Hudson Read online

  “It’s my turn to try to change your mind today. I want to get an early start,” he said. He sat at the table and opened the bag, pulling out a cinnamon twist and eating a third of it in one bite. She looked inside the large bag and found six other donuts. She took a maple bar, hating that she didn’t have the willpower to resist.

  “What if I already have plans?” she pointed out.

  “Do you?” he asked.

  She wanted to tell him she did, but Daisy didn’t lie. “No, but that’s not the point. You have to call first and set things up, not just show up unannounced at my house.”

  “Okay, I’ll remember that next time.” He finished his donut and reached into the bag and grabbed an apple fritter. “Block off the whole day. This will take a while.” He sipped coffee as she finished her donut. “And wear comfortable shoes and clothes since we’ll be doing a lot of walking.”

  “Fine. I guess it is your turn, but it’s pointless. I’m not going to change my mind,” she told him.

  “We’ll see,” he said, not seeming fazed by her words. She wondered if he was more stubborn than she was. She couldn’t lose, that wasn’t an option.

  She didn’t say anything more as she left him in the kitchen with his goodies and went to get dressed. He’d said to be comfortable, so she grabbed her favorite pair of worn jeans, her college hoody from Washington State, and her running shoes. The temperature was in the high sixties, but she tended to run a bit cold, so this should be fitting if they were out and about. She ran a brush through her hair, threw on a tiny bit of makeup, and returned to Hudson in fifteen minutes.

  “Wow, I thought I’d be waiting for at least an hour. You get ready fast,” he told her as he looked her over. “You look perfect and beautiful as always.”

  She hadn’t been trying to impress him, or at least that’s what she’d told herself, but she had worn her pink lip stain that Darla said gave her kiss-me-lips and she’d added mascara and eyeshadow, which she rarely ever used. Maybe she was slightly trying to impress him. But her clothes definitely didn’t scream seduction, she assured herself. She decided not to acknowledge his compliment. They were supposed to have a professional relationship. That was all.

  “I’m ready if you are,” she said.

  “Perfect. After you, my lady,” he said as he moved to the front door and opened it. Daisy didn’t want to carry a purse, so she slipped her phone into her back pocket, her credit card and some cash in her front, and followed him out the door.

  “Where are we going?” she asked after he opened her truck door, shut it, then climbed in on the other side. He insisted on opening and closing her doors. She’d never thought she was one of those women who wanted that, but oddly, after a few times with this man, she liked it. She might want to put a lid on that real fast. She wasn’t a damsel in distress who needed saving. She was the one to save others.

  “I love blue sky days,” Hudson said as he turned on the radio then put the truck into gear and began driving.

  “Are you going to refuse to tell me where we’re going because I didn’t tell you?” Daisy asked. She deserved it, but she really wanted to know.

  “Nope, I’m not as mean as you,” Hudson told her as he turned down a main road and sang along to the radio for a minute while Daisy tapped her fingers against her thigh and waited for him to keep talking. She refused to beg. He laughed after a few more seconds. “I have to admire your patience.”

  “I can’t complain,” she said. Maybe she couldn’t out loud, but she certainly could internally.

  He laughed again, obviously in a great mood. She had to admit his good humor was infectious.

  “I’m taking you to one of my favorite places. It’s what inspired my vision for what I wanted to do someday. It’s a little different than my plans, but then again, if I wanted to make a carbon copy it would be someone else’s dreams, not my own.”

  “How far is it?” Daisy asked. She was curious to see what he found inspiring. She didn’t think they’d agree on a perfect use for the land she’d called home her entire life, but she might find some beauty in what he liked.

  “Not far.” They chatted some more as they made their way through the backroads east of Seattle, and sooner than she was expecting, they pulled off into a large parking lot.

  Hudson jumped down from the truck, came to her side, and opened her door just as she finished unbuckling. He grabbed her hand before she could even think of stopping him. She thought about pulling away from him, but it felt too nice to have her fingers clasped in his as they moved away from the parking lot onto a trail. It didn’t mean they were a couple. They were just starting some sort of strange friendship, she assured herself.

  They moved forward, and Daisy looked around, feeling carefree as they walked along a cushioned path, runners and walkers moving past them. To their left were lots of trees and shrubbery, the sounds of birds and squirrels singing and foraging easily heard without the sound of traffic to drown them out. To their right was a huge grassy field with people sitting on benches and at tables, and a group of kids playing volleyball in one area, and a group throwing a frisbee in another.

  There were people walking their dogs, sitting off alone speaking on cell phones, and others sipping coffee together as they strolled along. The park wasn’t overly populated, but it was a nice little haven, she had to admit.

  “This isn’t much different than the vision I have planned,” Daisy said, confused. This wasn’t what she’d been expecting.

  When she heard music, Daisy stopped and turned. “Where’s that coming from?”

  “Over this way,” Hudson told her. He took another path that went through the wooded area, and they came to what appeared to be a small community center. There were several small buildings serving food, merchandise, and love of all loves, coffee. On one corner street performers were putting on a show for about two dozen people. On another a young girl with a guitar was singing. She had a beautiful voice.

