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19
Arianna Swanson
The sun’s rays infiltrated through the dark curtains. It did little to lift my spirits. My phone lay on the bedside table. No calls. No messages. Three days had passed, and it killed me from the inside out. Rosie called, complaining I was shutting her out again, but I was barely getting through one day at a time. This morning was no different.
My body swayed when I slipped out of the bed. I gripped the wall, steadying myself, and made it to the bathroom. The next thing I knew, I was puking my guts out.
“Oh, fuck,” I groaned, reaching for the tissues. I hadn’t puked since my seventeenth birthday. My eyes rolled into my skull as I rested my head on the edge of the bathtub, waiting for the moment to pass.
It felt like a great achievement when I finally got dressed for the day. Only I couldn’t make it to work. This was the worst time to catch the stomach flu. Patrick, the bulldog of the office, wo
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Resisting Her 20
Orlando CortezDead. She’s dead. Inhaling, I closed my eyes. Martha Pennington, the only witness, was dead for three years. Despite what our legal team claimed, I didn’t think we stood a chance with the drunken video we had in hand. The man who sat across the table could be useful.“Here’s your drink, sir.”The waitress placed the tray of drinks on our table before leaving. I picked up the glass of water and sipped it, all the while eying the shaking male in front of me.Andrew Pennington, Martha’s son and our only hope, grabbed the glass of whiskey, gulping it in one go. When Marcus tracked him to a rundown apartment at Vegas, where he lived by taking multiple jobs, I had him flown down here.The guy, now in his early forties, looked like shit. And I assumed his battered coat had seen worse. The bags under his eyes and the five-day beard proved my theory. He could use a d
Resisting Her 21
Arianna Swanson“That’s okay.” Gaby rubbed my back soothingly. “I’m right here.” She kept talking in a soft voice as I hunched over the toilet.My stomach wrenched as another wave of nausea hit with full force. Gaby supported me as I emptied the contents of my last meal. She helped me to clean up and walked me to the bedroom.“Why is it so hard?” A groan left my lips, and Gaby chuckled. Her eyes crinkled with amusement.“Who said it’s easy?” she asked. “Each pregnancy is difficult in its own way.”I rolled my eyes and eased onto the mattress, relaxing as the nausea subsided. The past two days had been a rollercoaster ride. I didn’t know what I’d have done without her.“Here, munch on this.” She handed me a saltine cracker.“I don’t feel like eating anything.” Taking the cracker from her, I bit on the
Resisting Her 22
I woke to the familiar scratch on the door, and an involuntary smile stretched the corners of my lips. Arianna stirred in my arms, still asleep. I caressed her hair, tracing the new highlights. While I loved the new color. her need to hide and change identities didn’t sit well with me.Arianna was beautiful inside out, and she did not need to change herself like this. I noticed the new additions to her ears. Could I blame her for going to this extent? No. When you had an evil twin who loved to steal your identity, you did anything to stay sane.I remembered how Alana dyed her hair brunette before the wedding. For instance, she caught me off guard. They had such an uncanny resemblance, and I could tell everyone around them had such a hard time telling them apart.However, I knew it wasn’t Arianna in those photos. First, the dupe didn’t have her tattoo, and second, the eyes in the photos were distantly cold and calculating. I’d recognize my
Resisting Her 23
I’m a coward.I banged my head on the table and stared at the far wall. Instead of going over to my apartment, I went straight to my mansion and slipped inside the dark office I rarely used. I didn’t bother to turn on the lights. Outside, the sun was setting for the day, dousing the room in the darkness that reflected my mood.The courage and fury I felt at the court building drained as soon as I climbed into the car. My hands still trembled.A child. My child.I walked to the only window in the room. I pulled the curtains closed, letting the room submerge in complete darkness.There was this foreign emotion snaking its way out of my heart, and I couldn’t quite put my finger on it yet.She’s pregnant with my child.And this was Arianna. Wiping off the thin sheen of sweat, I paced. Scenes from my past pushed their way through, and I shoved them aside.The door opened with a click, and I
Resisting Her 24
Brian Schultz“Fuck!”The bastard in the car in front of me slowed again for the hundredth time. Ugh! The traffic wasn’t congested, but the asshole drove like the road belonged to him.Orlando’s words kept echoing in my mind. The nerve of that bastard. The fucker packed a powerhouse punch that knocked the breath out of me, literally. I should’ve expected this.My grip on the wheel tightened as I honked at the slow driver. The action was something I considered as outrageous before today. What did he say about the tattoo? Alana’s flawless skin was free of artificial ink.My mind reeled thinking of the time Arianna told me about the party. I vaguely remembered her telling me that she got a tattoo. I felt hotter despite the air conditioner running at sixty degrees. Wiping the sweat off my forehead, I took the turn toward our street.The car screeched when I slammed the brakes, and I got out, b
Resisting Her 25
Orlando CortezArianna laughed at something Mike said. She clapped and threw her head back, and her laughter chimed out. The custom-designed diamond ring sparkled on her finger. Was it the lights playing tricks, or was she really glowing? I couldn’t tell, but certainly, her spirits were high, and she beamed like Christmas lights. Bright and warm.Rosalinda and Mike continued to joke with her. They arrived two days after our wedding. Enrique gave me a hard time for not waiting, but he understood my need to tie the knot. Mike and Rosie had the most surprising reaction to our wedding and pregnancy news. They laughed, saying they expected me to whisk Arianna away long ago.My wife’s cheeks and neck had flushed on hearing something Rosie whispered in her ear. She playfully hit her best friend, her gaze briefly meeting mine. I wished her smile would last. The next couple of months would be hard on her with the legal proceedings. T
Resisting Her 26
The tension I’d experienced for the past couple of hours ebbed away as soon the judge said those words. He saw no point of me being involved, since it was clear I wasn’t the one in the photos. The defense had no proof, apart from the lab reports. Since they received the photos from an unknown source and couldn’t validate the information, the court refused to consider that as evidence.Benji argued that someone who held a grudge against Orlando or me could have done that to tarnish my image. Taking a deep breath, I stepped out of the courtroom with a wide grin on my face. Benji had nailed it. It wasn’t as bad as I feared it would be. He had turned the case around without even mentioning her name.“It’s not over yet.” Benji approached us. “Don’t worry. You don’t have to come again. I’ll handle the rest from here,” he said, noticing my frown.I nodded. Orlando was right beside me. His hand rest
Resisting Her 27
Brian SchultzThe bar sat on the edge of the city limits. Though it appeared rundown on the outside, the inside looked like a posh club. Music blared, vibrating through the floor. Nicki Minaj’s and Drake’s voices drifted around me. But my mood was far from enjoying the beat.The whiskey burned down my throat. I drained the glass, welcoming the familiar burn, and signaled the bartender for another round.I watched the crowd dancing like headless chickens, swirling the amber poison the bartender delivered. Laughter bubbled in my throat.Is this how Alana partied?I pulled at the knot of my tie.Nothing made sense. Alana was much more sophisticated, while Arianna followed her heart. What went wrong? The cat was out of the bag. No more secrets. My heart knew Alana was the culprit all along. Only I struggled to comprehend the truth. The strong denial slowly lost its fight with the moment of truth a
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