“That is me,” he said, completely exasperated. He felt heat creep up his neck as Max witnessed this scene. He turned to Max. “Go away!”
Max slipped away, heading downstairs.
“I think there’s more,” Daisy said, “but you never open up.”
“Dammit, what do you want me to do? Cry like a total wimp and get all sappy on you?”
Bryce let out his usual full-throated wail so everyone would know he was up. Daisy went into Shane’s room to get him. Trav followed her. Shane was still out cold.
Daisy shooed him out the door. He waited and followed her back to Gran’s room, Bryce in her arms. She climbed in bed, propping up pillows to nurse him.
Trav paced back and forth by the bed. “First I have to deal with your ex. Then you want me to be a wimp. You want me to be someone I’m not.”
Daisy just looked at him and shook her head sadly, fueling his frustrated rage. He stormed from the room. This woman wanted too much.
He went outside; it always calmed him. The crisp air, the gently sloping drifts of snow as far as the eye could see, the stark trees. He stared at the snow of the front yard, perfectly smooth and untouched. He looked up at Gran’s bedroom window.
Then he did something he hadn’t done in a long time. Made a total crazy ass of himself.
~ ~ ~
“This has been an interesting storm,” Daisy told Bryce as she walked around Maggie’s bedroom, patting his back for the burp, “but we’re going back home soon. Maybe in a few days, tops. As soon as we’ve got power back at our place. Life will go back to normal.”
Burp.
“Good boy.” She dressed quickly, then made the bed one handed while holding Bryce on her hip, pulling the blanket back into place, tossing all the pillows back up by the headboard. Not perfect, but it would do. She never made her bed at home. She felt like a guest here in Maggie’s house. She could hear Jessica and Max moving around downstairs and decided to stay right where she was.
She set Bryce on the bed and sang one of their favorite songs, an oldie but a goodie, “Ironic” by Alanis Morissette, as she did their usual massage routine. She finished and was just starting to think about bundling him up and slipping out to her sister’s house when she heard something hit the window.
Ping. Ping.
What the hell? She crossed to the window just as another pebble hit it. She looked down to a waving Trav.
He was completely and totally naked. In the snow. She looked closer. He was standing at the end of an arrow he’d drawn in the snow. And her name was there too. Like she needed her name and an arrow to notice him.
She put Bryce on the floor and yanked open the window. “What are you doing, you crazy man?”
“Isn’t it obvious?”
“No!”
The cold definitely had a shrinking effect.
“I’m bared to you. I opened up.”
He began posing muscleman style—biceps flexed (impressive), a side chest move (tasty), and then arms lowered into a humungo flex with exaggerated strain on his face (ridiculous). She giggled.
Uh-oh. Her parents pulled up in their Toyota Highlander and parked on the street. Trav hadn’t noticed.
He pointed one hand and lifted a leg in a fountain-spewing-water pose.
“Trav, honey, come inside. It’s too cold for that. Let’s talk.”
He stopped posing and put his hands on his hips. “No more talking. I took action. And I won’t come in until you agree to do what you promised.”
She really should warn him.
But it was hard to resist watching the inevitable.
She shook her head at him and watched her mom climb out of the passenger seat and head up the front walk. Dad was right behind her.
Mom looked from Trav up to Daisy. Daisy waved. Trav’s head snapped around. He immediately crossed his hands in front of him—classic Adam expelled from Paradise pose.
“Daisy, you really should let him in,” her mom chastised. “It’s cold out here.”
“Damn cold,” her dad said. “Come in with us, son. We’ll get you warmed right up.”
Trav dashed inside. Even from upstairs she could see his red face.
She chuckled and shut the window. She didn’t know what he hoped to prove with that stunt.
Yet she couldn’t stop smiling.
She headed downstairs with Bryce just as Trav dashed past her on his way up.
“You might have said something,” he muttered.
“Next time keep your clothes on,” she called over her shoulder.
She met her parents in the living room, where they were chatting with Rico. He turned when he saw her.
