Chapter 7
Chapter Seven
Daisy
T he following morning at six, Daisy was waiting outside his workshop for him to arrive. She didn’t know what the morning’s work was. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have hung around and would’ve got to work. He had taken her at her word and taken the forklift’s keys with him. Added to that, she didn’t know where the crates were or the boat she needed to get them to.
“Wow, you turned up,” Nate said, but she couldn’t see him along the quayside.
“Up here,” he said.
Daisy looked up and to the left of the workshop, and she saw Nate bare-chested with his wrist in a makeshift sling.
“You said six sharp, and here I am. What’s the job?”
“There’s a boat coming in at six-twenty where you dropped off the crates last night. It will probably take four runs, but the boat will have boxes for your sister-in-law’s warehouse. Donations apparently she gets once a month. ”
“Right. Where are the keys?”
“Can you catch?”
Daisy rolled her eyes and stood from the large black mooring bollard on the side of the quay. The smooth curve was perfect for her perch until he woke up.
She sauntered over to where he was leaning out of the window and lifted her skirts out to act as a canopy to catch the keys.
“That’s cheating,” he said and tossed them down.
“I think the word you’re looking for is practical. Do try to remember I worked on the rigs for years.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
She took the keys, hurried off to do his job and then by the time she returned, the workshop was open, and she could put the keys on the side table. She didn’t hang around because she needed to get back up to Edward Hall.
On the fifth evening, she had left the office, jogged to her cottage, taken a quick shower, and spent too long deciding what to wear before she took the buggy down to the quayside to Hill’s Workshop. Nate had badly sprained his wrist, and she felt awful as he couldn’t work on any boats one-handed. At least it wasn’t broken.
Thankfully the last of the forklift work was that evening, and then she was off the hook.
Daisy pulled up at the side of the workshop and switched off the engine. It was too dark to check her reflection, so she had to hope the breeze on the way down hadn’t destroyed her carefully styled hair.
She picked up the carry bag of food Jason had given her and wandered around to the front of the workshop. Nate was trying to get his t-shirt off one-handed in the middle of the empty space .
“What are you doing?” she clipped out, striding towards him.
“Trying to get this shirt off. I stink and haven’t showered in days since they have put this tight as fuck bandage on.”
“How have you washed?”
“A bird bath each morning and night, but I’m getting pissed off and irrationally angry.”
She laughed.
“I thought that was my speciality. Good to know there is someone else out there that gets stupidly angry at tiny things. Why don’t you have a bath?”
“I don’t have a bath, Princess,” he said, giving her a grin with no heat in his words.
“I am far from a princess,” she said, yanking down the t-shirt he was still trying to pull off.
“You’ve wanted for nothing your whole life. What does that make you?”
“Someone you do not know. You know nothing about my life, my past, my family. So stop being a jerk and making assumptions. I’ve had that too much for me to take it from you.”
Nate looked down at her, softening his features and then sighing heavily.
“I don’t think I’ve ever had a bath as an adult,” he muttered.
“Really? Baths are the best.”
“Do you have one?”
“Yes, in my cottage.”
Nate kept staring at her, and she gulped a hard swallow.
Was he asking for an invitation?
It was Friday evening, and she was planning on having a bath when she was done warming his dinner like she’d done all week and making sure his side work was done .
Nate confessed on day two that he didn’t have any boat work booked in, so he only needed help to ferry the crates.
“I need to get the crates done. I’ll be back in half an hour. I’ll put the food and my bag over on the counter. Try not to get into any trouble while I’m gone.”
Nate nodded, dropped his t-shirt, and went to investigate the food while she hightailed it out of there before offering him to return to her cottage for a bath.
It only took twenty minutes to ferry the crates, and she was coming back into the workshop when someone followed her in.
“Hey, dude, you coming for a beer?” the man called out.
Daisy turned to the doorway where a good-looking, dark-haired guy about her age sauntered in. He took one look at Daisy and gave her a slow look up and down.
