Falling For The Wrong Twin

Trapped

Gia

I sighed—disappointed and frustrated as I watched my ’98 Civic still hoisted on the hydraulic lift, the car hood open. A car that the mechanic said would be ready before twelve. Great! I glanced at my wristwatch. 2:45 P.M. My lunch break had already ticked away.

I didn't even get the chance to grab a sandwich.

Way to further ruin my day as if Maverick had not done enough damage to it. My mind drifted back to the offer he made me and an instant ache almost split my head in half.

He had me completely trapped.

If I said yes to being his girlfriend and unfortunately got married to him in the future, it meant that Mitch would lose more than half of the trust fund. And if I didn't, Maverick would release those pictures of us making out, and the outcome would still be the same.

But the difference was that Mitch would hate me forever.

I didn’t want that. I didn’t want a situation where we would never have to speak to each other again or a point where our friendship would be ruined beyond repair.

“That bastard," I cussed under my breath.

I would choose the safer option. The one that came with money. Honestly, I had no idea. I had to call my cousin—Oona. She always has a solution for everything.

I stepped out of the oil-scented bay, taking a walk around the block while dialing her number. The phone barely rang before she answered.

“Gia, please grab five Corona Extra. A bottle of Baron and three packs of cigarettes when you get off work,”

My brows knitted. “Whoa. Whoa. Calm down. Don't you have work tomorrow?” A gasp almost escaped me as I slammed a hand over my mouth. “Fired?”

“No,” she cried and relief crashed through me as I undid my top button.

“That is better,”

“No it isn't. Aaron broke up with me. And I’m so livid right now. It feels like I’m losing my mind,”

“Didn't you two start dating five days ago?”

“And that makes it even worse. Who the hell does he think he is? How dare he break up with me? You know what… just come with the stuff. I’m going to mourn him tonight, get over him tomorrow, and find someone new before next weekend. f**k Aaron,”

A chuckle spilled out of my mouth. “Oona…” I crooned.

“I’m hanging up now—”

I cut in before she could. “Are you forgetting that I’m the one who called you? Not the other way round,”

“Right. What is this about? Please don't tell me this is about Mitch, Massachusetts, and his blonde Barbie, Vivienne,”

“Kinda,” The insides of my palm were clammy because of this darned heat. “But not exactly,”

She groaned. “Okay…Go on,”

“Maverick showed up at my office,”

Something dropped in the background with a sharp clang as she let out a squeal. “The hot twin! Holy f**k, Gia. Give me the details. Was it that he couldn't get enough of the kiss and came for round two? Did you make out in the restroom? Were you f****d in that supercar? A five-star hotel! Oh My God—Gia. Tell me, how big is he?”

I scoffed at the sound of the raw excitement in her voice.

“None of that happened, Oona and it will never happen,”

“Never say never,” she giggled.

I heaved an exasperated sigh. “He is blackmailing me to be his girlfriend. Apparently, he has pictures of Mitch and me from that night,”

“That's so hot, Gia,”

“No it isn't. It is psychotic,”

“Whatever,”

I told her about the trust fund. The money he was offering too. Six hundred thousand dollars—it had her gasping for air. How he wanted me to take a two-week summer break and how the chances of us getting married were high.

“Jesus Christ!” Oona blurted. “Please tell me you called to say that you're going to the Hamptons for vacation? Please tell me you said yes,”

My stomach tightened as I paced the sidewalk. “I don't know. I’m scared for Mitch. For what this would cost him,”

She paused for a long minute and if Oona Heidi went that long without speaking, it meant the next words that were coming out of her mouth were definitely not good.

“Can I be rude for a second?”

I drew in a breath, bracing myself for what was coming next. “Take your time honey. You have my permission,”

“Gia, you have to be very…What is that word again?”

“Stupid,”

I heard her snap her finger. “Thank you. And very dumb too. Like what the f**k is wrong with you,”

“I know Oona. I know”

“Gia, you have never had six hundred thousand dollars sitting in your account. To think that you can have access to millions of dollars and you are still here considering saying yes or no. With that amount of money, you can change that car that has lived more lives than you. Buy a house. Invest it. Do you realize how life-changing this offer is? This is your ticket out of a middle-class life!”

“I’m not even in the middle-class range. With the current economy, I’m poor,”

“Exactly,”

“I understand you, Oona, but Mitch… he’s been there for me so many times. He helped pay Dad’s hospital bills. When I finally found a job, he didn’t even ask me for rent until I had saved enough to get back on my feet. Mitch doesn’t deserve this—” The truth was, I had only ever paid rent during the times he would disappear from the house we shared for weeks or even months after a huge argument—like the last one. He hadn’t come home to stay. He’d only returned to collect his things, and even then, he’d done it while I was away.

I could hear her eyes roll as she yawned like she was bored.

“Who the heck cares about b***h-Mitch or whatever the name of that fucker was,”

“I only permitted you to call me names. Not my best-friend” I frowned.

“I’m sorry, but I hate it whenever you give Mitch more credit than he deserves. You’ve done plenty for him too. You gave him your savings for an investment, and what did he do? He blew it all on Vivienne. You contributed more than seventy percent of the money to buy him a car. You’ve sacrificed so much for him—far more than Vivienne ever would.”

I could hear the irritation sharpening her voice.

“Yet he keeps choosing her over you, acting like he doesn’t even know you have feelings for him!”

“Mitch doesn't know,” I whispered.

“Keep lying to yourself,”

“Gia” her voice dipped low.

“You need to choose yourself for once. You’ve always been the one to play it safe but I want you to start taking risks. Have fun. Go to parties. s*x clubs. Orgy Parties—”

“And risk contracting a life-threatening disease?”

“All I’m saying is there's more to life than third-wheeling Mitch and Vivienne’s dates, personal times, and then ranting to me about how she keeps shooting glares at you. I don't even blame Vivienne, sometimes. If I had a boyfriend who had a best friend that keeps intruding on our personal space, I would hate her too,”

“I don't know Oona,” tears welled in my eyes. “I don't want to hurt Mitch,”

Oona exhaled sharply. “You know what. Don't think about coming back to the house until you return to Maverick and say yes to his offer. I’ll change the door’s passcode. If it means changing the keys, I would do it too! Goodbye Gia. Love you, cousin,”

She disconnected the call before I could speak.

I threw my head back, exhausted and—

My phone buzzed in my hands. A text from Vivienne.

‘Gia, it’s been two weeks since you last visited the house and it is enough time for you to move out and come get your things. I won't be going through the hassle of helping you pack. Mitch wants me to move in with him and there isn't enough space for my stuff so I plan on using your room as a walk-in closet,’

‘If the room doesn't get cleared out before the weekend, I’ll be posting the valuable things online for sale. What doesn't sell will be trashed. So don't blame me then. Have a nice day, Gia.’