Daisy Does It All (Clover Park, Book 2) Contemporary Romance (The Clover Park Series)

by Kylie Gilmore

  A flurry of motion while the crew went back to work. Max appeared again. He avoided looking directly at Daisy, instead watching the monitor. What did Max think would happen between them? He’d show up at her house, declare his love, and wait for her to abandon her family and ride off into the sunset with him? He was seriously delusional.

  “And…rolling,” someone said.

  Daisy sat up straighter and pushed Max to the back of her mind.

  Jessica smiled brilliantly at Daisy. “One of the things that makes your blog so popular is the loving marriage at the heart of it. What makes Daisy and Travis work?”

  Daisy sat, tongue-tied. What made them work? What made any relationship work? People either clicked or they didn’t.

  Trav filled the silence. “I think a good sense of humor goes a long way. We laugh a lot.”

  “Absolutely!” Daisy exclaimed. “Trav’s always making me laugh. Laughter is the best medicine!” She laughed a little too heartily.

  Trav stared at her.

  “How long have you been married?” Jessica asked.

  “One and a half years,” Daisy responded immediately, happy to remember the right answer.

  “Awww, you count the half years, that’s adorable!” Jessica looked at the camera. “Isn’t that adorable?” She turned back to Daisy and Trav. “Still newlyweds, then?”

  “Yes,” Daisy said with a smile.

  “Very much so,” Trav said huskily. He grabbed Daisy’s hand and held it warmly.

  Daisy’s gaze lingered on him, his tone was so…happily married. She almost believed him, and she knew the truth. He winked. She grinned.

  “How are things in the bedroom?” Jessica asked suddenly.

  Daisy blinked. Jessica must have been holding that question for the shock factor. She looked to Trav, who set his mouth in a tight line. Should she say it’s private?

  At their silence, Jessica pushed on. “You did blog about bedroom shenanigans after baby and vacation intimacy. Any special tips you could offer moms who might not be feeling their usual sexy selves?”

  “Daisy never stopped being sexy,” Trav said.

  “Aww…you too, honey.” Daisy ran her tongue over her upper lip just to tease him. Trav’s eyes widened, and she laughed. “Even after you didn’t push out a baby.”

  “I did my part,” Trav said.

  “Yeah, the easy part,” Daisy replied.

  “I can see you two have a nice repartee,” Jessica said. “Care to share how that carries over into the bedroom?”

  “Would you get off the bedroom?” Trav muttered.

  “Come on, just one juicy tip for your loyal blog readers,” Jessica pushed. “Something that no one else has heard yet from Daisy who does it all. Or does she?”

  Daisy narrowed her eyes. “What exactly would you like to hear?”

  “We’ve all heard about your lingerie, the candles, the slow jazz…ooh, I know! Show us the sexy dance you do that has him ready to rip your teddy off before he has a chance to see your stretch marks.”

  “She doesn’t have stretch marks,” Trav said.

  Obviously he hasn’t seen me naked since I had Bryce.

  “He’s just being kind,” Daisy said. Not that she wanted to bring Trav’s attention to her flaws, but she had mentioned them in her blog.

  “So, the dance?” Jessica prompted, lifting her arms and doing a sensual wave in her seat.

  No, thank you. That’s not happening on national television.

  “I don’t think so,” Daisy said. “Maybe you’d like to hear about our vacation plans?”

  Jessica turned her attention to Trav. “What would you say was your biggest turn-on to really combat that post-baby fatigue?”

  Trav stood and ripped off his mike. “Enough. Our sex life isn’t open to discussion.”

  Daisy tugged on his arm to make him sit down. The cameras were still rolling. “Trav, honey, just sit down.”

  He pointed at Jessica. “Do you get off on what other people do? Watch some porn.”

  Jessica’s fake smile stayed in place as she said pleasantly, “Your wife is the one who put it out there for the world. I’m just following up on what she already shared.”

  “I did mention it on my blog,” Daisy said, yanking Trav forcibly back to his seat. “But I also said some things are private.”

  Trav crossed his arms. “Yeah, private.”

  “I suppose you’ve quietly crossed over into old married couple,” Jessica said dismissively. “Nothing special. Your usual Saturday night appointment.”

