Page 14 of Kiss Me Like You Mean It

Nico shakes his head again. ‘Even in Las Vegas you can’t just get married… whatever the movies say about it. You have to have paperwork, a wedding licence.’ He pulls out his phone and starts tapping away before turning the screen to show me.

He’s right. I eye the millions of search results that reassure me of the fact.

‘Okay,’ I say, a bit steadier. ‘So what’s with the picture?’

He shrugs. ‘A photo opportunity. It is Las Vegas, and they love this stuff. I bet they charged us a fortune to pose with Elvis.’

‘Right,’ I reply with a nod, trying to get my frantically hammering heartbeat under control. ‘Of course. Sorry, I – it was a bit of a shock.’

‘Well, yeah.’ Nico has the audacity to laugh again. ‘God, can you imagine the two of us getting married!’

‘Mmm,’ I murmur. ‘Imagine.’

As if five-year-old me hadn’t announced over dinner that she was going to marry Nico Hart one day. Nope, it had never occurred to me.

Nico sighs, breaking into my fun little stroll down memory lane, and treating me to a long, measuring look before rubbing a tired hand over his eyes. ‘Daisy, I’m sorry that I dragged you down with me last night. Believe it or not, I’ve been partying way less than I used to.’

He sounds a bit desperate, like he thinks I won’t believe him, but that’s not actually the part I’m hung up on.

‘What do you mean “dragged” me down with you?’

‘Just that the state we got in with the drinking, the way we’re both feeling this morning and the memory gaps… I’m sorry you got pulled into it.’ He sounds so serious. ‘I can be a self-destructive bastard, and the absolute last thing I’d ever want to do is put you in a bad situation.’

I blink. Why do I feel so insulted by this? ‘Nico, I’m not some pure virgin sacrifice that you’ve sullied…’

His face loses all colour and he rears back like I’ve struck him. ‘Christ, Lee, I promise you – nothing happened last night. I would never have let it,’ he adds, in a low, deeply earnest voice. ‘Absolutely no way.’

Okay, now I definitely feel insulted. And mortified.

Clearly, my feelings for Nico aren’t reciprocated, but wow. Does he have to go all pale and shaky at the mere suggestion?

‘Obviously, nothing happened,’ I say stiffly. ‘I didn’t mean it that way, but you’re acting like you took advantage of me, when I’m perfectly capable of making my own choices.’

Nico looks uncomfortable. ‘I know you are. But I feel… you know, responsible for you.’

My face heats. I struggle for some poise. ‘Responsible for me? I’m not a child, Nico.’

‘Of course not.’ Nico pushes his hair back from his face. ‘It’s just, you’re Jack’s little sister. You’re not—’

‘Not what?’ I ask, even though I can finish his sentence for him just fine. Not adventurous like him. Not someone he sees as a grown woman. Not someone he sees at all. I’m only Jack’s sister. In the end that’s all I’ll ever be to him.

It hurts. It hurts so much more than it should. I feel so stupid then, so small and inconsequential.

It’s obvious Nico knows he’s said the wrong thing; the stricken look on his face makes me want to scream. (I won’t, of course, I’d never scream at anyone.) Instead, I do what I always do and I shut it all down, lock everything up tight.

‘I don’t need you to take responsibility for me,’ I say, the picture of calm. ‘I’m fine and so are you. Like you said, nothing happened except we had a few too many drinks. Let’s not make more of it than it is.’

There, that sounded sufficiently cool and collected. There’s no need to let him see all the emotion roiling inside me. I smooth my face out into a mask of bland indifference. No hurt feelings here. No feelings at all.

He shifts uncomfortably on his feet. ‘Sure,’ he says. ‘You’re probably right. No big deal.’

There’s a beat of tense silence.

‘So,’ Nico says finally. ‘What time are you leaving?’

‘I have a couple of loose ends to tie up with Frankie. My car’s booked for six.’

He makes a humming sound in the back of his throat. ‘I guess I’d better head back to my room and get my shit together. I’ve got a flight to catch.’ He looks at his watch and winces. ‘Shit. I really had better get a move on.’