Page 56 of Love, Academically
“Not about me.” His voice was a whisper.
Lila looked at him, his broad shoulders hunched, his eyes tired and hollow, mouth tight. Behind that abrasive, solid, coldness was a sweet, vulnerable little pickle, just trying to go his own way. Like Fleetwood Mac.
Right, enough of this wallowing.
“Rhys, don’t you worry,” she said, her voice full of all the cheeriness she could muster. “We’ve got this.”
He assessed her carefully, looking for any kind of guile. But Lila had no guile.
The man across from her straightened, put his shoulders back and set his jaw. Yes, this was good. She needed him to be Fighting Rhys, because there was no way she could face his family, without him being one hundred percent aloof, snarky, ‘Miss Cartwright’ Rhys.
“Okay.”
Rhys didn’t leave after lunch. She didn’t mind him sitting on her sofa while she read Susie Dent’sInteresting Stories about Curious Words,patiently watchingThe Great British Sewing Bee, or asking about the difference between French seams or normal seams. When he stood up to rescue some papers from his car to mark, he had off-cut wool stuck to his jeans and she smothered a giggle.
It was comfortable.
Lila frowned at her phone. Thanks for the reply days and days after her question. It would have been nice for Jasmeet to do something thatshewanted to do for once.
Rhys didn’t leave until early evening when she stretched and yawned and snuggled into her unicorn blanket.
“I need to go, Lila,” he said. “But before I do, can I ask you something?”
She shot him a narrow-eyed look.
“If it’s anything to do with my secret cookie recipe, then no. I will take that to the grave,” she said, slightly teasing but mostly serious.
He didn’t seem to register this and his face crumpled in a frown.
“Why are you paying Jason’s debts?”
Well, that was direct. Lila rubbed her ring finger and thumb together.
“It’s not really Jason’s loan. We both signed the agreement,” she said, not meeting his eyes.
“Is he paying half?”
“No.”
“Did you take the loan out?”
“I signed the paperwork, yes.”
“Lila,” he started, with a head tilt that was all disappointment.
“Okay, fine!” she said, throwing her arms up in the air. “It was his idea, he did it all and said it would be much easier if it came out of my account because I was the one earning.”
If Rhys’s face was any harder, it would have been made of granite.
“And now he’s earning and you’re still paying it off?”
“That’s about the size of it,” she mumbled.
Rhys sighed heavily. “Lila, you can’t—”
“No, stop.” She snapped her eyes up to his. “You asked. I told. I didn’t ask for your advice.”
“But—” He just couldn’t help himself, could he? He had to push and push and push.
