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

by Theresa Paolo

  He rested his hands on hers stopping her incessant wiping. “No. You should be at the hospital.”

  She yanked her hand away from him. Her gaze lifted to his, sheer determination shining bright in her blue eyes, but he could see beyond the façade and down to the fear that hid beneath.

  “Somebody will call me if something happens,” she said, snapping her attention away from him and back to the bar.

  This time he grabbed the rag out of her hand and tossed it behind them. “Why don’t you cut the crap and tell me what really has you here?”

  Her lip curled, eyes turned black as night. “You’re impossible, you know that? It amazes me I was able to put up with you as long as I did.”

  “Yeah, well, someone had to put up with your shit,” he spat.

  A sense of hurt flashed across her stubborn features. “No one asked you to.”

  He ran his hand through his hair and stepped back. Fighting with her was not the answer especially not today. No matter how much pent up animosity still festered inside him, he reeled it in. “You should be with your family,” he finally said.

  She let out a perturbed breath. “And you should mind your own damn business.”

  “Daisy,” he said. He knew something was wrong, could see it in the way her anger kept morphing to pain before she caught the slip and slipped back behind her façade. A part of him, the guy who once cared for her more than anyone in the world, wanted to pull her in for a hug, but the other part, the guy who she abandoned, wanted to say screw it. She wasn’t his problem anymore. Unfortunately, no matter how much anger he still harbored for her, he couldn’t walk away. Not when she looked so sad and broken. “What’s wrong?”

  “Why would you think something’s wrong? Just because you want to think something is wrong doesn’t mean something is. I’m just here to help out. You’re welcome by the way.”

  “Don’t do that,” he said.

  “Do what?”

  “Act like you’re here for me, because we both know that’s bullshit.”

  “Fine, then it’s bullshit. I don’t care what you think. I came here to work, and I’m going to work. So you can stand there glaring at me all you want, but it’s not going to change a single thing because…”

  He pressed a finger under her chin and her eyes widened. “If nothing’s wrong why are you babbling?”

  The girl could deny it until she was blue in the face but as much as she wanted to be someone else, she wasn’t. She was, and always would be, Daisy.

  She twirled a blonde curl around her finger—another sure sign that she was keeping something to herself.

  “Come on, Daze. Talk to me.”

  She blinked up, her big eyes meeting his. They were a blue sea of sorrow and pain he wanted to take away, but he couldn’t unless she talked to him.

  “Daze?”

  “I’m scared, okay? I’m terrified she’s not going to make it through the surgery, and I don’t want to be there as my entire family falls apart if she doesn’t. I can’t do it. I’m not like the rest of them. I can’t sit there and wait, knowing that my grandma’s life is in the hands of some guy I don’t know. That one mistake can take her away from me forever.”

  The tears he sensed she’d been fighting pushed to the surface. They fell from her lashes, dripping down her porcelain cheeks.

  “I’m scared,” she managed before choking on a sob.

  The sound cracked the cement around his heart, and he reached for her, hauling her against him and wrapping her in his arms. Her stiff body melted against him and she rested her head on his chest. Tears poured down her cheeks and soaked his button up but he didn’t care.

  He held her tightly, his hand rubbing soothing strokes against her back. “It’s okay,” he said against her curls. He kissed the top of her head, and the gesture seemed to help.

  She sniffed a few times then took a deep breath before pulling back.

  Her tear stained cheeks were almost too much for him to handle. He knew he should stay out of this, send her back to the hospital and let her family worry about her but he couldn’t.

  “I have a few meetings set up for today,” he said. “Why don’t you come with me? Take your mind off of things. I’ll go to the hospital with you after when she’s in recovery.”

  Daisy’s nose twitched and her lip quivered. “Are you sure?”

  “A little company never hurt anyone. Besides, since you’re a temporary employee here, you might learn something.”

  She nodded, swiping the back of her hand under her eyes. “Okay then. I’d like that.”

  “There’s just one rule,” he said, holding up his finger.

  “I didn’t know there were rules.” He handed her a tissue and she accepted. “I wouldn’t have agreed so easily.”

  He smiled. “Too late.”

  “What is it? No singing in the car? No changing the radio station on you?”

  He actually missed her car ride karaoke sessions and stopped listening to music on drives for a long time after she had left. With all that talent, it was no doubt she’d wanted to find an outlet for it where others could appreciate it as much as he had. He was a fool to think that all those times she talked about moving to New York that it was just a pipedream, something she fantasized about but never actually acted on. He should’ve known better, and while he still was angry at her for leaving the way she did, he couldn’t blame her. If he’d opened his eyes enough to see beyond his own dreams, he might’ve seen hers for what they truly were. Maybe she wasn’t the only one to blame for the past. Maybe some of that blame lied with him too.

  He looked at her for a moment, lost in the past, wondering what he could’ve said and done differently. There was no use rehashing what he couldn’t change though.

  He held up his finger again. “One rule. No bad mouthing me in front of customers.”

  Her eyebrows curved down toward the bridge of her nose, and her eyes softened. “I wouldn’t do that.”