“Sorry, man,” he said to Nate, who was scowling in the corner on his office chair. “I didn’t know you had company. Who are you? I’ve never seen you on the island before, and it’s not tourist season.”
“You may not know who I am, Robert, but I know who you are,” she said with such a twisted face she felt like she was emanating Cynthia Turner.
“What did I do to you? We haven’t even met because, babe, I would definitely remember, no matter how drunk I was when I stuck my tongue down your throat.”
Daisy hummed, twisting at the waist to look at Nate. He was wincing with his hand over his eyes.
“Have some manners, Rob,” Nate said.
“I’m not the one who hasn’t introduced myself. She clearly knows who I am, remembers me well it seems,” he said, his grin bordering on a leer.
Robert sauntered closer, bouncing on his toes as he neared. She took a step back, and he kept coming, not reading the signals she didn’t want him near her. He had the same look in his eyes many men had before when they thought they were god’s gift and she should be grateful to be in their presence.
“Stay put, Robert,” she said.
“Why? We’ve obviously been closer than this if you remember me.”
She backed up again only to bump into Nate’s hard body and heard him whine. She must have knocked his wrist.
“Oh yeah, dude, how’s the wrist? Selly feels bad that he did that.”
Even with her back to him, she knew he was shaking his head. His body had gone stiff, and she felt the draught from him, letting out a breath.
“Who is Selly?” Daisy asked softly.
Her innocent question worked, or Robert was still as stupid as he was in school. Not much had changed since she last saw him. He was just older.
“Sam Sellman, he’s one of the rowers on our team. Whacked Nate here good and proper with an oar on Sunday night. You should have heard Nate howl like a baby.”
Robert howled with laughter as Nate rested his good hand on Daisy’s hip.
She let him.
“It’s sprained, Rob,” Nate said.
“No shit?”
“Yep. So no, I’m not going for a beer. I’m on heavy-duty painkillers.”
“That’s shit. Doesn’t explain why she’s here,” Rob said, thumbing towards Daisy.
She internally fought the urge to kick Nate in the shin for lying and punch Rob for his disrespect. Why Nate spent any time with Rob was a mystery .
Daisy moved out of Nate’s grasp to move away.
“I’m not here any more. My commitment is over. Goodbye, Nate,” Daisy said.
“Ooo, what’s got your knickers in a twist?” Rob said.
“Fucking hell, Rob. Leave it. Don’t make things worse,” Nate said.
“Worse? I still don’t know who the chick is,” Rob said.
She watched out the corner of her eye. Rob followed her movements around the space as she collected the dinner she’d brought for Nate and her bag from the floor. Nate wasn’t going to have the homemade food after lying to her.
With her belongings, Daisy stood next to the tatty mustard armchair, watching them. Rob glanced Nate’s way, and Nate was looking balefully at the food she was removing from his grasp.
“I’m Daisy Turner, and you’re still the arse you were at school,” Daisy said and shouldered her handbag higher up her arm.
Thankfully, he stayed where he was, thinking through was must be his mental roller-dex of school friends.
“You’re Nerdy Girl?” Rob exclaimed.
Daisy stopped in her tracks and held out her hand to the nearest object to steady her dizzy body. Unfortunately, it was the mustard armchair. She glanced at it and dropped the food at her feet. Someone shouted and then wrapped their arms around her body and lifted her a few feet onto a warm lap.
“You’re okay, Daisy, keep breathing,” the low rumbly voice said.
She could feel trembles rocking her body, and her eyes stayed closed. A hand cupped the back of her head and guided it to a warm neck, and she cuddled in like she’d done it a hundred times. A hand smoothed her hair from her face, but the trembles were still there as the flashing images zipped behind her eyelids. When warm lips touched hers, she stilled after a few beats. Then the mouth left her, and she sagged against the warm body. Slowly after minutes, she didn’t know how many, she opened her eyes. From her position, she saw the open workshop doors and the dark-as-night sky and port waters.
