Page 62 of The Life Daisy Devlin Designed
James turned on his side to face away from her. “G’night, Daisy.”
“Goodnight,” she whispered.
CHAPTER 27
@Celebwatch88 idk but it seems @kayleylynch has piled on the weight since coming out of rehab – looks like she’s swapped vodka martinis for big macs
Granary House looked like a cross between a rehearsal studio and a film set by the time Daisy arrived on Monday. She slipped past a group of people taking cameras, microphones, sound booms and lighting equipment out of the back of a van, and carrying it into the long reception room, where Kayley seemed to be directing everyone.
James had been asleep when she’d got up, and she’d figured he’d work from home again, so she hadn’t woken him.
She stuck her head into the kitchen, glad to see the replastering of the old ceiling had started. As she came back up the three steps into the hall, she spotted Kayley’s manager standing outside the sitting-room door.
“They’re getting ready to record an interview,” Todd said quietly. “Matt’s in there too.”
“He’s watching it?”What happened to staying out of the way?
“He’s in it! Kayley thought it’d be cool to make him part of it: he’s got some patter about the history of the place. And Kayley’s talking about why she’s loving it here in Ireland. Listen, Daisy . . .”
Todd moved towards the front door, and Daisy followed him.
“Your guy with the man bun?” he said. “Talk to me!”
Daisy blinked. “That’s Alec, one of Kenny’s men.” Where was this going?
Todd gave a curt nod. “Kayley’s used to fans, you know? But she doesn’t have the same ones always hanging around, and we keep the crazies away. Man Bun’s comin’ on a bit strong so I need for you to talk with Kenny and tell his guy to back off.”
God, how had she suddenly got sucked into the world of a celebrity singer? Still, she had a job to do, and she’d do whatever she had to, to get it done.
“I’ll mention it to Kenny, I’m sure there won’t be a problem.”
She excused herself, and headed back through the kitchen and stepped out onto the patio, shivering slightly as she closed the door behind her. In the last half hour, the wind had picked up and huge clouds scudded darkly above – a clear sign that the latest storm of the year was on its way. She walked down through the walled garden, grateful that the half-acre of vegetable beds and walkways would be left undisturbed. At the end of the garden, she turned and looked back towards the house, assessing it critically. It looked well; it would look even better when they integrated the old conservatory into the new kitchen.
She spotted Niamh striding towards her, her dark curls pulled back from her face, a vape in her hand.
“Hey.” Daisy gave a friendly smile. “How are the electrics coming along? Any problems?”
Niamh shook her head. “I’ve got it. I just wish certain people would let me do my job!”
Daisy frowned. “How do you mean?”
Niamh took a puff of her vape. “Kayley Lynch! Absolute weapon! She’s here about three seconds and she thinks she owns the place. This morning when I was talking to Matt, she appears from nowhere and has the cheek to send me off on some lame job. And, like, Matt’s way too polite to say anything to her.”
Daisy nodded sympathetically. Matt was in a difficult position, but there was no point trying to explain to Niamh that he had to keep Kayley happy.
“Look, all I know is that they’re recording some interview this morning, and they wanted Matt to be part of it because he owns the house. And they’ve probably a schedule to keep.”
“Right, because the rest of us have nothing to do.” Niamh kicked at the ground.
Daisy thought for a moment. “Whatever Kayley wants you to do, just run it by me or Kenny.”
Niamh rolled her eyes. “It’s not like she’s even an A-lister. Anyway, whatever.” She tucked the vape into a pocket in her work trousers, and stalked back towards the house.
Daisy sighed, then turned slowly around. From here, she could just make out the nearest neighbouring house. It was at least a half a mile from Granary House, and on higher ground. By comparison, Granary House was in a valley. Hopefully that would mean any concertgoers would get a decent amount of shelter if the weather were to turn bad.
As the first heavy drops of rain started to fall, Daisy went back inside to start her work.
Matt and Niamh were laughing together in the kitchen when Daisy came in to grab some lunch, and Daisy was relieved that Niamh seemed to have forgotten about her earlier annoyance. A job was only as good as every member of the team and, given the deadline they had to meet, she couldn’t afford to have Kayley make things difficult.
