Page 52 of The Meaning Of You

I almost choked on my last mouthful of sandwich. “What?”

Nick’s gaze slowly tracked back to mine. “I think Davis was seeing someone else before the accident.”

Holy shit.It was the last thing I expected him to say.I stared at him, stunned speechless. Everything Nick had told me about Davis didn’t fit with the man being a cheater. “And you know this because...?”

His jaw tensed, but his gaze remained steady, almost unnervingly so. “Because it’s the only thing that makes sense. The only thing that explains all the weird shit I’ve discovered today.”

“Today?” I blinked. “You’ve only discovered this today?”

He shuffled nervously and nodded. “Yeah, in the last eight hours, to be precise.”

I shook my head, still trying to digest his words. “Then how can you possibly be certain?”

He huffed. “It wasn’t exactly hard to piece together.”

I sighed and fell back in my chair, opening my hands. “Go on then. I’m all ears.”

And so he did, and I listened in disbelief as he relayed the full story of his day—the publishing folder, the laptop receipt, the search of the townhouse, which led him to the caravan and what he found there. As he talked, his fingers worried the seam of his jeans, his gaze darting on and off my face, his expression warring between anger and humiliation and a much, much deeper hurt.

“There was a second phone as well a new laptop.” Nick eyed me defiantly. “And appointments on his calendar with someone bearing the initials L. K., and more with a second person labelled J. I don’t recognise either of them, and yet I thought we knew everything about each other, including our friends.” He snorted derisively. “It sounds pathetic when I think about it. I mean, what couple ever tells each othereverything, right?” He shot me a pleading look. “But I could’ve sworn wewerethat couple.” Hepaused, looking miserable, and I wanted nothing more than to comfort him.

“But you said he met with lots of people when he was researching, right?” I reached for a possible answer.

Nick shook his head. “Not at the caravan. Never there... at least not that I was aware of,” he qualified. “The caravan was Davis’s writing space, not somewhere he socialised or interviewed people. If he needed to talk with someone, he generally arranged to meet at a café or a park or they came to the townhouse. He didn’t even likemevisiting the caravan when he was working.” His voice broke and a guttural sound escaped his lips that almost broke my heart.

“Nick, you shouldn’t assume?—”

He cut me off. “I’ve been a fucking idiot. I loved him, Madigan. And I believed everything he told me. He could’ve had anyone he wanted, but I trusted he knew what he was doing when he picked me. That he loved me just as much as I loved him. It sounds so fucking corny, but damn, if he didn’t burn like a fire in my heart. He was my soft place to fall. Theonlyperson I’d ever allowed to be that for me. Do you know what that love feels like? It’s a once-in-a-lifetime miracle. You don’t get to be that lucky a second time. And I never questioned his loyalty, not even once.”

Oh god.I reached across and took his hand, unable to watch him coming apart from the sidelines any longer. “But you’re making some pretty big assumptions.”

Nick didn’t pull away, his attention slowly locking on our joined hands. “I don’t know that I am.”

I squeezed his hand and he looked up, his expression confused. “I’m just suggesting that maybe you should slow down a little. Because unless I missed something, I haven’t heard anything like a smoking gun. If Davis loved you like you believed he did, then maybe you owe him the benefit of the doubt. Youwere married for thirteen years before the accident, and I know you’re not easily fooled. This might not be what you think.”

Nick’s expression sharpened. “All right, well answer me this. On the day of the accident, Davis arranged to meet this L. K. guy at the caravan. There was an exchange of emails setting it up. I’ve read them. And it was noted on the calendar. Later that same day, he met with whoever this J. guy is. That was on his calendar as well. But he never mentioned either of them to me at breakfast.” He paused, swallowing hard, looking about as devastated as I’d ever seen him.

“Maybe he didn’t think it was important?” It sounded weak even to me and got the look it deserved from Nick.

“Davisalwaystold me if he had meetings planned so I’d know not to worry if I couldn’t get hold of him during those times. And it was our anniversary as well. We had a dinner reservation. You’d think of all days, Davis would let me know if there was a chance he might be late on that day. What the hell was he doing down there—weretheydoing down there? Who are these people? Tell me again how I’m supposed to explain that away?”

“But you don’t knowwhythey were meeting,” I insisted. “Maybe he was organising a surprise for your anniversary?”

“That needed planning in secret for almost two months?” Nick sent me a sour look and pulled his hand free. “Davis didn’t remember it evenwasour anniversary that morning, not until I gave him his card at breakfast.”

Oh.I kept my mouth shut because . . . well . . . shit.

Nick read the expression on my face. “Exactly. But he said nothing to me about any of it. He’d planned lunch with this L. K. person on our anniversary and yet it never occurred to him to tell me. We never understood why he was down that way in the first place. Now we know.”

I frowned. “But you said Davis was alone in the car when the accident happened. And it was miles away from Clarke’s beach.”

“I know. I know,” Nick said, frustrated. “I didn’t say the two things were connected. Who knows what Davis was doing when he took that corner too fast? Maybe that partwasresearch. Maybe that was the J. guy? But there are more questions than answers and I can’t get past the fact that Davis was lying to me.”

I raised a brow.

Nick grunted. “By omission, at least.”

“It might still not be what you think,” I countered softly.

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