Better This Way
So she'd fibbed. Well, actually, she'd flat out lied. She did have 'a bit of a thing' for Casey like he'd accused her. And, apparently, he knew it. Had she really been so obvious?
Lily ran her hands through her hair, thinking hard. She'd lied. She never lied. And what was it about Casey, anyway? She shouldn't have lied – he would never forgive her for that. Lily wouldn't forgive herself for that.
What was so wrong about having a thing for Casey, anyway? He was a nice guy: smart, funny, sweet. He was good looking too, always a plus. And she cared about him, in a deeper way than she cared about Theo, which surprised her. They hadn't known each other very long.
He enjoyed her attention. He'd said so when Theo had chastised her for worrying over Casey. And that dream she'd had…it had scared her, shocked her to the core. Lily couldn't remember being more frightened.
So why had she lied? Why had she told Casey that she'd put herself on the line for him because he was like a little brother? She had been trying to protect him…but the feelings she had weren't sisterly.
But she'd lied. She lied and said she didn't have an attraction to Casey. It was better this way. Better that they didn't get involved – it was too dangerous.
As she walked back into the pizza parlor and saw Casey laughing at something RJ had said, Lily felt a strange pang of loneliness. But it had to be this way. It was better this way.