“Why do my feet hurt?” she muttered, looking down at her feet.
She had put on open sandals, and now food had coated her feet, and the exposed skin had turned red.
“How hot was the food when you brought it here?”
“Piping hot, the dish came straight out of the oven before I brought it here.”
“Well, most of it is on the floor, but it looks like some went over your feet. It smells delicious whatever it is.”
“Beef casserole. Or it was.”
“You should get your feet in cold water.”
“Okay,” she said. “Where did Rob go?”
“I sent him away,” Nate said through gritted teeth. “Rob’s harmless but doesn’t know where to draw the line.”
“He never did. He was the one I hated most at school.”
He reared his head back. “More than me?”
“Way more than you. He wasn’t very nice to me.”
“What did he do?”
“I’m not entirely sure.”
“What do you mean?”
Daisy didn’t want to confess she didn’t know because she had suppressed memories coming back to haunt her. She clambered off his lap and moved to where her black leather handbag was on the floor. It was splattered with the beef casserole. Daisy brushed off as much as she could and swung it over her shoulder .
“Don’t think I haven’t forgotten you lied to me,” Daisy said and hobbled away.
Nate was at her side in a few strides. “What do you mean?”
“You let me believe I had sprained your wrist.”
“You did dislocate my shoulder,” he said.
She stopped in the middle of the concrete between the workshop and the dark waters.
Her fury bubbled up, and she stabbed a finger at his chest.
“Technically, you did that when you were protecting falling on your sprained wrist. Twist it all you want, but I felt bad. I’ve helped around here, done your side job so you get paid, brought you meals, and you never said a word that you’d already hurt your wrist.”
He moved forward, and she stepped back. He respected the move and didn’t stay still.
“Daisy, I’m sorry,” he said.
“I don’t care,” she snapped. “Have a nice life. I thought you’d changed, thought you were a decent guy.”
His retort was quick. “I am a decent guy. I am not letting you walk home after the episode you just had.”
“I brought the buggy. I’ll be fine,” she wailed, frustrated that he thought she was helpless.
“I am not taking that chance. You don’t know what you’re like when you’re triggered. I don’t want you driving off the side of the cliff and plunging to your death.”
“Why do you even care?” she yelled.
“I don’t know, Daisy,” he yelled back. “Maybe I like you, maybe I have this urge to take care of you, to make sure you’re all right. To chase away these demons that plague you,” he shouted louder. “All I know is these past five days have been the happiest days I’ve had in years. ”
“Nate,” she said and sagged her shoulders.
“Don’t Nate me. Give me a minute to lock up, and I’ll chaperone you home. I can’t drive.”
“I’m not sure I can drive either. My feet really hurt,” she muttered.
Nate let out a bark of a laugh. “What a fucking pair we make. I have feet. You have hands. You’ll have to sit on my lap. I’ll press the pedals, and you can steer, but I am making sure you get home safely. You can chew me out the entire way back that I let you think you’d hurt my wrist.”
“Fine,” Daisy conceded.
Nate grinned.
He locked up using his remote to bring the shutters down and then joined her at the buggy. She stood at the side, chewing on her thumb, wondering how it would work.
“Do those bench seats move?” Nate asked, standing next to her.
“No, they’re fixed to the floor.”
“Well, you’re going to have to sit on my lap and drive while telling me which peddles to press as I won’t be able to see past you.”
“Shouldn’t I just walk or get one of my brothers to come down here and get me?”
“This is my fault, and I am going to get you home. Let’s move,” he said, shooing her with his hands.
Daisy dropped her head back and walked to the driver’s side of the buggy. Nate swung in and widened his thighs, making sure he could press the go pedal and brake pedal. Once he was happy, he patted the space between his thighs. Daisy looked doubtful she would fit, but his hurry the fuck up look got her hobbling over to him. She used the steering wheel to hoist her body in, and then Nate took over, holding her waist the one arm until she settled .
