up against the doorframe, blowing out a deep breath.
“Déjà vu, eh, girl?”
Betsy’s big, brown eyes look up at me before she drops her nose to the floor and sniffs at the front door. Her tail stays motionless. Even she knows.
Daisy still isn’t home.
“Come on.” I sigh, patting my thigh.
She turns and follows me down the steps, back toward the truck.
What Trav said has got me thinking. Maybe Daisy is avoiding me. Hope Cove isn’t that big. And she doesn’t have a car. I know Kayla was at work this morning with Trav at the clinic and is back there now, so she can’t be with her. And Daisy said she didn’t have work today. There aren’t many other places she can be.
My thoughts are interrupted by Betsy letting out an excited bark and her tail whacking me around the knee. I look up to see what’s got her attention and can’t help the smile growing on my face as I spot Daisy walking up the long driveway toward us. She’s wearing her white spa uniform. Her dark hair is tied up off her face in a messy pile, strands falling over her cheeks. I watch her tuck one behind her ear, only for it to fall straight back out again.
“Betsy. Go.” I tilt my head in Daisy’s direction and Betsy’s eyes light up before she races off to greet her.
The sound of laughter breaks out in the warm evening air as Daisy drops to the floor and holds her arms out, wrapping them around Betsy, who’s whining and wiggling her butt while trying to land as many slobbery licks on Daisy as she can.
“I’m beginning to think she likes you better than me.” I arch a brow as I make it over to them.
Daisy’s laugh dies down, and I swear she avoids looking directly at me, instead choosing to fuss over Betsy, rubbing her ears, and telling her what a beautiful girl she is.
“We stopped by this morning,” I say, holding out a hand.
Daisy eyes it, chewing on her lip before she wraps her delicate hand inside mine and lets me help her to her feet. Her skin is soft in mine, and the scent of fresh flowers hits me as she stands.
“Did you? Maria called me into work to cover a shift.” Her eyes still don’t meet my face as she slides her hand out of mine.
“Ah.” I nod as I study her, looking for a clue. Something to give away how she’s feeling about what happened.
“Listen, Dai—”
“Blake—” she says at the same time, before stopping.
I shut my mouth and wait for her to continue as she glances down at Betsy again. Now I know she’s avoiding looking at me. She couldn’t make it any more obvious. Judging by the two deep frown lines running between her eyebrows, I’d say she can’t even stomach it.
Fuck.
She stands there in awkward silence, wringing her hands together in front of her. Regret written all over her face. I can’t stand it.
Time for damage control.
“Daisy…”
“Dee,” she breathes out quietly.
I clear my throat. “Will you look at me, please… Dee?” My earlier smile has long since vanished, along with her carefree laugh when Betsy greeted her. Her shutters are firmly back in place.
She folds her arms over her chest and lifts her chin; her clear blue eyes finally meeting mine. Waiting.
I swallow. “Look, I just wanted to clear things up.” I run a hand through my hair.
I’ve had similar conversations with girls before, so why does this feel like I’m slowly drowning in tar? I need to let her off the hook. Let her know that it’s okay not to mention it again if she doesn’t want to. We can carry on like nothing happened. If that’s what she wants. I’m not an asshole. I will not push it or keep bringing it up if she wants to write it off as a momentary lapse of judgment.
“Last night was—”
“Yeah,” she snaps. “Last night was… last night. Let’s leave it at that, shall we?” She glares at me.
Her sudden change in tone has my full attention. My eyes bore into hers as I take a deep breath in through my nose and straighten my shoulders.
She does want to pretend it never happened.
Daisy stares back at me, unflinching, as I roll my lips and nod.
“Sure.” I shrug. “If that’s what you want.”
Her eyes narrow and she tuts, shaking her head in disgust as she looks away again.
This is not going how I planned. I knew she may want to forget all about last night. But I didn’t expect her to be so pissed about it.
I look at her, chewing on her lip, her forehead wrinkled as she stares out across the lake.
“I had to get back for Betsy, if that’s what you’re pissed about?” It comes out sounding less than apologetic, and more like I don’t give a shit.
She snorts, letting out a humorless laugh.
“What?” I growl.
“Are you sure you didn’t have to get back for Cindy?” She turns to me, her blue eyes piercing me with an icy stare.
I screw my face up as I stare at her, my mouth dropping open. “What the fuck are you talking about?”
