“So he almost fired you?” Megan asked from the other end of the phone. To her, this was like a live soap opera playing out right in front of her. Well, through the telephone line, anyway.
“Yes. It was a close call, for sure. But I used all of my big words and best acting from that one high school class we took, and it worked. For now, at least.”
“How are you getting along with Elliana?”
“Good, actually. I like the kid. She’s very sweet, a little sheltered, but not a brat, surprisingly. I really thought a billionaire’s daughter would be a pain.”
“Crap, I’ve got to go. Dylan’s calling me about my work schedule. Call me if you need anything.”
“Thanks, Meg. I don’t know what I’d do without you.”
Daisy pressed end on her phone and set it down on the kitchen counter.
“Who’s Meg?” Elliana asked from behind her, startling her.
“What?”
“You said you didn’t know what you’d do without her.”
“How long have you been standing there?”
“I just walked up. Who’s Meg?”
“Well, she’s my very best friend back home. Do you have a best friend?”
Elliana smiled. “Yes. Her name is Emmy.”
“Emmy and Elliana, huh?”
“Yep!”
“Cool. So, what do you want to do today now that your dance camp is over?”
Elliana climbed up onto one of the bar stools. “Can we go on a picnic down at the beach?”
“I think we can do that,” Daisy said with a smile. “Let me make some sandwiches, and we’ll do it for lunch. Why don’t you go get dressed and I’ll call you down when I’m ready?”
“Okay!” Elliana said as she bounded up the stairs.
Daisy walked into the kitchen and opened the refrigerator, looking for the ham she’d bought the day before. As she took out the mayonnaise and mustard, she sensed someone behind her.
“Oh, you scared me,” she said when she saw Tristan standing on the other side of the breakfast bar.
“Sorry about that. I was just coming down to make myself some lunch.”
“I can do that. What would you like?” Gosh, she hoped he picked something easy because her cooking skills were less than stellar. Before he could answer, Elliana came bounding down the stairs again wearing a blue and white checked sundress and her favorite bright pink flip flops.
“Daddy! Are you coming to lunch with us?” she asked as she jumped up and down, her hands in a praying position.
“Lunch?” Tristan said, a quizzical look on his face.
“Yes, we’re having a picnic on the beach!” she said, her level of excitement way too much for the situation, in Daisy’s opinion.
“Well…”
“I’m just making your father something for lunch. I’m sure he’s very busy today,” Daisy said, trying not to sound sarcastic.
Tristan squinted his eyes at her and smiled slightly. “Actually, my morning conference call canceled, so I have some time before my afternoon calls. I think I will join you ladies. I mean, if you don’t mind?”
Daisy froze. What had she done? Invited the guy who disliked her immensely to eat lunch and bombard her with questions in front of the big, scary ocean?
Sometimes she just didn't think about what she was saying. She had basically just dared him to spend time with her which was insane since she definitely didn't want to blow her cover. As much as she thought he should spend time with his daughter, she didn't intend to spend time with him herself.
"Oh. Great. I'll just make an extra sandwich or two."
"Here, let me help. Elliana, go upstairs in the linen closet and get that big plaid blanket I saw. "
Elliana ran up the stairs, probably trying to figure out what a linen closet was. She was quite sure that the child had plenty of maids and help in their real home. But even more surprising was that Tristan was going to help her make a sandwich. She sure didn't see that one coming.
"The secret to a great ham sandwich is right here," he said as he reached into the refrigerator and pulled out a jar of long pickles that were sliced for sandwiches.
"Really? I wouldn't have taken you for a pickle type of guy."
He stopped and looked at her, a quirk of a smile on his face. "And what does a pickle type of guy look like, generally speaking?"
Why did she keep sticking her foot in her mouth? Had she insulted him by not assuming he liked pickles?
"I mean, I wasn't trying to offend you…"
Tristan started laughing. "Relax, Miss Davenport. I'm just poking a little fun at you. But, seriously, the pickles are what make it good. Slap a couple of these on the sandwiches. I mean, do you even like pickles?"
She was so rattled by his sudden friendliness with her, that she didn't even know if she liked pickles. The answer to the question escaped her for a few moments.
"Yes, I like pickles. I love pickles. I'm a member of the local pickle club back home. "
Again, why was she trying to be sarcastic with this man? Something about him just made her want to dig in her heels and argue, even if it was about pickles.
He smiled again, which was way cuter than she wanted it to be. Most of the time his face looked like a big block of stone that would shatter given the opportunity. But, instead, he looked easy-going as he rolled up the sleeves of his dress shirt and started pulling bread out of the bag.
