Page 3 of It's Only Make Believe

Louisa wrinkles her nose.

“You’re not seriously considering getting back with Justin, are you?” Louisa asks.

I shake my head.

“No. As a couple we just didn’t work, there was no chemistry between us. But we got along well enough and there’s no harm in being friends. And besides, in a brand new city, I’m hardly in a place to turn my back on someone I actually know,” I tell her.

“I still think it’s creepy that he followed you here,” Louisa says.

I roll my eyes.

“For the fiftieth time, he didn’t follow me here. He took a job offer here before he even knew I was coming here. Hell, it was before I had even decided to come here,” I say.

“That’s what he tells you,” Louisa says. “But is it the truth?”

I roll my eyes again and Louisa takes the hint and laughs and pushes a glass of rose wine towards me.

“Forget Justin, drink up,” she says.

I pick up the glass and take a big sip and moan my appreciation when the cold sweetness of the wine runs over my tongue. I swallow my first mouthful and take another drink.

“You look like you needed that,” Louisa says.

“I did,” I agree. “Job hunting is thirsty work. Especially when there are so few options. I mean don’t get me wrong, there are tons of jobs I could do, but I don’t want to stack shelves or fold clothes. I want something actually related to my degree. There’s just nothing. Well, there are unpaid internships of course but I need money. I’m starting to think I’m going to have to take an unpaid internship and then wait tables or tend bar or something on evenings and weekends.”

“Funny you should say that” Louisa says. “I actually have something I thought you might be interested in.”

I feel my interest being piqued and I sit up straighter and look at Louisa, waiting for her to go on. I’m struck, certainly not for the first time, and probably not for the last time, how pretty Louisa is. She has caramel crème colored skin with dark brown eyes and dark brown curls. She has a lovely, curvaceous figure, and she is as beautiful inside as she is outside. I still sometimes have to pinch myself to believe that she chose me, Tia Lake, a self-confessed nobody, to be her best friend at college and now beyond.

“Earth calling,” Louisa says, and I snap back to attention.

“Sorry,” I say. “I was miles away.”

Louisa laughs.

“Yeah, I saw,” she says. “I was just saying not to get too excited about the proposal I have for you. It’s paid work, but it’s only an internship so the pay isn’t fantastic, but …”

“But it’ll give me experience that will give me a chance at getting a foot in the door somewhere,” I finish for her. “And might mean I don’t have to work a second job too.”

“Exactly,” Louisa agrees. “So, you’re interested then?”

I nod.

“Yes,” I say. “Let me just go and grab us some more drinks and then I want to hear all about it.”

I get up and head for the bar before Louisa can object. It’s no secret that I’m not exactly drowning in money. In fact, I have enough in my bank account for like two months of rent and bills and when that’s gone, I have nothing. Louisa on the other hand comes from money and while her father is getting a bit pissed off with her not working by all accounts, she still isn’t going to be homeless or have to choose between heating and food any time soon. For that reason, Louisa is more than happy to pay on nights out, but I like to be able to pay my way. I love Louisa and I know her offer comes from a place of her love for me, but I want to be on equal footing, not her little charity case that she drags out when she needs an excuse to feel good about herself. I know that’s not fair, but it’s how I feel, and I can’t help it.

I get served with two Aperol Spritz cocktails and go back to the table. I set one down in front of Louisa and she nods her head in approval.

“Nice,” she says after a sip. “So, this internship. It’s with a big tech company and it will be mostly working with the web development team from what I understand about it, although obviously it’s an internship so you’ll probably have to do some dog’s body work as well.”

“Yeah, I would expect that,” I agree. “What’s the catch.”

“Who said there was going to be a catch?” Louisa says. Her innocent look only convinces me that there’s a catch and that it’s a big one. I don’t answer and she sighs. “Fine. There is a catch. But it’s a teeny tiny one. You have to pretend to be me.”

I look at gorgeous, Latina Louisa and then down at myself. I’m the picture someone would paint if they were asked to draw a person who was the opposite to Louisa. Firstly, I am so white, milk feels sorry for me. My hair is a light blonde, a natural shade that almost no one believes is natural, and my eyes are bright blue. Where Louisa is short and curvy, I’m tall and willowy. I definitely got my mom’s Scandinavian looks.

“Who the hell is going to believe I am you?” I say.

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