Of course she is.” His words said one thing but his tone said something else. Daisy wanted to pull him in for a hug but thought better of it. He didn’t need her sympathy. He needed her strength.

  “If you give me a second, I’ll wash my face and come with you.”

  “I can’t wait. I shouldn’t even have left the hospital last night, but she threatened to call security on me.”

  Daisy laughed. In the face of major surgery, Betty still hadn’t lost her spunk. “She probably wanted you to get some sleep. It’s going to be a long day.”

  “I would’ve slept better at the damn hospital.”

  He was probably right. The house had been extra quiet and while some people would find that the perfect setting to rest, it made Daisy uneasy. She was sure Harold felt the same way. The sooner he was with Betty the better.

  “You should go. I’ll see you up there.”

  He grabbed his coat off the chair, and Daisy helped him get into it.

  “I’m not an invalid. I can put on my own coat.”

  “I know,” she said but continued helping. He grumbled some more as she fixed his collar. She patted his chest when all was fixed. “There, you’re all set.”

  His scowl softened. “Thank you, sweetie.”

  Daisy smiled. “That’s more like it.” She sent him on his way, and once he pulled out of the driveway, she went back to the kitchen and sat down at his plate. She forked the rogue strawberry and popped it into her mouth. It was going to be a really long day, and she was going to need all the fuel she could get.

  Her cell phone beeped… followed quickly by another beep. It slowly began to blow up and she knew it had to be a group text with her siblings. She took a bite of French toast and checked her phone.

  Kate: On our way.

  Matt: Already here. She’s in good spirits.

  Cooper: We’ll be there once we drop Tommy off at school.

  Hadley: Sam and I stopped to get coffee for everyone. Be there soon.

  Matt: Shay brought cupcakes.

  Mason: Just got out of the shower. Be there in a little bit.

  Matt: Take all the time you need.

  While Mason was usually the first one to arrive, hospitals were different. In her entire life she’d never seen her brother so uneasy except when he was in a hospital waiting room. It was something she completely understood. Not that anyone liked hospitals, but there was something about them that made her an anxious ball of nerves.

  He would no doubt be there, but he would delay as much as he could.

  Daisy checked the time. It was only eight in the morning. Betty’s surgery wasn’t until noon, unless it was rescheduled and no one told her.

  Daisy: I thought the surgery was at noon.

  Matt: It is.

  Kate: Want to see her before she goes in. You know…just in case.

  Leave it to Kate to say exactly what everyone was probably thinking but too afraid to say out loud.

  Matt: She’s going to be fine.

  Cooper: Of course she will be. We all aren’t married yet.

  Mason: Daze, do you need us to swing by and get you?

  Daisy thought about it for a second, but she wanted to drive herself in case it became too much and she needed to get away.

  Daisy: I have the Jeep. I’ll see you guys there.

  She put her phone on the table and finished eating. Like Mason, she wasn’t in a rush.

  Kate’s last text kept popping up in her mind. Just in case.

  “No!” she shouted as she stood up. “She’s going to be fine,” she said to herself. “Knock it off.”

  She cleaned up the mess, pouring the bacon grease into a coffee can her grandmother had on the counter for that reason, and then washed and dried the dishes.

  Once everything was scrubbed down twice, she finally showered and dressed. When she was done she checked the time.

  It was a quarter after nine; she’d stalled long enough. She wrapped her scarf around her neck, pulled on her coat and headed out.

  Her entire family was at the hospital, surrounding Betty’s bed. Her grandfather was in the same chair as the other day, holding his wife’s hand like it was his only lifeline. Daisy closed her eyes, forcing away the awful thoughts that were trying to consume her. What would her grandfather do without his other half?

  She took a deep breath and opened her eyes as Kate wrapped her in a sideways hug and rested her head on hers. Hadley joined on the other side and the warm comfort gave her the strength to smile.

  “She’ll be okay,” Daisy said so only her sisters could hear.

  She wasn’t exactly sure if she believed her own words, but it was all she had right now and she needed to keep the faith. She needed her siblings to be right there with her, staying strong, because if she had to be the strong one then they were all screwed.