“My bottom is too wide for the space. I’ll have to sit on you,” she said.
She was ten kinds of embarrassed that she had to sit on his lap. Her skirts were thin, and there was no mistaking the warmth of his legs under her. It was a tight squeeze with her legs under the steering wheel, so she had to drape her legs over his. Nate tightened his arm and brought her back to his chest, and clung on.
“Drive us home, Miss Daisy,” Nate said with an awful Southern accent.
“Oh boy, this will be the longest trip up the cliff,” she muttered as she turned the ignition. “Press go but keep it easy,” she said.
She reversed and then circled wide to drive along the quayside and then up the private road to the estate. She sped past Turner Hall, which was in darkness.
“I’ve never been up here before last week. The place looks menacing,” he said.
“Trust me, it is,” she replied over her shoulder. “Slow down a bit. The path is narrow as we pass Edward Hall.”
“This isn’t the way we walked when I brought you home last time.”
“No, we came the beach pathway that time and then across the lawns. There are many ways you can get up to the estate. I use those two unless I’m heading out to see Dad’s grave.”
“Right,” he said and tightened his hold.
She drove them in silence past Edward Hall, which had its porch light on. From the rear, they could hear generators and see spotlights. As she zipped past, there were the ends of articulated lorries.
“What’s going on there?”
“They’re getting it ready. A movie is shooting here in a couple of weeks. Erica is starring in it, part of the deal of her not working away from her newborn for the first year.”
“Perks of a Hollywood actress.”
“There has to be some balance with the intrusion she gets. I couldn’t cope with what she had to put up with. Far too private.”
“That’s a Turner trait,” Nate commented.
“Possibly. Slow down. We’re nearly there. I’m going to pull up alongside the other buggies.”
Daisy counted three others, one for each of the cottages. No one lived in the fifth cottage, but there was space for a buggy if someone moved in. Daisy harboured thoughts it would be her mother, but she had a long way to go to persuade her brothers that their mother was a good person in a dangerous situation.
“Okay, we’re here. I’m going to shuffle out,” she said once the ignition was off.
“That’s not your cottage,” Nate said, nodding to Archer and Erica’s place.
All their lights were out.
“That’s Archer, Erica and Isobel’s home. Mine is the fourth one down.”
He craned his neck to see into the darkness. “Can’t we get any nearer?”
“No, this is where the buggy track ends.”
“What about your feet? These cottages are huge. We have at least another few minutes until we get there.”
“We?”
“Yeah, Daisy. I’m walking you to your door so you get home safely.”
“How will you get back?”
“My legs are fine. I’ll walk back. ”
“All right, well, let me take these sandals off, maybe the swelling is causing the pain on the straps.”
Daisy sat on the back bench facing out of the buggy and pulled on the strap to unbuckle it. She wailed at the pain and then sagged with relief when the buckle opened. Her feet seemed to swell more once she’d removed her shoes.
She gingerly stepped off the buggy and moved to the side where Nate was still sitting in the driver’s seat.
“Okay, I can hobble just fine,” she said.
“I could carry you?” Nate said.
“Not after a dislocated shoulder, and a sprained wrist.”
“Good point. What about a piggyback?”
Daisy eyed up the distance, then looked to Jason’s cottage, which was also in darkness and decided it might be her only option.
“All right,” she said.
Nate grinned, moved off the seat, and then into a crouching position, putting his bad wrist in front of him and his good arm out to catch her. She gazed at his back and then at his face looking at her over his shoulder, and moved forward. She put one hand on his good shoulder and then hopped up. He caught her with his good arm and cradled her backside in his hand to shift her up his back. When she wrapped her legs around his waist, she managed to lock her ankles.
“My, my, it’s like being a giraffe up here. I can see so much. Is this what it’s like to be super tall. Does it snow up here in the winter?” she said, placing her hands on his head to sit up higher.