“Like you don’t know, Blake. You only think with your dick.” She drops her eyes down my body and back up again with a scowl.
I stare at her, at a complete loss over how this conversation suddenly turned so ugly.
She rolls her eyes. “C’mon, Blake. You and I both know it was nothing more than a rebound fuck for you.”
I tense, every muscle in my body coiling tight.
“Oh, that’s what it was? A rebound fuck? I’m glad you’ve got that sorted out in your head. So, what was it for you, then?” I ask through clenched teeth.
I can’t believe she thinks last night was a rebound fuck. There’s no way in hell sex like that can happen if your mind is on anyone other than the person who’s naked and tangled up with you.
A flash of something fires in her eyes before she pulls her mouth into a grim line.
“It was a mistake. Fueled by one too many drinks.”
I clench and unclench my fists by my side as my blood pressure hits the fucking roof.
Fueled by one too many drinks.
“Don’t you fucking dare!” I lift a hand to point at her, then throw both arms up and rake my hands through my hair instead, pulling at strands of it until my scalp screams under protest. “I would never have touched you if you hadn’t said it was okay! I would never have laid a fucking finger on you if you hadn’t seemed in control of your decision!”
Her eyes widen, and I hear her suck in a breath. She stares at me for a moment.
“I should have known better.”
“What the fuck’s that supposed to mean?” I can hear the way my voice sounds.
Low, gravelly, with an edge of—about to blow my fucking top.
It surprises me. I’ve always been great at keeping a clear head. Thinking rationally. Staying calm. It’s what I do. It’s my job. My life. You can’t afford to have a hot head out in the wild. It could cost you your life if you lose control.
Only, standing here with Daisy staring at me like I’m something she stepped in, has my blood boiling. I can feel my control slipping. Like a frayed old rope. Its thin strands snapping.
One. By. One.
“I think you know what it means, Blake.” Her cold eyes meet mine again. “You and me… last night… it was nothing. It should never have happened. We were friends. We should have left it at that.”
She’s riled up and I should do what I can to diffuse the situation. Except seeing her here, all pouty, pink lips, fire burning in her eyes, has me teetering on the edge of losing it.
“Yeah. Maybe we should have. Too bad we can’t change the past, eh?” I glare at her, my blood rushing in my ears.
“Yeah. Too fucking bad,” she hisses. Her eyes are glassy as she stares up at me.
I force myself to take a couple of deep breaths. Something isn’t right. I can feel my resolve about to break and say something I can never take back. But this… this reaction from her.
This anger…
It’s not the Daisy I know.
“Daisy…” It takes all my self-control to soften my voice and slow my pounding heart, grasp on to those final rope threads that are barely holding together.
“It’s Dee! How many fucking times, Blake?! It’s Dee!” she shouts.
Snap.
Blood rushes in my ears.
“That’s funny! I don’t recall you complaining about me calling you Daisy when I was inside you last night and you were digging your nails into my skin!” I shout back.
Daisy’s eyes go round, and she takes a step back.
Betsy lets out a howl at our raised voices. But my eyes remain glued to Daisy’s, my chest rising and falling as I suck in lungfuls of air.
“Get off my property, Blake,” she says finally, her voice losing some strength.
“Daisy…” I reach for her as shame seeps into my core. “That came out wrong… I—”
“Save it. I don’t care. Why don’t you go find someone who does?” She turns and stomps off up the steps toward the front door. “Better still. Go find Cindy!” she yells again before slamming the front door behind her.
My anger skyrockets again. I’m like a fucking rollercoaster at Universal Studios.
“You’re nuts!” I yell back at the closed door. “You’re fucking nuts!”
It flies back open again and Daisy’s standing behind it, her eyes wild.
“Just so you know. I couldn’t care less who you stick your dick in!” she cries before slamming it shut once again, so hard that the paneling around the front door shakes.
I stand there, waiting for my anger to subside. Forcing my feet to stay rooted to the spot so I don’t go and hammer on the door and make things worse.
Not that they could get much worse.
I couldn’t care less who you stick your dick in.
As my breathing slows, my mind clears, and two things hits me.
One. The sight of Daisy all wound up and ready to bust my balls would have my dick ridiculously hard if I weren’t so confused by what just happened.
Two. Cindy bothers her. Which means one thing.
She cares who I stick my dick in.
In fact, I’d say she cares a whole lot.