“You got him good,” Rico chortled.
Daisy grinned. “He’s nuts.”
Rico shook his head and headed off to the kitchen.
“What was that about?” her dad asked. “Did you and Trav have a fight?”
Daisy waved that away. “Just a silly bet. So what are you guys doing here?”
Her parents exchanged a look.
“We just wanted to check in to see how you and Bryce were weathering the power outage,” her dad said.
“Did you check on Liz too?” Daisy asked tightly.
“We knew she’d be okay,” her mom said. “She always plans ahead.”
“We stopped by there too,” her dad added.
She knew her parents thought she always needed someone to take care of her. She would’ve made do if she had to. She’d never let anything happen to Bryce.
“I told you Daisy and Bryce would be fine, Clive,” her mom said, taking Bryce from Daisy’s arms. “Trav obviously took care of them. They’ve got heat, power.” She kissed Bryce’s little fingers. “How’re you for food, honey?”
“We’re fine. Trav took care of that too,” Daisy said.
“I’m so glad you two are finally getting married,” her mom said.
Daisy did a quick shushing motion. The house was quiet, but that didn’t mean Max and Jessica had left yet.
Her mom slowly nodded. Message received.
“I could’ve handled things, even without Trav’s help,” Daisy said.
“You can always come home in an emergency,” her dad said. “We’ve got your old room waiting for you.”
“Thank you, Dad, but I’m fine. I don’t need someone to take care of me. When the shit goes down, I’m on top of it.” Wait, that didn’t come out right.
“Daisy! Language,” her mom said, covering Bryce’s ears. “And don’t talk to your father that way.”
Her dad patted her mom’s knee. “It’s okay. I know what she means. She’s an adult. But even adults need help now and then.”
“Not if they’re married,” her mom said. “Then they can lean on each other.”
“I don’t need…forget it.” Daisy fumed. She’d always be the screw-up to her parents.
Trav trotted downstairs. “How you guys doing?” he blustered. He pumped her dad’s hand and kissed her mom on the cheek.
Her mom gave him a subtle once-over. Eww.
“Good, good.” Her dad smiled. “Too bad you lost that bet.”
Daisy tilted her head and looked at Trav meaningfully.
“Yup. Too bad.” He took a step toward the door, obviously still too embarrassed to visit with her parents.
“Trav, that generator you recommended runs like a dream,” her dad said. “No complaints.”
“We’re just so glad Daisy had you to help her through all this,” her mom said.
Trav smiled and turned to Daisy. His smile dropped when he took in her furious expression. “Well, I’d better be going. I’m going to check in on Gran.” He ruffled Bryce’s hair, grabbed his coat, and headed out the door.
“We’re going to get going too, sweetheart,” her dad said. “We need to check on Garner’s. Make sure the pipes don’t freeze.”
“Sure. I’ll see you later.” Daisy hugged her dad.
Her mom handed her Bryce. “Let us know if you need anything.
”
“We’re fine,” Daisy said between her teeth.
“Mmm-hmm,” her mom said noncommittally. Then they were gone.
“Errgh!” Daisy exclaimed. Bryce startled and started crying. She sighed and patted his back. “It’s okay, baby. Mama’s okay.”
Five minutes later, she’d gotten him calmed down, and headed upstairs to fetch his favorite blankie and the diaper bag.
She stepped into Maggie’s bedroom and stopped short. Jessica was sitting on the end of the bed.
“I got cell service,” Jessica sang.
Chapter Twenty-One
“Good for you,” Daisy said, brushing past the nasty woman.
“It is good for me,” Jessica said. “I was able to find out a few things about you that I’m sure your followers would find very interesting.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” She grabbed the diaper bag and looked around for the blankie. It must still be in Shane’s room.
Jessica’s voice rang out sharp and clear like they were in a courtroom. “This isn’t your house, is it?”
Daisy scrubbed a hand over her face. “Let me hand off Bryce, and we’ll talk.”
“This ought to be good.”
Daisy knocked on Shane’s door. “Can you take him?”
