Page 25 of Love, Academically

After the end of their arrangement, he’d tell her that he wanted to see her again, spend more time with her.

It didn’t have to mean anything, not if she didn’t want it to.

They could at least be friends, couldn’t they?

The way his stomach curdled at that thought, and how his heart stuttered just a little in his chest told him that he didn’t want to just be friends with Lila Cartwright.

He wanted to kiss her, hold her, wake up with her.

Do things to her that were certainly more than what friends would do.

Lila

Jasmeet had pulled herself away from Dan long enough to make it to girls’ night.

Well, girls’ night was a bit of a stretch because Maddy had cancelled.

The baby had a temperature, and she and Ruby were all aflutter, bless them.

Lila pushed down that little niggle that this had been in the diary for ages because they couldn’t help it if the baby was ill.

“Is that Dan texting you now?” Lila asked, nodding at Jasmeet’s phone.

“Yeah, but I’ve told him it’s girls’ night, so that’s the end of that,” she said, putting her phone face down on the ottoman.

She’d see how long that remained there.

“It seems like it’s going really well between you two.” Lila tried to keep the bitterness out of her voice.

Not so much bitterness, but wistfulness. Yes, that was a better word. What she’d told Rhys was true; she didn’t want a boyfriend. She didn’t need a boyfriend. Lila was quite content by herself, living on her own terms, doing whatever she wanted to do.

True, it had been nice to wake up with Rhys’s arms around her that time and nice to spend time with him shopping and sitting and talking. But that’s all it was. Nice.

The truth was, her little heart was still fragile and cautious, and would prefer to hide in a cocoon of sparkly wool rather than venture out and get pin-cushioned once again.

So, no, not bitterness. Not jealousy. Wistfulness.

“It is. I really like him,” Jasmeet said, with a dopey grin on her face. “What?”

Lila schooled her features to wipe the scowl off them.

“Oh, sorry,” she said with a little wince. “I just don’t want you to get hurt.”

“Oh Lila.” Jasmeet’s head tipped sympathetically to the side. God, she hated that head tilt. “I know you’re wary, but not every guy is Jason.”

Did Jasmeet realise how condescending that was? Lila took a sip of wine.

“Anyway, enough about me,” Jasmeet said, slipping a lock of hair over her shoulder. Even in jogging bottoms, a dirty t-shirt, no makeup and hair pulled up into a loose, messy bun, Jasmeet managed to look like a supermodel. Lila picked at the hole in her own dirty t-shirt.

“Did you get a dress in the end for that thing with Rhys?” Jasmeet asked, flicking through Netflix.

That thing didn’t really feel like it did it justice.

But it wasn’t really her place to tell Jasmeet about the inner workings of the Dallimore family.

She wasn’t even sure she could tell Jasmeet that Rhys was part of the Dallimore family.

Did Dan even know? He must do, it seemed like they’d been friends for ages.

“You have, haven’t you? When is it again?” Jasmeet asked.

“Next week.” Lila trained her eyes on Netflix. “Yeah, I’ve got one.”

“Let’s see it then.” Jasmeet clicked on the description of a thriller and quickly clicked off it again.

“It’s hanging up in the craft room.” Craft room was a tad excessive for describing the tiny box room that was overflowing with junk.

“Bring it down then.” Jasmeet tried another film.

“Best if you come up to see it,” Lila said.

She’d one hundred percent trip over it as carried it down the stairs and then it would rip and that would be the absolute end, and she would never be able to face Rhys ever again, especially after he’d spent so much money on it.

Not that she knew how much money he’d spent.

There had been no price tag, which meant it was a lot. And shoes. And a bag.

Jasmeet frowned, but set her wine on the little side table next to a half-finished crochet octopus.

Lila chewed the inside of her cheek as she led the way upstairs. She was a bit nervous about showing Jasmeet The Dress – that’s right, The Dress needed capital letters, because it felt expensive enough to have them.

