Page 51 of My Twin Sister's Extremely Famous and Incredibly Hot Neighbor

It really was. Jera’s never been shy about how much she hates our father. My mother is the same. But I’ve always held onto a secret hope that my father would come back into my life. That he’d finally be able to tell me why he had to leave, and it would be so compelling of a reason that I would know he tried everything to get back to us. It was just impossible.

When my father contacted Jera after she’d become famous, and couldn’t be bothered to send me anything, I knew. Finally. I knew he was no good for me.

I blink back tears as I pet Squint. “I’m fine. I don’t need him in my life.”

“Yet, you keep his photo.” Dustin’s voice is low and soothing. “I can tell you still care.”

I stare out at the ocean. He’s right. I do care. I try not to, but I do care about my father. I thought we had a special bond. I still, to this day, have no idea why he took me to that art museum. It was the only time he and I did anything special together. Maybe that was fate. It was the reason I paint, after all. Fate knew I needed that in my life.

“I care,” I finally admit. “But I shouldn’t.”

Dustin leans close to me, wrapping my hands in his. “Look, what your father did was wrong. There’s no question about that. But don’t ever berate yourself for having a tender heart. This is part of who you are.”

His words send a calm comfort through me. He’s right. I am the person I am, and even though I’ve been through hard times, those times have shaped me in a way nothing else could have.

The server brings us our drinks and takes our orders. I grab onto my water glass, the cool surface bringing me back to the here and now. I’m fine without my father. I truly am.

I take a sip of my water and look over at Dustin. He’s so at home here, at a beach resort. This is the life of a super star.

“I don’t want to abruptly change the subject or anything,” Dustin says quietly. “But I feel like we should talk about where this is going.”

I freeze. “This?” I say tentatively.

“You and me,” he says.

My heart jumps into my throat. I don’t want to talk about us. Not when I know this isn’t real. We can’t be together. This is a fantasy that I’m living in right now, and soon the bubble will burst, and I’ll go back to my life in Denver. And when I do, things between us will have to end.

When I don’t say anything, Dustin continues. “I think we should talk about?—”

“Wait,” I say, placing a finger on his lips and cutting him off. “We should enjoy today. I’m ready to be done with deep conversations. Let’s just have fun today, all right? We’re at the beach. This is great, right?”

A look crosses his face, and his gaze turns guarded. “If that’s what you want.”

I nod. “I think that’s best.”

CHAPTER27

After lunch Dustin and I spend some time lounging in the cabana. I pull out my paints. Squint curls up on Dustin’s lap. It’s adorable to see him with my dog. He pets Squint while I paint.

I sketch the fish we saw as we were snorkeling. It’s really fun to paint the bright colors of the sea creatures and how the water changes the light. I get so absorbed in what I’m doing I don’t realize how much time has passed until I look at my watch.

“What time are we heading back again?”

Dustin lifts his head. He looks like he fell asleep. “I booked the return flight for four o’clock.”

“Okay. It’s almost four. We’d better start packing.”

We gather our things. Squint follows us as we make our way out of the resort and to the car Dustin has waiting for us. I scoop Squint up into his carrier and we climb into the car.

Dustin entwines his fingers through mine. “Are you upset? Did I mess things up between us?”

My heart melts. “No,” I say softly. “You didn’t.”

“I’m sorry I pushed. You said you needed time, and I’m not giving you any. I really am sorry.”

I stare out the window as the car drives down the street. “It’s okay. You’re not being unreasonable.” I’m the one being unreasonable, but I can’t explain to him why. I can’t have a relationship with him because I’m only pretending to be Jera. I only have a couple of days left. My heart grows heavy.

A part of me hopes he really is playing me to get the lawsuit dropped. It would make ending things between us a whole lot easier. Yet, the pain that would cause me might not be worth it.

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