Dopplebanger (Meet-Cute #5)

Chapter 28

TWENTY-EIGHT

Sleep had a tight hold of me, yet it was trying to kick me out of its grasp at the same time. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d slept that soundly, and I don’t think I’d ever been so comfortable in my life. As my consciousness slowly stretched and spread, I registered the warm body wrapped around me.

Happiness washed over me, and I smiled down at the beautiful redhead in my arms. Her head was on my shoulder, her leg hooked over both of mine like she’d been afraid I’d get away.

I dragged my fingertips down the soft skin of her arm, soaking in her sigh and her scent and how perfectly she fit next to me. Blips of memories from last night came back to me in spurts. The wedding. Drinking way too much.

Dancing with Gwen.

Drinking even more.

The photo booth.

Kissing Gwen.

Ignoring hazard signs and breaking into the pool.

My heart thumped harder as I recalled her in nothing but her underwear. Of kissing every inch of skin I could get my mouth on. Of the sweet taste of her arousal and the way her skin had flushed and her body had gone pliant when she came against my mouth, my fingers deep inside her.

Other parts of me woke up, one in particular.

But then the memories I didn’t want came rushing back as well. How she told me she trusted me. Of starting to tell her the truth, only to get interrupted not once, but twice.

I’d purposely sat in that uncomfortable chair in the corner of the hotel room for hours, determined not to fall asleep.

Fuzzier moments bobbed to the surface, of Gwen tucking me into bed. I’d tried to tell her that we still needed to talk, but my words hadn’t been making it all the way from my brain to my tongue.

A wave of misery rose up, washing away all of the good. As amazing as this whole trip had been, I was going to have to come clean once Gwen woke up.

Anxious and stir-crazy, I sat up and reached for my phone. Even when I pushed the buttons, it remained blank.

The battery must’ve died.

I found my charger and plugged it in, then straightened and looked around the room, trying to figure out where to start on the day. Get showered and dressed so I’d be ready when Gwen woke up? I highly doubted she’d want to make the eight hour drive home with me after I told her who I was, so I also needed to find her a way back to Raleigh.

Maybe I should look up flights.

My phone chimed and vibrated, chirping like crazy, so it must’ve gotten enough battery power to work. And apparently I was super popular this morning, which was weird—with moving back home and my new job not started yet, hardly anyone had been calling or texting me.

Honestly, it’d been nice.

I picked up my phone, cursing the cord for being short enough that I had to hunch over.

Oh, shit. I had multiple calls, voicemail messages, and texts from Evan. I started with the voicemail, thinking it’d have the most information.

My stomach sunk and then churned as he said the past few days really made him realize that there was no one like Gwen, and that he’d missed her more than he thought he would. Enough that he wanted me to stop dropping hints about being friends because he was going to try to make it work.

The first text—sent at one-thirty in the morning—informed me that he’d decided to fly to Pennsylvania at the crack of dawn so we could switch back and he could drive Gwen home himself. Apparently now he’d decided it was important and he should be there for her.

You can’t have her. Angry heat pulsed through my veins, my hand squeezing my phone so tight I was surprised the screen didn’t crack. How dare he think he could just pawn her off on me, then swoop in when I’d been the one there for her.

When I’d been the one to fall for her, no need to party with other women in order to realize how amazing Gwen was.

The second to last text informed me that Evan had landed, and the most recent one—sent ten minutes ago—said I’m here. Where are you?

I jumped at the feel of a hand on my back. Lowering the phone, I twisted toward Gwen. Her eyelids fluttered and she gave me a sleepy smile. “Morning.”

“Morning.” I didn’t know what to do. I was supposed to have more time.

A dark thought entered my mind. Maybe I’d just hurry up and break up with her now and make it nice and ugly. It’d suck and there’d be no chance of us ever being together, but if I stopped being so delusional, I’d admit that there was no chance as it was, and at least then Evan wouldn’t get her either.

Somehow I’d turned into that guy. The villain in the movie who declares “If I can’t have you, no one will.” I might as well add a burst of maniacal laughter and seal my fate.

The hand on my back slipped down to the mattress as Gwen’s eyes fell closed and she drifted back to sleep.

I lifted my phone and texted Evan that we needed to meet at a nearby location. That he should not, under any circumstances, come here.

Evan: too late, bro. I told the lady at the front desk that I’d forgotten my room number and now I’m at the door.

Me: Did your dumbass ever think that if you knocked on the door, Gwen might be the one to answer it?

Evan: Does your dumbass ever answer the phone? I wouldn’t have had to go on a wild goose chase this morning while still hungover to find you.

Me: I’m coming out.

I glanced at Gwen to tell her that I’d be right back, but she was dead to the world, so I shoved my phone in my pocket and charged out the door.