  “Good. And for the record, if you want to sing in the car, be my guest,” he said, hoping that she would. “It’d be a nice change from Tyler, who I swear is tone deaf.”

  “Tyler. Haven’t heard that name in a long time. How’s he doing?”

  “Exactly as you imagine, I’m sure.”

  She cracked a smile, and he felt a small victory, even if it was at his best friend’s expense.

  “Still scheming.”

  “You know it.”

  She shrugged and caught his eyes. “I guess some things don’t change.”

  Chapter 9

  After a visit to a quaint inn and a restaurant in Franconia, Daisy and Nick were back in the truck and heading to the hospital. The fear and uncertainty that had been plaguing Daisy earlier was now gone. Watching Nick work and getting to experience his charm, wit, and knowledge of not only beer, but the process, completely enthralled her. She had clung to his every word, laughed at his jokes, and watched in awe as he sealed both deals. Five Leaf Brewery was slowly taking over the taps of New Hampshire, and that was mainly thanks to Nick and his ability to sell.

  She didn’t think he was one of those salesmen who could sell an air conditioner to someone who lived in subzero temperatures. He had more respect for himself than that. He wholeheartedly believed in his product and wanted to share it with the world. His admiration and confidence were contagious. She couldn’t imagine anyone turning him down.

  “My brother’s lucky to have you, you know?” she said as he changed lanes for their exit.

  A sense of pride was evident in the way he sat a little straighter. “I feel like the lucky one. He gave me a chance; he didn’t have to do that.”

  “And I bet now he’s happy he did.”

  “I sure hope so.”

  “How do you know so much about beer?” She used to know everything about him and this was one of the many things that came as a surprise.

  “Mason taught me a great deal about the brewing process; I spent a lot of time watching him and listening.
Then Cassie taught me a ton, too. It required a lot of tastings, but I wasn’t complaining. Being able to detect the different notes and ingredients helped me understand what works well and what doesn’t.”

  “How’d you get into sales to begin with? In high school you wanted to go to school for finance and be an accountant like your dad.”

  A slight smile played at the corner of his mouth. “That seems like forever ago.”

  “Six years might as well be forever.”

  He was quiet for a moment, eyes focused on the road in front of them. “After my first accounting class in college I realized pretty quickly that I hated it.”

  Daisy laughed. “Hate is a strong word.”

  “It was awful. Debits and credits and accruals and all these numbers that I could care less about… I was also taking a few business classes, and they spoke to me more. I almost went into marketing, but then I got an internship at Hershel’s for sales and I fell in love with it. It was kind of a combination of everything. I could figure out different angles to sell to the client then work numbers for them. I also got to meet a lot of people and genuinely enjoyed it.”

  She could hear the satisfaction in his voice and it warmed her heart. “I’m happy you found your thing. Some people go their whole lives and never find it.”

  “What about you?” he asked.

  “What about me?”

  “Have you found your thing? And I don’t mean acting. I mean does New York make you happy?”

  She was all set to blurt out a lie and tell him that New York was the best thing that ever happened to her, but he was so honest, and she wanted to extend him the same courtesy. Not to mention, hiding behind a lie was exhausting and she didn’t have the energy to keep up with it.

  She couldn’t look at him as she spoke, so instead she focused on her hands. “Most days it does. Then there are the days when I miss my family and small-town life. On those days I usually visit Central Park and find a tree to sit under. I’d close my eyes and pretend I was back at the farm, sitting beneath the big maple tree on the side of our house.”

  “Were you ever disappointed when you opened your eyes?” he asked.

  She finally found the strength to look at him. His eyes met hers for a brief second, and though she feared judgement, the only thing she could see was empathy.

  “Sometimes,” she admitted. “Then I’d call Kate or Hadley, and just hearing their voices helped. But that was more in the beginning. Over time I was able to make New York my home.” She shrugged not wanting to focus on those dark times and rather focus on the things that did make her happy. “I have three roommates.”

  “Three?”

  “New York is expensive. But they were a lot of fun.”

  A sad smile formed on her face. She would miss Penny, who she was closest to, even though she knew they’d stay in touch and grab brunch every now and again. But the others, as much as she wanted to think they’d stay in touch, she knew better.

  Catrina, an aspiring model who had booked a few print ads in the past five years, had recently spread her wings and was moving to California. Lauren, a ballerina from South Carolina, was moving in with her boyfriend who she met during a production of The Nutcracker. She’d barely been at the apartment since they’d gotten together.

  “What do you mean were?” Nick asked.

  Daisy’s eyebrows furrowed. “Huh?”

  “You said they were fun.”

  “Did I? I didn’t mean to. I meant they are fun.” She internally scolded herself for that little slip up. She wanted to be honest with him, but she also didn’t want to divulge all her secrets either. “I should call my family. I should’ve hours ago.”

  “I texted Mason for you.”

  Her eyes widened in surprise not that she should have been surprised. Nick had always taken control of situations. “You did?”

  He shrugged. “I didn’t want your family to worry.”

  He had always been so considerate and she was happy to know that hadn’t changed. “Thank you. I had so much on my mind I didn’t even think about it. They have enough to worry about; the last thing they need is for me to add to it.”

