Page 36 of The Cupcake Cottage

“Why doesn’t that surprise me?”

“You were using it as an excuse not to get furniture. I don’t know how long you planned to live like a nomad.” She turned to Daisy-Mae. “He was sleeping on a mattress tossed on the floor and living out of a suitcase.”

“Really?” Daisy-Mae gave him a funny look.

“In the summer I planned to take care of some of this stuff.”

“That’s exactly what I was afraid of. You’d be exhausted from the season and hire it out again. I hope you’re ready to keep this man in line, Daisy-Mae. Whenever he’s given the chance he turns into a minimalist hermit or hires someone to make his place look as generic as a chain hotel.” A timer in the kitchen went off, and his mom zipped back through the doorway.

“What’s wrong with that?” Maverick asked as he and Daisy-Mae followed. She shrugged.

His mom pulled a steaming dish from the oven and answered, “You can afford to live in a place that feels and looks like a home. You didn’t even have a shower curtain!”

“So?”

Daisy-Mae was watching the conversation unfold with interest.

“You were ruining your wooden baseboards with all the splashing!”

Daisy-Mae giggled, ducking from the room to answer Violet’s call about which side the water glasses went on.

“You’re embarrassing me, Mom,” he said quietly. He knew he didn’t need to impress Daisy-Mae, but that didn’t mean the instinct wasn’t still there.

His mom brushed off his comment. “Daisy-Mae needs to know what she’s getting herself into.”

“She’s not getting into anything.”

His mom whirled, eyebrows raised. “What does that mean? You’re not serious about her? Because you look serious.”

“I just… I uh…”

“Uh, what?”

Man, his mom had a way of nailing him to the wall, didn’t she? He was head over heels for Daisy-Mae, but he wasn’t about to admit that to his mother.

His mom turned back to the stove, stirring and poking at her various pots. “Did you plan to hold her at arm’s length forever and never invite her over? You have to let women into your life, Maverick. Especially girlfriends. You shouldn’t need your mother setting you up all the time.”

“Hey, I asked her out, didn’t I?” With some help from Louis.

His mom jammed her fists down on her hips, her eyes boring into him. “A woman like Daisy-Mae won’t wait forever. She’s looking for deep and forever, not some man who’s never going to let her into his life and heart.”

“I’m letting her in.”

“Then why does she look like you’re going to boot her out of here?”

“I’m not,” he said with a laugh. “I like her being here, actually. Even though thiswasmy woman-free zone.”

“Oh, don’t be so third grade.” His mom pointed a wooden spoon at him. “She learned her lesson with Myles. She’s not going to wait around until you figure out if you want her or not.”

“So I should propose to her after dessert and scare her off?” he snapped, frustrated at his mom’s pushing. He didn’t want to ruin things with Daisy-Mae. She was too important.

“Don’t be sassy. You know what I mean. Your career keeps you on the road and busy so much of the time. Make sure you show the woman you care about that she matters to you.”

Maverick sighed. He understood what this was about now.

“She’s not like Janie. She understands my schedule. She works for the team, remember?”

“Knowing and feeling are two different things. Let her know she’s welcome here.”

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