“Does he get to visit often? I mean, that’s pretty far—”
Daisy brusquely interjected. “Look, we don’t have to do this, Jameson,” she cut in. “Enough with the pleasantries. Everything is wonderful. My family’s well. I’m well. You seem well. Let’s get to whatever you need to say.”
Jameson looked down at his folded hands and then glanced around the empty coffee shop before pulling his hat off and running a hand through his thick hair. Daisy glanced, too. Only Arlene and her husband, Bob. They wouldn’t know him from Adam. She’d been mindful choosing Betty’s. It might have been her favorite coffee place, but it wasn’t popular. Safe. The last thing she needed was a photo of him with a “mystery girl” and someone digging into her life.
God forbid.
“I don’t take it lightly that I ran into you last week,” he said. “I’ve wanted to reach out for a while, but with everything going on with Mum, I haven’t had the time.”
“What happened to your mother?”
He exhaled, frowning. “She had a bad fall a few months ago.”
Daisy gasped. “Is she all right?”
“She is now. She was taking down her Christmas lights and fell off a ladder. Cracked her head pretty bad.”
“Was anyone with her?”
“Her neighbor saw it happen and called an ambulance. Suffice it to say, I’m officially done with LA. I’m moving home. That’s why I’m here, looking for places.”
“You’re moving back?” Daisy asked, too sharply.
“Yeah. Sorry if that inconveniences you.”
“No. It’s just… surprising, that’s all. Don’t you need to be in LA for your career?”
“We’ve paid our dues long enough to live anywhere. Lenny and Ky are moving back, too. LA can be crazy, and the pace up here is better for all of us.”
Daisy didn’t respond. The thought of him being close unsettled her. She needed to ensure she’d never see him again.
Be bitchy, Daisy. Men hate bitchy.
She grabbed her purse and put on her best snotty face. “Sorry about your mom, Jameson, but you only have five minutes, and you’re really starting to stretch the clock here.”
He balked at the aggression, then, to her surprise, grinned. “Right. Well, I don’t know how much you know about my life…”
“Nothing really. Just whatever I see at the grocery checkout. I’m not sure how accurateOK! Magazineis.”
“Unfortunately, they’ve been all too accurate in past years.”
That stilled Daisy. She met his eyes.
“I went to rehab a little over a year ago. If you read those rags, you’d find exactly what my publicist fed them, that I went away due to ‘exhaustion.’” He actually air-quoted the word.
“But that wasn’t true?”
He shook his head and paused, reflective and ashamed. “We both know I’ve had my problems. Honestly, you were the only one for a while who confronted me. It was the lifestyle, what we thought we were supposed to do. I’m much better now, and my therapist suggested I make amends with the people I wronged, which, let me tell you, is a long list.”
“And where am I on this list?”
“At the very top.”
“Lucky me,” she murmured.
“I want to… no, I need to apologize for everything. I’ve spent a lot of time reflecting on how much I screwed up. I take accountability for my actions. I really do. I should’ve nevertreated you the way I did. I should’ve listened to you and cared for you in your time of need instead of letting my selfish agenda get in the way. I regretthatdecision. Every. Single. Day. I am truly sorry, Daisy.”
That struck a chord. The apology she swore she didn’t need turned her to mush. While she had forgiven the actions of a nineteen-year-old boy, she needed this. But while all was forgiven, none of it was forgotten and she couldn’t let his apology pry open her heart. It had to stay in the steel cage she’d built around it nine years ago.
