98

98

Lilian

My heart sank at his words, but I forced myself to stay calm, though every part of me wanted to lash out. “Why?” I asked, my voice almost breaking. “Why would you do that, Lucas?”

He gave me a look of exaggerated disbelief. “What? A guy like me can’t settle down?”

“You and I both know this isn’t about settling down,” I said bitterly, trying to keep the anger from spilling over. “You’re playing a game, as always.”

Lucas shrugged, completely unbothered by my accusation. “Maybe I am, maybe I’m not. What does it matter? Grace is head over heels for me, and I thought, why not? Might as well have a little fun.”

“Fun?” I repeated, my voice rising despite my best efforts to keep it steady. “You’re talking about someone’s life, Lucas! Grace actually believes this is real!”

“And whose fault is that?” he shot back, his smirk fading just slightly. “She chose to believe what she wanted. I never promised her a fairy tale.”

“You proposed to her!” I spat, unable to contain my frustration a