Merry Mix-Up (Holiday Hearts)

15. Jade

15

JADE

D ecember 15th

When that woman walked into the room and interrupted me and Newt, I couldn't have been more relieved. Newt was everything I wanted in a man and more, but he thought my name was Amber. He thought I was someone else, someone very available and someone very much into him. I was—and I wanted to be with him, but the path from here to there felt overwhelming. It would be so much easier if I had Amber's support too. She'd been too busy thinking of how this would blow back on her and Naomi to even tell me how she felt about the real Jade dating Newt.

I weaved through the crowd of dancers hoping no one even looked at me. As Jade I was invisible and at a function like this, I would have sat in the corner by myself and been ignored. But as Amber, everyone had to say hi and chat about topics I had zero interest in. But I faked being Amber to the best of my ability and had a cheerful smile on my face, loaded with extra drama for anyone who seemed to have a flair for it.

When I found my coat where I left it on the back of a chair, I picked it up and draped it over my arm. Naomi wouldn't even know I was leaving because she was as drunk as Newt said she was. I knew he would keep an eye on her too, as would Jared, and she'd get home safely. I didn't care what Jill or Sara thought about me—or Amber, rather. They didn't even register on my radar.

I walked to the front door, and when I saw Newt's head poking above the crowd looking for me, I ducked out into the cold. The air was crisp, and my breath puffed out in giant clouds of icy air. I had no clue what to tell Newt. I wanted to throw myself at him wholeheartedly and agree to be his forever, but to do so would be a lie.

As it was, continuing to have sex with him while he called me Mav or Amber was only cementing my fate. I should have told him right from the beginning, when I asked him to keep this a secret for Naomi's sake. I should have just told him the twin swap idea, but then he might not have liked me at all. He was pretty protective of Naomi and her heart. I didn't know if he'd think it was funny or if he'd be angry with both me and Amber for pulling the swap.

Shivering, I slid my arms into my coat and started toward the parking lot. The long walk snaked across the expanse of lawn beneath lit arches decorated for the holiday. Under any other circumstance, I would think this was a magical Christmas oasis, but tonight I felt sad and overwhelmed. The man I was falling for had made the next move, taking the relationship to the next stage, and I had to run away like a child.

I didn't have to, but either way, at this point, I was risking his being upset with me. Twin swap or not, Newt would dislike Amber and me. We were punking his sister, though it was with the best of intentions to make sure she had everything she desired.

My foot slipped on a patch of ice and I almost fell. Holding my hands out for balance, I must have looked like a buffoon, but I managed to keep myself upright. Then lights flashed across the parking lot and I noticed a car pull into a parking spot. I recognized it by the many black and white bumper stickers that glowed in the dark. No one else in the world drove a beat-up sedan with dozens of bumper stickers besides my sister's boyfriend.

My heart almost stopped. I stood there like a hoofed mammal on a frozen lake staring at the sight of Derek Turndale climbing out of his car and walking toward me. A lump formed in my throat and my body flushed hotter than the surface of the sun despite the temp being below freezing outside. I didn't know what to do, but I did know Derek could not go into that venue and talk to anyone.

"Mav?" he said, snickering. "Need some help?" He jogged a few steps as I righted myself and straightened, but I thought I'd throw up instead of speaking. "What's wrong? I thought you'd be happy to see me."

"Uh, I am…" I collected my thoughts quickly and tried to form a coherent sentence. Amber was going to flip out now. "I was startled. I didn't expect to see you here." I was sure Amber would have jumped all over him, groped his dick, and stuck her tongue down his throat or something, but there was no way in hell I was doing any of that with him. Gross.

Derek reached for me and I was helpless. I had to play along until Amber informed him what was going on. But he wrapped his arms around me tightly and I was uncomfortable. This was something I didn’t have to do with him. I pushed his chest as he tried to kiss me and turned my head so he got my cheek.

"Wow, what a reunion. We haven’t seen each other in six months and you won’t even kiss me."

"You didn't tell me you were coming," I protested then faked a cough. "I'm not feeling well."

Derek's hold on me loosened but he didn't let me go, and all I could picture was Newt walking out the door to see me in his arms and feel like Amber was a backstabbing bitch. My heart felt so panicked, I really did almost puke.

"I wanted to surprise you. Jared and Naomi are your best friends. I have a few weeks off school and I figured you'd be home. Here you are. Here I am. And you said you were cramming for finals, anyway. I thought maybe I'd help."

Derek was such an idiot. I knew he talked to Amber three times a week and he never put two and two together that she was still in California doing her schoolwork. But of course, Amber and Naomi were so close, there should have been no way she'd miss her best friend's wedding planning.

My heart paused for a second as I stared up at Derek blankly. Amber was missing her best friend's wedding planning. It wasn't like her. The Amber everyone knew would never have skipped out like this, even for school, and that made my heart feel sad for Naomi and Amber. I wondered if there was some sort of falling out between them, which was why Amber didn’t mind missing some of this, and Naomi didn't seem to notice that her best friend had changed recently.

"I just… I'm not feeling well. Can you take me home? I'm staying at Jade's with her." It was the perfect reason for not wanting to kiss him and for not allowing him to come into the apartment with me when we got there. I never let Amber bring her friends into my place. If she wanted to host something, it had to be at Mom's.

"Sure, baby," Derek purred. He pecked my forehead, and I winced, and the moment he let me go, I made a beeline toward his car.

It was starting to make more sense now. Maybe the harsh way Naomi spoke about me wasn't Amber's doing at all, and maybe that was why they had the falling out. I'd never know unless Amber fessed up, but her heart was very loyal, even when she was annoyed with someone. I'd keep up the charade, but now it meant more to me than it ever had. Amber wasn't just trying to make Naomi happy. She was trying to figure out what the future of that relationship looked like.

And I was trying to carry the weight of all of this on my shoulders by myself. We really had to have a heart to heart when she got here.