  “That’s enough!” Trav roared. “This interview’s over!” He rushed the camera and put his hand over the lens.

  Jessica stood. “Max, get him off that camera.” She turned to the other camera. “Roy, you keep rolling.”

  Roy gave her the thumbs-up.

  “Trav, stop it! You’re making a fool of yourself!” Daisy hollered, trying to peel him off the camera.

  Trav set Daisy to the side, turned, and jabbed a finger at Jessica. “She’s making a fool of us.”

  “I’m just trying to get a good story.” Jessica framed a headline with her hands. “We’re all happy in small-town America isn’t a story. Daisy’s the one who put your sex life out there.”

  “Don’t blame Daisy for sharing on her blog!” Trav barked. “That was on her terms. Not needled out of her.”

  “How dare you!” Jessica huffed. “I’m a professional!”

  Max pitched his voice above the noise. “Everyone calm down here!”

  “Why don’t you calm down?” Trav said, getting in Max’s face.

  Max glared at Trav; they were eye to eye. “Watch yourself.”

  Daisy rushed over. “Trav, please.”

  “Daze, butt out!” Trav said.

  “Don’t talk to her like that!” Max yelled.

  He shoved Trav, and Trav shoved him back.

  “STOP IT!” Daisy yelled at the top of her lungs.

  The lights went out.

  The house fell silent.

  “What the hell?” Jessica yelled in a shrill voice.

  Chapter Eleven

  “Oh, no,” Daisy muttered.

  “You broke the house,” Trav said.

  “What the hell?” Jessica shrilled again.

  “Power outage,” Trav said. “It’s this storm.”

  “I’d better check on Bryce,” Daisy said. She hurried from the room, nearly knocking over one of the crew’s lights and catching her elbow on the banister on her way upstairs as her eyes adjusted to the sudden lack of light. Her parents had mentioned power outages in the area happening more frequently, but this was her first time experiencing it. Did she have enough diapers, baby food, fresh clothes for Bryce? Would they have heat? Food for the rest of them? She’d never thought of surviving a power outage with a baby in the middle of winter. The city hardly ever had lights out. She just prayed it didn’t last long.

  She burst into Maggie’s room. Bryce was napping in his crib. Jorge was reaching for something on the high shelf of the closet while Maggie was sitting on the bed, pillows propped up behind her.

  Daisy looked around wildly. “I thought you were watching TV.”

  Maggie smiled and nodded. “We were.”

  There was no TV in the room. “On what?”

  Maggie pulled an iPad off the bed. “There’s lots of TV on the Internet. Connection went down, though.”

  “Okay. I don’t want you to panic, but the power’s out.”

  Maggie nodded slowly. “Yes, we know, dear. Jorge’s digging out the emergency radio.”

  “Emergency radio,” Daisy repeated numbly. “Good, good.” She glanced at Bryce sleeping through this nightmare. “Bryce is good. We have a radio. Okay.”

  She bolted again, heading for the stairs. They needed food, water, heat. Maybe not in that order. Maybe heat, water, food. Bryce would survive. She’d get him through this. At least she knew he could nurse; that was food and water combined. Okay, heat. They needed heat.

>   She’d find an ax and chop wood and build a fire in the fireplace. They’d huddle around the fire just like in pioneer days. She suddenly wished she’d paid more attention when Liz went on and on as a kid about Laura Ingalls Wilder and her family surviving out on the prairie.

  Her baby’s survival was all that mattered. Funny how all that worry about the blog and the TV show and Jessica and Max faded away the instant the lights went out. Without power, it all came down to the basics.

  WAAHHHH!

  Daisy raced back to get her baby.

  ~ ~ ~

  Trav stared out the front window at the snowstorm, ignoring Jessica’s rantings over the impossible weather. Visibility was bad. The wind was gusting, and the snow was still coming. There was at least three inches on the ground already. Roads weren’t clear. A huge tree branch had come down across the driveway. Several more branches were strewn across neighbors’ lawns. The snow on the trees made the branches heavier. Combined with the wind, it meant massive tree damage throughout the area. It would take time to clear things out.