He rewarded her comments with a tap on her bottom with his fingers as she bounced along. A giggle erupted as she squinted to see as much as she could in the night. Luke’s place was in darkness too, but then so was her place. They could all have been at the pub for all she knew, but then they would’ve invited her.
“Shit,” she said and tapped his shoulder.
“Is that command to make me stop?” he said incredulously.
“Yeah. I left my handbag in the buggy. We need to go back.”
“We’re nearly there. Why don’t I take you around the back, sit you on the armchair and then I can go back and get it.”
“All right. Sounds ridiculously sensible. I quite like it up here,” she said, keeping as much pout in her voice as she could.
Nate chuckled as he took the side path to her cottage, placed her on the back patio furniture, and then dashed off. She laughed for a moment and then turned solemn when it dawned on her why they were in this predicament. Her feet were scalded from her episode, and she had no way to control them. Nate had lied to her about spraining his wrist, making her feel foolish for helping him. But most of all, she couldn’t get out of her head his kiss settled her, and she couldn’t remember how it felt because she was out of it in an internal panic.
“Hey,” Nate said, coming to a stop in front of her. He was on his knees, cupping her cheek while he checked her over. “I was gone for like three minutes.”
“I’m okay, spacing out, just realised that I dropped the dinner over my feet because there is something buried deep in my head, and I’m not sane enough to work it out.”
“Hey, Daisy, you’re not alone in this. So many people have PTSD for all kinds of things. Stop beating yourself up. It will come out when you’re ready. The fact that you’re having these flashes says you are getting ready to let it out. ”
“You sound like you know what you’re talking about.”
“I read a lot,” he answered.
It wasn’t an answer. Did he have personal experience? She considered her next move.
“Are you still hungry?” she asked.
“I’m starving.”
“Still want a bath?”
Nate grinned. “Yeah, I’d love a bath.”
“All right. Let’s go inside. I’ll run you a bath, then I’ll make us some supper.”
“What about your feet?”
“I’ll soak them in cold water to get the swelling down and then put on fluffy slippers and slide around the kitchen.”
“You could soak your feet while I have a bath, and then we can both make supper.”
“Okay,” she said and nodded.
“Are you sure you’re okay? You don’t need a kiss to calm you or anything?”
She laughed and tapped his cheek. “You’re cheeky. I don’t remember your kisses, so I don’t know if they’re any good, but it seems I only need them when I’m spaced out.”
“Is that the only time you’re going to let me kiss you?”
She stilled for a moment, taking in a breath. She wanted to feel how he kissed, but there were so many reasons why that was a bad idea.
“Yeah, Nate. I’m not girlfriend material. I’m a Turner, and you don’t like the Turners. I could list the rest of the reasons we should not be kissing, but it’s late, and I need food and a cold compress on my feet.”
Nate gave her a look that screamed she was a big hairy liar, but she didn’t care. He made his feelings clear on the helpline call, so there was no point thinking they could be more than friends. She didn’t think she could be friends with him, no matter how gorgeous he was. But for some reason, fate had thrown them together. She didn’t hate the idea. Her reason for seeing him would be over once he left her home that evening. Daisy wondered how she would feel in the morning.
Daisy led him up the stairs, flipping light switches as she went and entered the bathroom in the main hallway. He could use that one while she used her ensuite. He was close behind her. She could feel him. It consumed her thoughts as she fumbled with the taps. To her horror, they weren’t working. She twisted around, trying to lessen the number of steps she took.
Daisy looked at Nate.
He was staring at her.
She was expecting to catch him looking at her arse, but he was looking at her face, checking her features as his eyes moved about.
“What’s wrong?” he asked.
“No water,” Daisy said.
“Damn. I was really looking forward to a soak,” he said.
Nate sifted his fingers with his good hand through his hair and down to his nape, clasping at his neck. Daisy melted at his obvious disappointment.
“Come on, there’s another bathroom. I know those taps are working,” she said.