"I'll have you know that even when I was a kid, I made the sandwiches when we would go on picnics. There is this forest land, you know the type that's protected by the government, and we would have picnics there all throughout the summer…"
As he spoke, she was half listening to his story and half thinking that if he was so into protecting land, why was he destroying her little town? Before too long, she realized that she wasn't paying attention and he was looking at her, as if he was waiting for an answer.
"Are you all right there?"
"What? Sorry. I didn't hear that last part."
"I asked you if you wanted mustard or mayonnaise or both?"
"Oh, just mayonnaise, please. I can do that if you want me to…" she said as she reached for the butter knife. He pulled it back.
"Did you not hear the part about how I’m a master sandwich maker? If you make the sandwiches, you're never going to know just how truly talented I am when it comes to pressing slices of bread together with meat in between. Do you really want to lose out on that kind of an opportunity?"
His face was impassable. She wasn't sure if he was serious or making a joke until he finally let out a chuckle.
"I'll get the bottled water," she finally said, aching to get out of the situation. Did this guy have some sort of personality disorder? How did he flip from being so intolerable to being so dang adorable? This was probably how rich guys got women. They were allowed to act any way they wanted to as long as they had a fat bank account and a nice car.
She pulled the bottled water out of the refrigerator and put it into the cooler that was sitting on the counter. After a few minutes, Tristan had finished the sandwiches and then grabbed a bag of chips and the blanket and headed out the back door of the house.
As they walked towards the ocean, Daisy tried not to let on that she was truly terrified of the water. She wanted no part of it, but the last thing she needed was to alert Tristan to that fact. She was sure that he would wonder why she’d agreed to sign onto a long-term commitment when the house was literally sitting at the edge of the ocean.
Thankfully, he told Elliana not to go too close to the water so that they didn't have as much wind to deal with.
Elliana and Daisy laid out the blanket while Tristan held the cooler and water. Once they got it smoothed out, they all sat down and started digging into the food.
Elliana kept her father’s attention for quite some time, regaling him of stories from dance camp and different videos she had been watching on YouTube when there was nothing else to do. It made Daisy happy to see the little girl getting the attention she needed from her father. Shockingly, she hadn’t seen him look at his phone one time during their picnic.
After she ate her sandwich, Elliana spied a small dog down by the water’s edge with its owner. The older woman waved at them, and Elliana asked if she could go pet the dog. Tristan called to the woman to make sure it was okay and then Elliana took off. This left Daisy completely alone with Tristan and unsure of what to say or do.
"She's a great little girl," she said. Anytime you complimented somebody's kids, it was always a good thing. It immediately endeared them to you. At least that was her theory.
"Yes she is,” he said, looking lovingly at his daughter as she giggled at the silly little dog. Tristan then turned his attention back to Daisy. “Look, I want to apologize about my reaction the other day with dance camp. I'm very particular about who I allow around my daughter, and I guess I overreacted a little bit."
He wasn't making eye contact, and she could tell that apologizing wasn't something that he normally did. So, instead of making a multitude of sarcastic remarks that she had ready to go inside her brain, she decided to just let it go.
"It's okay. I mean I don't have kids, but I can imagine that it's difficult when you're a single parent to trust people you don't know.
"Well, anyway, I'm sorry about that."
They sat in silence for a few moments, Daisy trying not to look at the water, but Tristan staring at it.
"I love the ocean. I've loved it since I was a little kid. Just the in and out of the waves, always bringing something new to the shore. I guess it represents possibilities to me."
What was it with this guy? Now he was a poet? What was she supposed to say to that? That she was terrified of the ocean and all the little gnarly, scary creatures that lurked underneath in the spooky dark water? Yeah, that was great lunch conversation.
“And the house… It's a nice place." That was all she could come up with? When she got home, she was definitely getting a thesaurus. Certainly there had to be more words she could use that didn't make her sound like a middle schooler.
Tristan looked up at the house and then back at her. “Yes, I suppose it’s pretty nice for a beach house.”
“I guess you’re accustomed to much nicer things, huh?”
He smiled slightly. “Money doesn’t necessarily buy happiness, Miss Davenport.”
What a strange thing to say, she thought. He was a billionaire, and she was quite certain if she had a fat bank account like he did, her worries would be over. No more getting her electricity shut off, no more embarrassment when her card was declined at the local grocery store. Yeah, a billion dollars would make her quite happy.
Elliana ran back to the blanket, coughing a bit after she stopped running.
“Are you okay, sweetie?” Tristan asked, a look of worry on his face.
