[P] Why Can't I?

Oh God, the woman was his cousin? Nikkolai could have died. Not only did Seth know her, but he knew about what had happened and they were apparently rather close. How could they not know by now? How could they have not figured it out? Every detail kept pointing in one direction and Nikki knew at some point the lies were going to get tangled together and contradict. For now though… for now he could play it off.

“That was nice of her to try and figure it out for you,” he said with a laugh. It was the truth – it just scared him how correct she had been. How could she have known that when he hadn’t even told a single, solitary soul at that point? It was an eerie thing and it nearly sent a shiver up his spine, but he refrained, not wanting Seth to notice and think it was odd.

He shrugged then with a somewhat shy smile. “Well, that’s because I didn’t,” he said. “I didn’t flip at all. I just… didn’t see a reason to. I mean I guess she’s pretty and all but I didn’t…”

Stop now! Stop now! Stop before you say the wrong thing and hint at the truth!

“I wasn’t raised that way, to go crazy over it and stuff,” he finished off, sounding a little desperate for a reason despite his efforts not to. “I wouldn’t never listen to her again though. She’s entitled to one mistake… has it always been that foolproof in the past?”

Small talk would work, maybe, and maybe get the subject away from the dangerous territory in which they were treading.