They want to know Carter Prescott the football player, the guy destined for the NFL, but they don’t. They only see what Carter allows them to. A handsome athlete with prowess both on and off the field. A guy who will graduate at the top of his class and comes from a wealthy, privileged family. He doesn’t allow them to glimpse behind the carefully crafted façade.
I’ve known Carter for years, and I was still oblivious. I fell into the same trap as everyone else. It’s a disturbing thought that pricks at my conscience. Not once did I ever attempt to scratch beneath the surface. I was content to believe the paper-thin version he presented me with and I promptly dismissed him as not being worthy of my time or energy.
Carter squeezes my fingers and draws me back to the present.
“Hey, are you all right?” he asks.
The sound of his voice is like a gunshot in the silence. Laughter bubbles up in my throat and aches for release. The question seems absurd. I’m the one who should be asking if he’s okay. Not the other way around.
“I’m fine.” Our gazes lock. There is so much emotion swirling in his gray eyes. So much more than what I’m used to seeing from him. “What about you?”
He sucks in a breath and slowly expels it from his lungs. His chest rises and falls with the movement. “I’m okay.” He shifts on the seat and his voice dips. “I’m just sorry you had to see that.”
A dull redness creeps over his cheeks and my heart constricts. It kills me that Carter is embarrassed about this. He falls silent and I can tell by the way he clenches his jaw that he’s getting lost in his thoughts. I squeeze his fingers to pull him back to me. I don’t want him going there.
“You have nothing to be embarrassed about.” When he remains silent, I say, “None of this is your fault. Your dad is a jerk. He’s the one who should be embarrassed.”
“He’s not,” he says flatly. “Hopefully now that the police have intervened, he’ll take the restraining order seriously.” He glances in my direction. “My mom filed for divorce and he’s not happy about it.”
I nod, having gathered as much from the conversation that ensued after the authorities arrived. It boggles my mind that this is Carter’s reality. An avalanche of guilt nearly buries me alive. I’m no better than the BU masses. I only saw what he wanted me to. I never bothered to dig deeper or question the little things that weren’t adding up.
I clear my throat and croak, “I’m sorry.”
He frowns. “For what?”
I shake my head, unsure if my feelings can be adequately translated into words. Only now am I realizing how strong Carter is. To deal with a situation like this, you would have to be.
“For not seeing the man you truly are,” I whisper.
He remains silent for so long that I wonder if he heard me.
“I never wanted you to find out about this,” he admits.
“Why? Do you think I would have judged you for it?” I hate the idea of him going through this alone.
His hand tightens around the wheel. “I was ashamed.”
“Carter…” I fight back the tears that rush to my eyes.
He glances in the rearview mirror and slows the car, pulling over to the side of the road. The wheels spit gravel as he cuts the engine. He unsnaps his seatbelt and angles his body toward mine, sliding one hand into my hair.
“I spent all this time pushing you away because I never wanted that kind of ugliness to touch you. All I’ve ever wanted is to protect you, Daisy.” He pauses for a beat. “Even from myself.”
“Don’t say that.” My heart shatters into a million jagged pieces.
“You deserve better than me.” His other hand rises to cradle my cheek and a fierce solemnness flares to life in his eyes. “You have to know that everything I’ve ever said or done was never meant to hurt you. I needed to keep you at a distance and that was the only way to do it.” He shakes his head as his lips twist. “But no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t stay away from you. I ached to be around you.”
“The only thing I need protecting from,” I admit, “is my own stupidity. I should have seen what was right in front of me the entire time. I’m the one who doesn’t deserve you.” I swallow down the emotion that threatens to break loose. “Not the other way around.”
“You’re wrong about that, but I’m not going to argue with you.” His lips lift as he strokes the side of my face. “None of it matters anymore.”
My heart clenches as fear slides through me. I don’t want him to push me away again. I don’t think I could stand it knowing everything I do.
Instead, he says, “Because you’re mine now.”
When his lips feather over mine, I open, needing the contact. Needing to reaffirm that this really is happening.
That he’s mine and I’m his.
When he pulls away, determination fills his eyes. “Let’s get out of here. We’ve got one more thing to take care of.
I expel a breath and pray our conversation with Noah goes better than I anticipate because he’s the only obstacle standing between Carter and me being together.
Chapter Thirty-Three
Carter
This has been one of the strangest days of my life.
How else do you describe a twelve-hour period where you experience the highest of highs and the lowest of lows?
Throughout the whole damn thing, Daisy has been unwaveringly at my side. Somehow that made the worst of it a little easier to bear. The situation with my family has always been a dirty secret that I’ve gone to great lengths to hide. Having Daisy there as a silent onlooker, watching me as I subdued my father…that was beyond anything I could have envisioned. The hot licks of humiliation will forever be singed into my psyche. And yet, now that she knows the truth, it’s like a crushing weight has been lifted from my shoulders.
After all these years, I can finally suck in a full breath of air. Daisy’s hand is secured in mine as we ride the elevator to the third floor. Today is a turning point and I want to get the rest of it over with. I want everyone to know that Daisy is mine.
