Katherine Garbera - One Kiss In… Miami

“Hel—” He broke off and then swore again. “Fair enough. I’ll do my best. I can’t promise I’ll be perfect.”

“Condition Two. My name is Daisy. Call me ‘woman’ in that tone of voice or swear at me again, and I’m out the door. And so is your daughter. Got it?”

He clenched his teeth together so tightly it was a wonder they didn’t crack. Even so, he conceded the point with an abrupt nod. “Any other conditions?”

She simply smiled. “Third, Aggie and Jett are members of my household, and where I go, they go.”

He must have picked up on her determination. She could practically see him adjusting his mental paradigm or thought processes or whatever the heck went on inside that amazing brain of his. “Who is Aggie?” he asked, the question so prosaic Daisy almost laughed.

“Aggie’s a former elementary school teacher and currently my cook and housekeeper. Since I’m a disaster in the kitchen and since the four of us need to eat, I hired her to take care of all things domestic.”

He perked up a little over that. “She cooks?”

“And cleans,” Daisy stressed. She eyed the room in open displeasure. “Seriously, Justice, this place is a disaster. I can’t believe you’re comfortable living like this.”

He glanced around, though she suspected he didn’t see the office and surrounding rooms the same way she did. “It’s just a bit of dust, and I don’t live in this section of the house.”

It didn’t take much thought to figure out where he did live. “Mad scientist plus secret location equals mysterious, hidden lab?”

“Something like that,” he conceded.

“A spotless mysterious, hidden lab?”

“Of course.”

“Well, since you now have guests who will be living in this section of the house, we’ll need our accommodations to be as spotless as your lab.”

He examined the room again, this time really looking—this time finally seeing. She could tell from his gathering frown that until that moment he’d been oblivious to the full extent of the problem. “I’ve been focused on a project and didn’t realize how bad …” He blew out a sigh. “I apologize. I should have done more to prepare for your arrival.”

“We’ll handle it.”

The “we” succeeded in returning his attention to his unexpected guests. “You’ve explained Aggie. Who’s the scary Goth girl?” he asked.

Daisy couldn’t help but smile. “That’s Jett.”

“Jett.” He froze. “Not that Jett. Not your computer expert.”

“That’s the one,” she took delight in confirming. “She was my parents’ foster child. After Dad suffered a heart attack, it became clear she’d have to move to a new home. Jett decided she didn’t want to start over somewhere else and asked me to become her foster parent instead.”

“This is November. Shouldn’t she be in school?”

“She received her GED at sixteen. She’s currently considering colleges.”

Justice’s brows shot upward. “How old is she? She looks about twelve.”

“She’ll turn seventeen in a few months. Jett can give you the days, hours and minutes, right down to the seconds if you want a more exact number.”

“She’s smart.”

“Scary smart. Like you, scary smart.” Daisy hesitated. “Like Noelle.”

His gaze sharpened. It didn’t take him long to process her comment and come up with the correct explanation. “That’s why you’re here.”

“One of the reasons, yes.” No point in going into any of the others. Those would become apparent over time. “It’s clear she requires someone who’s going to understand the way she thinks. Right now she has Jett, which is a huge help. But, Jett won’t be around forever. Plus, there’s no male figure in Noelle’s life other than my father and now that he has health issues …”

At the mention of her parents, his expression closed over, turning as cold and bleak as the mountains at his back. “I don’t want them anywhere near Noelle. Not after what they did to me.”

Daisy stared in disbelief. “You can’t keep them out of her life.”

“Watch me.”

“Condition Five.”

“Four.”

“Whatever. My parents are part of my life, the same way Jett and Aggie are. Deal with it.”

A muscle jerked in his jaw and his eyes burned like liquid gold. “Any other conditions?” He bit off each word as though they scorched his tongue.

“You haven’t agreed to my last one.”

“Why don’t we leave that one open for future discussion.”

She refused to allow it. “Why don’t we put that one to rest right now, because if you think for one little minute I’m going to deny my parents access to their only grandchild, you can think again.” She held up her hand. “And before you decide to break Condition One again—”

“Too damn late!”

“I suggest you put yourself in my place. In Noelle’s place. You’re the one who walked away, Justice.” She struggled to conceal her hurt with limited success. “My parents have been with me every step of the way. You haven’t.”

“Only because I didn’t know.”

“You’re a brilliant man. You should have considered that possibility and made sure. At the very least, you should have contacted me after the first dozen letters.” Could he hear the pain bleeding through her words? “Instead, you went out of your way to make certain I couldn’t find you again. That we’d never see each other again.”

“That’s not true. I would have—” He broke off and swung around to face the picture window. “Any other conditions?”

“Do you agree to my last one?”

“Yes.”

He sounded so bleak it almost unnerved her. She took a moment to gather her thoughts before pressing forward. “Condition Ten.”

“Five.”

“I’m holding the others in reserve.” She didn’t give him time to argue the point. “I need a room for a studio. One with windows.” She had no idea whether she’d actually use the studio. She considered it more of a last-ditch effort. Because deep inside she secretly wondered whether she’d ever paint again. And the thought flat-out terrified her. “Unshuttered windows, if you don’t mind.”

He shrugged. “You can take a look around and see if anything suits. Make sure it’s on this level or upstairs. The basement is off-limits to everyone.”

“Is that where your uncle lives?”

“Yes. It’s also where my lab is located.”

Justice faced her once again. The sphere flowed through his fingers, assuming one shape after another. First a cylinder, then a pyramid, then something that twisted in on itself, making her dizzy. “What is that thing?” she asked.

“I call it Rumi. It helps me think.” He’d regained his self-control and regarded her with a calm, icy expression that seemed to lower the temperature in the room by several degrees. She shivered, waiting for snowflakes to start drifting from the ceiling. “My turn,” he announced.

Uh-oh. She hadn’t anticipated this and should have. “You have conditions?”

“You thought you’d be the only one?”

She retreated a pace, even knowing it portrayed a certain defensiveness. “Okay, fine. What are your conditions?”

He took a step in her direction, following in the path of her retreat, all the while the sphere twisted, twisted, twisted. “One. It is your responsibility to keep everyone out of the basement. That includes you. Having you and Noelle here is tough enough for Pretorius. The addition of two more people will be extremely difficult for him. He needs to know that he’s safe in his area of the house. Am I clear on this point?”

“Crystal.”

“Two.” Another step closer. “I have a routine. Disruptions to that routine are unacceptable.”