  “Mom, how are you feeling?” Jonathon asked.

  “Like I’m at my funeral. I swear if this is how you all look when that time comes I will make it a personal mission to haunt every one of you.”

  “Stop with the death talk, woman,” Harold said. “You ain’t dying on me.”

  “Never said I was. You think a little surgery is going to keep me down?” Betty laughed like it was the most absurd thought imaginable. To most they would see her strength and her confidence, but for Daisy and her family who knew Betty better than anyone, there was a crack in her façade.

  Daisy could see the slight trepidation in her eyes, the way she kept looking at everyone as if it might be her last and she wanted to take as clear a picture as she could.

  “Good morning! Who is ready for surgery?” A nurse came into the room, and Betty smiled.

  “Let’s get this over with. I have things to do.”

  The nurse laughed and so did everyone else. It was a nice change.

  “We’ll be in the waiting room, waiting for you,” Carol said as she gave Betty a kiss on the forehead.

  “Knock ‘em dead,” Mason said and everyone groaned at his use of words.

  Hadley kissed Betty’s cheek. “We love you, Grandma.”

  “And I love all of you,” Betty said.

  The rest of them gave Betty a kiss and a hug then congregated in the waiting room. There was a TV in the right corner, chairs lining the walls and a row going down the middle. Daisy took a seat closest to the door, which, after about forty minutes, she realized was probably a mistake.

  Every time she heard footsteps her heart practically jumped out of her chest. She could hear doctors and nurses talking in the hallway and the sound of wheels from the stretchers rolling across the tile.

  Right before an audition, to calm her nerves, she would hum the theme song to Barney. It was ridiculous and embarrassing and she’d never tell a soul, but somehow the childhood nostalgia would quiet the anxious chaos in her brain.

  She took a deep breath and began to hum. The tension in her neck began to ease, and she thought she would be fine when those damn words both her Grandma and Kate had said popped back into her mind.

  Just in case.

  She tried to hum louder, but she couldn’t. Her throat constricted, making it impossible to get air in her lungs. Heat exploded in her chest, spreading up her neck and into her ears.

  How could she sit here and act like everything was peachy keen when she felt like she was going to throw up? She couldn’t let her family see her like this. Everyone needed only positive vibes right now. She could not continue to sit here, spreading negative energy.

  If she said the wrong thing or made her family have doubts for any reason that was just too much pressure.

  The ti
ny thread of sanity that she’d been clinging to snapped, and the emotions she’d been battling since that dreaded phone call that brought her home, tried to force their way out. Her heart thrashed against her ribcage, and her breaths came out fast and jagged.

  You got this, Daisy. You can do this. For your family, for Grandma.

  She forced in another deep breath, her eyes landing on Mason’s fingers that were tapping against his thigh at rapid speed. Cassie reached over, resting her hand on his. They linked fingers, and he finally leaned back in his chair.

  Kate cuddled up to Caleb while Cooper and Sarah looked at something on Cooper’s phone. Matt’s hand sat on Shay’s knee, his thumb stroking gently. Sam kissed the top of Hadley’s head and pulled her close while her parents convinced her grandfather to go with them to get some coffee.

  Everybody had somebody to lean on, and Daisy—like always—was the odd man out. She wanted to stay strong for her family, but they didn’t need her.

  She slipped out of the waiting room undetected and headed for the exit. The cold, fresh air hit her as she walked out the door.

  “I can’t do this,” she said to no one as she made a beeline for the Jeep. She jumped into the truck, pulled out of the space, and drove as far away from the hospital as she could.

  ***

  Nick heard the brewery door open and, without taking his eyes off the paperwork he was working on, said, “We’re closed today.”

  He looked up as Daisy walked past, ignoring him and going straight to the bar.

  “What the hell are you doing here?” Nick asked, getting up as she placed her bag in a cubby.

  “What does it look like? I’m here to work.”

  “We’re closed today.” Mason purposely closed so everyone could be at the hospital. Nick only came in to do a few things for Mason before he had to head out for a couple meetings.

  She ignored him, picking up a rag and wiping down the already clean bar. “I thought I could restack the glasses or print out more copies for the flights.”