Nearly crashing right into my twin brother.

He and I’d had plenty of fights through the years, including a few physical ones that involved wrestling for the last cookie or something stupid like that, but I’d never wanted to take a swing and clock him right in the face so badly. “What the fuck? You can’t do this to her, Evan. You can’t just stroll back in.”

He lowered his eyebrows, way too blasé about our current situation. “Calm down, dude. The whole purpose of you taking my place was so that I was still there for her in the best way I could be. If I could go back and undo it, I would, but I’m determined to be a better boyfriend now, so don’t get your panties in a twist.” He dug a folded piece of paper out of his pocket and smacked it to my chest. “I booked you a flight home. There’s the info for it.”

“No.”

“If I don’t take the Camaro that I, in theory, drove here, it’ll look suspicious.”

“No,” I repeated through gritted teeth, my fists clenching at my sides.

“What do you mean ‘no?’”

“I mean no to all of it. I’m not flying home, I’m not letting you switch places with me, and Gwen’s coming home with me . So turn around, hop on that flight you booked for me, and we’ll talk about this after we’re all back home.”

“You know the self-righteous act is gettin’ real old.”

“So’s your immature act—only it’s not an act, unfortunately.”

“What’s your problem?” Evan yelled, finally putting enough visual and verbal cues together to realize how pissed I was.

I jabbed a finger into his chest. “You. You’ve been my problem since the day we were born. You make messes and expect me to clean them up, but I’m not doing it this time. Every scheme we’ve ever pulled off, you always got the upper hand while I got screwed, but I’m not letting it happen this time. You don’t deserve that girl in there.”

For the first time, I’d gotten the good end of the deal, and I planned on doing whatever it took to keep it. “Gwen’s amazing and kind and ridiculously smart and funny, and I bet you don’t even know one unsuperficial thing about her.” I challenged him with my steady gaze, daring him to prove he knew anything besides she was pretty and had a lot of energy.

“She works at that animal place.”

“Something real. Something about her , not her job. Do you know what food she’s allergic to?”

His face screwed up. “I… She… Shit, I do remember she’s allergic to something and we can’t go to certain restaurants, but… What does that matter? She knows what not to eat.”

“Whose wedding did we attend, and why did she need support?”

“A friend’s.” His exasperation grew. “She’s my girlfriend, so none of this matters, and it’s none of your fucking business anyway.”

“I’m making it my fucking business. More than that, I’m going to tell Gwen everything and?—”

The hotel door swung open. I flinched, wanting to bolt inside and close myself in the room with Gwen so I could explain what was going on before her world imploded, but her stunned expression made it clear that the cat was already out of the bag.

“I don’t under…” She looked between the two of us. “You…” Her gaze moved to Evan, then swung back to me. “And you…” She shook her head, then reached up and pressed her fingers to her forehead like she was questioning her mental stability. “Are you guys…? You have a twin brother?”

“Sorry, babe,” Evan said. “I was actually going to tell you about my brother on our way home, but I guess he needed something, so he just showed up out of the blue. I usually wait till things get serious since a lot of my girlfriends have been weird about it, but guess my secret is out. I have a twin brother.” The stupid smug grin on his face made it clear he thought he’d gotten away with it. That I’d just go along with switching places now that it’d been thrust upon me, the way it’d been dozens of times through the years.

But then Gwen’s eyes moved to me. And I could see she wanted answers from me , just like I knew she also wouldn’t like them.

She blinked rapidly, her breaths coming faster and faster. “I knew something was different. But I thought I was just…” She clenched her jaw, those big eyes still imploring me to explain as they glistened over with unshed tears.

“Gwen.” I reached for her arm, but she jerked it away.

“Bro,” Evan said, stepping up next to her. “He just came back from law school, and apparently he forgot his manners. You shake hands when you meet people, not grab their arm.”

She turned to him, dialing her expression to arctic blast, and my brother swallowed, his stupid charming smile finally fading.

“You must think I’m an idiot,” she said to him. Then she turned that icy glare on me. “You both must. And apparently I am.” Hurt flickered through her features, and I’d take her anger over the sad any day. “Just came back from law school? So, already a lawyer?”

I slowly nodded, my chest aching so damn bad I was sure it was caving in on itself.

“Ethan, I presume?”

Out of my peripheral vision, I noticed Evan’s jaw dropped, but I didn’t take my eyes off Gwen’s. I slowly nodded again.

“I thought that hotel clerk called you the wrong name. Or that it was the Benadryl.” She hugged her arms around herself. “That’s why you didn’t know about my allergy, or my name. There were so many times I…” Her voice cracked.

Instinct told me now wouldn’t be the time to point out that my brother probably didn’t know those things, either. “I was trying to tell you last night.”

