Page 29 of Meet Me at Sunset Cove (Jonathon Island #5)

Chapter Fourteen

T his plan really should have been thought through a little better.

Daisy groaned, her back aching as she set another box on the stairs, a gust of wind following her from the open door, which revealed a mountain of furniture and boxes piled on the covered deck.

Asher Quinn had been a godsend, using the horses to help haul everything up from the docks, but he’d had to leave for another delivery at the Grand. And now, she was stuck, fifty boxes deep, and alone again.

Where was Hunter?

Daisy glanced at her watch. Only a few days until Thanksgiving, and so much left to do. There were still episodes to put out, though she had a nagging voice in her head telling her that nobody would watch without Hunter in the background…Even so, she couldn’t afford to wait for him.

Daisy breathed into her hands, rubbing them together for warmth, and strode back to the deck.

Gritting her teeth, she hoisted up another box and began dragging it inside, careful not to scrape up the walls.

It only took two more trips for sweat to begin beading across her temple despite the gusts of winter air, and Daisy felt her determination waver.

There was no way she could do this on her own.

“Need a hand?”

Daisy turned, her heart pitching in excitement to see Hunter. Instead, she found Logan.

He leaned against the porch post, arms folded across his chest. A scarf peeked out from the top of his warm wool jacket, his blue eyes standing out against the snow behind him. He looked more suited to modeling than furniture moving at the moment.

Daisy hesitated, her eyes skimming over the remaining items, and then, “Um, sure…Thanks.”

Logan nodded and stepped forward, bending at the knees to take one end of the plastic-covered upholstered bench.

“It goes just in here,” she said, directing him as they placed it in the hall and then put the rest of the boxes inside the empty parlor.

As last, she shut the door, blocking out the cold. Warmth seeped through her in its place. Despite not having the heat turned on yet and the old single-pane windows, the house really did hold heat pretty well. Daisy rubbed her hands together once more and then turned back to Logan.

“Well…” she said, crossing to the stairs, where she began opening boxes. “Thanks for your help, but I’ve got a lot of work to do, so…”

Logan let out an impressed whistle, and Daisy turned to see him wandering farther in, taking in the space. “So, this is famous Bad Luck Barrett House.”

His footsteps creaked over the floor as he examined Hunter’s banister, reaching out a hand to trace the intricate carvings. Daisy had the urge to slap his hand away.

“We don’t call it that,” she said quietly.

“Oh?” Logan glanced at her. “Sorry. That’s what the I heard the locals calling it, so…”

Daisy turned away, focusing on the task at hand. She pulled a large, framed mirror from one of the boxes and began to lift it, intending to hang it on the wall near the staircase.

“You know, there’s another rumor going around town that you and Hunter are engaged.” He chuckled.

Daisy pulled her pencil from the front pocket of her overalls, doing her best not to react. “We are.”

She could almost feel his smug, amused smirk, but he said nothing.

Logan stepped closer. “Hang on, don’t you think it would be better here?” He placed a hand on her lower back, gesturing to the wall opposite, with a hand held up to frame an imaginary space. “It would catch the light from the parlor better, make the hall feel bigger.”

“I think I know what I’m doing,” she said, pulling away from his touch. Though, looking between the two spots, she had to admit…“Yeah, okay. You’re right. That is better.”

Logan grinned, that dazzling smile playing with her as he took the mirror from her hands and lifted it against the wall. “How’s this?”

“A little up,” she said. “Yes, there.” She stepped forward, ducking under his arms to reach the top and left a mark on the wall.

He waited for her to retreat before lowering the mirror, turning. “See? We’ve still got it.”

Daisy let out a heavy sigh and turned to face him, brushing the hair out of her face. “Look, Logan. I’m pretty busy. So whatever you’re here for, can you spit it out, or leave, so I can get back to?—”

“I’m sorry.”

Daisy blinked. “Excuse me?”

Logan leaned back against the wall, looking up at her under furrowed brows. “You wanted me to spit it out, so there it is. I’m sorry.”

Daisy blinked again, shaking her head against the fog. Her chest squeezed as she dropped her gaze. She moved to the pile of boxes on the stairs, trying her best to keep working, but for the life of her, she couldn’t remember where she’d left her box cutter.

“Daisy?” his voice said softly.

