23 The Luckiest Big Sister In The World

Rumors spread fast but not as fast as Daisy would have liked. Whenever she went into town, people started asking her where her 'devoted bodyguard' went and she had to coolly explain that her fiancé was off making a living in the capital before coming back to marry her.

Sometimes she had to get argumentative with men who thought 'out of the way' meant 'out of mind'. What kind of two-timing creep did they think she was?

She was getting seriously annoyed. If faking an engagement hadn't been enough to get people to leave her alone, what would be? At this point, she wondered if she would be left alone even if she did marry somebody eventually.

Not that she would. At least not specifically for the purpose of getting people off her back. As she told Leo before, she would marry for love or not at all. She didn't exactly have grand dreams of romance but she hadn't been completely against the idea back in her world. Coming here had changed things since marriage was seen as a given rather than something you did with the person you loved most.

Daisy had seen a few happy marriages up close in her foster homes. Some of her foster parents had been affectionate with each other to the point of being obnoxious but it was clear that they were also each other's closest friends.

If she ever did get married, that was the kind of relationship she wanted. One where she and her husband respected each other and worked together as a team but were also able to have fun together.

It was kind of pointless dreaming about such a thing here since she hadn't even fallen in love back in her old world where she got harassed far less often. How was she supposed to find someone who would want her for more than her looks or household skills here in this backwards fantasyland?

Being a decade older mentally than she was physically didn't help. If she did ever find someone closer to her age attractive, they would still be a creep for wanting to marry a teenager.

Daisy sighed and did her best to determinedly ignore the people trying to approach her in the market. She hated coming here alone now that Leo was gone. He had given off 'disturb us and die' vibes every time he escorted her and that made a huge difference.

She approached the postmaster's office and asked him the same thing she did every time she came to town after she got her first letter. "Is there anything for me today?"

Primarily she did this because she genuinely wanted to know if she had any new letters but it had the dual benefit of reminding people she was waiting patiently for her fake fiancé. That was the whole point of the charade.

The postmaster smiled at her. "Actually, today I do. The envelope is rather heavy so I think your man sent you something."

"Thank you!" Daisy cried as she took it from him. It WAS surprisingly heavy so she figured he must have gotten his first paycheck and sent part of it home as promised.

She hurried off to find a somewhat undisturbed bit of wall to lean against and ripped it open eagerly. Two gold coins fell out and her jaw dropped. How much was he making?! She paid the Krinzel brothers four silver coins a month. Since one gold coin was worth six silver ones, this was enough to pay all three of them!

She dropped the coins in the coin purse secured in the front pocket of her apron before devouring the letter to see what on earth Leo was thinking sending her so much. Did he even have anything left over to eat with?!

'Dear Daisy,

'Absolutely nothing has changed here, though I did finally get paid. I honestly thought I would be doing more but I haven't so much as found someone to spar with that can truly challenge me since I've arrived. Rather disappointing, really.

'The food is alright though it can't hold a candle to yours. Most of the men in my squadron like saving a few coins to take advantage of the bakery in town since things taste much better there.

'I can't be bothered. Food is food, though I must say I miss yours. Is there any chance of sending me a few cans of preserves to put on my bread? It's made out of some sort of rough, mealy grain so that would help it go down much easier.

'I imagine it would be difficult to transport them without breaking…You're smart. I'm sure you could figure something out if you put your mind to it. They don't even have preserves available here. Who wants to eat plain old bread, especially when it tastes like that?

'Sorry for complaining. I suppose I've been a bit nostalgic thinking about all the preserves we've made together and it's made me crave it. You don't have to send any if you don't want to or if it would cost too much.

'Speaking of money, I finally got paid. I wanted to lessen your load and, if I'm remembering correctly, you should be able to double your workforce with this much. Please take advantage of it so you don't work yourself to death.

'Don't deny that you would if you had the chance. I know you, Daisy. Your determination and work ethic are unmatched but you need to rest too. Take advantage of your newfound free time and go pick some flowers or something. I know that will make you happy.

'Good luck with the rest of the harvest and the preserve making. Hopefully Braedon's wife will be able to help you and Ginny this year since I'm gone. Be sure to enjoy the apple tarts in my honor.

'Love, Leo'

Daisy grinned and shook her head indulgently as she finished the letter. That kid! He knew exactly how much he was sending back to her and had done it on purpose.

Here she had thought he simply included all of his pay since it seemed like something he might do but he had calculated out exactly how much she would need. She hadn't realized he paid attention to her ledgers but supposed she should have.

He was somewhat like a cat. Quietly but sharply taking in everything around him and filing it away for later use.

Leo had essentially sent her home a fortune so how could she not send him preserves? They might not have bubble wrap here but she was a modern girl who had moved many times and never so much as broken a glass. She could figure out how to send him some. In fact, she could do one of each flavor. That ought to help lift his spirits a bit.

Reading between the lines, it seemed that the military provided all of their meals and daily necessities. There wasn't anything he needed to spend money on to survive. It did raise the question of exactly how much he was making and what he was saving for but it would be rude to ask.

He was entitled to his secrets as she was to hers. She was mostly happy that she would be able to lighten her load significantly with this.

Free time had been a foreign concept to her after coming to this world except during the winter months when things were slower. She took care of some extra 'indoor' work that piled up during the warmer months but it wasn't nearly as grueling so she and Leo had been able to mess around a lot.

He had given her a truly priceless gift by sacrificing two precious gold coins. She didn't know how much he was being paid but it couldn't be terribly much more than this considering he wasn't an officer.

Daisy knew he dreamed of fame and fortune yet he was still willing to do this to make things easier for her. She hadn't needed this much! Being able to hire someone to take his place would have been enough but he had to go and spoil her as usual.

Leo was such a sweet boy. She was the luckiest big sister in the world!

Really though, what was she supposed to do with all of this free time? She supposed she could go to bed earlier. That would certainly help her be less tired.

She could always explore more of the forest near the property too. She hadn't had the time to do much of that so she had no idea where the wide variety of flowers he had picked for her was coming from specifically.

That could be worried about later. Right now she needed to find three people willing to work for her. Families with a lot of children were usually willing to hire some of theirs out since they couldn't all feasibly do the same thing. She would have to ask around. Maybe the Krinzels would know.

Daisy would figure something out. She was simply grateful for the wonderful opportunity Leo had given her. Living here would be a lot easier with extra help…but also a lot lonelier since her only friend wasn't here to spend her newfound free time with. It was both a blessing and a curse.