Total pages in book: 104
Estimated words: 94585 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 473(@200wpm)___ 378(@250wpm)___ 315(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 94585 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 473(@200wpm)___ 378(@250wpm)___ 315(@300wpm)
“Daisy.” Royal reached over and squeezed my hand. I looked up to see that we were pulling to a stop in The Inn’s parking lot. “I'm going to bring you home to Heartstone. We'll go straight up to my rooms and you won't have to see anyone. We can leave your car here. Do you need anything?”
A decent set of parents? My life back the way I thought it was?
I shook my head. Royal couldn't fix this for me. I managed to whisper, “Thanks,” my voice thick. His lips pressed to my forehead and a fresh wave of tears cascaded from my eyes. What had I done to deserve this man? My life was a mess, my father had insulted him, and here he was, taking care of me.
“Thank you,” I said again, this time clearer, the blue of his gaze burning away the moisture in my eyes.
He dropped another kiss, this time on my lips. “Anything for you, Daisy. You should know that by now.”
Anything for me.
He was the first person to say those words to me. That should have scared me. It didn't. I knew I'd do anything for Royal, too.
I had no idea how soon I'd understand what that really meant, and how much it would cost me.
Chapter Thirty-Two
royal
Daisy was a shell of herself.
I'm not a violent kind of guy. I usually figure problems can be better solved with a smile and words than throwing a punch. All of that went out the window when it came to Daisy's father. I didn't give a shit what he called me, but calling her a slut?
I hate that word on a good day. Why should anyone be called names for liking sex? It was stupid and narrow-minded. But to say that to Daisy? Daisy, who hadn't even dated in over a year? Daisy, who was so sweet, and funny, and everything I'd ever wanted in a woman—everything I never knew I needed.
I white-knuckled the steering wheel all the way to Heartstone so I wouldn't swing the car around and head straight back to Sweetheart to put Darren Hutchins on his ass.
Now I knew what she'd been hiding about the bakery and the stalled renovations.
Again, I repressed the urge to pulverize her father. What kind of asshole steals from both his daughter and his mother at the same time? And then says he'll have her arrested when she asks for the money back?
I heard a grinding noise, and for a second, I thought it was my car. I realized it was my teeth and that a headache was throbbing behind my eyes.
Fuck. I had to get it together for Daisy. She needed me to support her, not trample in, fists swinging.
At Heartstone, I parked beside the garage and ushered Daisy in through the side door, straight to the family wing on the second floor. We didn't run into anyone on the way. Daisy's shoulders sagged in relief when we closed the door to my suite behind us.
I texted Savannah to let her know Daisy’d had a bad day, and we'd be skipping dinner in favor of the privacy of my suite. I knew better than to ask for the meal to be served up here—Savannah didn't do room service—but she surprised me by offering to have our food delivered.
Daisy was loved, she just didn't know by how many people. Not yet. Her family might have let her down, but mine was jumping in to pick up the slack.
Daisy paced the living room of my suite, wiping her eyes now and then as I tried to think of what to say.
“I'll have to move,” she muttered to herself, dashing away a fresh wave of tears. I struggled to push back the need to kick her father's ass.
“You can move in with me,” I said with a shrug.
She might as well be living here already. I'd cleared space for her in the closet weeks ago, ditto for the bathroom. I had one of the bigger suites in Heartstone Manor, with a spacious bedroom and bathroom, huge walk-in closet, and a sitting room-slash-office. The only suite bigger was the one Griffen shared with Hope.
Daisy followed my eyes around the room. It was easily several times the size of her small apartment over the bakery, and far more luxurious. Prentice had let whole wings of Heartstone fall into disrepair, but the family wing had remained intact if a little dusty.
She gave me a look that had me doubting my sanity.
“You don't want to move in with me?” I asked.
A heavy sigh gusted out. “It's not that, Royal. I love being here with you, but we've only been seeing each other for a month. It's way too soon to move in together.”
“Maybe, but—” A knock fell on the door.
Annoyed at the interruption, I strode across the room to find Hope standing there, a small white bag in one hand. She leaned around me, looking for Daisy. When their eyes met, Hope brushed past me, holding the bag out to Daisy.