Shane slowly sat up in bed. “Sure.”
She handed over Bryce and returned to the bedroom, where Jessica was snooping through the closet.
“Interesting how all your clothes are a size two, when you’re obviously”—Jessica looked Daisy up and down—“at least a size twelve.”
She was an eight, but she kept her cool and took a deep breath. “So tell me what you learned once you could call people.”
“Why don’t we start with you telling the truth?” Jessica approached, punching her hand in the air dramatically with each question. “Why are you pretending? How far does the lie go?”
Daisy regarded her steadily. She wasn’t going to admit more than she had to. Jessica would just love to drag her name through the mud.
Jessica stood, arms crossed, her nasty smile triumphant. “I know this isn’t your house.” Her ice-blue eyes gleamed as she narrowed in on her prey. “Found that out with one call. I suspected as much when you didn’t know your way around the kitchen.”
Daisy exhaled sharply. “It’s not my house, but it was the inspiration for the house in my blog. No one wants to read about my crappy little apartment.”
“So you all played a game of musical houses to fool everyone at Mornings with Jessica.” Jessica nodded. “Oh, yeah, I know. The city has power, and I had my assistant look up the real estate records. This is Maggie’s house. That explains all the high-fiber food. And Trav lives in the house across the street. You don’t even live with him; you live in an apartment.”
Daisy clamped her lips tightly together. Keep it together. Admit nothing else.
Jessica went on, warming to her subject. “You’re not even separated; you were never together. I’ll bet you don’t even have a marriage record. I’ll find that out the minute your dinky town hall opens again. But here’s what I do know.” She ticked off the evidence on one hand. “Your first date stories don’t match, Trav has Bryce on his days, and I heard you telling him you didn’t even know him. Who doesn’t know their own husband?”
“That was a private conversation!” Daisy exclaimed. “You were eavesdropping. You had no right!”
Jessica laughed. “And your cooking. What a joke! All those gourmet recipes you wrote about and all you can come up with is grilled cheese. And no prepared meals. Another lie!”
Adrenaline ran down Daisy’s legs. She desperately wanted to run out of this house and never look back. But she couldn’t. Bryce needed her. It was time for her to fight, not take flight.
Jessica studied her. “So that’s why Max is professing his love for you. He knows you’re not happily married. Oh, yeah, I heard that little scene this morning.” At Daisy’s shocked expression, Jessica shook her head sadly. “Two rutting stags in heat over the”—she finger quoted—“innocent doe. Right in the hallway outside my bedroom. Really, it’s just too easy.”
Daisy told herself not to rise to the bait. She didn’t want to give Jessica any more ammunition than she already had.
“Did you borrow the baby too? Is he a prop in your fantasy world?” Jessica tapped her lips with one blood-red talon. “That must be why he cries so much. He wants his real mommy.”
Daisy lost it. “I am his real mommy!”
“But Trav’s not your husband, is he? I should tell Max you’re free.”
“We’ll be married soon,” Daisy said. “We planned to marry yesterday, in fact. You can check town hall for the marriage license.”
Jessica looked down her nose at her. “How could you? All those mothers who turn to you for inspiration, who aspire to be a fraction of the wife and mother you are, who feel less than because of your lies.”
Daisy felt her lower lip quiver and clamped down on it. She never wanted to make other moms feel bad. Hell, she always felt like less than the perfect mother. She never should have pretended to be the perfect mom and wife.
“I’m sorry,” Daisy said in a choked voice. “It just sort of happened. I made up the perfect life so I wouldn’t feel less than. I never meant to make anyone else feel that way.”
Jessica nodded slowly. “Thank you, Daisy, for finally telling the truth. This is an even bigger story than the one we have. I can’t wait to expose you on the air.”
Daisy’s eyes widened. “I’m not going back on your show.”
“You don’t have to.” She opened her palm to reveal a small black recorder. She pressed a button on it. Daisy’s voice played back loud and clear. “I’m sorry. It just sort of happened. I made up the perfect life—”
Daisy lunged for the recorder, but Jessica was faster.
