Page 16 of Until Now

“I’m good. This was supposed to be my vacation and I refuse to let you ruin it.”

“I suggest you take the hint. Stay in your space and we’ll stay in ours.” I grip Nick's arm a little tighter as he sets the boundaries.

Lee continues to stare at me. I don’t think this was how he imagined things going. His eyes never leave me as Nick wraps around me. Holding me, protecting me…from him.

“And, I think that’s your cue,” Eileen says when Teagan calls from the bedroom.

§

The only light comes from the fire at my feet, I stare out into the dark, the wilderness calling to me…Breathe.

And I do. For the first time in hours, I can breathe. The fresh mountain air dances in my lungs, counting to three as I exhale.

To say I was shocked when we came up from dinner would be an understatement. Actually, I wasn’t that shocked. Nothing surprises me when it comes to Mother anymore. Where there had once been an eight-person dining room sat a brand new ten-person table she had ordered to accommodate all her guests. Mother wanted to make sure everyone knew she could drop that large amount of money within a moments notice.

After another Diana prepared dinner, the group moved to the living room to enjoy cocktails and the evening breeze from the open balcony doors. I kept my distance sipping wine from nearby waiting for the right time to sneak away. Mother made sure to put us in the hot seat again, but the topic soon switched to one of Karol Madigan’s party stories we’ve heard a million times. When it seemed like everyone was totally engrossed by the slightest change of detail, I took the opportunity to run.

Footsteps falter just before the final step up to the rooftop. I smile to myself, to the wilderness… I wonder if he truly knows what he’s gotten himself into by joining me this summer. I don’t know why I thought this was a good idea. How am I supposed to explain to my family that we simply broke up at the end of the summer? What explanation can I provide that will suffice when we’re supposed to appear picture-perfect? We’ve been under a microscope since we arrived. One wrong move and—

“You okay?” He stands next to the couch now.

“You didn’t have to come up here.”

“Wanted to make sure you were okay.” Nick sets the wine bottle I’d been drinking from earlier next to my feet on the edge of the fire pit.

“Peachy.” I finish the small amount of wine in my glass and we reach for the wine bottle at the same time. A familiar warmth spreads through my fingers when they brush his. The fire dances in the reflection of his eyes when I meet his gaze. “I can pour my own wine,” I say, but don’t fight when he takes the bottle and empties it into my glass. “I’m not a damsel in distress.”

He laughs and I can’t help but smile, “You really are something else, you know?” His arm drapes around my shoulders to pull me close. “Not a damsel in distress, yet you needed someone to come and save you on this trip?”

“Shh! They’ll hear you.”

“Oh, come on, Nina. You could’ve done this.”

“And listen to my mother tell me how pathetic I am? No thanks. I get enough of that without being here. Besides, I really didn’t want Lee and Teagan sleeping in my room. That would be…weird.”

He stares a moment too long, but I pretend not to notice. Clearing his throat, he tries to change the conversation. “He still seems into you.”

“Lee?” I scoff. “I’ll never do that again.”

“Sure?”

“Oh, absolutely.”

“Well, your mom seems toreallylike him.”

“It’s the money.” I swish the red liquid in my glass. “She and Karol have been planning our wedding for as long as I can remember. When we finally got together…it was the first time I’d ever seen my mother take remote interest in me.” My eyes close and I take a deep breath. When they reopen, they’re wet, but I blink it away. “It was destined, the Villas and the Madigans…And, I ruined it all.”

“She knows he cheated on you, right?”

“If my dad can forgive her, I should be able to do the same.” I don’t hide my smirk as he slowly starts to realize what I just said. “Every family has their secrets, Nick. From the outside, I’m sure we look perfect. She wouldn’t have it any other way. But, if there is one thing you’ll learn…Brina Villa only cares about two things: money and my brother. And, I always seem to get in the way of both.”

“Have you ever told her how you feel?”

“My mother knows exactly how I feel. I’ve never tried to hide it.”

Nick treads carefully as he digs deeper into the secrets of the Villa family. Of Nina Villa. Secrets people would pay for, have paid for.

“If it was my mom—”

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