Dirty Stranger (The Dirty Suburbs Book 3)

by Cassie-Ann L. Miller

  Nancy holds her hand to her chest. "You managed to get that heart broken again, huh?"

  I nod solemnly. "I guess so." Wasn't I the one who warned her about getting her heart broken over and over? Now here I am, holding my poor little ticker together with duct tape. Oh, the irony...

  Tilting her head to the side, Delores sighs. "You'd better fix this, Isla. There aren't many handsome, rich eligible bachelors in the suburbs. Mr. Brown Eyes is a catch."

  "It's not something that can be fixed." I bite my lip to stop myself from saying too much.

  She rolls her eyes before glancing around at my friends. "You young women these days have no idea how to keep a man. You're lucky I'm old as fuck because if I were young and sexy like you and a man like Reuben even looked my way, he'd have to beat me off with a stick. There'd be no stopping me."

  My girls laugh as Nancy shakes her head, exasperated by her friend. "Well, I sure hope that the two of you can work it out like Edward and me."

  My eyebrows shoot up in happy surprise. "You and Edward worked things out?"

  She nods bashfully and Delores chimes in. "Yup, the old rooster finally got laid and he's as happy as a clam."

  I throw my head back, howling and Nancy looks embarrassed enough to hide behind the buffet table.

  "Enough about my private life!" she shoos us away and I try to bring my tittering under control. Eager to change the topic, she draws my attention to the pamphlet in her hand. "Would you be a sweetheart and explain your new facial therapies to us? I hear they help with skin elasticity and lord knows that Delores and I need more swag and less sag." She pinches her cheeks and pulls on them to demonstrate the loose skin.

  I love these two broads. I swear. They bring comedic relief to even the most pitiful of life events. I give a discreet smile to my friends who are grinning wide as I take Nancy under one arm and Delores under the other, leading them away. "It would be my pleasure to explain our new facial therapies to you."

  I usher the women toward facial treatment clinic. I explain the benefits of each skin therapy and make suggestions as to which ones would help them the most. By the time we’re done talking they're getting comfortable on the treatment tables to begin their session.

  As I head back to the reception area, I see the front door swing open.

  Reuben steps inside.

  I clench my fists, anxiety twisting in my belly as I stand frozen in place. But it's not just the fact that I haven't seen him in three weeks that throws me completely off-kilter. There's something different about him. I can't quite put my finger on it. His eyes are tired, red and swollen. His hair is longer, messier. Not in a sexy way, in an exhausted way. His cheeks are gaunt and his lips are so dry I can see it from across the room.

  He scans the place, taking in the hoards of women strolling about, discussing our pamphlets and enjoying the food and beverage samples. When his eyes fall on me, the tug in my heart is undeniable. I move through the crowd walking right up to him. And suddenly, it's like I've forgotten all of the reasons I've been staying away from him. Seeing him like this, I just want to take him into my arms and put kisses all up and down his cheeks to make him feel better.

  "Isla...?" He stares at me with something akin to fascination in his eyes, almost like he's never seen me before. He looks dazed and out-of-sorts.

  As if by instinct, my hand reaches up and cups his cheek. My thumb slides across his bristly beard. "Oh, Reuben," I cry, my heart breaking. Seeing him in this condition is killing me. He must have really missed me. He must have been going crazy without me. Like I've been going crazy without him.

  Just as I'm about to throw myself into his arms and sob into his neck, the door swings open again. "Couldn't find parking anywhere. This place is a fucking zoo."

  My eyes slip past his shoulder and fall on a man with the same height, the same build, the same honey eyes. Stunned, I take a quick step back and my gaze zips from one to the other and back again. Understanding rises in me.

  Now, I'm just fucking pissed. I speak, not even sure which one I'm addressing. "You have a fucking twin?!"

  Chapter 38

  Reuben

  Isla twists the paper napkin around her shaking fingers, her eyes fixed on the conference table in front of her. "You have a twin."

  This must be the tenth time she's muttered the statement to herself since the three of us made the short walk from the studio over to the Sapphire Inn. It's all still sinking in, I guess. I know it's a lot to process.

  She shakes her head. "You told me you had a younger brother. You didn't tell me he was seven minutes younger. You didn't tell me you have a twin."

  Swivelling her chair away from the table, I drop to my knees in front of her. "I can explain. Please let me."

  Her lips quiver, but no tears spill down her face. She's trying to be strong about this. "I want to forgive you, Reuben. I want to trust you. Make me understand." Her eyes beg me. I fucked up and she's looking for some rational justification to give me another chance.

  I don't deserve it. I know that. But being the bastard that I am, I'm still going to try.

  I swallow a deep breath, pausing to gather my thoughts. "I had a crush on Delia since we were kids. She was a good-looking girl and she was so unattainable. The more she shot me down, the more I wanted her. She dated every guy but me throughout high school. And when I finally got my hands on her in senior year, when I finally made her mine, I promised myself I'd keep her forever."

