And all this time he thought she’d taken him to the shop with the crack in the steps, the leather seats, and the faded pictures on the wall to makehimfeel more comfortable. Well, she’d probably taken that into consideration too. Win-win-win. Daisy got the footage she wanted with an interesting character, Vern’s business boomed, and Beckett relaxed enough to enjoy the experience.
Daisy spent a lot of time thinking about others. That was hugely attractive.
He finished brushing and checked her door, wanting more than anything to see Daisy and hold her close. He’d kill for one of those sunshine smiles of hers.
Maybe not kill—but he’d blend. The “filming” sign was still on the door, so he checked the time. She’d be done in fifteen minutes and out for breakfast. It was high time he did something for her.
Chapter Twenty
EveryDayGlam!Beauty Tip
Intensive Hand Treatment
½ of a ripe avocado
2 teaspoons sweet almond oil.
Mash the avocado and mix with the sweet almond oil. Rub the mixture into your rough and tired hands. Wrap your hands in plastic wrap and let sit for twenty minutes to an hour. Rinse clean and blot dry for beautifully nourished hands and nails.
Daisy was thankful, and not for the first time, that she’d picked the type of door handle that moved by pushing down and not a knob she’d have to turn. The knob would have been darn near impossible with her hands covered in avocado and almond oil and wrapped in plastic wrap. She had twenty minutes before she could wash off the goop, which smelled like Betsy Lacey’s oatmeal cookies. Maybe she’d put a link in to the recipe and give theSweet Home Vermontchannel a boost. That would be fun. She had yet to meet the star of the cooking channel but hoped to see her at the conference.
She rounded the corner to find Beckett standing over the blender, patiently chopping a banana. Her breath caught in her throat and she wondered if she’d ever get used to his new look. Under all that sun-bleached hair was a dark, brooding man who could easily grace the lens of any camera.
She leaned her shoulder against the wall, needing the support as her body went to jelly mode. Vern suggested leaving a sexy stubble. Vern hadn’tcalledit a sexy stubble—he probably would have kicked Daisy out of his shop for even thinking it was called a sexy stubble. He’d classified it as a one-week beard. Daisy classified it as long enough to be soft to the touch and short enough not to get in the way when they kissed. If they ever had the opportunity to kiss again. She’d been thinking about those kisses in the club parking lot much more than any woman should think about a kiss.
The beard transitioned smoothly into the hair at his temples. No gray there. The top was longer and parted on the side. It wasn’t flat against his head; rather, it went up and over—like Bryce Harper’s hair, only in a walnut-brown color. Even though she’d been starting at pictures of him for the video montage, she’d forgotten how his dark hair set off his bright eyes. They were positively electric. Wha-wha. When he looked at her, she felt the sparks all the way down to her silver-glitter-polished toenails.
His phone played “Hail to the Chief.” She dove for his back pocket, earning a yelp from him before he figured out who was grabbing at his backside. She didn’t actually grab him as she got his phone. The yelping was funny, though, and she laughed.
“What the …?”
She swiped the answer button. “Uh-uh, Kelly.” She shook her finger in front of her face for the tiny camera. “No spoilers. You can find out what Beckett looks like along with the rest of my followers.”
Kelly’s shoulders slumped. “Pleeease. I have a bet going with accounting. They think you went all guns and ammo pinup on him. I told them no way, my girl is classy.”
Daisy bit her lip, looking over the phone to Beckett. He lifted one eyebrow, asking her what she was going to do, and her insides turned to lava.
“Ooooh! It’s got to be so good. You’re blushing!”
There was no sense denying it. “That doesn’t mean anything. I’ve been blushing since he got here.”
“Really?” Kelly tipped her head to the side. “Is there somethinginterestinggoing on?”
Beckett folded his arms and leaned against the counter, waiting for her to answer the question. He wasn’t going to be any help. His eyes were tinted with curiosity. Too bad. Daisy wasn’t giving anything away before Wednesday’s post. “You’ll have to wait and see.”
“Ugh! You stink at girl talk. You know that?”
“Hey, be nice,” Beckett warned.
Daisy waved him off. “No worries. I’m horrible at it on purpose.” She smirked at the phone. “Now, did you want to switch over to a regular call or just talk now?”
Kelly sat up straight again. “Since you foiled my plan, I should just tell you that I called to talk to you.”
Daisy waited for her to go on.
“We’ve had phenomenal success with the makeover campaign. So much that our president would like to invite you and a guest to our annual fundraising dinner, where they would like to present you with an award.”
“An award?” Daisy repeated.
