“I suppose as photos go, these aren’t terrible. The kids are having a great time. I even manage to have my eyes open in all them. No. Those are fine. It’s just strange to see the history of my life printed in black and white for hundreds of strangers to read.”
More like thousands, but he didn’t think now was the time to clarify.
She started to slide down to the bottom where the online comments were available, but he placed his hand over hers to stop her. “Don’t read them. I guarantee you that for every fifty positive things you read about you and your family, it’s the one negative trolling comment that’s going to stick with you.”
He breathed easier when she moved away and closed the laptop. “You’re right. I’ll just look at this public debut as pretty much a success. At least they didn’t seem to hate me.”
“And why would they?” Glenda asked. “You have lovely, well-behaved kids, a kind heart, and you’re a responsible, hardworking woman.”
“They’re going to love you,” Jack added with absolute sincerity. “In the meantime, I want to take today and just do whatever the hell we want.” He looked around at the various bowls and recipes in various stages of completion and smiled. “You want to bake enough food for a Spanish armada, that’s fine with me. As long as you’re enjoying yourself. We want to do some more swimming or sailing, or even try paddleboating—then let’s do it. Then afterward, we can enjoy an intimate family dinner right here at the house, and then head down to watch the fireworks from the beach.”
All of which sounded pretty perfect to him.
He and Glenda waited for Daisy to respond. She took a moment, as if considering his suggestions, then smiled slowly. “I can’t think of a better day.”
From overhead, the stampede of feet told them that the kids were finally up and out of bed and about to descend on them. But for that moment, he and Daisy seemed to reach an unspoken agreement.
Today was just about them. About the kids. About the possibility of maybe, just maybe, becoming a real family.
Chapter Eleven
A couple of hours later, Daisy kneaded the warm chocolatey empanada dough onto the counter, finding herself oddly at peace. From outside, there was a shout and she looked out the window to see Jack chasing the kids around the lawn with a massive water gun.
“Don’t even think about getting me,” her aunt warned from a chair set a few feet away from the chaos.
“Get me! Get me!” the kids shouted, despite their shrieks moments before when he had done just that. Daisy smiled, shaking her head at their antics.
It felt almost…too perfect.
She knew that. She was going down a dangerous road by not telling Jack first thing this morning that enough was enough. That as tempting as his offer was, once they returned home, and back to their regular lives, they’d face the reality of the situation.
What they had here, tucked away in this part of the world, was only a fantasy life.
Living here in this big beautiful house…enjoying kisses and touches from a guy who was not only generous and kind and funny but also sinfully sexy to look at…doing fun and adventurous things without worry about how much things would cost or how much of a bite it would take out of her paycheck…
None of this was reality.
Back in the real world—her world—she’d be trying to figure out how much in groceries she’d have to cut back on to cover last month’s electric bill and still allow her to put aside enough money to buy the kids new jackets for the fall.
On the other hand, another voice was there telling her that all that stress would be waiting for her at home soon enough.
What was the harm in enjoying, for this brief moment in time, this little glimpse of a life that was close to perfect?
She knew why.
Because she’d want it forever. And when it all came crashing down, she might never recover from this one.
The timer went off over the stove, and she grabbed the hot pads and went to check on lunch. The top of the empanadas were a golden brown exactly as she wanted them. Satisfied, she pulled them out and set them on counter. After Jack’s assurance after breakfast that he didn’t mind her driving his ’67 Ford Mustang convertible, she had gone to two grocery stores to pick up all the ingredients she would need for her recipes and the menu she had planned for testing today.
She grinned at the memory of driving alone in that classic car. There had been something freeing about letting her hair blow in the wind as she drove down the street, almost without a care in the world. Another thing she could get used to.
Daisy was stirring the chocolate mixture for the dessert she had planned for later, when her phone buzzed with an incoming call. She looked at the caller ID and grabbed the phone, excited to talk to her sister.
“If it isn’t ‘the mysterious woman who has stolen the heart of the most eligible bachelor in the West,’” Benny said, quoting the headline that Daisy had seen just that morning.
She groaned. “You’ve seen the papers? I would have thought there’d be more important things to do three weeks out from one’s wedding than reading idle gossip.”
Benny was too cheerful as she replied, “But this isn’t just some idle gossip rag. It’s in the Tribune. So it must be absolutely true. Look at how fast you move,” she teased. “Engaged and already choosing the china pattern for the dishes that will be set out in the Governor’s Mansion.”