  Ryan chuckles resentfully, leaning back in his chair and clasping his hands behind his head. The movement causes the hem of his shirt to ride up, revealing an inch or two of his hairy belly. My brother's a fucking slob. "Only Delia wasn't the type of girl who liked to be tied down. Unless there were ropes and handcuffs involved." I shoot him a look that shuts him the hell up.

  I continue speaking. “In my second semester of college, Griffin started building the business. I dropped out to help him. I wasn't a good fit for school. I wanted to be in the real world, doing something practical. So, I jumped on board with him. He stayed in Denver gathering investors. Meanwhile, I was traveling all over the country, looking for businesses that the consortium could buy. I would leave town, sometimes for a month at a time. Each time I came back, I’d ask her to marry me. Each time, she said ‘no’. But then one day, I got down on one knee again…and this time, she said ‘yes’. I was over the fucking moon. I’d been in Idaho for six weeks acquiring some small businesses in a town just like Reyfield. And a few weeks later, when she told me she was pregnant? There are no words to explain how happy I was. But I knew…somewhere inside of me…I knew that things didn’t add up. Every fiber of my being begged me to just shut my mouth and go along with it, because I was getting what I wanted, right? Delia was going to be mine forever. We were getting married and having a baby. But one day, we had a fight and I couldn’t help myself; I asked Delia point blank if the baby was mine. She was so fucking offended. She couldn’t believe that I’d have the nerve to question her fidelity. The paternity test was her idea. She said it would put the issue to rest and I’d never have to question her again about our baby." My next words are the hardest to say. "The test results confirmed that Penelope was my child…except, she wasn’t…”

  Confusion clouds Isla’s beautiful features. She shakes her head, seeking understanding. “How…?”

  I take a cleansing breath, not understanding why it's so hard for me to just say it, spit it out once and for all.

  “Reuben, what are you trying to say?”

  Ryan growls impatiently. “What he’s trying to say is that I am Penelope’s father. While he was out of town, I was a drunk, reckless mess in college. And I was fucking his girlfriend.”

  Isla collapses against the back of her chair. Her mouth hangs open on her gasping breath. Understanding slowly washes over her. "Oh my god," she mutters, bringing her fingers to her lips. “You’re identical twins…you have the same DNA…”

  I nod, relieved that this is starting to make sense
to her. “I would have never known that Penelope wasn’t my child. Delia told me that she was. Science told me that she was. So when she was born, I signed her birth certificate. Why should I doubt? Especially when it never occurred to me that Delia would fuck my own brother…” I trail off.

  “Or that I would fuck her,” Ryan completes my thought as he always does. That’s one of the ironic gifts of having a twin brother.

  Isla’s mouth snaps open and close as she searches for words appropriate for the occasion. "This is like the plot of a bad soap opera,” she laughs quietly before falling silent for a long while. “When did you find out?” she whispers finally.

  “A few months before I came to Reyfield,” I say earnestly. “Ryan confessed everything to me.” I run a hand through my hair. “I was paralyzed at first. I couldn’t eat. I couldn’t sleep. Delia denied everything and I didn’t want to believe that Ryan was the one telling the truth. But deep down, I’d always been suspicious because the timing of her pregnancy just didn’t make sense. I calculated over and over again and each time, I came to the conclusion that I’d been out of town when Delia got pregnant. Once I finally processed everything, I was so devastated, I had to get away from there. I had to get away from everything."

  The whole situation flashes in my mind in painfully vivid color. The sight of Ryan, high out of his mind, stumbling through my front door with his confession in his back pocket. Delia’s vehement repudiation. My mother immediately coming to Ryan’s defence without even weighing the situation reasonably.

  Work was all I had. So, I threw myself headfirst into it. That’s how I ended up in Reyfield.

  Isla's eyes shine with tears now as she stares down at her hands in her lap. "Why didn't you just tell me about Delia?"

  She's right. I should have told her. Instead, I chose to be a coward and the woman I love got hurt in the process. Now, she won't even bring those crystalline eyes to mine. She won't even look at me. She may never trust me again.

  What if she never trusts me again? My heart riots at the possibility.

  She shakes her head resolutely. "You should have just told me about her. We could have had a conversation about it. I would have been prepared when she ambushed me. Instead, I felt like a fool, completely out of the loop. And then you disappeared for weeks only to turn up in town with a fucking twin brother?" Her eyes go to Ryan and he squirms under her blatant stare. I just wish that stare – as bitter as it is – was directed at me.

  "I couldn't tell you." I know that my defence is weak, but it's all I've got. "I had no way to prove that my story was true. There's a birth certificate and a DNA test naming me the father of the child. I had no way to rebut that kind of evidence. Plus, couldn't stand the sight of Ryan so asking him to back me up was out of the question. My only hope was that my lawyers would untangle the situation and I'd never have to admit a thing to you." I feel as slimy as a snake when I make that admission. "Why would you just take my word for it? Especially since the men you've been with have all been liars. Why would you believe me?"

  She looks at me and sighs. "I would have believed you."

  Those five words whispered delicately into the silence fill my heart with so much regret. Also, so much hope.

  Maybe I can win her back.