  Jessica finally ran out of steam. Trav turned and faced the crew of Mornings with Jessica. “It looks like we’ll be stuck here for a while.”

  The crew grumbled.

  “You’ve got to be fucking kidding me!” Jessica exclaimed with fresh outrage. “Max, this interview is over. We can’t do shit without power!”

  Trav didn’t like to say I told you so, but hell, he had told them to get out more than an hour ago. He wished fervently that they had. These were the last people he wanted to be trapped with in Gran’s house.

  “I want a car to take me back to the city,” Jessica said.

  “I’m on it,” Max said in a soothing tone.

  “You can’t drive in this,” Trav said. “It’ll be a few hours before the roads are passable. I’m sure there’s live wires down and tree branches. They might not even plow until the snow stops, and it’s supposed to go well into the night.”

  “We’ll take the train,” Max said.

  “Sure,” Trav said. “You can walk to the station. It’s about five miles away due east.” He pointed the right direction.

  “Great! Just great!” Jessica shrieked. “Like I’m trudging through a blizzard in my Manolos.”

  “We could find some boots somewhere around here,” Trav offered.

  “I don’t do blizzards,” Jessica said. “So we’re basically stuck here.” She turned to Max and stuck her lip out. “I didn’t even get to ask the hard-hitting questions. I was so well prepared for this. And now I’ve got some fluff lifestyle piece.”

  Max put an arm around her and guided her to sit in the large host chair. He sat next to her, hands on his knees, while they continued a quiet conversation. As far as Trav was concerned, the storm ended the interview right where it should have ended. Jessica prying into their sex life had really pissed him off. Sure he joked about Daisy being good in the sack, but he’d never share details with anyone. What was even worse about her prying questions—they didn’t have a sex life.

  Yet. Soon, very soon. Tomorrow night was their wedding night. But now with this damn storm…he wouldn’t wait to make a move. To hell with slow. These were desperate circumstances—trapped in a blackout with her ex. Trav wanted Daisy in a constant state of arousal, focused only on him. It was a good plan, one that would bring them both pleasure and make her forget about her ex.

  And if that asshole hurt her again, he’d kick him out, blizzard or not.

  Daisy walked downstairs with Bryce in her arms.

  “Hey,” Trav said, crossing to them. He kissed Bryce’s cheek, and his son grabbed hold of his hair and yanked. He gently extricated his hair. The boy was going to make him bald. “I’ll get a fire started. It should stay warm in the living room for a while. I’ll start the backup generator once the wind settles down.”

  “A backup generator,” Daisy said under her breath. She beamed a grateful smile that made him feel like a hero. “Thanks, Trav.”

  He kissed her gently and pulled back, looking into her eyes. She looked surprised. Get used to it, honey.

  “No problem,” he said.

  “Wait, you have a backup generator?” Max asked. “Then we can continue the interview.”

  “We don’t have enough wattage for that,” Trav replied. “Just enough to run the essentials. We’ll get by, but I’m not blowing out the circuit just for some camera equipment.”

  Jessica stood abruptly and paced across the room, muttering to herself.

  “Okay,” Max said. “Hopefully we can drive to the train station in a few hours.”

  Awesome plan, but doubtful. Either way, Trav was sticking to his seduction plan. Now that he’d thought it up, he was way into it.

  “You’re all welcome to spend the night,” Daisy said. “I don’t want you guys to have to go out in this.”

  Trav had no idea where they were going to put ten people, but they were stuck. Gran and Jorge could stay at his place across the street, but that still left him and Daisy, Jessica and Max, plus a crew of eight guys.

  “My cell isn’t working!” Jessica hollered. “What is this, the apocalypse?”

  “Sometimes storms affect the tower,” Trav said gently before the woman lost it completely. “It’ll come back soon.”

  “Does this happen often?” Jessica asked.

  “There’s been some powerful weather the last few years,” Trav said. “We’ve had at least one power outage a year for the past five years. Usually lasts about a week. That’s why—”

  “A week!” Jessica shrieked.

  Gran and Jorge came downstairs with their emergency radio cranked up.

  “Looks like the trains stopped running,” Gran announced.

