Page 127 of Maximum Dare
“It’s complicated.”
She gasped. “Ela é casada.”
“No, she’s quite single. Or she was.” I shook my head. “She’s Nick’s ex-girlfriend. We connected on a deep level. We spent time together. I fell hard, Gylda.”
“Well, that is good, right?”
“Nick injured himself and…”
“She went back to him?”
“They were dating for a long time. They lived together. He left her for another woman.”
“You were there for her?”
“Her name’s Daisy…” I let out a wistful sigh. “We’ve only known each other a short while, but…”
“But you know. You always know when it’s right.”
“It was…so very, very right, Gylda.”
“She felt sorry for Nick. Is that why she went back to him?”
“I forced her hand.” I reached for a pencil and tapped it on a stack of folders.
“Why?”
“Nick needs her.”
“Don’t be stupid. No one needs to be in a false relationship.”
I rubbed a hand down my face.
“Has she reached out to you?”
“I’m afraid to check my phone. I texted Mum that I’d landed safely and then I turned it off.”
“Well, look now.”
I gave a shrug. “What if I see a photo of them together? I don’t know how I’m going to feel about that…or the thought of going back to London and having to be in the same room as both of them.” I paused, swallowing hard. “Or worse, being invited to their big day.” I leaned forward with my face in my palms. “Oh, God. Can I decline a wedding invite when it comes from my own brother?”
“Holy shits.”
“You don’t need the ‘s’ on the end.”
She shot to her feet. “Look at your phone!”
“No.”
She leaped forward, grabbing it and waving it in my face. “Max, what if it’s the answer you want?”
I snatched it back—and tossed it in the bin beneath my desk.
She reached down and retrieved it. “Your father would want you to look, Max. Do it for him.”
“My father lost the love of his life.”
“More reason to look,” she said softly.
