DIRTY AFFAIR WITH HIS IDENTICAL TWIN
Chapter 8~ We walked hand in hand along the sandy shore. The nearly full moon glimmered on the water. It was unseasonably warm, so even the breeze off the water wasn't too chilly. I was pleasantly tipsy and happier than I ever remembered being in my entire life. I was in my own world with Devin and barely took notice of the couple walking towards us, until the man spoke. I would have recognized his voice immediately, even if he hadn't called me by the nickname he had used the entire time that we were married, despite the fact that I didn't care for it. "Surprise." He drew the word out. "Working your magic on a new fella, I see." Devin smiled and introduced himself, extending his arm to shake hands. I almost felt sorry for Tiffany when Richard introduced himself as my husband. "Ex-husband," she and I interjected simultaneously. "Right, of course, we all knew that. What good fortune, to run into you on our little weekend getaway." I had to force myself to refrain from rolling my eyes at his broad interpretation of the words 'good fortune.' "Well, as you can see," Richard said loudly and with a big smile as he patted Tiffany's slightly protruding belly, "I've been busy since the divorce. My Little Love Muffin and I are going to be the proud parents of Richard Jr. in a few months." I felt like I had been punched in the stomach. Not because I still cared about Richard, but because this pregnancy proved that I was barren. Throughout our marriage, I had longed for a child. I wanted to be a mother more than anything. Richard had been agreeable from the start, and we had never used birth control. As one year rolled into two, it became apparent that something was wrong. I had always believed, deep down, that he was the one with the fertility issue. Whenever I broached the subject with him to be tested, he became irate and insisted that I was the one whose equipment didn't work, so I was probably the one who couldn't conceive. I had never gone for the testing because I wanted to hold on to the hope that I could conceive a child. The baby bump protruding from Tiffany's too tight, leopard print mini-dress was proof that I had been the reason we couldn't get pregnant. Not only did my lady parts not know how to have fun, they didn't even know how to do what they were made to do. I felt broken and sad, and I wanted to get away from these two. I didn't even know what had been said as I stood there reeling, because I don't care. "Okay, take care. Buh-bye." I grabbed Devin's arm and stalked off, wondering how Richard was still able to ruin things for me. Devin waited until we were a safe distance away before saying, "You still care about him, huh?" "Richard? Ick, no! I just was caught off-guard with the whole baby thing." I was determined not to let Richard and Tiffany ruin my wonderful date with Devin. I would think about the dire implications of Richard being able to impregnate Tiffany later. Tonight was about Devin, and I wasn't ready for it to end. I wanted to forget all about Richard and his baby mama and thoroughly enjoy my time with Devin. In what was likely the boldest statement of my life, I turned to him and said, "How about showing me your place?" Devin was clearly surprised, but he smiled. "It's not much, but I do have big plans for it someday." "I'm sure it's great," I said as I locked arms with him and marched him back up the gravel path to the parking lot of Biggie's. He showed me to a dark green Jeep Wrangler with no doors and helped me climb in. As we drove, I cleared my mind as the wind whipped through my hair. It was a clear night and there seemed to be a million stars twinkling above us. I was surprised when he turned down a wooded lane that angled towards the lake. Devin seemed almost nervous as he parked the Jeep. "I told you it wasn't anything special." I don't know what I had expected, but it wasn't the airstream trailer that sat before me. "Oh," I gulped. "It's nice." It came out almost like a question, even though I hadn't meant for it to. Once the surprise wore off, and I began to look around, I realized that this was the perfect spot for Devin. The lot was full of trees and had a beautiful view of the lake. At the edge of his land was a huge pole barn where Devin built his boats. It was an ideal place for Buddy to roam "I noted", as he came over to greet me with a sniff before taking off to chase a butterfly. Devin had built an amazing cedar deck on the front of the trailer, so we sat down to relax and talk in his rocking chairs. I looked out over the water and said, "Okay, this is really nice," with more conviction this time. "The trailer is temporary. I just fell in love with the location, so I'm going to build here one day," he told me. "Will you build it yourself?" I asked. "Do you already have plans? How exciting to be able to make it exactly how you want." "No plans yet." He became quiet, and I wondered if he was going to elaborate. He looked right at me with those gorgeous green eyes and said, "I've been waiting for the right woman to come along, so we can decide on our dream house together." I almost melted on the spot. What wouldn't I give to be his 'Ms. Right.' He was absolutely ideal, and I didn't feel worthy of being with him, but I decided to enjoy every moment I had with him, even if it meant I was his 'Ms. Right' for now.DIRTY AFFAIR WITH HIS IDENTICAL TWIN Chapter 177~As the weeks went by, It was Hailey and Biggie's wedding. The room glowed with what seemed like a million glittering twinkle lights. The floating candles at each table illuminated the gorgeous fresh-cut flower centerpieces. The room smelled like a tantalizing mixture of just baked cinnamon rolls and a delightful floral scent that somehow didn't conflict with each other.Hailey made a simply gorgeous bride. Her long, dark hair and enormous green eyes made the silky pink dress she had chosen for the occasion pop. I had never seen anyone look as exuberant as she did, with the exception of Biggie. He was positively beaming from ear to ear as if he couldn't believe his good fortune.The entire affair looked like a dream come true. More than ever, I couldn't wait to promise to live the rest of my days with Devin on a pristine beach somewhere. The only potential problem with my plan was footwear. I do love shoes, and a wedding in the sand is
