Page 12 of The Life Daisy Devlin Designed
Matt was waiting when Daisy arrived at The White Goose. She’d deliberately chosen the gastropub around the corner from the office, as they’d never been there together. Now, as she walked towards the table, he got to his feet, smiling.
Daisy managed a shaky smile in return, and wondered how it was possible for a man to be better-looking after five years.
He’d always been tall – at six foot three inches, he was taller than James – but he was broader now, filling out the dark blazer and white shirt he wore over blue jeans. It suited him, she thought. His dark curls were a little shorter, and his features seemed stronger and more defined.
But those dark-blue eyes and full lips were exactly the same. She remembered how it had felt when Matt had looked at her like she was the most important person in the world. She remembered exactly how he kissed. And how he made love. A surge of panic shot through her, and she had to resist the temptation to turn and walk out. Was she completely mad? Here she was, inviting Matt back into her life when she’d spent the last five years trying to forget him.
“Hello, Daisy.”
She swallowed. “Hi, Matt.” Now what? Should she offer to shake his hand?
Matt saved her by stepping around the table and pulling her into a brief hug.
Breathing in, Daisy got a whiff of soap and the merest hint of an unfamiliar aftershave. Just as quickly, he released her and stepped back around the table.
“Good to see you.”
“Yeah, and you.” This was pathetic. She wasn’t that twenty-year-old student who’d first fallen for Matt Deveraux, or the twenty-four-year-old woman left devastated when he’d gone to America for a summer, and had decided to stay. This was a business lunch and it was up to her to set the right tone. She sat down and waited for Matt to fold himself back into the chair, before offering a professional smile.
“Congrats again on buying Granary House. Although I was a bit surprised when I heard.”
“That I’ve bought an old house in the Wicklow countryside, miles from the nearest town?”
Matt grinned, and Daisy took a deep breath to steady herself. Matt’s family were from Kilkenny city and, like her, he’d rented in Dublin during college. The first time they’d met, she’d told him she was from Oranmore in Galway, and he’d laughed and said he’d forgive her for being a culchie because he loved her red hair.
“Surprised that you’re back in Ireland, too,” Daisy said. “Are you home for good?”
“That depends on a few things.” He glanced up as the waiter appeared to ask for their drinks order. Matt looked at Daisy. “I guess it mightn’t be appropriate to order rum and Cokes?”
Their drink of choice at the end of a night all those years ago. They’d slowly sip one each, stretching out the evening. Wherewas her self-control? This wasnotwhere she wanted her brain to go right now.
“Sparkling water for me,” Daisy said.
Matt nodded. “I’ll have the same, thanks.” After the waiter left, he said, “Your text was quite a surprise.”
Daisy’s forced a laugh. “Is that why you took four days to reply?”
“No.” Matt smoothed down the curls at the back of his neck in a gesture Daisy remembered. “I hadn’t considered redesigning the place. I’m still not sure if I want to. But I needed a few days to consider, so I wouldn’t be completely wasting your time. And I was being truthful when I said I’ve been busy.”
Daisy got the feeling that there was something else he wanted to say, but she wouldn’t push him. Their drinks arrived, and Matt picked up his glass. “Cheers!”
Daisy clinked her glass against his. James always refused to toast with water, she thought.Business lunch,Daisy: focus.
Matt gave a small smile. “You haven’t changed a bit, Daisy.”
“You have, sort of,” she blurted out, heat flashing to her cheeks as Matt gave her an amused look.
He laughed. “I probably don’t look quite as underfed as I did when I was twenty-five.”
As you did when you left. There were so many questions she wanted to ask, but she couldn’t ask them now, or she’d send him running straight back to the States.
“So, how have you been? Brian mentioned that you and James bought a house.”
So he’d asked Brian about her! Unless Brian had volunteered the information, which was unlikely. Brian’s favourite topic of conversation was himself. Matt, on the other hand, had always wanted to know everything about her. What she did, who she saw, where she went.
While a part of her wanted Matt to know how successfully she’d moved on without him, another part wanted to draw a very firm line under her private life. Matt had lost the right to know anything when he’d walked away. Still, client or no client, she couldn’t be rude.
“Yeah, a couple of years ago.” She tried to read his expression, but it was impossible.
