chapter four

Lucas pov

As she descended down the stairs I couldn't stop looking at her.Her dress hugged her body perfectly, showing off her tiny waist and gracious curve. I watched her as she walked, admiring how the fabric moved with every step she took. Her waist looked so small I thought I could almost wrap my hands around it. She was breathtaking, the kind of beauty that made it hard to look away.

I've tried to ignore her for so long.

God knows I've tried.

But Evelyn Carter had a way of making that nearly impossible.

She wasn't the awkward little girl I met five years ago anymore.

Somewhere between then and now, she'd grown into a beautiful young woman, and I'd been trying very hard not to notice.

Not because I didn't.

Because I did.

And that was exactly the problem.

She was Noah's little sister.

My best friend's little sister.

That line wasn't one I was willing to cross.

No matter how much she smiled.

No matter how pretty she looked tonight.

No matter how difficult she was making it to look away.

"Guys!" Noah called, snapping me out of my thoughts. "Let's go!"

I cleared my throat and followed everyone outside.

---

The club was already alive when we arrived.

Music pulsed through the room, colorful lights swept across the crowd, and laughter echoed from every corner.

We found a booth near the dance floor.

Unfortunately for my self-control...

Evelyn sat right beside me.

Close enough that I could catch the faint scent of her perfume every time she moved.

I stared straight ahead, pretending to be interested in literally anything else.

Did she have any idea what she was doing to me?

Probably not.

A few minutes later, Noah stood up.

He reached for his girlfriend's hand.

"I'm stealing her for a dance."

"Finally," I teased.

He laughed.

"Don't miss me too much."

The two of them disappeared into the crowd.

I looked across the table just in time to see Ariana's phone light up.

"Oh!" she exclaimed. "My cousin just got here. I'll be right back."

Before Evelyn could protest, Ariana winked at her—so quickly I almost missed it—and walked away.

Nice excuse.

Very convincing.

Now it was just the two of us.

An awkward silence settled between us.

I reached for my drink.

She played nervously with the straw in hers.

Neither of us said a word.

The music suddenly seemed much louder than before.

I stole a glance at her.

She was already looking at me.

Our eyes met.

For a brief second...

Neither of us looked away.

Gosh those lips I want to suck them, I want her tongue down my throat, I want to have my hand around that tiny waist.

But what could I do?

She was Noah's sister.

That was the only thought I kept repeating in my head.

No matter how different Evelyn looked tonight, no matter how much I wanted to forget the fact that she wasn't that little girl who used to annoy me anymore...

She was still Noah Carter's little sister.

And that made everything complicated.

I looked away, trying to break the tension between us.

That's when I noticed a random girl on the dance floor.

Maybe this was what I needed.

A distraction.

Someone who didn't know me.

Someone who wasn't connected to Noah.

Someone who wouldn't make me question every boundary I had spent years building.

Before I could think too much about it, I stood up and walked toward her.

The music was loud, the lights were flashing, and for a few minutes, I tried to lose myself in the crowd.

I danced with her.

I laughed.

I tried to convince myself that this was easier.

That this was normal.

That this was exactly what I wanted.

But no matter how hard I tried...

My mind kept going back to Evelyn.

When I finally glanced back at our table, I saw her.

The smile she had been wearing was gone.

There was something in her eyes I couldn't quite explain.

Disappointment.

And for some reason, seeing that hurt more than I expected.

I looked away quickly.

Because the last thing I needed was to admit the truth.

That the person I was trying so hard not to think about...

Was the only person I could see.

Evelyn's POV

Just when I thought he was finally starting to see me...

Just when I thought I was getting closer to proving that I wasn't the little girl he remembered...

He was gone.

My eyes stayed fixed on him across the room.

Luca Bennett.

The same guy who had been making my heart race all night was now standing there with another girl, laughing like nothing had happened.

Like I wasn't sitting right there.

Like he hadn't just spent the last few minutes making me believe there was something different between us.

And then I watched as he kissed her.

My heart sank.

Did he even realize what he was doing to me?

Did he have any idea how long I'd spent hoping for one moment where he would look at me differently?

Maybe to him, it was nothing.

Maybe I was the only one who had been living in a fantasy.

I looked down, blinking away the emotions threatening to show.

This was stupid.

I was stupid.

I couldn't sit there and pretend I was okay.

Not when every second felt like a reminder that, to him, I was still just Noah's little sister.

I quietly grabbed my bag and stood up.

No one noticed.

Or maybe they did, but I didn't wait around long enough to find out.

Outside, the cool night air hit me, but it didn't help.

I pulled out my phone and typed a message to Ariana.

Me: Tell Noah I'm tired. I went home.

The reply came almost instantly.

Ariana: What? Why? What happened?

I stared at the screen.

A part of me wanted to tell her everything.

How embarrassed I felt.

How disappointed I was.

How I had walked into that night hoping Luca would finally see me, only to leave feeling invisible.

But I couldn't bring myself to explain.

My fingers hovered over the keyboard before I finally typed:

Me: I'm fine, Ari. I just need some rest.

It was a lie.

A terrible one.

Because I wasn't fine.

I was hurt.

And the worst part?

Luca didn't even know he was the reason why.