Page 80 of That Secret Something

I pressed my lips together, trying to find the words. “You’re…not exactly the most…approachable person with some things. I mean, your temper…your temper is quite intimidating sometimes.”

She nodded, sniffing. “You’re not the first person to say that to me recently. It seems like everybody keeps things from me.” More tears slipped down her cheeks, but she immediately brushed them away. “You hide stuff from me. Rebecca hides stuff from me—even Tyler does.”

The last name squeezed my gut. “Tyler?”

“Yeah.” Her head hung forward. “After the game on Sunday, when it all kicked off, we had a big talk about everything. Let’s just say he said some things that were hard to hear.”

My hand found her shoulder. “Are you two okay?” She let out a sob, and my heart sank. Forgetting everything, I pulled her into me and wrapped my arms around her. “What’s happened?”

Lily cried into my coat, uncaring about the people walking past. Sausage whimpered at our heels, nudging his snout into our ankles, and we shushed him. He was never fond of people crying; he didn’t know how to deal with it. Relatable.

“We’re fine. We’re fine,” Lily insisted. “I just didn’t realise what a nightmare I’d been. You were both right. I’ve been selfish, letting the wedding take over not just my life, but all of yours too. I had a hard think about it, you know. Just why I became this pedantic control freak.”

I raised an eyebrow. Control freak? “I guess you’ve always wanted things to be just right, but, well…”

“That’s just it. This need to be flawless? My apparent conviction that something isn’t worth anything if it’s not perfect? Rebecca thinks I’m the perfect one, but that’s not true. I think when I feel really overwhelmed, I start controlling everything around me, just so I can deal…well, with my own anxiety.”

I blinked.

Lily smiled a little. “Yeah, I’d thought this would surprise you. You can never look inside a person’s head, Jess. Believe me, I have things that I feel insecure about too.” She inhaled. “But that’s really no excuse for blaming you for things not going perfectly, and for pushing you away.”

“Hey, it’s a stressful time. You’re allowed to go a little off the rails.”

She shook her head. “But that doesn’t mean I can completely disregard your life, Jess. The wedding is all we’ve spoken about for months.” She sniffed loudly, and I got flashbacks of consoling Sally in the same way. “I’m sorry for being such a bad friend. And for trying to control your life.”

“You aren’t a bad friend, Lily. You’re just human.” I rubbed her back, soaking in her words. The wind blew her hair into my face. “I’m sorry for falling for your sister.”

She pulled back, her blue eyes wide. “You’ve fallen for her?”

“Well…yeah. I thought you knew that?”

She scrunched her eyes shut and shook her head again.

Oh god. Here comes the wrath.

“That is just…” Lily balled her hands into fists. “So gross.”

I couldn’t help but laugh. Relief pulsed through me. “I’m sorry.”

“I’m sorry too,” she said, a ghost of a smile on her lips. “That you have to put up with her now.”

My own smile slipped from my face. “Did you mean what you said? That it was a challenge to her? Just a game?” I hated the way my voice dipped.

“I did, yeah.”

My heart cracked back open, splintering into my sides. It took everything in me not to start sobbing on the floor.

“But I was wrong,” Lily said, her tone softening.

“What?”

“I’ve never seen my sister this upset. You think I’m dramatic? She’s been acting like the sky’s falling down.” She sighed, her face falling serious. “It’s not something I like to imagine, trust me, but it’s clear to me that the two of you have something.”

My stomach fluttered. Those were words I never thought I’d hear from Lily’s mouth. “Are you and Rebecca okay?” I asked.

“We’ve spoken, yeah. That wasn’t the most fun conversation I’ve ever had in my life. She said—well, actually, you should hear it from her.” She bent down to pick up a smooth oval stone and ran her thumb over it. “Are you going to speak to her?”

I nodded. The thought of it scared me, but I knew that meant I had to do it. I had to hear her side of the story. If Lily and Rebecca could come to an understanding, I hoped we could as well. I looked at Lily. “What about you, though? Are you…okay with this?”

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