Page 85 of The Life Daisy Devlin Designed
“Highly strung,” Matt said, after a beat.
“Matt, it’s way more likely that someone from her own crew went to the press. Like maybe ...” Daisy tried to think, “the guy who fell off the scaffolding. I mean, let’s face it, he can’t be very happy about that.”
“Except that if it was someone in the band, there’d be photos from the night itself,” Matt said.
Daisy shook her head. “Unless they were too clever to take photos because they’d know it’d be traced back to them!”
Matt raised an eyebrow.
“Look, Matt,” Daisy persisted, “they can’t just start accusing people!”
“Not everyone, no. We could narrow it down to whoever was here that morning.” He folded his arms.
Clearly, Matt was determined to play Sherlock Holmes! “I’ll ask Kenny, but I don’t think it’ll prove anything.”
When Matt said nothing, Daisy realised that he was seriously annoyed. She suppressed a sigh. He was probably under huge pressure from Kayley’s agent and publicity manager. Better to change the subject.
“So,um, I was wondering if you’ve thought about what you’re putting on your walls?”
He frowned. “Haven’t we already decided all that?”
Yep, definitely annoyed! “I’m talking about art. Original paintings, prints, wall hangings, mirrors – everything.” Daisy smiled. “Some clients like me to pick out a few pieces, others prefer to do all that themselves. It’s pretty personal.”
“Oh, okay, actually, I’m way ahead of you.” Matt powered on his laptop, typed something into the search bar, and turned the screen so she could get a better look. “It’s a website for new Irish art, with links to all the artists’ individual websites.”
“Wow, I didn’t know this existed.” Daisy peered over Matt’s shoulder as he scrolled down the pages. Up close, she could smell his familiar aftershave and an apple-scented shampoo. She jerked her head back. “I should tell Mum about this. She’s an artist too.”
Matt turned. “I’d forgotten you’d told me that.”
Why had she reminded him? It didn’t matter: the chances of her mother being organised enough to have her own website were extremely slim.“It’s all pretty reasonable,” Matt was saying. “And it’s good to support Irish artists.”
She and James had two of her mother’s paintings, both of which Miriam had painted and given them. Daisy felt a stab of guilt that she’d never offered to buy any more.
Todd came into the room. “We’re gonna head off. Daisy, we’re gonna have to ask you and the rest of the crew to leave your phones in a box when Kayley is here.” He gave a hard smile.“Thank you for your understanding.” Before Daisy had a chance to reply, he added, “Matt, can you get heating in the guest wing sorted? Kayley says it’s not working.”
After he left, Daisy turned to Matt. “I’m not leaving my phone in a box, Matt. I need it when I’m working. And it’s not like Kayley is some sort of recluse. The woman’s on social media the whole time!”
He sighed. “I’ll talk to her, but she deserves her privacy.”
Daisy resisted the urge to laugh. “Matt, if I ever want a photo of her, I’ll just ask.”
Matt’s lips thinned. “I’d better take a look at the boiler.”
“Or you could wait until Niamh is out again,” Daisy suggested. “If it’s an electrical thing, she’ll sort it quickly.”
“Yeah, I also have the name of that other guy Kenny called out when we lost our power.” Matt ran a hand across the back of his neck. “He said Niamh might have overloaded the fuse boards.”
“Kenny said that?” Daisy frowned.
“Nope, the other electrician did.”
“Did you tell him a woman did the electrics?”
“What?” He rolled his eyes. “I probably mentioned it.”
“Ah, big mistake.” Daisy tried not to react to Matt’s expression. “Let me have a quick look at the boiler. In case it’s something small that Kayley might have missed.”
“Thanks.” Matt briefly squeezed her hand, and she smiled, waiting for the little tingle she usually got when he touched her. Nothing. Clearly, the collective stress was rubbing off on her!
