Page 49 of Maximum Dare
“I believe she’s trying.”
“She needs to meet someone new.”
“How would you feel about that?”
His narrowed gaze held mine. “I’d be fine with it. Why are we still talking about this?”
“She’s part of your past. That’s important to me.”
He blew out a sigh infused with frustration. “I knew her brother, Liam. We were at university together. I liked him. We had a lot of stuff in common, you know. He was heavily into winter sports, an expert skier, and for a while there he was headed to the Olympics. That guy could stick to a black run like Spiderman.”
Nausea welled in my throat. “What happened?”
Nick looked uncomfortable. “He died in a plane crash.”
A shiver slithered down my spine. Daisy had never mentioned it.
“It changed her,” said Nick. “Apparently, she was a fun-loving girl in college, but after Liam’s death she turned into someone who always plays it safe.”
“Were you and Daisy friends at first?”
He looked thoughtful. “I suppose we were. I met her at her brother’s funeral. At the reception afterward she got blind drunk—completely wasted. A few of us picked her up and brought her back to the house. We didn’t want her family seeing her in that state.”
“Your house in Bermondsey?”
“Yeah, I watched over her until she was sober. Stayed awake all night in a chair while she slept. When she finally woke up, she was still unsteady so I helped her into the shower.” He raised his hand defensively. “I didn’t take advantage.”
“I know you would never do that.”
“Then, not two weeks later, my dad died…” He shook his head. “We were a right pair, me and Daisy. Grieving together. That was what we had in common. We both knew how the other one felt. After Dad died, I didn’t want to be alone, so I asked her to stay at my house.”
“Nick,” I said with sympathy.
He gave me a sad smile. “Our relationship was built on a foundation of grief.”
“I should have visited more.”
“You were there for me.”
“Not enough.”
“Don’t get me wrong, I love Daisy. I owed it to her brother to watch over her. Help her get over his death. She was fun and innocent in a cute way. I just feel like something changed inside me. Like I started to love her like a brother. I believed a clean break was best for both of us.”
“Maybe it was the pressure you were under?”
He looked at me. “People change, right? Our mum fell out of love with your dad. You just wake up and feel differently one day.”
“What is it about Morgan you prefer over Daisy?”
“I was playing it safe with Daisy. Morgan is exciting.”
“Wasn’t your life exciting enough?”
“I need to explore another side of me. Anyway, I think Morgan improves my game.”
“How?”
“She makes me forget myself. She’s all-consuming. Like I can’t think straight when I’m around her because she’s unfathomable.”