“I heard you.”

“Could you say something?”

“What do you want me to say?” Daisy replied, the air struggling to escape her lungs.

“Anything. Whatever it takes to get us past this?”

Daisy whirled to face him. “To get us past this? There is no getting past this, Logan. You cheated on me.”

“I’m done with that. I ended it with Cassie. I’m sorry!” Logan repeated, his hands reaching out.

“You said that.”

“Well it’s true. I was an idiot, and I took you for granted. And I’m sorry. I’m so so sorry.” He crossed the room, his hands coming up to hold her. His steely-blue eyes capturing her, holding her gaze. “Please, Daisy. Come back to California. Come back to our life.”

Daisy froze, her heart hammering in her chest.

Their life.

She tried to wrap her head around what that life looked like. She and Logan. A power couple. Fame. Awards. Success . That had always been the plan, hadn’t it?

Except…she wasn’t so sure that was the life she wanted anymore.

Not with him.

Logan brushed a thumb over her cheek. “We can fix this.”

Daisy placed her hands on his chest. “No, we really can’t, Logan.”

He frowned, his arms tightening as she tried to pull away. “So that’s it, you’re just going to throw away five years together because of one mistake?”

For a moment, Daisy actually felt bad for him.

He really believed they could work this out.

She reached up, brushing a hair away from his face, the way she used to do before the camera started rolling.

“No,” she said sadly. “I’m throwing away five years together because I can’t remember the last time you looked at me the way he looks at me. ”

Logan’s face contorted in confusion, then understanding dawned. “The contractor?” Logan’s eyebrow raised. “The guy who’s been too busy to help you with all this? Come on, Daisy. You deserve better.”

His arms around her tightened, a hand sliding up her back to cup her head as his gaze dropped to her lips. “You deserve a man who won’t hold you back.”

Just then, a creak from the doorway caught their attention. She turned to see Hunter standing there, his face a mask of shock and hurt. The tension in the room shifted instantly, crackling with a new energy.

Daisy’s eyes widened, her heart dropping to her stomach. “Hunter,” she breathed, taking an instinctive step toward him.

But before she could say anything more, Hunter turned and walked away, his footsteps quick and heavy on the porch.

Daisy turned back to Logan, shoving hard as she pushed out of his grasp. “I can’t believe you.”

Logan scoffed, his eyes rolling. “Come on, Daze?—”

“I’m going after him. Because I choose him .” She turned toward the door “Don’t be here when I get back.”

* * *

And here he’d been about to apologize.

Ten minutes earlier, he’d been waging words through his head— I’m sorry I abandoned you. The cold wind had whisked through his hair as Hunter trudged up the hill, two cups of coffee in hand.

He’d asked at the coffee shop for their best apology brew. “You know, something that says, ‘Sorry I’ve been too busy to spend time with my fiancée’?” he’d said as his eyes skimmed the menu.

Jill had done even better. Not two minutes later, a pair of Daisy’s favorite drinks slid across the counter.

“So the lady can choose,” she’d said with a wink.

Now, Hunter savored the way the coffee aroma mixed with the smell of pine and the way the heat seeped into his palms. The gray sky overhead tried to be bleak, but it only served to make the red and orange leaves, peeking from under the snow, pop like flame.

Waylen had been right. Maybe spending a little time with his fiancée—fake fiancée—was exactly what he needed. And hopefully she wasn’t too upset about the last two weeks.

His feet trudged up the path and paused outside the house. A set of horseshoe prints trailed down the street, and Hunter smiled. If he knew Daisy, she’d probably waited all of two minutes before dragging everything inside herself.

He stepped up to the door, a smile already tugging at his lips, and then he froze, his fingertips falling from the door handle as it swung silently out of his grip.

Logan Double was standing in his house.

With his arms around his fiancée.

“You deserve a man who won’t hold you back.”

The words had sliced deep, a quick sting that grew, burning through him.

He should have known.

As though sensing his presence, Daisy’s head had snapped up, her eyes meeting his. If he didn’t know any better, he might have mistaken that look of shock splayed across her face. But he’d been here before.

Without a word, he’d turned on his heel and walked away.

“Hunter, wait!”