“Yeah, I just need to take my inhaler, I think,” she said. “I left it on the kitchen counter. I’ll go get it.”
As Elliana trotted back into the house, Tristan watched her. “She has mild asthma. Tatiana took her to the allergist last year and got her tested for me. Sometimes, she reacts to dogs, but not usually.”
“I’m sure she’ll be fine,” Daisy said, trying to sound encouraging.
“You’re probably right,” he said as Elliana came running back to the blanket.
“I took two puffs like the doctor showed me.”
“Good,” Tristan said, reaching up and squeezing her cheek. She giggled.
“Stop it, Daddy! I told you I’m too old for that now.” She rolled her eyes and smiled.
“You’ll never be too old to be my little girl, though,” he said, pulling her down onto his lap and playfully biting her neck. She squirmed and laughed, and it warmed Daisy’s heart to see their interaction. Up until now, all she’d seen from Tristan was constant stress and the back of his head as he walked upstairs for another phone call. How did he know so many people?
Tristan let her go and laughed as she ran toward the water, cackling at the top of her lungs and taunting him to chase her. Before he could stand up, he reached into his pocket to look at his phone.
“Dang it,” he said to no one in particular.
“What’s wrong?”
“My afternoon appointment just got cancelled too. Something about a weather event in South America.”
“South America?”
“That’s where the client lives.”
“Oh. I don’t think I’ve ever known anyone outside of North America.”
He chuckled. “Really?”
“In fact, I don’t know anyone west of Alabama.”
Tristan’s mouth dropped open. “So you’ve never traveled?”
She was embarrassed now. “No. I just haven’t had the chance yet.”
He smiled slightly. “Make it a priority. You’ll never regret seeing the Eiffel Tower or the Great Wall of China or even those little hidden beaches on the coast of Greece.”
Sure, once she cashed in all of her gold bars, she’d travel the globe, she thought. Sarcasm was her gift.
“I’m sure you’re right.”
Elliana ran back toward them, stopping at the edge of the blanket. “Why aren’t you chasing me?”
“Sorry, sweetie. I was just chatting with Miss Davenport here.”
“Miss Davenport? Why don’t you call her Daisy?”
Tristan wagged his finger at Elliana. “Sweetie, what have I told you about calling adults by their first names?”
“It’s okay. I told her she could call me Daisy.”
Tristan eyed her carefully, and then looked back at his daughter. “You may call her Miss Daisy.”
Daisy laughed loudly. “Like the movie?”
He looked at her for a moment before letting out a laugh of his own. “Right. Maybe just Daisy is okay.”
“What movie?” Elliana asked, her eyebrows furrowed.
“Nevermind. Listen, I just found out I have the rest of the day free, so what would you like to do, El?”
The little girl thought for a moment, her finger tapping her chin as she darted her eyes around. “I know! It’s something I’ve wanted to do for my whole entire life!”
“Your whole entire life, huh? Well, then we have to do it, right?” he looked at Daisy, and she nodded in agreement.
“Of course. I mean, it’s her lifelong dream.” Tristan smiled at her, and her heart did some kind of flippy flop thing that might have warranted a call to a cardiologist.
“I want to go on a dolphin cruise!”
Daisy heard nothing after that. Everything sounded muffled, like the teacher’s voice on a Charlie Brown cartoon. Her vision even started to blur, and everything felt slower. Maybe she needed to see a neurologist too…
“Daisy? Did you hear me?” Tristan asked, touching her arm.
“What? Oh. Sorry. No. What did you say?”
He looked a little concerned. “I asked if you knew where the ferry dock is?”
“Oh. Not exactly. I remember passing it…” She couldn’t get it together. How was she going to get out of this dolphin cruise? Surely, this would mean getting on a boat. That was what a cruise was, after all. And there would be water. Lots and lots of dark, scary water with sea creatures she couldn’t identify lurking just beneath.
What if she fell overboard? What if something jumped out of the water and snatched her right out of the boat? What if she got seasick? She’d never been on a boat before, so she had no idea if she’d turn green and puke right on Tristan’s expensive shorts. Who owned expensive shorts, anyway? Billionaires, that’s who.
“I’m so excited! I’m going to change into my dolphin dress!” Elliana said before running straight into the house, leaving the two of them to clean up from the picnic.
“She’s a little hyper,” Tristan said as they started gathering the trash and tossing it into the basket.
“I can see that.”
“You’re okay going with us, right?”
Say no. Say no. Say no.
“Of course. Sounds like a great afternoon!”
She was going to die.