Chapter 400

Victor called the realtor while I stood beside him with my fingers crossed. There had to be a way to fix the snag, whatever it was. The estate was perfect for us. We couldn’t lose it.

I heard the realtor’s voice when she answered his call. “Victor, I’m sorry for giving you bad news.”

“What’s the problem?” Victor asked. His voice was calm, but I saw the tension on his face.

“The current owners of the Juniper Lane estate are two granddaughters of previous deceased owners. One of the young women refuses to sell to Miss Wilson.”

Puzzled, Victor and I looked at each other.

“Why?” Victor asked.

“She claims Miss Wilson did something to cause her problems in the past,” the realtor responded. “I can’t change her mind. She refuses to sign the papers to finalize the sale.

“Does she know the size of the offer we made?” Victor asked as I searched my memory for the identity of the granddaughter.

But I couldn’t think of who I had angered that much. I shrugged at Victor and did a palms up.

“Who is she?” I whispered in his ear.

“What’s the granddaughter’s name who won’t sign?” Victor asked. “Maybe Daisy could speak to her and smooth things over.”

“Kayla Davis,” the realtor replied.

I groaned. Kayla was the girl who was expelled from my high school for bullying me in the bathroom and tearing my dress.

She also bullied me over my wetsuit at William’s pool party and pushed me into the pool. William abjured her after I almost drowned.

She left the party in shame and probably wasn’t welcome within his group of friends or family again.

I hadn’t thought of Kayla in a long time. Strangely, I felt terrible that she still held a grudge and disliked me so intensely. Hate is a heavy burden to carry.

Even if she still wouldn’t sell us her grandparents’ estate, it was time I faced her, and we worked it out.

“I'd like to speak to Kayla,” I said into Victor’s phone. “How do I contact her?”

“I’ll text Victor with her address,” the realtor said. “Let me know how it goes. Good luck.”

Victor hung up with the realtor, and we waited for her text. “Do you know who she’s talking about?”

“Yes, Kayla is the girl who pushed me into the water at William’s pool party,” I replied. “She was also expelled from my high school for bullying me in the bathroom after I first moved here.”

“I had words with the girl’s father after the pool incident,” Alex revealed. “He assured me she would be punished severely, and her bullying you wouldn’t happen again.”

“If this girl hates you, maybe you shouldn’t speak to her,” Victor said.

“Kayla Davis was a typical bully,” Cassidy declared. “She’s only brave in front of an audience. But it wouldn’t hurt to take someone with you, Daisy.”

“I’ll talk to Amy,” I agreed. But it would be better if I went alone. Cassidy is right. An audience might embolden Kayla and make things worse. I want her to sell us that estate.”

After dinner, Victor sent Kayla’s address to my phone, and I called Amy for her opinion on handling the situation.

“I’d be glad to go with you,” Amy said. “Where is she living?”

“Circle Drive,” I replied.

Amy snorted. “Kayla Davis lived in one of those tiny, old houses on Circle Drive?”

“It looks that way,” I said. “Aren’t most of them rentals?”

“Yep. What happened to her Daddy’s mansion and money?” Amy wondered.

“I’ll find out,” I said. “I think it would be better if I went alone. I can handle Kayla.”

I drove to the suburbs on the other side of the city after breakfast the following day. The houses were tiny, ranch-style homes, but they were clean, freshly painted, and the lawns were mowed.

Pulling my truck in front of number twenty-seven, I looked around. There was an old Mazda, along with a late model BMW, in the driveway.

“Maybe Kayla isn’t alone,” I mumbled as I turned off my truck’s engine.

I slid out of the truck and walked to the front porch, stopping to admire the porch swing and several pots of geraniums on both sides of the door.

After knocking on the door, I stepped back to wait, but it wasn’t long before Kayla swung the door open. I smelled bacon and coffee from inside the house as she studied me for a moment.

“Hi, Kayla,” I said. “I was hoping we could talk.”

“Daisy Wilson!” she exclaimed, and her eyes widened with shock. “I’m not selling you Gram’s estate.” She slammed the door and left me standing on her porch.

But I wasn't ready to give up. I knocked again.

“Kayla, I just want to talk,” I said. “I don’t understand why you hate me. I’m sorry if I did anything to hurt you.”

The door opened a crack. “You’re not sorry,” she said. “You have everything you ever wanted. Your life is great.”

“It has improved over the last few years,” I admitted. “But my first seventeen and half years were tough. You ought to know that.”

“What was so tough about it?” Kayla asked. “I know Betas raised you, but I thought you liked them.”

As much as I wanted the Jupiter Lane estate, it was time for Kayla to accept some responsibility for her actions.

“I was bullied,” I said. “By others and you. Don’t you remember practically tearing a dress from my body in a bathroom?”

She slammed the door in my face, but I saw her standing nearby through the window. I wasn’t ready to give up yet.

“I am sorry things haven’t worked out for you,” I said. “But why would it be my fault?”

“You’re not sorry,” Kayla sobbed as she came outside. “You ruined my life, and now you’ve got everything you ever wanted.”

“How did I ruin your life?”

“My father is still punishing me for what happened at that party. And I didn’t know you couldn’t swim. I would have helped you, but I can’t swim either.”

“I am sorry,” I insisted. “I didn't know you couldn’t swim, and I had no idea you still carry that day in your heart. Let it go, Kayla. Not for me, but for you. Let it go.”

“You just want my grandparents’ estate,” she said. “Well, you’re not getting it.”

I leaned closer to her and spoke softly. “I’m sorry the pieces of the past we shared are still causing you grief.”

“My father took away my trust fund after William’s pool party to appease your father,” Kayla revealed. “Now I’m attending city college. I have to live in this dump, and I don’t have a dowry to get married.”

I sat next to her on the swing. “Yes, I want to buy the estate. But I want peace between us even more. How can I make it better?”

Kayla sat on the porch swing. She wiped her eyes on the back of her hand. Then she glared at me for a moment before her gaze softened, and her eyes filled with tears again.

“Make my father give me back my money,” she replied. “My sister has hers, and she married a great guy and has a big house in the city.”

“You’d have lots of money if you sold us the estate,” I pointed out. “Victor made an offer of much more than the asking price.”

Kayla put her head in her hands. “I need my trust fund. The guy I love …his parents won’t let him marry me without it.”

“Okay. I’ll have Alex speak to your father,” I told her. “The past is the past. You and I will start over.”

I reached for her hand, and we shook on a new beginning.

“And you can tell your father that you are invited to my wedding,” I added. “Bring a plus one, and the reception is casual.”

“Thank you, Daisy!” she exclaimed and hugged me. “I’ll bring Sebastian. Wait till you meet him!”

“You’re welcome, Kayla,” I giggled. “I’m glad we can be friends now.”

“I’ll call the realtor and sign the papers.” Kayla gave me a big smile. “I’m sorry for everything I did to you in school. You didn’t deserve any of it. But it was my way of being popular. My father expected me to be popular like my sister.”

“I forgave you a long time ago,” I assured her. “Want to go for coffee?”

Kayla’s smile grew wider. “Sure. Let’s go.”

After I returned to the mansion, I spoke to Alex. He immediately contacted Kayla’s father and smoothed everything over.

“Good job, sweetheart, ” Victor said.

“But now I’ve got less than a month until our wedding,” I told him. “The invitations aren’t even out yet.”

“Then let’s get to work,” Lana said as she and Benson entered the living room.