Now the cold that hadn’t touched him on the way up clawed over him as he reached the sidewalk. The coffees in his hands felt like lead weights, and he tossed them in the muddy ditch, not stopping as Daisy’s voice called over the wind.

He couldn’t believe he’d fallen for it. Again.

“Hunter, please!” Daisy called after him, her footsteps pounding against the sloshy pavement.

Hunter kept walking, each purposeful stride putting distance between him and the Bad Luck Barrett House. Long shadows grazed his face as he entered the wooded portion of the road, blocking the meager sun from what little warmth it could spread.

“Hunter, stop! It’s not what you think!” Daisy’s voice was closer now, breathless and pleading.

Hunter slowed, his jaw pulsing. He wanted to keep going, to disappear into the gray day, to leave her hurting the way he was hurting.

But there was something in her voice that made him pause.

Maybe it was desperation. Maybe it was that stubborn bit of him that refused to believe that everything between them had been part of the ruse. Slowly, he turned to face her.

Daisy stood a few feet away, snow crowning her honey-brown hair, her cheeks flushed from the cold, or maybe from running after him. Her blue eyes brimmed with emotion, wide and imploring. “Let me explain,” she said, reaching for him.

Hunter’s jaw clenched, emotions fighting for purchase in his head. All of him wanted to hear her out, to believe there was an explanation for what he’d just seen. And all of him wanted to throw the walls back up.

“Explain what, Daisy?” he finally said, his voice thick and low. “How you’ve been playing me this whole time? How all of this was a setup, a publicity stunt for your precious show? What was it, a ratings thing?”

Daisy flinched, her lips downturned, pressed into a tight line. “It’s not what you think?—”

“You want to know what I thought? I thought…maybe we were getting a second chance after all these years.” He swallowed, his eyes searching hers as the words scraped from his throat.

“But I guess it really was all part of the show. It’s fine.

I read into things. That’s on me. But do me a favor.

Stop acting like you care about me, because I can’t keep falling for you. ”

Daisy’s lips parted, her eyes bright with surprise. “Hunter…”

He stepped back. “We don’t have to talk about it, Daisy. We’re good. Let’s just get through the next week, and then?—”

He turned, meant to walk away, but Daisy’s hand slid into his, her soft fingers curling around his calloused palm. A moment later, she stepped into his path, the balls of her cheeks pink and wet. “Would you just let me talk, for like two seconds?”

His lips pressed into a tight line. “Fine.”

“Thank you,” she said, an exasperated smile tugging at her lips.

She was really smiling.

He had bared his soul, and she was smiling .

He raised his brows. Well…?

“First of all, ouch . To all of that,” she said, though her voice held no bitterness.

Her fingers curled into his, and for the life of him, he couldn’t pull away.

“Second of all, Logan showed up two weeks ago, right around the time your dad ended up in the hospital. He’s doing a reno project in town.

And I didn’t tell you because I didn’t want to add anything to your plate. ”

Hunter took a steadying breath, willing himself to listen. To hear her words for what they were.

“He stopped by today, asking me to come back to the show and to him.” Her features softened with every word. “And I’ll be honest, it made me think.”

Hunter’s chest expanded as his breath betrayed him. Of course…

“But I didn’t have to think about it very long,” she continued, “because the second he asked, I knew.” She raised a hand to his cheek, shaking her head. “I don’t want to be with him.”

Hunter’s heart thundered in his chest as he processed her words. He stepped closer, his eyes searching hers, looking for any hint of a reason not to let himself believe her.

“He’s not half the man you are, Hunter Barrett.”

The last of his defenses crumbled.

Hunter’s arms circled her waist, pulling her to him the way he’d wanted to do every day since she’d walked back into his life.

He lifted a hand, his fingertips tracing the pink in her cheeks before threading through her hair, tilting her head back.

She had snowflakes on her lashes. She was beautiful. He lifted her lips to his.

Daisy melted into him. Her fingertips brushed his chest, his neck, and curled around his shoulders as she returned his kiss.

Hunter pulled her closer, lifting her to her toes. His thumb grazed her cheek, memorizing the feel of her. The kiss deepened, and he poured into it all the words he hadn’t said, everything he’d been holding back because he’d been afraid.

Daisy wanted him. She chose him.

Snow drifted through the trees, dusting them with white, but Hunter didn’t feel the cold.