Page 97 of Almost Always

Dad

Love you too, kid.

If he was being honest with himself, the moment she leaped into his arms in the rain that day, Rafferty knew he was going to marry her. He’d certainly had dreams about a future with her when they were younger, but it was clearer now.

It might seem like they were rushing, but they’d known each other most of their lives. Granted, the years apart put a little bit of a dampener on that whole ‘sharing history’ thing, but some things didn’t change. Like how when she saidI love youin the bathtub a week ago, the first three words that popped into his head werelet’s get married. Even when they lived in different cities and phone calls were all they had to connect them, he had often thought about how when he graduated from college, he would go to Greenville and ask Daisy to go anywhere in the world with him.

Little did he know how things would change for them back then.

They had a proper shot now, so he wasn’t going to waste any time. Like he told his father, he wasn’t going to rush her. Having the ring didn’t mean that he was going to propose tomorrow. It was knowing that hecouldif he wanted to.

In the week since meeting her best friend and husband, and watching her struggle through a migraine, their relationship had blossomed. They were still busy, but they made it a point to have at least one meal together every day. If she had dinnerand stayed over, she’d join him and Cal for breakfast. Other times, he’d swing by her shop with lunch and they’d eat in her office together. He even liked falling asleep with her in his arms, because there was something so special about knowing she was right there with him.

The most crucial thing about the evolution of their relationship was that Cal was happy. Whenever Daisy was at the Ames house, he would insist that she read with him every night. Cal hadn’t read a ‘children’s book’ in years, but he had discovered the magic ofPercy Jacksonand would read a chapter or two with her. Rafferty knew his son well enough to know that that was a sign of approval.

If that wasn’t enough, when he announced that they had been invited to a gala hosted by the Delaware Fire Department, Cal’s only response was: “As a family?” He asked if she’d help him choose an outfit for the evening. When Rafferty turned to Daisy and saw her teary eyes, he knew that officially making her a part of the family was the right thing to do.

The event was to raise money for a local organization that helped those who had lost their homes due to fires that were out of their control. Given the number of arson cases every department handled every year, the families affected kept growing as well. So the fire houses across the state came together to donate items to a silent auction that would make enough money to provide for those who needed it. Daisy suggested they donate something and decided to offer planning and designing a garden together. It didn’t matter that neither of them had the time or the space to add anymore work onto their schedule, but the idea of workingwithher on something they both were passionate about was an easy sell.

The evening of the gala, he stood in front of his full-length mirror and smoothed down his black shirt. Daisy’s dress was covered in the bag hanging off his wardrobe while she got Cal ready. Every attempt to get her to show him what she’d bought went ignored, so he knew that whatever it was, it would kill him.For her, I’d die happily too.He dragged his comb through his hair, following instructions she’d left him and pulled it into a tight knot. She’d also insisted he trim and groom his beard and he didn’t argue with the love of his life.

Footsteps drew his attention to the open bedroom door and he grinned when his son stepped through in a beige suit. The jacket and pants were the same color and instead of a stuffy shirt, he was wearing a plain white T-shirt that was tucked into the waistband.

“Do I look as handsome as you, Daddy?” Cal asked, adjusting his jacket as he joined him at the mirror.

“You look even better than me. Snazzy,” he said and his son puffed out his chest, trying out different poses. Smiling, he smoothed Cal’s hair as Daisy appeared behind them. Even in cut-offs and one of his old Ames Landscaping tees, she took his breath away. She blew him a kiss and walked into the bathroom.

“Daisy said we should wait outside so she can surprise us.”

Arching an eyebrow, he glanced towards where she’d gone. “She said that, huh?”

“Yes. May I have a cookie before we go?”

“Sure. Tuck a napkin into your shirt and use a plate!” he called out as his son raced out of the bedroom. Shaking his head, he looked at himself once more and adjusted his cuffs. As hepicked up his black jacket, Daisy appeared, arms crossed over her chest.

“You gotta go, hotshot.”

“Come on, let me watch.”

She shook her head and with her hands on his chest, guided him out of the room. “I promise it’ll be worth it.”

“I have no doubt.” He smiled at her clear face and shook his head. “Lucky to love you, Hero.”

“Lucky to be loved by you. Now,go,” she said, laughing softly and blew him a kiss before closing the door in his face.

Sighing happily, he walked into the kitchen where his son had not only followed instructions, but had also hung his jacket over the back of his chair. Rafferty set his jacket down as well and put out Boots’s dinner, scratching the top of his dog’s head as he came over. Once he had his phone in hand, he joined his son at the counter and went through texts from Mack and a few of the guys from an old fantasy football league in New York. He ignored the work emails, because he had no intention of getting sucked into anything right now.

“Wow. You look like a princess,” Cal said

He looked up from his phone and almost dropped it when he laid eyes on said princess.More like the queen of my heart and soul.

“Good, because I wouldn’t want to show up underdressed next to two princes.”

Ethereal was the only word he could use to describe her at that moment. His eyes swept over her slowly, taking in the mustard yellow dress that was gold against her brown skin. It made her collection of necklaces glow even more than usual. The strapless ensemble hugged the top half of her body, pushing her breasts up and flowed around her waist and all the way to the floor. When she shifted on her feet, a high slit exposed almostall of her left leg, including a glimpse of her tattoo, and it was a miracle he didn’t slide off his stool.Fuck me.

“You look…divine,” he told her, some part of his brain registering that it was a good word to define her.

“Had to up my game to keep up with you.”

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