And that means sharing the news with Noah.
I straighten my shoulders and mentally prepare myself for the impending shitstorm that is sure to follow. Noah isn’t going to be happy about this. He’s made it his life’s mission to protect Daisy from guys like me.
It’s difficult to imagine the two of us being on opposite sides of a situation. That’s never happened before. We’ve always had each other’s backs. If there’s one person I can count on, it’s Noah Walker.
And vice versa.
As much as the thought of damaging our friendship pains me, there’s nothing I can do about it. After years of wanting Daisy, she’s finally mine and I can’t let her go.
I won’t let her go.
Not even for Noah.
As we reach the apartment door, I tug Daisy into my arms and brush my lips across hers. She immediately opens and my tongue sweeps inside her mouth. Everything rioting inside me calms. I never imagined there was anything or anyone who could do that, but she does. She’s a balm for my soul.
After a handful of moments, I pull back. My gaze locks on hers and searches for signs of doubt. “Are you ready for this? ’Cause after we let the cat out of the bag, there’ll be no turning back.”
I pause and give her time to reconsider. Now that a decision has been made, I’m ready to move forward. But Daisy needs to be just as certain about her feelings as I am. When she doesn’t immediately answer, nerves prickle to life at the bottom of my gut. My throat constricts, and it becomes harder to breathe.
Has she changed her mind?
Maybe now that she’s taken a good look at what I come from, she wants nothing to do with me.
Could I really blame her for that?
Fuck no.
But that doesn’t mean it won’t kill me.
“Daisy?” It takes everything I have inside to keep the fear from entering my voice.
Her eyes snap to mine. There’s nothing but steely dete
rmination shining brightly in them. The relief that floods through me is enough to weaken my knees.
“I’m ready, Carter.” Her brows slide together. “But are you?” She tilts her head and studies me carefully. “I’m not the one who was filled with doubts,” she reminds me. “You were.”
I tug her until her body is flush against mine and then kiss the crown of her head. “You’re right, I was. But as usual, you’ve blown my best laid plans to hell.”
She chuckles and swats at my chest. “Please. I’m the best thing that’s ever happened to you.”
“You are.” I sober, wanting to get this over with. “Let’s go tell your cousin what’s going on, so he can get his head wrapped around it.”
“Okay.”
With one last shared look, I unlock the apartment door and hold it open. Noah sits at the table as he types away on his computer. You can tell he’s in serious student mode because his black rimmed glasses are perched on his nose. He glances up and does a double take when he sees us. A frown settles on his face as his eyes narrow.
This afternoon started out great and then turned to shit. Somehow, Daisy and I have grown stronger because of it. Even though we’ve been hiding our relationship from Noah, I think he senses the shift as well. He leans back against his chair and folds his arms across his chest.
“Where have you two been?” he bites out.
I’ve heard him take that tone with plenty of the guys on the team. But never with me.
Daisy grinds to a halt. Her muscles freeze as she spears me with a look as if to ask if I’m sure about going through with this. I almost shake my head in exasperation.
How can she doubt me after everything we’ve been through today?
I grab Daisy’s hand and thread my fingers through hers, locking us together in a show of solidarity.
Noah inhales a sharp breath. “What the hell—”
“Daisy and I have been seeing each other.” I brace myself for the fallout, aware that I’ve broken bro code.
The longer he remains silent, the more jacked up I get. My nerves have already been shot to hell from dealing with my parents. But Daisy is worth it. I straighten to my full height as my resolve strengthens.
Instead of losing his temper, Noah slaps his thigh and stabs a finger in my direction. “Holy shit! For a moment there, you almost had me.”
I give Daisy a bit of side eye.
She shrugs as if to say I don’t know what to make of this either.
“Dude, I’m serious.” I clear my throat. “Daisy and I have been seeing each other.”
That statement has him doubling over with laughter. He wipes the moisture from his eyes. “Nice try! You two can barely stand to be in the same room together.” He howls with laughter. “You hate each other!”
That was never true. It had more to do with self-preservation than anything else and I regret every damn minute of it.
When Noah doesn’t get himself under control, my patience snap. I was expecting anger from him, not flat out disbelief. For fuck’s sake, the idea of us being together isn’t that farfetched.
“Things have changed, bro,” I grit out. “This isn’t a joke. Daisy and I are together and wanted you to be the first to know.”
I’m not sure if it’s the look on my face or the seriousness of my voice, but all at once, Noah straightens. The laughter dies as he stares at me with wide eyes. “The fuck you say!”
Now this is more in line with what I was expecting.
He rises to his feet.
Noah’s a big guy. Tall and broad shouldered. He can easily bench his own body weight. I don’t want this conversation ending with a fight, but I’m prepared to deal with his anger if it does.
Ignoring Daisy, he demands, “You’re serious?”
I nod. “Yeah, I am.”
“Exactly how long has this been going on for?”
“A couple of weeks,” I admit. At least now everything is out in the open. If there’s any silver lining to the situation, that’s it.
