A Secret Between Friends: A New Zealand Sexy Beach Romance (Treats to Tempt You Book 6) by Serenity Woods

down with slightly more force than was necessary.
    “Sorry,” he said at the loud bang.
    “It’s okay.” He’d opened up to her much more than she’d thought he would. Was that it, or would he reveal more if she pushed him? “So why didn’t you want to settle down with her? Were you bored with her? Because you’d been together so long?”
    “No, not bored, that’s the wrong word.”
    “What’s the right word?”
    He shrugged, and they both smiled. “Don’t know,” he said. “I just kept thinking about forever, and I knew I didn’t want to spend the rest of my life with her.”
     Genie rested her head on her hand. “Is there someone else?”
    “You mean did I cheat on her? No, never. I was faithful to her, Gin. There’s been nobody else since I was eighteen.”
    “And since?”
    He shook his head. “Celibate.” He rolled his eyes.
    So it hadn’t been about another woman.
    “I’m sorry,” she said. “It makes me sad. I liked her, and I thought you looked good together.”
    “Don’t,” he said sharply. He stood, picked up his glass, and marched over to the kitchen to pour himself another. “Don’t defend her,” he continued as he added more ice and a larger splash of whisky to the glass. “She doesn’t deserve your pity. She’s an attractive woman, and she’ll have no trouble finding the right guy to settle down with.” He came back to the sofa and sat heavily.
    “I wasn’t defending her.” Genie frowned, taken aback by his sharp tone. “I’m sure you did the right thing. It’s better to make the break than stay together out of habit. It’s just…odd, that’s all. I’ve come back and it’s as if I’ve stepped through the looking glass—everything is the same but different, and it’s unsettling. Even Jonah’s not dating at the moment. I mean, seriously, what’s up with the world?”
    Niall gave a short laugh. “That won’t last.”
    “Of course it won’t. But it is odd. I’d say it was all to do with Ciara, but you broke up with Tamsin months ago, didn’t you?”
    He nodded. “Halfway through August. Day after my birthday, actually. That pissed her off, too. She’d just bought me an expensive ring, hoping I’d get the hint, I think.” He blew out a breath and swallowed the whisky.
    “How did she react? Was she mad?”
    “Yeah.” He gave her a rueful smile. “Steaming. She broke my guitar.”
    “Jeez.”
    “Ah, I probably deserved it. I hurt her. She loved me and she just wanted some security—I can’t blame her for that. She was very bitter. Accused me of stealing the best years of her life.”
    “She’s only thirty, isn’t she?”
    “Nearly thirty-one.”
    “That’s not old to have kids.”
    “No, I guess not, but when she was younger she’d obviously had this picture in her mind’s eye of where she would be at that age, and this wasn’t it. She’s got to start again, and that’s not fun for anyone.”
    “I am sorry. Sorry that you had to go through it. It couldn’t have been nice, and then you had all the stuff with Ciara to deal with.”
    “It’s not been an easy six months,” he admitted.
    “Jonah said you went away over New Year.”
    “Yeah. I spent Christmas with Mum and Dad, but it was just awful and I couldn’t bear the thought of seeing in the New Year with them. I went to Melbourne—a mate of mine has a house on the beach, and he was going to stay with his girlfriend’s family, so I house-sat for a few weeks.”
    “I bet that was a nice break.”
    “It was good to get away, I suppose. Odd though, being alone. I’m not sure it was the right thing to do.” He looked sad, and Genie’s heart went out to him. He was usually so carefree, so light of spirit—it was odd to see this other side of him. It was unsettling, and yet it also made her glow inside that he’d allowed her in for once.
    She held her hand out to him. He studied it for a moment, then he placed his in it. His fingers were warm, his grip tight as he