“ Last night?” Fire flared in her eyes, matching the singeing admonition in her voice. “You’ve been lying to me since that morning in the coffee shop.”

“How did you—?” At another icy glare from Gwen, Evan didn’t bother finishing his question.

She started backing away, clearly overwhelmed, but if I didn’t stop her, I was afraid she’d slam that door and shut me out for good. I went after her, bracing a hand against the door to keep it open. “I meant to tell you that morning at Sacred Grounds that I wasn’t Evan—that my brother was a tool who clearly didn’t realize what he had.”

“ Hey! I know I messed up, but I’m trying to fix it.” Evan crowded into the doorway next to me. “Look, Gwen, I know that it was stupid. But you needed a date for the wedding, and I wasn’t sure you and I were going to last, you know? And Ricky was about to leave on his deployment, so I needed to say goodbye.” When Gwen only narrowed her eyes, he switched tactics. “I’ve felt shitty about it for days, which is why I texted you that I missed you last night, and I came here today to own up to it and show you I how much I care. That I’m here for you.”

“Own up to it?” I shook my head. “You’re unbelievable.” I shouldered past him, desperation clawing apart my insides as the girl of my dreams turned her back on me. “Gwen, just hear me out. Please.”

Her shoulders stiffened.

“Remember the connection? It was there that morning I met up with you for coffee. You were this amazing woman, and I fell for you right there on the spot.”

“Dude, you fell for my girl? That’s fucked up.”

“Telling your brother to take her on a road trip for you is fucked up, so let’s not go there.” If I kept on fighting Evan, I’d never stop, so I refocused on Gwen. “I know it’s crazy, but then you kissed me and… that kiss blew me away. And I told myself that you needed me to be there for you—and more, I wanted to be the guy you leaned on. But the more time we spent together, the more out of control things got. I wanted to tell you a hundred times. But I also wanted to hold on to you while I could, because I’ve never experienced anything so strong in my life as the pull between you and me.”

She turned around, so much anguish in her expression that it punched a hole in my chest and nearly dropped me to my knees. “I don’t know what to think. My mind won’t stop reeling. This is… it’s like twilight zone shit and…” She glanced at Evan. “Why didn’t you tell me you had a twin brother before? The real reason, not the bullshit one you fed me earlier. Is this something you two do a lot? Switch whenever one of you can’t be there?”

Evan had the decency to at least appear ashamed. “We used to here and there growing up, but we haven’t in years.”

“Yeah, since I went to law school and couldn’t,” I muttered.

He cast me a butt-hurt look and then refocused on Gwen. “What I told you a few minutes ago wasn’t total bullshit. Several of my past girlfriends have been weird about it. The instant I say ‘I have a twin brother,’ they have this fantasy of being double-teamed by two of me. Which is not something we do, for the record.”

“I’m not asking, for the record,” Gwen said. “I’m horrified enough that I’ve kissed you both, in spite of not knowing it until this very moment.”

Evan frowned at me. “I said keep it to a minimum.”

“You also said she didn’t like PDA, but when I was kissing her, she was all about it.” Oops. Evidently the green-eyed monster turned me into the type of guy who rubbed that in his brother’s face. But then I noticed this wasn’t helping my case with Gwen.

She was still studying us like we were a two-headed monster. One she was super pissed-off at.

I pinched the bridge of my nose, working to re-center myself. “This is getting off-track. Evan, can you give Gwen and me a minute?”

“Are you fucking kidding me? I’ve left you alone for way too many minutes, apparently.” He reached out his hand to Gwen and waggled his fingers. “Come on, babe. I’m sorry. Clearly it was a stupid idea to have Ethan stand in for me, and you can lecture me the entire way home. Just grab your stuff and we’ll hit the road.”

I wanted to shove him against the wall. Wanted to tear off his arm for daring to reach for my girl. Here I thought my jokes about becoming the raging Hulk were just that. It killed me that I could hate him and love him and want to smash his face in at the same time.

Summoning what was left of my beat-up willpower, I remained firmly in place, my hands clenching and unclenching at my sides. I still needed to present my full case to Gwen, and I hoped like hell it would make a difference, but I wouldn’t force her to pick me. If she wanted my brother back… Everything inside of me revolted, my organs twisting in ways they weren’t meant to.

Gwen’s chin ticked up a notch. Clearly she was fighting to remain strong, and I wanted to wrap my arms around her and take the weight of it, even though I knew that not only would she not let me, but also that she was strong enough to handle it herself.

My muscles coiled tighter and tighter as she glanced between Evan and me, my heart taking too many beats—like it realized that in a few seconds, it might be too broken to function.

Seconds ground out in tense silence, and every ounce of oxygen vacated my lungs as she pivoted to fully face my brother.