  “Aaaah! Unacceptable!” Jessica shrilled. “Unacceptable!”

  Bryce started fussing. His son didn’t like all the hysterics in the room either.

  “It’s simply a fact,” Gran replied. “Screaming about it won’t help.”

  “I can’t believe this!” Jessica said, storming into the other room.

  “That woman needs a Valium,” Gran pronounced. “And maybe some action under the sheets.”

  Jorge and Gran exchanged a loving look.

  Trav rolled his eyes. His grandmother as a newlywed was still a little hard to stomach. “I’ll go get the firewood.”

  “Thank you so much,” Daisy said, bouncing Bryce. “I was worried about keeping Bryce warm.”

  He grabbed his jacket from the coat rack. “No worries. I got this. Heat and then some power. The pantry is fully stocked.”

  Relief washed over Daisy’s face. It surprised him how much she’d worried. He always made sure his family was set for the winter. Plus he had to make sure he could get out and help with his own plow and shoveling service.

  He left through the back kitchen door, passing Max, who was punching numbers on his cell phone and listening for a nonexistent connection. Useless jerk.

  ~ ~ ~

  Daisy settled on the living room floor in front of the fireplace, Bryce in her lap. Her son seemed mesmerized by the dancing flames. At least I didn’t have to chop wood, she thought wryly. As if she’d ever done such a thing in her life.

  It wasn’t the best of circumstances, but Trav seemed to know what to do. It was comforting.

  If the Mornings with Jessica crew were still here tomorrow, they’d have to cancel the wedding. Her mom and Maggie had decided to have the wedding ceremony right here in Maggie’s living room to keep it quiet and intimate. The delay lifted some of the tension off Daisy. She hadn’t wanted a rush wedding. She still wasn’t sure it was the right choice. She needed Liz to make one of her pros and cons list. Daisy was terrible at those. She always found additional reasons to make each side balance out.

  Maggie appeared and scooted a swivel chair toward her. “Want a chair?”

  Daisy shook her head. “I sat in that long enough today. The floor’s fine.”

  Maggie took the chair for herself. “You might need
to reschedule the wedding tomorrow. Justice Fleming is getting up there in age, and she lives way out by Grand Lake. I doubt she’ll want to chance the roads.”

  “I know,” Daisy said. “We can reschedule.”

  “Aren’t you worried someone will find out before this goes on the air?” Maggie whispered. “Maybe I could get one of those Internet ministry certificates and marry you myself.”

  Daisy laughed. “Well, you said the Internet line went down with the power, so I guess Reverend Maggie will have to wait.”

  “If I did marry you two, I’d make sure your vows were kosher,” Maggie said. “No obey in there. And he’d have to promise to cook for you too. A man that cooks is a keeper. My Jorge can make paella, melt-in-your-mouth enchiladas, salmon cooked to perfection, and firecracker shrimp that will clear your nasal passages. Ooh, I’m hungry.” Maggie stood. “Let me see what food I can round up for everyone.”

  “Thanks, Maggie.”

  Daisy kissed Bryce’s hand and rocked him side to side.

  Max appeared from the direction of the kitchen. “Mrs. O’Hare kicked me out of the kitchen. Okay if I join you?”

  Daisy tensed. “Uh…yeah, sure.”

  Max settled on the floor, sitting cross-legged next to Daisy. “This is nice.” He smiled at Bryce. “Can I hold him?”

  “He’s a little picky about who he goes to,” Daisy said just as Bryce reached for Max with open arms. She smiled ruefully. “Sure.” She handed him over.

  “How ya doing?” Max asked Bryce, who stared at him. “You like peek-a-boo?” He covered his own eyes. “Peek-a-boo.”

  Bryce smiled his gummy two-toothed smile.

  Daisy rolled into a tight ball, knees bent close to her chest, arms wrapped around her legs. Her voice came out hoarse. “You like kids.”

  “Sure,” Max said. “Thought I’d have a couple of my own by now.” He changed to a sing-song voice and spoke to Bryce. “But I haven’t met the right woman, have I? Not like your mommy.”

  “Stop,” Daisy snapped. “I’m married now.”

  Bryce jammed his fist in his mouth and stared at Max.