Again she led the way against her better judgement. She was inviting him into her personal space. She flipped the switch on in her bedroom and did a cursory glance to make sure she had left nothing lying around. She knew she hadn’t, but that was her way, triple-check everything.
“This is a nice room,” Nate said, looking around.
“The cottages were designed so long ago that they positioned them to get the most of the morning and evening sun. Sunrises are spectacular from the bed. I’m looking forward to keeping the curtains open in the deepest winter so when I wake up, I’ll look out and see the frost-covered lawn in the morning sun.”
“Did you have that at Turner Hall? The view, I mean.”
“I don’t remember, really. I don’t think I had romantic ideals back then. Growing up, lazing in bed and watching the sun rise was not permitted.
Sadness overwhelmed Daisy, and she stilled for a few seconds and then vigorously shook her head to try to bury the memories she wished were gone. Moving slowly across the carpeted floor, she tugged the end of her duvet so the effect was flawless on her bed and moved to the bathroom.
“Let me fill a bowl for my feet, and then I’ll start the bath,” Daisy said with her back turned to Nate to root around in the bottom of her store cupboard in the bathroom. She had it filled with towels of all sizes. Then she had shelves of beauty products to last years because she was still in the habit of buying in bulk, not knowing when the next delivery would come for the rigs. At the very bottom was her bowl.
“That’s not a bowl, Daisy. What the fuck is it?” Nate said, stepping forward as she carried it to the bathroom and her bedroom threshold. “It has a plug.”
“It’s a foot spa,” Daisy said defensively.
“Oh, I’m not judging. I’m a little curious and a little envious,” he said.
“It’s the best thing for sore feet. I’m hoping the cool water will help with the tops of my feet.”
She realised she needed to fill it up, put it in the well of the free-standing bath, and turned on the cold tap. She filled it up and hobbled back to the threshold. Nate was dancing around her as she moved, so he didn’t hinder her progress. All the while with a smile on his face.
“Actually, I don’t need to be in here at all. I can do this somewhere else while you bathe. I don’t know why I’m setting up here,” Daisy said, looking around.
For some reason, she thought she’d need to babysit him, but it wasn’t like he was a child.
“I’d like the company,” he whispered.
Surprised at his words, she nodded.
“All right,” she said and went back into her bedroom. She dragged the stool across the carpet from her vanity table, sat it at the doorway, and then plugged in the foot spa in the nearest socket. It was close enough that she could sit comfortably.
Nate had started the bath and was looking at the water when she came back in.
“Do you want bubbles or just warm water?” she asked.
“I want the full works, whatever you’d have,” he said, looking at her in wonder and then her cupboard of delights.
“Bubbles it is. I have red, blue or purple.”
“Blue,” he said immediately.
“They’re on the middle shelf. Help yourself. I’m going to leave you alone while you undress and get into the bath. When you’re submerged, give me a yell, and I’ll come back and keep you company.”
“Umm,” Nate said.
“What now?” she huffed out.
He gave her a lopsided grin. “I need some help to undress.”
“This is day five. What have you been doing until now?”
“Well, the jeans and boxers are okay. They drop to the floor as soon as they are over my hips, but the t-shirt is a problem. I’ve cut them off. ”
“You’re kidding?”
“Nope. But as I need to walk home, it’s too cold to do that half dressed.”
Daisy sighed so loudly she thought she might growl. Undressing Nate was not part of the deal. She didn’t want to see the firm chest he’d held her against. It didn’t matter how attractive he was. This wasn’t a man she would get intimate with.
“Turn around,” she said.
Nate complied even though his face said he didn’t want to. Daisy gave him a stern look, and he turned away, chuckling as he did. She pushed his t-shirt and jumper up as one, and he raised his arms, but she wasn’t tall enough.
“Crap. Turn around,” Daisy said.
Nate dropped his arms, and the clothing fell back in place. He turned to face her, and his eyes gazed hard. Her entire body heated in response.
