Page 42 of The Lies I've Told
“Go out of your way,” she said. “Ever since you left for school, it’s been all about Millie and her career. I’m not knocking that. Everyone has a passion, and you’ve made a fantastic life of yours. But, when you’re suddenly jumping in the car—my car,” she corrected, giving me a pointed look, “and driving a perfect stranger nearly across state lines, you can’t blame me for being a little interested. So, fess up.”
I let out a sigh, knowing it was a lost cause, trying to keep anything from my big sister, and honestly, deep down, did I want to? I could put on a mask and pretend to be okay for the rest of the world, act like I had it all together in front of my parents and even Aiden, but at the end of the day, I needed her.
I needed this.
“I don’t know,” I finally said. “It’s complicated.”
“What could be so complicated? He’s only been here two days.”
She looked at me, that staring-in-the-soul look that sisters did, and I watched as her eyes widened. “You didn’t?”
“I think I did?” I replied, taking a sip of wine.
“What does that even mean?”
“Well, there was a lot of alcohol involved.”
Just as I was about to take another sip of the fruity pinot grigio Jake had poured me at dinner, it was whisked out of my hand.
“Okay, no more of that for you. Clearly, you are not old enough to handle it.”
“What?” I said, appalled. She set it on the coffee table, her eyes meeting mine in a clear challenge. “You’re mean as a mom.”
“You’re slutty as an unemployed drifter,” she countered.
“See? Point made. Mean.”
“Okay, so let’s start with the easy stuff,” she suggested, leaning her elbow on the back of the couch cushion. “Tell me what he looks like.”
I mimicked her movements and rested my forehead against the palm of my hand. “You know Tom Hiddleston?”
Her eyebrows rose. “Like Thor’s younger brother, Loki? That Tom Hiddleston?”
I laughed. “Yeah.”
“Damn.”
“He has this wavy black hair and intense hazel eyes. And did you know sculptors are buff? Like, why did I not know this information sooner?”
An amused expression tugged at my sister’s lips. “Anything else?”
“He’s an unimaginable flirt,” I went on, remembering the flashback of our night together. “That is exactly why I need to stay away from him, Molly. I just had my heart crushed by someone exactly like him.” I turned away, inhaling deeply into my lungs.
“Then, why take him on this trip? Why put yourself in that position? You’re not the only person on the island who could drive him.”
“I know,” I acknowledged. “But there’s something about him. Something not right.”
“What do you mean?”
“It’s a bunch of little things, but like yesterday, at lunch, Dean asked him about England, and Molly, the look on his face, it was haunting. He told us he didn’t miss it in the least. Isn’t that sad? So, when I got back to the inn, I naturally looked him up. His bio on his website says he’s from a prominent family in England. It sounds like he had a very nice upbringing. Why would he never want to go back?”
“Maybe he didn’t.” She shrugged. “Have a nice upbringing, I mean.”
I let out a sigh. “Maybe not.”
With her head to the side in a look of total apathy, she took my hand in hers and asked, “But, sis, even if you do go on this trip with him tomorrow and he does happen to open up to you, what then?”
I shook my head. “I don’t know, but I need to find out.”