“Why are you being so weird? And why is it in your spare room, not your wardrobe?” Jasmeet folded her arms across her chest as Lila hesitated in opening the door.

“Okay, look, just don’t make assumptions, okay?”

“Assumptions about what?”

“About this.”

Lila flung the door open and ushered Jasmeet in to see The Dress hanging on a hook she’d put up for a picture that had never made it to the wall.

“Oh my God,” Jasmeet whispered, taking a step forward. She ran her fingers over the delicate lace flowers. “This is beautiful, Lila. Absolutely beautiful.”

“Yeah,” she said.

“Have you shown Maddy and Ruby?”

Lila shook her head.

“Are those shoes?” Jasmeet exclaimed. She grabbed the shoe box on the floor and Lila winced when she wrenched it open.

“Jas, please be careful.”

“And a bag! Lila, you’ve really outdone yourself,” Jasmeet said, turning one of the shoes to look at it from all angles. “This is perfect and so you. You’ll look spectacular. Rhys won’t be able to keep his hands to himself.”

“No Jas, it’s not like that,” she said, wringing her hands in front of her. “What are you doing?”

“What do you think I’m doing? I’m calling Maddy and Ruby,” Jasmeet mumbled, tapping away on her phone. Maddy answered the video call after a few rings.

“Mads, check out this dress that Lila’s got for her weird date with Rhys,” Jasmeet said, flipping the camera.

Weird date? So they’d been talking behind her back, no doubt about how desperate Rhys must be to take someone as plain as her as his fake girlfriend.

No. Stop it.

These were her friends, they loved her. If they were talking about her then it was out of concern. Not putting her down or belittling her or laughing at her.

“Lila,” Maddy was saying. “How did you afford that? And the shoes and bag?”

“It looks expensive, Mads,” Jasmeet said.

“It is expensive. I’ve spent enough time walking around shops I can’t afford trying to get Ellie to sleep to know.” Maddy’s voice was quiet, but urgent.

“How is Ellie?” Lila asked, hoping to distract them.

“She’s sleeping on Ruby now, dosed up with Calpol,” Maddy said. “You’re not getting out of this. Have you over-extended yourself? Is your credit card completely maxed out?”

Jasmeet looked at her expectantly.

“Did you know Susie Dent has been awarded an OBE?” Lila asked, perkily.

Jasmeet scowled.

“Okay, fine.” Lila glanced down at the frayed t shirt and jogging bottoms she was currently modelling. “Rhys put it on his family’s account.”

There was a beat of silence.

“Rhys put it on his family’s account,” Jasmeet repeated.

“Yep.” Lila grabbed the shoes and reverently put them back in the box.

“Crap. I’ve got to go, the baby’s crying. Jas, get the details.” Maddy ended the call.

“Spill,” Jasmeet raised an eyebrow. “Why do you look so shifty? Oh my God, something’s going on between you two. I knew it!”

“No, Jas. Not at all,” Lila said, pushing the shoe box closed.

“What is it? Is he a drug dealer? The mafia? Because I’ve seen how Dan lives on his lecturer salary and it’s good, but it doesn’t enable him to drop—” Her phone buzzed in her hand. “Oh my god, Maddy has found the dress. Look!” She held out her phone.

It was like a bruise that you can’t help but poke, and Lila couldn’t not look.

“Shit,” she whispered.

“Yeah, shit,” Jasmeet agreed. “So?”

“Okay, but you cannot bring it up in front of Rhys. It’s not my place,” Lila said.

“I mean, if he’s dealing in rare animal bones or is actually a drugs lord, I am honour-bound to report it to the police,” Jasmeet said, only half joking.

Lila sighed and launched into a rather short and choppy explanation of Rhys’s family history.

There was an icky, sludgy feeling in the bottom of her stomach because she was telling secrets that weren’t hers to tell.

There was a reason why Rhys was an Aubrey, not an Aubrey-Dallimore.

He had confided in her and she was breaking his confidence by telling Jasmeet.

But she had to, there was no other way to explain it. And she had to explain it.