“Lift your arms,” she whispered. “Then bend at the waist towards me.”
He silently did as she asked. Daisy stepped forward so her torso pressed against his good shoulder, and she curled her fingers around the hem of his t-shirt and jumper. She pulled as she hobbled back and took the clothing with her. She stumbled in her haste and plopped down on the side of the bath, almost falling in. When Nate stood upright, she grabbed the taps to steady herself.
He was beautiful. Smooth skin everywhere, not a blemish or a mark in sight. His muscled arms curved at the shoulder and then again at his biceps. It was no wonder she felt safe in his arms. They looked as strong as they felt. His chest was broad with slightly pronounced pecs but not too bulky. Then his nipples, erect and pebbled like he was shivering from the cold .
She’d spent so much time checking him out that she expected smugness when she looked at his face, but all she saw was vulnerability.
“I should let you get undressed and into the water while it’s warm.”
He gave her a stiff nod and turned his back while he undid his jeans with one hand. She hadn’t dared look lower. She wouldn’t know what to do with a man like Nate Hill. Scurrying out of the room, she winced and yelped as she moved across the carpet. It was her turn to undress, and she did in her walk-in wardrobe as she’d forgotten to close the bathroom door. Turning around was tempting, but she’d made a pact that she was going nowhere near Nate and his dislike for her. She pulled on shorts, a t-shirt and then tied her hair up into a bun.
“You in the bath?” she called out.
“Yeah,” Nate said with a long sigh. “This is like heaven.”
“Have I turned you into a bath junkie?” she asked as she approached the doorway.
Plonking her bottom down on the circled velvet stood, she placed her feet in the cold water and moaned. The cool against the heat of her feet was delicious.
She sagged as she moved her feet over the bobbled floor pressing the pressure points on her soles.
“What is in that bowl that has you moaning like a porn star?” Nate said.
She snapped her eyes open and looked at him submerged up to the chin in bubbles. Daisy narrowed her eyes.
“Did you put more bubble bath liquid in?”
“You left me unsupervised. It didn’t look like you’d put enough in.”
“Amateur,” she muttered. “I put the perfect amount in. ”
“Well, I think this is perfect.”
Daisy looked at his arm resting against the lip of the bath and then at his face. The bubbles were still growing, and he now had a beard. She laughed.
“We don’t make a good one between us. I hope this sorts out my feet.”
“Me too. I’m sorry about Rob.”
“He wasn’t to know. He was always an ass. You two terrorised me through school. I don’t have fond memories of either of you.”
“Yet here I am naked in your bathroom,” he sang.
“If Luke finds out, he will go mad and hunt you down. So let’s keep this between us. He was the one who found me crying when I walked home after your taunts. You all had it wrong about us Turners. Luke especially hates bullies, so don’t be bragging about being here.”
“I’m probably going to steer clear of all your brothers. I’m not sure any of them liked me picking on their little sister.”
Daisy smiled wide. “Probably a good thing.”
They sat in silence. Daisy wished she’d remember to bring her book with her.
“Can you pass me a towel? I’m getting wrinkly in here,” he asked.
Daisy turned her back to Nate and counted to five. He was about to rise out of the bath with water pouring down his body like a Greek God, but she wouldn’t get a glimpse. It was a bad idea to get involved with Nate in any capacity. Reaching for the towel from the cupboard, she held it out behind her back, shaking it after a second when he didn’t take it.
“You’re not close enough, Daisy. Come nearer.”
She could hear his tease and debated if she would take the bait. She turned around, looked at the ceiling, and lowered her eyes until she met Nate’s scorching stare. Her heart stumbled for a second while she collected herself and stopped from stripping naked and joining him in the bath. Keeping her eyes locked in his, she shoved the towel at his torso. She then walked out of the bathroom to the sounds of his chuckles.
She knew her cheeks were beetroot because she could feel the heat.