Page 9 of Taste of Addiction

I laugh over her comment. “Pretty sure I’m unrecognizable right now.”

Claire nods. “You do look a little haggard.”

“It’s one of those days,” I admit.

“Naturally.”

“So where did you see my twin?” I ask, only because I am curious.

“Welp…I think she is living in our townhouse.”

I sit up in bed. “What?”

“So, you really need to start educating yourself during your lockdown and watch some news. I think Graham hired a body double for you. You know, to make your breakup look realistic.”

“What are you talking about, Claire?”

“I think he hired someone who looks like you to come and go out of the townhouse but to look really rumpled and sad and hating life.”

“How’s this different from how I am currently feeling?”

She gives me a once-over with the limited viewing ability that she has from the camera angle. “Yeah, it is strikingly similar. Anyhoo, your double is all over the entertainment shows and in some of the tabloids as being ‘The Woman Scorned.’”

“Oh lovely. That’s exactly what I need right now. Rumors.”

Claire does a half laugh and holds up her phone to her iPad screen so I can see the contents. I squint as the image slowly focuses. And I see it. The girl with sunglasses and wearing an “I Hate Men” shirt is walking up the steps leading to our shared townhouse. I give Graham credit. She does have a strong resemblance to me. I cannot see her eyes, but everything else is very spot-on.

“Your shirt is cute at least,” Claire says passively. “And accurate most days out of the year.”

“That’s not me!” I yell at her, making her jerk her head up from her phone to look at the real me.

“Oh,” she says, “yeah, I know. I just got confused for a second. I mean, that is a shirt you would be a fan of wearing. Right?”

“Yeah, sorry. Didn’t mean to have an outburst. I literally have been going through my day with a migraine that has lasted two hours that’s now down to a dull headache. I’m a bit out of sorts.”

“No need to apologize,” she says softly. “So, you know how I'm always telling you that bad decisions make the best stories?”

I nod. “Sure, I remember, but it doesn’t mean I agree.”

“Well, I may have done something impulsive a few weeks ago.”

“Okay, go on,” I encourage. I could use a distraction.

“Sooo, remember when you and Graham came back to the townhouse from the lake trip, and you found Ethan giving me make-up sex?”

“Yeah, I’m pretty sure that image is forever seared into my brain.”

“You’re welcome.”

“Welcome?”

“Hey, there are worse things to walk in on. At least that round we were doing the sex pretty normally. No toys or swings or kink. Just straightforward, dick-in-vagina, good ol’ sex.”

I laugh at the casual attitude she seems to have surrounding the topic. “This has a point, right?”

“Oh yeah, my point. I’m getting there. Just chill. These types of stories cannot be rushed. Anyhoo, that weekend Ethan did a ton of groveling and gift buying and panty melting. Well, he has been asking to make a video of us,” she says, aiming the webcam lower so I can see her finger pointing toward her crotch for added emphasis—which is highly unnecessary. “In the act.”

“Wow. So did you go through with it?”

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