Dopplebanger (Meet-Cute #5)

Chapter 5

FIVE

“How’d it go with Gwen?” Evan asked as soon as I answered the phone.

Amazing. I kissed her and felt something I’ve never felt before. I hadn’t been able to stop thinking about her smile and her laugh and the way her body molded to mine for the rest of the day. Unfortunately, guilt came along for the ride and took some of the fun out of the memory.

“Ethan?”

I cleared my throat. “It went fine. We planned our route, and I’m set to pick her up tomorrow morning.”

“Awesome.”

Awesome wasn’t the word I’d use. Screwed was more like it. I had a road trip planned with a dream girl, but in order to go, it meant lying to her. If I were smart, I’d forget about the trip and Gwen and just ignore any and all future shenanigans my brother tried to rope me into.

“Now that you’ve met her, I’m sure you see why I didn’t want to crush her. She’s one of the sweetest, most genuine people I’ve ever met. Add in working with animals, and she’s practically a saint.”

“I do get it,” I said, and I did. I recalled the jokes she’d made about moving her pet food “product,” and a swirl of warmth went through my chest. The good-natured teasing about my—A.K.A. my brother’s—work ethic, or lack thereof, cracked me up, too.

“You good to go, then?”

I was in too deep to bail on her now—the idea of letting her down made me feel one-inch tall. “I wouldn’t say good , but I’ll take the trip and get her through the wedding.” She deserved to have someone to take her to the sights she wanted to see, and I promised myself that I’d at least make that part of the trip memorable for her.

No doubt it’d be memorable, as well as semi-torturous, for me. Having her sit by me in the car, listening to her as she talked a hundred miles an hour, sharing a room with her at night… “Wait.” I sat up. “What about… sleeping arrangements?”

“We haven’t slept together yet. She was holding back, and I didn’t push. I always initiated the kisses, and I could tell she’s not really into PDA, but if you have to kiss her, just keep it quick.”

Too late for that, and she seemed fine with PDA this morning. In fact, she was the one who initiated that kiss. Of course, I was the one who had taken it to the next level, but she’d felt so damn good, and all I could think about with her lips against mine was more.

“I was also thinking you could drop some hints about how much you like being her friend and really play up that part of the relationship, so she won’t be so surprised when I…” Instinctively, I knew the pause meant the wheels in his head were spinning, and that sent a prickling sense of foreboding across my skin. “Or maybe at the end of the trip you could break up with her for me. Say something about how she’s amazing, and you always have a great time with her, but think we’d better as friends.”

“I’m not breaking up with her for you.” The trip would leave me with enough guilt, and I’d do whatever it took to avoid having to see sorrow flicker through those pretty features. Just the thought made a pit form in my gut, another strong reaction that hardly seemed logical. Yes, she was gorgeous, but this ran deeper than physical attraction. From the minute I entered her orbit, I wanted to keep on circling.

“Fine. But just make sure to hint at the ‘friends’ thing.” Yelling and cheers carried over the line, and from the sounds of it, the keg had just arrived to help them kick off their several days of nonstop partying. I could barely do one night, and if his hangover this morning was anywhere near mine, I wasn’t sure how Evan could even think about getting drunk again. Then again, he had a lot more practice than I did. “I’ll talk to you later. And if Gwen references anything you’re not sure about, just text me.”

I hung up, then unpacked my duffel bag partway before repacking it with the things I’d need for the trip. Luckily I’d left one suit out of boxes in case I needed to go into the office for anything before I’d settled into a new place.

When am I going to look for an apartment? I could stay with Evan for a while, or my parents for that matter, but both of those options seemed like regressing. Not to mention, Evan and I were now up to eleven out of eleven times of getting drunk together ending in disaster. I wasn’t even going to pretend that this road trip wouldn’t end in disaster one way or another, whether Gwen discovered I wasn’t my brother, or I forgot that I wasn’t her boyfriend, or… Well, listing the ways was hardly productive, so I shoved that all away.

My phone rang, and I glanced at the unfamiliar number. I almost ignored it before my brain kicked in, telling me it probably belonged to the very woman on my mind.

“Hey,” Gwen said, and I was glad no one was around to see the goofy grin that stretched across my face at the sound of her voice.

“Hey. How was work?”

“I had to cram three days’ worth of tasks into one day, so extra crazy. Oh, and one of the groomers talked me into helping out since he was slammed, and I was in the middle of washing a dog when the door opened and he made a break for it. I chased him down Halifax for what seemed like forever. He was streaking suds everywhere, and as punishment for catching him, he shook himself out, coating me in the process.”

“I wish I’d been there for that impromptu wet T-shirt contest,” I said before realizing that wasn’t a very friend-type thing to say.

“Ah! If I were there right now, I’d have to smack you for that scandalous remark.” I could hear the smile in her voice. “But let’s just say I definitely lost.”

“No way. I request a re-vote. I’ll be right over to judge.”

She laughed, and I sunk down on the bed, basking in the happy sound. I could hardly wait to pick her up tomorrow, despite all the complications that would come along with our trip. Zoie would kick my ass if she found out, which is why I’d texted to say I was slowly settling in, not a mention of the road trip. If she called and I heard her voice, I’d end up spilling my guts.

“How’d you get into…?” Shit. This is probably something I should know. I, being Evan of course, and I’d really like to forget that I’m supposed to be him.

“Chasing dogs down the street?” she asked. “It’s kind of a boring story.”

“With you telling it, I can guarantee I won’t be bored.”

“Wow, that charm hangover is still really working in your favor.”

“That’s just my natural-born charm, babe,” I said with a laugh. “Tell me more about your job. I should know more about you.” If I was the one dating her, I would’ve, too.

Another unhelpful thought I needed to shove away. Didn’t I decide I was going to be too busy settling into my new career to date? Even if that wasn’t a factor, Gwen still wouldn’t be an option.

“Working at the grooming side of the animal clinic was supposed to be a temporary gig while I made my way through college, with the added benefit of getting to borrow other people’s pets for a while. Then my boss found out that I was good at math and taking a lot of business classes, and I got talked into balancing the books. After I graduated, I took on scheduling for the vets, vet techs, and groomers, and managing all of the office items. Occasionally, when they get behind at doggy baths, I end up jumping into my old shoes. And that’s the story of how I became a pet grooming accountant office manager.”

I rubbed my fingers across my jaw, picturing her greeting people with her dimpled smile when they came in with their animals and running after dogs that made a break for it. “I gotta be honest, it’s a pretty hot combo.”

“I gotta be honest, you’d be the first person who ever thought that.”

“I guarantee that’s not true. I bet guys hit on you all the time when they bring in their pets.” The thought made me clench my fist against my thigh, so apparently the ridiculous overreactions were around to stay.

“You’d lose that bet. Now, Tori is giving me dirty looks because I’m supposed to be starting an Originals marathon with her, so we better set a time for tomorrow morning. Is seven too early?”

“Nope. I’ll pick you up at seven.” After I text my brother and ask for your address. I doubted telling her I’d forgotten where she lived would earn me any brownie points, and the other option was suddenly becoming clairvoyant, which I also didn’t see happening.

I wished her goodnight and turned to finish packing, thinking that right now, seven didn’t seem early enough.