Page 35 of Love, Academically
Lila pulled out her phone and started tapping away on it.
“That’s not—” he started, but she just waved a hand at him.
It was best he shut his mouth. Right now.
Lila
So people wouldn’t think he’d spent the night with her? What did he think she was, some kind of brazen hussy? Well, she had invited him into her bed, but it wasn’t like that. Besides, what was wrong with spending the night with her?
Sure, she wasn’t as attractive as Jasmeet, but she was nice enough. And calling her ‘a catch’? Who even says that? Perhaps a ninety-year-old grandmother in a rocking chair talking about her granddaughter’s first real boyfriend.
But she was obviously not ‘a catch’ for Rhys Aubrey-Dallimore. Why did he even want her as his fake girlfriend if he was so repulsed by the idea of people thinking that he had ‘spent the night’ with her?
Lila scoffed lightly. Maddy couldn’t help, she had too much to do.
She sneaked a look at the man currently looking after her. He was definitely looking harassed.
Lila put her phone back in her handbag. Jasmeet was right. But no, she wasn’t a perv, and yes, she would definitely erase the image of a shy Rhys Aubrey’s muscular back from her mind. And she would one hundred percent stop thinking about the warm weight of his arm across her stomach, his soft breath across her collarbone.
“Do you want anything?” Rhys asked, pulling smoothly into a parking space.
“No, thanks.”
She’d have to hope that Sue would take pity on her and get her lunch from the cafe downstairs, so there was no need to bother Rhys ‘spent the night’ Aubrey anymore.
Obviously, her mum had forgotten that she thoroughly disliked milder Christmases. No hot chocolate, no snow, no frosty windows? No, thank you.
Lila spent the next few minutes staring out of the window feeling sorry for herself. Her ankle wasn’t that sore at the moment (thanks to lovely painkillers), but Jason was there, picking at that locked door in her mind where she kept all the feelings of uselessness, smallness and pathetic-ness. She really didn’t want to let those out because they were so difficult to put away again.
Rhys had, unknowingly, brought back harsh memories of ‘you won’t find anyone else who loves you for who you are’ with his graceless comment, and the memories of other pinpricks slowly started to deflate the balloon of her self-esteem.
When Rhys reappeared in a crisp, light-blue, short-sleeved shirt that was definitely not his slim fit, long-sleeved style, she plastered on a smile. That was enough meandering around the streets of Put Down Town for one day.
“Hey,” he said, closing the door with a soft click. “I got you these.”
Rhys rummaged in a bright orange Bag for Life and produced a suspiciously cookie-shaped package from the in-store bakery.
“I know they won’t be as good as yours, but I thought…” He trailed off awkwardly, watching her face with confused brown eyes.
Lila accepted the package and the unspoken apology.
“Thanks, Rhys.” She smiled, and this time it reached her eyes.
“I didn’t mean—”
“Don’t ruin it.” She cut him off.
He nodded once and started the silent car. It was actually quite sweet. Rhys was not nearly as inept at reading people as he might think. Well, not her anyway.
They drove in an amicable silence. Rhys parked as close to the pedestrian exit to the car park as possible so she wouldn’t have to hobble so far.
“Give me your car keys. Dan and I will drive your car home on our lunch break.”
He was so bossy.
Lila handed them over dutifully and started what felt like an eighteen-mile trek to the History Department, Rhys falling into step beside her.
“You don’t have to snail it to work with me. I’ve already made you late,” she said, giving him yet another out.
