Rex cursed himself silently, fully aware of Casey's feelings for him but unwilling to break her heart. That's why he never allowed this girl to express her feelings.
"I see. All right, I will tell Scarlett that she misunderstood, that you never meant it that way..." Casey's voice wavered with forced casualness. Despite the ache in her heart, she resolved to endure it. She couldn't force Rex to have feelings for her.
"Wait!" Rex snapped out of his troubled thoughts, realizing that if Scarlett discovered he was bluffing, he would be in trouble when they met the next day.
"Yes, what is it?" Casey asked, trying to sound nonchalant, though her heart started racing, anticipating what Rex was about to say.
"Casey, you can admit it to Scarlett. You can say whatever you want to say!" Rex surrendered, feeling defeated. He couldn't let Scarlett know he had lied about having a girl at his villa.
"R-Rex... y-you mean it!?" Casey couldn't believe her ears.
"Yes!"
A wide grin spread across Casey's face, her heart racing even faster. She didn't care if it was just an act or genuine. What mattered was being able to boast to Scarlett that she was in a relationship with Rex, even if it was just pretending.
"A-Alright," Casey replied awkwardly. "But she asked me to meet up tomorrow, assuming I'm with you in that place... How should I respond?"
Rex felt his headache intensify. He massaged his forehead, hoping it could alleviate the pain, before saying, "Where are you?"
"LA!"
"Do you have time to come here?" he asked.
"Yes, I do. I have no work for a few days, so I'm free..." Casey stood from her seat and started planning to inform her manager to cancel her schedule for the upcoming week.
"Perfect! I will send my jet over there. Someone will contact you in a few hours! I hope you can arrive here before sunrise."
"That won't be a problem, Rex! I'll be there before you wake up!" Casey said. But later, she scolded herself inwardly for her choice of words.
'What a foolish woman, Cas!! How could you say that?!' She felt embarrassed for showing how happy she was.
"Mmm, see you soon!" Rex said.
After the call ended, Rex threw his cell phone onto the seat beside him, shaking his head slowly as his gaze fell outside the car. His mind was filled with scolding for getting someone like Casey involved in his web of lies.
****
While in the Beachfront Hotel, Scarlett was deeply engrossed in her cell phone, unaware that Xander had entered the room and was observing her.
Not wanting to disturb her, Xander decided to leave her alone and went to freshen up in the bathroom. However, when he emerged, he noticed Scarlett was still fixated on her phone screen. Intrigued, he approached her.
"Is something bothering you?" Xander asked as he sat down beside her. "I noticed you've been staring at your phone for about 10 minutes."
Scarlett was taken aback. She couldn't believe she had been waiting for Casey's reply for a long time. 'Did Casey fall asleep while waiting for Rex to return to the villa?' she wondered.
"Xander, I'm waiting for my friend's reply, but she hasn't responded. Maybe she's asleep..." Scarlett explained. With that, she also decided to go to the bathroom to freshen up.
"Yeah, maybe your friend is already asleep. It's almost past midnight," Xander agreed, following Scarlett's lead. "Babe, I'll wait for you on the bed. Just don't take too long in the bathroom!"
"Okay..." Scarlett said and hurried off to tend to herself.
A few minutes later, she emerged from the bathroom, wearing her white sleep gown. Just as she was about to climb onto the bed, she heard her cell phone vibrating on the couch.
"Oh, she finally called me!" Scarlett exclaimed, grinning as she walked over to retrieve her phone.
But before Scarlett answers Casey's call, she asks Xander's permission. "Xander, this is an important call," she said apologetically. "I have to answer it. You can go ahead and sleep. I'll join you after I'm done with this call..."
"Hmm, just don't stay on the call for too long, okay?" Xander reminded her.
"Of course I will," she assured him, and she walked out to the living room to avoid disturbing Xander, who was preparing to sleep.
...
"Sister Casey!" Scarlett greeted her with a happy tone. "Where have you been? I waited for your reply for too long. I thought you were already asleep..." She chuckled.
"Hahaha, little sister, sorry I did something important earlier. So, I just looked at the cell phone again," She silently gulped because she had lied to her. "Well, earlier, you asked if we should celebrate..."
"Yes, yes..." Scarlett interrupted Casey's words. "You guys are a couple now, so we have to celebrate it, right? While I'm on this island..." Scarlett said. She couldn't hide how happy she was because her favorite person was a couple now.
"Alright, I'll ask Rex to arrange a dinner with you and your husband," Casey said cheerfully. She couldn't help but notice her own reflection in the mirror, and a sparkle appeared in her eyes.
"Even better, dinner! Tomorrow I'll be occupied with managing my father's company..." Scarlett's voice trailed off as she was overcome with sorrow, her father's memory weighing heavily on her mind. Again!
Feeling Scarlett's sadness, Casey felt a tinge of guilt. She had just learned about Scarlett's family tragedy from Seven a few hours earlier.
"Scarlett, I'm deeply sorry for your loss. If only I had arrived on the island sooner, I would have attended your father's funeral," Casey expressed sincerely.
Scarlett shook her head and cleared her throat, trying to regain control of her emotions and not dwell on her grief. "Thank you, sister," she whispered softly.
"Alright, it's already midnight. Get some rest. We'll meet tomorrow evening, and we can continue our conversation then," Casey suggested.
Scarlett agreed with Casey. She ended the call promptly and joined Xander in bed. Her difficult day had finally come to an end. She hoped that starting tomorrow, she would be free from this sorrow.