  “Is this part of the park?” Daisy asked.

  “Yes,” Hudson said. “It reminds me a lot of Central Park. It’s on a much smaller scale, but you have the open fields that we passed, a neighborhood over behind this little commerce center, and many different activity areas. There’s a small golf course, a community pool, and even a barbeque pit where many people have family get-togethers. The housing part of it is a lot bigger than what I have planned for now, but the concept is the same. I want a place where people can stay at home all week without having to get into their car once if they don’t want to.”

  “Again, you want a place that’s only accessible to the wealthy,” she said. The girl switched songs; Daisy moved closer and pulled out a five, dropping it into her guitar case.

  “This place is targeted to the middle class,” Hudson admitted.

  “What about low-income?” Daisy asked. “Shouldn’t they have a haven like this?”

  Hudson moved them to the line for the coffee bar. There were only four customers in front of them so it wouldn’t take too long to get a drink.

  “Daisy, contrary to what you believe, I’m not a snob,” he said. “And yes, low-income families can certainly come in and enjoy the benefits of this place, or at my place for that matter.”

  “But they can’t live here,” she pushed. They moved forward in line.

  “No, these aren’t priced in the low-income range. Technically, low-income rentals have housing assistance,” he added.

  “There are Habitat houses low-income families can buy,” she told him.

  “That’s true, and my family, including me, put a lot of time and money into Habitat. Most of these types of neighborhoods aren’t zoned for Habitat houses as they are larger homes, but that’s something we could possibly look into for a future project.” She wasn’t sure if he was simply humoring her or not.

  “People working for minimum wage should be able to buy a house,” she said. They moved forward again. The smells coming from the coffee cart were making her mouth water.

/>   “Do you know that starting wage jobs aren’t meant to support a household?” he asked.

  “Well, of course not when the wages are so low,” she said with a roll of her eyes. He laughed but kept talking.

  “Minimum wage jobs have always been meant as starter jobs. They are for high school and college aged children. They’re for retired people wanting to be out in the community instead of sitting at home, and they’re for those who are going through school, getting an education that can help them get a good job that allows them to move forward in life. People always talk about minimum wage needing to go higher and higher. But the reality is that we have low wage jobs for those just beginning in life, middle wage jobs for those who’ve accumulated more skills, and high wage jobs for those who’ve put in the work.”

  “Did the Facebook billionaire put in the work?” Daisy asked pointedly.

  Hudson laughed. “I bet he did,” he said as they stepped to the front of the line. He put in their order, then moved over to the pickup window before he continued. “He probably spent his entire youth on a computer. I’m not saying everyone goes through the steps, I’m just saying that there are different levels and we’re all meant to take steps up the ladder.”

  “What about the people who can’t climb?” she asked.

  They were handed their coffee and they moved away, continuing to walk another trail as he showed her this community he was so impressed by.

  “I think the people who don’t have the ability to climb because of disabilities and such are the ones we help the most. But those capable of climbing but simply choosing not to shouldn’t get a free pass,” he told her. “Also, home ownership isn’t always an asset, especially for someone just starting out. Rentals are often more affordable than mortgages, taxes and insurance. And owning a home reduces mobility. If a person finds there are higher wages or a better job in another city, it’s so much harder to sell a house than to get out of a rental agreement.”

  She seemed to think about that for several moments as she formed an answer. “I’ve never owned a home, just grown up on the property that has been in a my family for a very long time, so I can’t really comment on that,” she told him after several moments. “But I did work for McDonald’s when I was a kid and I hated it. I knew I wasn’t going to do that my entire life,” she admitted. “Not that I make much money trying to save the world, but my writing puts enough in my bank account so I can focus on what I truly love and maybe get some coffee once in a while.”

  “If they make those starter jobs too appealing, what’s the incentive for people to move on?” he asked.

  “Maybe there are some who really like to work at McDonald’s,” she said. “Shouldn’t they be paid better?”

  “I don’t think I’ve met a living soul who’d say they love working at a fast food place,” Hudson said with a laugh. “But if they do, then yes, they can earn more. They can become managers, earn promotions, and rise within the company. They can do that without a degree. Did you know Walmart hires from within their stores? You can start as a floor associate and move up to a store manager. Some of those store managers in the bigger cities make a couple hundred thousand a year. A person can do that without a college degree. Where there’s a will, there’s a way.”

  “I guess I need to look into that more, because I honestly don’t know much about it,” she admitted.

  “Another thing is that if small businesses, such as the coffee shop we just went to, were forced to pay their employees midlevel wages, they’d go out of business. They make just enough profit to pay their bills and have a little left over. If small companies can’t afford to hire staff, that won’t help anyone.”

  “I’ve heard that argument before. I don’t know if I believe it,” she said.

  “There’s also some evidence that raising minimum wages too high can be discriminatory — that minorities and those with disabilities are more likely to be the ones laid off if a business can’t afford to keep all of their workers. A business owner will tend to keep on family or close acquaintances if times get rough. So, raising that minimum wage too high can ultimately hurt the population of a small community.”