“I don’t understand,” he mutters with a shake of his head. “Are you forgetting that this is the same girl who baked brownies filled with laxatives, so you’d shit your brains out?”
“No, I haven’t forgotten.” Noah doesn’t have a clue as to how I’ve always felt about Daisy. He doesn’t realize that I’ve spent years pushing her buttons so that she’d hate me and keep her distance.
“And now you two are what?” His face crumples in disgust and he flinches. “A couple?”
Ignoring the question, I say instead, “It was never our intention to lie to you.” I glance at Daisy, not wanting to put words in her mouth. “We needed time to figure out for ourselves what was happening between us.”
Noah shakes his head as if to clear it. “So, you two have been what? Sneaking around and screwing behind my back for weeks now?”
Daisy gasps as the color drains from her face.
“That’s none of your damn business,” I bark as my fingers tighten around hers.
“The hell it is,” Noah growls as his fists clench at his sides. He looks ready to lose it and part of me can’t blame him for that. But I’m not going to stand here and listen to Noah disrespect Daisy. I don’t give a shit if she’s his cousin or not.
“My relationship with Daisy is private and has nothing to do with you,” I tell him.
That announcement only serves to piss Noah off more. His jaw locks as he bites out, “We need to have a private conversation.”
Chapter Thirty-Four
Daisy
“Yeah, sure.” Carter nods and gives my fingers another squeeze before releasing them. “Where do you want to go?”
“Not you,” Noah snaps and stabs a finger in my direction. “I want to talk to her.”
“What?” Carter’s brows jerk together as he glances at me in surprise.
I’m just as thrown by the request. “Me?” I place a hand on my chest to clarify. “You want to talk with me?”
Noah’s scowl intensifies. I can’t remember the last time I’ve seen him this angry. He looks ready to bust a nut.
“Yeah, you.” He jerks his head toward my room. “Let’s go.”
I catch Carter’s gaze and shake my head in confusion. “Um, okay.”
This isn’t the way I saw the conversation unfolding. Noah stalks to my bedroom and I trail after him before closing the door. I knew he would be mad. My cousin has always gotten bent out of shape when his friends or teammates looked sideways at me. So, this reaction was to be expected. Although I’d assumed he would want to have it out with Carter, not me.
But maybe this is for the best. Maybe I can diffuse the situation so that it doesn’t continue to spiral out of control. The last thing I want is for Carter and Noah to be at odds with one another.
“I’m sorry about keeping this from you,” I say. “We never—”
“You and Carter aren’t happening and that’s all there is to it.” He folds his arms across his chest and glares.
Me being with any of Noah’s friends would go over like a lead balloon, but the fact that it’s his best friend makes it even worse.
I moisten my lips and try again. “Noah, let me explain—”
Refusing to listen, he shakes his head. “There’s nothing to explain, because you’re going to end things with him now before it goes any further.”
Surprised, I blink at the fierceness of his tone. “Look, you have every right to be upset.”
“You’re damn right, I do,” he bites out.
My fingers twist together in front of me. “But I don’t want you to be pissed at Carter. He didn’t do anything wrong. This was all me,” I admit.
Noah frowns and his fists clench at his sides. “I never thought otherwise, Daisy.”
My brows draw together. “Wait…What?”
“Carter would never go after you.”
There’s no denying that Noah is angry that Carter and I are together, but his ire doesn’t seem to be directed at his friend. It’
s directed at—
“Wait a minute.” I draw up to my full height and press a hand against my chest for a second time. “You’re angry with me?”
Noah rolls his eyes. “Yeah, Daisy, I am.” He jerks his hand toward the door. “What the hell are you doing?”
Have I entered The Twilight Zone? Because nothing he’s saying makes sense.
I shake my head to clear it before muttering, “I don’t understand…”
Noah growls, “Carter isn’t like the other guys you mess around with.”
I huff out a frustrated breath. “That’s not what’s going on here.”
What Carter and I have is so much more than that. This relationship might be new, but already I can tell that my feelings for him run deep. Maybe they always have, and I was just too stubborn to see it.
He presses his lips into a tight line. “All you’re gonna do is screw him up, Daisy.”
My mouth tumbles open at the accusation and I whisper, “How can you say that?”
He jerks his shoulders into a shrug. “Let’s be honest, you have a shit track record when it comes to guys. You go through them like most people go through underwear. Carter doesn’t need that. Especially now.”
His words suck the air from my lungs making it impossible to breathe. “Noah…”
How did our conversation get so far off track?
A fierce protectiveness ignites in his eyes. I’ve seen that look a hundred times before, but it’s always been on my behalf and never directed at me.
“I don’t want you fucking with his head,” he mutters.
His words slice through me like a razorblade. What makes it worse is that this is coming from my cousin. The one person I can always count on to have my back. “Do you really think I would do that?”
He ignores the question, instead saying, “If you care about Carter at all, you’ll end things now before it goes any further.”
“Where is this coming from?” My voice trails off as I realize that this isn’t about Noah trying to protect me from his friend.
Love to Hate You Page 22
