Page 82 of Love Me Till Wednesday

‘So did I. I’d forgotten how to have fun.’

‘Stopping for a cuppa? Or something stronger?’ Lisa asked hopefully.

‘No. I need to go. I’ve got to pack and get an early night.’

Now or never, Lisa.‘That’s a shame because I’ve been thinking about what you said yesterday. About us being old friends getting to know one another again. I’d like us to be more than that. I think you’re right about us being soulmates.’

He looked uncomfortable. ‘I know I said that, but today’s made me realise how much I’ve missed in Jim’s life. I don’t think I can forgive you for that.’ He grabbed his coat from the coat rack in the hall. ‘I guess I’ll see you when I visit at Christmas.’

‘Nick!’ she called after him as he headed for the door. ‘What do you mean “forgive me”?’

He wouldn’t look her in the eye. ‘You could have told me Jim existed instead of leaving me in the dark about it for so long. It’s not as if I’d disappeared into obscurity. You knew exactly where I was.’

‘Remember I was under the impression you didn’t want anything to do with me.’

‘But you didn’t know how I’d feel about Jim.’

‘He didn’t want me to find you.’

‘He was a child! You should’ve known better,’ Nick opened the front door and stormed out, slamming it shut behind him.

Nick’s Range Rover drew up alongside him on Camden High Street.

‘Where’s Lisa?’ Brad asked.

‘At home with Sophie,’ Nick said as he got into the passenger seat and put his seatbelt on.

‘You’ve fucked up, haven’t you?’

Nick stared at him. In the twenty years Brad had been his driver and bodyguard, he’d never commented on Nick’s relationships.

‘What makes you say that?’

‘Because I’m picking you up three blocks from Lisa’s house, and she’s not waving you a loving goodbye. So am I driving you back to Lisa’s or the hotel?’

‘The hotel.’

‘Are you sure?’

Nick wanted to be as far away from Lisa as possible. The sooner he was on the plane to LA, the better. ‘Yes. If I want dating advice, I’ll talk to my couple’s therapist.’

‘Because that’s worked out well so far,’ Brad said as he pulled back into the Monday evening traffic.

‘What’s that meant to mean?’

‘Despite spending a fortune on the best therapists in LA, you still pick women who use you. Lisa’s different.’

‘She’s different, alright. She’s worse. None of the others have kept a child secret from me.’

‘Because she’s a good mother. When Jim was young and impressionable, you were a terrible role model. Why would she want you anywhere near him?’

‘I wasn’t that bad.’

‘If you say so.’

Nick stared out the car window. Brad had been at his side through thick and thin. Their relationship was the most stable one Nick had ever had. He knew all Nick’s secrets, and he’d never let him down. ’So she did the right thing?’

‘Yes.’

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