  “I really need to look more into this,” Daisy said. “I truly haven’t thought of all of this. I’ve never owned my own business, though,” she told him.

  “As a business owner who does pay my skilled workers a good salary, I can tell you there were times in the beginning I wasn’t sure I was going to make it. I had to work with smaller crews, and I had to live in a studio apartment for two years. I ate a lot of ramen noodles and hotdogs. It took a while to earn a reputation as a good company. I knew a few other companies that didn’t make it. It’s not as easy as you think to own a business, and a lot of times you’re one month away from closing your doors for good. Without small businesses this country wouldn’t be what it is today.”

  Daisy found herself seriously intrigued by what he was saying. “You used to be poor?”

  He laughed heartily as they made their way down another trail. “My mother worked her tail end off, but she wasn’t educated, and she had five sons. As soon as each one of us was old enough to hold a job, we did, and we contributed to the household, but that meant we didn’t have much when we went off into the real world. Yes, I was very poor. I’m not complaining. That only made me work that much harder to have a better life for myself and for my mother. She, at least, got to live long enough for her five sons to thank her properly for a great childhood and to let her have some luxuries in life.”

  Daisy hadn’t thought Hudson could teach her anything. She’d been wrong. She was learning a lot in a very short amount of time with this guy. She wanted to find faults in his logic, and in him personally, but she honestly couldn’t.

  “Time for breakfast,” he said as they turned another corner, and she found herself on a path that moved along a stream.

  “Oh, this is beautiful,” she said. “How big is this community?”

  “We just exited Carmel Heights, but this trail continues. The community we were in is about two square miles, and we only saw about half of it, so it’s much larger than what I’ll be able to do for now. But I hope to eventually grow.”

  “You don’t know if you’re doing yours,” she pointed out. “Yet,” she added, feeling kind of bad for wanting to take it away from him.

  “I’ll do it,” he told her, making her shoulders tense. He squeezed her fingers. “Even if I have to find another piece of land.”

  She relaxed just as they turned a corner and entered a small restaurant with a huge back patio filled with tables and overhead heaters. The place was about half filled with happy diners enjoying a late breakfast on a beautiful Saturday morning.

  She and Hudson were seated where they had a great view of the wide stream. People were scattered along the bank fishing and others were in the water kayaking. More people were out walking just as she and Hudson had been doing.

  “This is a great place. I’ll definitely come back,” she told him.

  “Have you kayaked before?”

  “No, it’s one thing I haven’t done, but I’ve always wanted to.”

  “I’ve done it a lot with my brothers. It’s a lot of fun. But in this area, we have a limited amount of time for outdoor sports,” he said with a chuckle.

  “That’s true. We have so much rain here that it drives us inside way too often. That was the one thing I didn’t miss when I traveled all over the world.”

  They each picked up a menu, and she was delighted with the choices.

  “You should try the Moroccan baked eggs. They’re delicious if you want something different,” Hudson said. She looked over the menu and gave him a huge smile. “What?”

  “You’re totally going to judge me, especially after I ate the donut this morning and then had two cups of coffee.”

  “I don’t judge,” he said.

  The waitress appeared. “Would you like something to drink while you’re deciding?” she asked.

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p; “I’ll have a cup of coffee with lots of room for cream and a large glass of milk with my breakfast,” Daisy said without hesitation. Hudson placed his drink order. Before the waitress could leave, Daisy added, “I think we’re ready to order our food too.”

  “Perfect,” the waitress said as Hudson set down his menu.

  “I’ll take the Moroccan baked eggs with hash browns and extra crispy bacon on the side,” she said. The waitress began to turn to Hudson. “I’ll also have an order of the caramel apple cinnamon roll pancakes with warm syrup.”

  Hudson laughed, though the waitress didn’t even blink. Daisy had to give her credit for discretion. It was a huge breakfast.

  “Double that, but switch the bacon for sausage,” Hudson said.

  “Perfect. I’ll be out with your coffee in a minute.”

  “I’d ask if you think you can eat all of that, but I flew with you,” Hudson said after a couple of seconds.

  “Everything looked so good. I couldn’t choose,” Daisy told him. “We’ll just have to jog back to the truck and burn off some of the calories we’re about to consume.”

  “I think we’re going to be rolling back to the truck when we’re finished with this breakfast,” Hudson told her.

  They continued to chat as other people did the same all around them. For such a busy place, their food came surprisingly fast. By the time they started eating, Daisy was regretting the jeans she’d chosen. By the time she stuffed the last bite of her cinnamon roll into her mouth she really wanted to undo her pants. She seriously could’ve eaten half the food and been more than full, but it had all been so good she hadn’t been able to waste a single bit of it.

  By the time they finished, and Hudson paid, she had to stand. It was too uncomfortable to sit any longer. She groaned as they made their way down the steps and began walking — very slowly.

  “I might’ve eaten a bit too much,” she admitted after a couple of minutes. “I can’t walk any faster or I might throw up, so there definitely won’t be any jogging in the near future.”