  “Mason understands. He was going to let the rest of your family know, which is probably why your phone hasn’t been ringing off the hook.”

  She looked down at her phone, and there wasn’t a single notification.

  “I feel a little guilty for not being there, but I’d make it worse, you know? I was pretty okay until Grandma started telling us about complications and if she doesn’t make it. All that talk made the possibilities real.”

  “I’ve known your grandmother most of my life, and if I know anything, she’s not going to let a little hip replacement take her down. She’s pretty badass.”

  Daisy laughed. “She really is. If I am even half the woman she is I’ll consider myself lucky.”

  ***

  Nick hated hospitals. The past year he’d spent more time inside these halls than anywhere else. He’d sat at his Dad’s bedside for the little things like a touch of the flu, a urinary tract infection, and an unexplained fever. But he’d also been there for the bigger things, the things that broke his dad down until all that was left of him was a shell of the man he used to be.

  Watching someone die was probably the worst thing a person could ever experience, but watching his own father die, the man who taught him how to fish, brought him ice cream every Sunday after church, and who was there for him through all the rough patches in life was the ultimate hell on earth.

  He would rather lie outside butt ass naked in the freezing cold than walk through those halls again, but Daisy needed him, and no matter how hard he tried to tell himself it wasn’t his place to be there for her, he couldn’t help himself.

  Despite what she did to him in the past, all the pain and anger she caused, it didn’t matter. When she looked at him with those blue eyes, full of too much emotion and on the verge of breaking, he knew he would do anything to keep her together, including facing his own demons.

  “Hey Nick, my man!” The only thing that made his dad’s hospital stays bearable were the people he’d met. Carl, a custodian who’d worked at the hospital for over twenty-five years, greeted him with a strong handshake.

  “Carl, how are you?” Nick asked, giving him a pat on the back.

  “Not too bad. How about yourself?”

  Concern shown bright in Carl’s dark eyes. A lot of late nights when Nick couldn’t bear being in his dad’s room for another second, he’d slip out and find his way down to the small waiting room on the third floor and that was where he met Carl. The man was about his dad’s age, and he’d found it easy to talk to him. Carl would pull up a chair and listen, that small insignificant gesture made all the difference. It saved Nick from drowning in his own grief.

  “As good as I can be,” Nick said, forcing a smile. “Taking it one day at a time.”

  “That’s all you can do. Keep your head high and keep on moving.”

  That’s exactly what he had been doing—throwing himself into work, ignoring the silence of his childhood home and the expanding hole in his heart. Keeping busy was the only thing he had left.

  “And who is this lovely woman?” he asked, giving Daisy a smile.

  “This is Daisy. Daisy this is Carl.”

  Daisy held her hand out, a delighted look in her eyes. “It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

  Carl accepted her offered hand. “The pleasure is all mine, young lady.”

  “Her grandmother just had hip surgery,” Nick said.

  “You talking about Miss Betty?”

  Nick laughed. “I am.”

  “That’s my grandma, here only a short time and already making friends with everyone,” Daisy said.

  Nick wasn’t the least bit surprised Carl knew who she was. The hospital was just outside of Red Maple Falls and because of that you didn’t know every single person walking the halls, but Betty had a way of making herself known. Nick would bet Betty had alr
eady made her acquaintance with most of the staff.

  “Such a sweet old woman.” Carl nudged Nick’s shoulder. “A bit of a smartass, too.”

  “You’re not kidding,” Daisy said. “It’s when she stops picking on you that you worry.”

  “Good to know.” Carl turned back to Nick. “I don’t want to keep you much longer, but just want to know how your mom’s doing?”

  “Okay I guess. She went to visit her sister in South Carolina right before the holidays. She decided to stay.” He tried to keep his voice even, void of any emotion. He still wasn’t thrilled with his mom’s choice to leave her entire life behind her, but it was her choice to make and he needed to find a way to accept that.

  “Can’t say I blame her for skipping out on the snow,” Carl said.

  “What’s wrong with a little snow?”

  “Little?” Carl scoffed then followed it up with a laugh. “Nothing little about these winters. Loved it when I was younger, but now it’s just a nuisance. If you told me tomorrow I didn’t have to shovel snow another day in my life I would fall to your feet and kiss them.”

  “Then I’d have to help your old ass back up,” Nick joked, and Carl laughed louder.

  “That would be a sight, wouldn’t it?” He patted Nick on the shoulder then nodded toward the hallway. “You two be on with your day now. It was lovely meeting you Daisy.”

  “Likewise.”

  Nick returned a pat to Carl’s back, then they were back on their way.

  “He was nice,” Daisy said, tucking a stray curl behind her ear.

  Carl was more than nice, he was a life preserver when Nick was drowning in misery. He helped keep him afloat during some of his hardest days. “Carl’s a great guy,” Nick said unable to voice any more of his thoughts.

  The familiar dread dropped heavy in his stomach. His throat tightened with each step farther into the hospital they took. The smell of antiseptic made his stomach twist in knots. The slow, soft whirring of stretcher wheels on the tile caused the hairs on the back of his neck to stand.

  He focused on the bounce of Daisy’s curls, trying to fight off the onslaught of ugly memories.