“You can’t use that,” Daisy said. “You took that without my permission.”
Jessica smiled coldly. “People who commit fraud don’t get special treatment when a journalist is investigating them. It won’t take me long to gather up all the evidence against you. Then I’ll get the ratings Max promised me when he lined you up as a guest. See you on TV.” She brushed past Daisy.
Daisy turned. “You better get out of this house, bitch!”
“With pleasure.” Jessica sauntered downstairs.
Daisy sat on the edge of the bed, staring at her hands, as a cloak of misery gathered around her.
~ ~ ~
Trav returned home in good spirits. The roads were clear, cell service was back up, and he’d seen Jessica and Max driving off in the crew’s van.
“Daisy, I’m home!” he called.
Shane met him in the living room, holding Bryce. “She locked herself in Gran’s room and won’t come out.”
“What happened?”
“I don’t know. She won’t say anything. She just told me to bring Bryce up when he cried. So far, he’s okay.”
Trav got a bad feeling. He took the stairs quickly and pounded on the door. “Open up, Daze. It’s me.”
To his surprise, the door sprang open. She’d been crying. He folded her into his arms. “What happened?”
“Is she gone?”
“Jessica and Max took off with the rest of the crew. And good riddance.”
She pulled back. “Jessica knows. She knows everything. She’s going to expose me on the air.”
“How could she know everything?”
“I don’t know. She said she made some phone calls, and I admitted…shit. She never said what she did know. She goaded me into it.” She smacked her forehead. “I’m so stupid. She recorded me admitting I lied. On this stupid little recorder she had hidden in her hand. It’s only a matter of time before she puts the pieces together.”
He stared at her. “Why would you admit you lied after everything we did to pull this off?”
“She just kept pushing me, telling me I was the wrong size and in the wrong house. She fig
ured out we weren’t living together. And the whole time, she had this nasty smile.”
“So you just told her everything?”
She looked at her hands. “She said I wasn’t Bryce’s real mom.” She met his eyes. “I just lost it.”
“Aw, Daze, you gotta control that temper.”
“I can’t help it!” she cried. “I’m ruined before I even began. All that career stuff Max talked about—poof! Gone! No blog, no more talk shows, no endorsements. And you want to know the worst part? Marrying you doesn’t even fix it.”
He didn’t like where this was going. “We could just say we considered ourselves married because we’ve been together so long. Make it sound like we just hadn’t gotten around to making it official.”
“No more lies! And no quickie wedding. It’s wrong. This whole thing was wrong from the beginning, and I’m just the fool who thought I could do one good thing without screwing it up.”
Tears leaked out of her eyes, and she dashed them away with the back of her hand.
“Come on, we can take her,” Trav said in a coaxing voice. “Jessica’s a skinny thing. One gust of wind and she’s toast.”
She gave him a hard glare. “Not everything’s a joke.”
“I know that.”
“I’m out.” She lifted her chin. “Of everything.” She raced out of the bedroom, and he followed as she flew down the stairs and headed for the front door.
She stopped, hand on the knob. Slowly, she turned around.
He watched her curiously.
She looked at the ceiling. “I’m not running away. I just wish I wasn’t cooped up here.”
“We’ll take a walk. It’ll clear your head.” He met her at the door and handed her her coat.
They left the house, stepping out into the cold together.
~ ~ ~
Trav was right, Daisy thought. Walking did make her feel better. Especially once they stopped at Liz and Ryan’s place.
Ryan answered the door and grinned. “We finally got rid of the riffraff, and then you show up.”
“Yeah, yeah,” Trav said.
They stepped inside, and Liz rushed to the foyer, wearing rubber gloves up to her elbows. “Oh, hi, guys. I was just cleaning up after our guests. You wouldn’t believe the state of the bathroom.” She shuddered. “Men.” She turned to Ryan. “They make you look like a neat freak.”
Daisy Does It All (Clover Park, Book 2) Contemporary Romance (The Clover Park Series) Page 18
