Page 90 of A Doctor for Daisy

“I won’t. I promise. This is the first time she’s seen my place too,” she said, wincing.

“Really?” he asked. “How come?”

“Because she never really was able to get much time off and it’s not a fun day trip being three hours away. Or I’m working when she’s off. It hasn’t worked out. I never had a problem going home and that is what I always did.”

“Because there is comfort in that,” he said.

“Yes and no. It’s not like the apartment she is in is the one I lived in as a kid. We moved so much so I don’t have memories of places. Not like you do at your house.”

“I don’t find any comfort in going home for a visit,” he said. “I did in Mystic.”

“Which is why you chose to come here,” she said.

“One of a few reasons that you know about,” he said.

“I don’t care the reason, I only care that you are here,” she said.

“Let me help you,” he said, grabbing a knife and slicing some vegetables.

A few minutes later her phone buzzed. “Hello,” she said. It was the front lobby.

“Penny Jones is here with a guest.”

“Yes, you can let them come up,” she said.

“I do like the safety you’ve got here,” he said.

“I told them at the desk to let her up. I left her name. I’m not sure why they didn’t do it. I’ve never had an issue before. You got up here no problem.”

She wasn’t sure why this happened and she was positive her mother would comment on it.

A few minutes went by and she heard loud talking in the hall. Again, her mother.

Daisy went and opened the door, her mother standing there with a guy the same size as her. She wasn’t sure what she expected her mother’s boyfriend to look like. She’d seen a few pictures of him but not to see his size. Or the gold chains on his neck like an old Italian uncle. The flash of the pinky ring almost blinded her.

“Daisy,” her mother said. “I told them downstairs that I was your mother.”

She gave her mother a big hug but not before she noticed that black fitted jeans and leopard print shirt. She wasn’t sure she’d ever seen her mother in animal print before, let alone tight clothing.

“It’s so good to see you, Mom. Come in.”

“This is Charlie,” her mother said.

She stuck her hand out to shake with her mother’s boyfriend. She never would have expected this to be her mother’s type. He had a button-down shirt on that was unbuttoned fairly deep, showing some chest hair and she wanted to gag but didn’t. If her mother was happy, that was all that mattered.

“It’s nice to meet you,” she said. “Mom, Charlie, this is Theo James.”

Her mother turned when Theo walked into the room. “Oh my, aren’t you just yummy,” her mother said. Yeah, that sounded like her mother! “Daisy always did have good taste in men. And you’re a doctor. Why didn’t you introduce him that way?”

“I’m just Theo here,” he said. He walked forward and shook their hands. “I only get called doctor when I’m at work.”

“A nice fancy job you’ve got too,” Charlie said.

She ignored that statement. “Mom, can I get you something to drink? Do you want me to show you to your room?”

“I want to see this classy place you’re living in. I’m surprised you want to come back and visit me when you live like this.”

“It’s just a place I rent,” she said. “It’s Poppy’s condo. You know that. And the only reason I can afford it is that they only charge me what her mortgage payment is and it wasn’t as high as it should be because of the loan she had.”

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