“It’s nice to meet you.” I stared at her. Because faced with a beauty like hers, I couldn’t help but stare. Her blue eyes met mine, and she glanced away quickly, like I’d embarrassed her with my scrutiny.
I suddenly realized that her hand still hung there in the air between us, so I reached out and took it, planning to give it a firm shake. But the moment I touched her, electricity shot up my arm and straight down my spine. All the hairs on my arms and my head stood up. Hell, even the hair on my balls stood tall. She was electrically charged, and I had no idea why.
She gasped and jerked her hand back, wiping it on the leg of her jeans.
What was that? I had no idea.
Aubrey elbowed my side, coughing like she’d just sucked down a cherry pit. “Oh,” I said. “This is Aubrey.”
Lynn cocked her head to the side. “A friend of yours?” she asked. She reached out to shake hands with Aubrey. Aubrey offered her no more than her fingertips and a snotty smile. For the first time ever, I wondered what I saw in Aubrey. I’d never wondered that before, but now…
/> Now, I had no idea. The comparison between the two of them wasn’t a fair one. Lynn looked like she’d just stepped down off a cloud. And Aubrey…well, she was just Aubrey. She was a fixture in my life.
“I’m his girlfriend,” Aubrey said when I didn’t answer. She dug her elbow into my ribs again.
“It’s lovely to meet you both,” Lynn said quietly. My mom and dad appeared, and Dad held out a chair for Lynn.
“Where do you go to school?” I asked her.
“I’m homeschooled,” she replied as she took a bite of the appetizer the server had brought to the table.
“What’s that like?”
She laughed and shrugged delicately. “I don’t know. What’s regular school like?” She leaned toward me like she was waiting for me to impart the meaning of life. Her blue eyes sparkled.
Two hours later, I looked up and realized that Aubrey was gone. I didn’t remember her leaving. I hadn’t been able to take my eyes off Lynn the whole night.
That weekend, I broke up with Aubrey. I hurt her feelings in the process and I hated doing that, but I knew the minute that I saw Lynn that she was the one for me. I didn’t want anyone else. Ever.
4
When I finished my story, I opened my eyes to find Ash pressed against my side on the couch. She heaved out a sigh, which caused her breast to rub against my arm.
“I love that story,” she said.
“Where is Lynn, Ash?” I asked. I looked down at her and she licked her lips.
“I don’t know,” she said quietly. “But I’ll find out. I promise.”
She hopped up onto her knees so she could lean closer to me, pressing her front against my side. “Do you want to pretend I’m her for a few minutes?” she asked me, her voice little more than a whisper.
“No.” I cleared my throat, because I suddenly sounded like I smoked four packs a day. “No,” I said again.
“We did it the last time she was gone. Don’t you remember?” She ran her fingers through my hair, and my dick got hard instantly.
I remembered. I remembered everything.
“Close your eyes,” she whispered. “I smell like her. And we’re the same size.” She crawled across me to straddle my lap. Instinctively, I grabbed her ass and pulled her closer to me. But she wasn’t Lynn. She would never be Lynn. “I know I’m not her. You know I’m not her.”
I tucked my face into her neck and took a deep breath. She smelled like my Lynn.
“Pretend I’m her,” she said softly. “Take me to bed, Mason.”
I stood up with her legs wrapped around my waist and went to the bedroom. I brushed her things off the bed onto the floor with a quick swipe of my arm, and followed her onto the covers as I laid her on her back.
“Get a condom,” Ash said. If I ever slept with anyone who wasn’t Lynn, I used a condom. Lynn was the only woman I’d ever made love to without one.
I opened the bedside drawer and pulled a small package from the depths. I shoved my pants down and rolled the condom down my length. Reaching behind me, I grabbed the back of my shirt in my fist and pulled it over my head. As I did this, Ash shucked her clothes, flinging them across the room.