DIRTY AFFAIR WITH HIS IDENTICAL TWIN Chapter 176~The days and weeks started going by in a flurry. Bernice was able to talk Hailey into having a 'real' reception, but Hailey held firm on the small wedding. Devin and I had decided to let Hailey and Biggie have the entire spotlight during this special time in their lives. We would start planning our destination wedding once the festivities and aftermath from Hailey's big day wore down.I was so happy, happier than I could have ever imagined possible. Devin and I had finally settled on the plans for our dream home with enormous closets, after lots of bickering and rowdy making-up over which way doors should swing, where walls should be, and the size of the windows. Devin almost always let me have my way, but he seemed to enjoy the cycle of arguing about little things, then having big-time make-up sex. I had to admit, it was rather fun.He had started construction on the frame of our home, and for the first time, I could visualize myself
DIRTY AFFAIR WITH HIS IDENTICAL TWIN Chapter 175~The Booker's had a family meeting, and I was invited. Even though the topic wasn't a happy one, it felt marvelous to belong to something so much bigger than myself. I had been a loner for a long time, other than having my pets and Kylie around.This family was complicated and they bickered and they loved each other unconditionally. It felt beyond amazing to be a part of that.Bernice and Christian stood up in front of their children and their children's partners and announced that they would be getting a divorce. We were all stunned.I had assumed that they would be able to work things out. It's probably an inaccurate stereotype, but I had assumed that women from Bernice's generation were of the 'stand by your man' mentality.Even though he had cheated and that was despicable and wrong, I had assumed that they would find a way to work through it and save their marriage. The baby that Zoey was carrying certainly complicated matters, bu
DIRTY AFFAIR WITH HIS IDENTICAL TWIN Chapter 174~As if a light bulb suddenly went off in her head, she snapped her fingers. "Hey, you guys can have the big fancy wedding and completely take the pressure off of me and Biggie.""Oh no," Devin countered. "That is not in the cards. Is it, Sweetheart?" he asked me sweetly, giving me a peck on the cheek."Nope, I think Hailey needs the big wedding. We might be better off eloping." I voiced the idea that had been floating around my head.Devin lit up at the idea. "Yeah, or a destination wedding. We can go to Dubai or someplace so far away that only the people who truly love us are willing to travel there for the wedding.""Mmm," I nodded my agreement with his suggestion and added one of my own. "Or Peru to stay in one of those bungalow huts out over the ocean.""Ohh, I want to do that too," Hailey jumped in."Hey, this is our wedding plan. You're stuck dealing with Mom and being the perfect daughter-bride for her," Devin told her firmly."
DIRTY AFFAIR WITH HIS IDENTICAL TWIN Chapter 173~Devin joined the hippopotamus game on the floor, and it wasn't long before the nanny returned from the adjoining bedroom. She was beyond grateful for my help and seemed concerned about losing her job. I would have been too, if I were in her shoes. Bernice would not take it kindly with anyone finding out that one of her employees had disappeared during a shift especially not her grandchildren's nanny.I reassured the woman that her secret was safe with me and that I had actually ended up enjoying my time with the children.When she looked warily at Devin, he confirmed that he wouldn't tattle to his mother either. "It's our little secret." He punctuated his sweet statement by looking up at her with a wink and one of his killer grins.The woman actually tittered in response to his attention. I would have rolled my eyes, but I couldn't blame her...the man is charm personified.I carefully passed the sleeping baby off to the appreciative w
DIRTY AFFAIR WITH HIS IDENTICAL TWIN Chapter 172~Once I was done eating, I excused myself from the table, unable to stand the awkward, almost resentful silence any longer. Kylie gave me a miserable look as I passed by as if she wanted me to save her too, but I didn't see a way to make that happen. Going to the bathroom in pairs wouldn't exactly be appropriate. I'm sure she wished that she had thought of the excuse and bailed before I did.Leaving her to fend for herself, I made my escape. Rather than go to the bathroom that was just down the hall, I opted to head to one upstairs in order to drag out my absence as long as possible. It wasn't that I hated Zoey, like the three Booker siblings all seemed to. Even though they made a feeble attempt to hide their disdain to comply with their mother's request for kindness, their contempt sizzled with heat just under the surfaceIn fact, I almost felt sorry for her. Christian had apparently shoved her aside and was attempting to woo his wife