  "I'm sorry, Isla. So sorry," I rasp, my eyes searching hers for a flicker of understanding. "I wasn't thinking straight. I was being selfish. I just didn’t want to deal with it. That's why I didn't want to tell you. I wanted to put it behind me. I didn't want to relive it. I thought I loved Delia and then she lied to me about something so important. It felt like getting my heart ripped out."

  As soon as the words leave my mouth, I realize how much of a hypocrite I am. Delia broke my heart by keeping a secret and I did the same thing to Isla.

  "So, you know how I feel," she mutters ruefully. Her pained words hit me like a punch to the gut. I swallow hard, barely containing my emotions.

  I brace her knees in my hands, desperate to make her listen to me. "Isla...Please…" She flinches at my touch. At least she doesn't pull away completely.

  She's silent for a long while, her heart's injuries showing clearly on her face. “Delia,” she says at last, “she looks just like me. The red hair. The blue eyes. The athletic body.”

  I know exactly what she’s asking. She wants to know if my interest in her stems solely from the fact that she reminds me of my ex. It pains my soul to hear her even ask that question. She casts a shy glance at Ryan, keeping her mouth shut.

  I’d almost forgotten that he was here. I turn to him. “Hey man, do you think you can give us a minute alone?”

  My brother nods, jumping to his feet, no doubt eager to remove himself from this awkward situation. “Sure. I’ll be up in my room.” Just before walking out the door, he turns to Isla, making a plea on my behalf. “Penelope is my child. I take full responsibility for her. I even had a will drafted and everything. Y’know, to make sure she’s taken care of if I die. Reuben shouldn’t have to pay for my mistakes. Delia’s a bitch and she wants to spite my brother. Don’t let her win. Don’t walk away from my brother if you really love him.” He and I exchange a smile. It’s small and quick but it’s the first time in months that that’s happened. After that, he disappears into the hotel lobby as quick as he can.

  And who can blame him? He fucked my fiancée and let her pass of his baby as my own for over a year. That’s ‘family’ for ya.

  I brush my grievances against my brother aside and turn to my beautiful girl.

  “I know what you’re thinking, Isla. You’re wondering if I only fell in love with you because you look like Delia. The answer is ‘no’, baby. I love you despite that fact. Firstly, you’re way more beautiful than she is. You’ve got the most beautiful eyes I’ve ever seen.” I lean forward, taking a lock of her cinnamon hair in my hand. “And this hair, I could run my fingers through it all day.” She fights back a smile. “But more importantly than how beautiful you are, I can trust you, Isla. There are no doubts with you. You’re an open book.”

  She levels me with a look. “And you’re not.”

  Ouch. I deserved that. I’ve kept secrets from her. I haven’t been forthcoming. I’ve omitted to tell her things that were important. Big things. More than once.

  “You’re right. I should have told you everything. I shouldn’t have waited,” I say quickly. “I’ve never been with anyone who’s honest. I’ve never been with anyone who wasn’t a stranger to me. But with you…” I touch her face, my fingers sliding down to cup her chin. I watch her eyes flicker. “Oh Isla, you make me want to be a better man. The best man I can be.”

  She doesn’t look convinced. “That’s easy for you to say, Reuben. How do I know I can believe you?”

  I have no answer. All I can do is ask her to trust me even though I've betrayed that trust on multiple occasions. I can't expect her to just hand her heart over to me again with no way of knowing that I won't hurt her.

  She pushes her chair back and my hands fall from her thighs. She stands, looking down at me and that's when the first tear slides down her face. "That's what I thought," she whispers hoarsely as she turns and walks out the door.

  Chapter 39

  Isla

  I haven't sleep at all for the past few nights. My stomach stays in knots as I toss and turn in my twisted bed linen. This is all a lot to process.

  Reuben doesn't have a baby.

  He has a twin brother who passed off the baby he fathered with his fiancée as his brother's. Fuck, that's a mind-twister. I need a notepad and a pen just to keep track of which 'he' did what.

  Maybe I should be relieved that Delia lied to me and that the child isn't Reuben's but I just can't shake the sense of betrayal that I feel. I want to forgive him, I want to love him and ride off into the sunset, but I just can't. I can't allow myself to be the fool. After the way Zayn fucked with my mind, I just can't be with someone new if I can't trust them. And Reuben couldn't give me one reason why I should trust him. He says he
loves me but how do I know that he doesn’t have a pile of skeletons in his closet?

  He was supposed to be different. He was supposed to be the one who wouldn't break my heart.

  I roll my chair away from the window and turn back to the documents on the desk in front of me. I expected that hiring help would free me up to teach more yoga classes, but I was wrong. Now, while my new yoga instructors teach classes and my massage therapists perform massages, I have even more administrative work to deal with. I've been placing orders for products that were completely sold out during the re-opening event. Not that I mind. I'm not exactly in a personable mood today. Especially since it's Valentine's Day. Seeing all that love and affection and couples completely smitten with each other as they use their 2-for-1 Lover's Experience Coupons to get couple's massages makes me want to hide out in my office all day.

  I should be happy. My business is in the clear. Based on the way things have been going, we're on track to surpass the audacious financial targets Reuben set when he wrote Prasanna that check nearly two months ago.