Page 83 of Meet Me at Sunset Cove

Daisy tried to muster a weak yay, but it came out more like a gurgle.

“Daisy,” Robin said flatly, her brow furrowed with concern. “This is your career we’re talking about. You’ve got to pick up the pieces or you’ll be left behind.”

Then came a suggestion that made Daisy’s stomach churn. “I think the first thing we should do is clear the air. Release a statement about the video,” Robin said, her voice cautious. “People need to know you didn’t say those things and the video is fake.”

Daisy wanted to cry. They’d never believe it. She had no proof it was a deepfake. And despite her suspicions over Logan’s involvement, she couldn’t publicly accuse him of something like that. Especially not when he held her career in his hands.

She pulled her knees up to her chest, burying her face in her arms, and let out a long groan of frustration. How had it come to this?

She felt Robin sink down on the sofa beside her, a comforting hand start circling her back. “You know I’m just trying to help, right, babe?”

“I know,” Daisy replied, her voice watery.

“Okay.”

Another minute ticked by before Robin whispered, “I gotta get to work, but I’ll be by tonight. We can workshop something. You don’t have to play nice with Logan if you don’t want to.”

Daisy felt a kiss on the top of her head, and then she was alone again, tears stinging her throat. She lifted her head to wipe her eyes and spotted her phone, abandoned on the coffee table. She reached for it and opened her contacts, found who she was looking for, and hit the Call button.

The phone rang twice before a familiar voice answered. “Daisy. Hey, sweetie.”

“Mom,” Daisy choked out, her voice cracking with emotion.

“Oh, honey. It’s okay.” Her mom said, her voice soft. She didn’t ask what was wrong. She’d probably seen it all over Daisy’s social media pages. And she didn’t ask if she was all right. She knew. “It’s okay. You’re okay.”

“I’m sorry I didn’t call,” Daisy whispered, a fat tear trailing down her cheek. “I just…I didn’t want you to see me fail. I didn’t want to call until I was back on track.”

“Daisy.”

“I just…I told myself I’d call as soon as I had my life under control…and I don’t know what I’m going to do now. Everything’s a mess.” And she wished she was back home, in that little house they’d made their own all those years ago.

“It’s okay, sweetie. I knew you were waiting.”

“You did?”

Her mom let out a quiet laugh. “Yes.”

“How?”

She half expected her mom to say her standard answer of “mom magic” but she didn’t. Instead, she said, “Because you always wanted everything to be just right. You never let me step in and rescue you. Never asked for help. But I always hoped you knew it was there.”

“I knew,” Daisy whispered. A comforting quiet filled their call, and then Daisy said, “Mom, can I ask you something?”

“Anything.”

“You remember the day you came home with all the painting supplies? The day we started renovating together?”

“I do.”

“What happened?” Daisy asked. “What happened to make you do that?”

There was a moment of silence on the other end of the line. “It was something your dad did. Or rather, what he didn’t do.”

“What do you mean?”

“Do you remember your Knowledge Bowl competition back in middle school?”

Daisy nodded, then remembered her mother couldn’t see her. “Yeah.”

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