The Evil Twin?

by P. G. Van

  Meg would never find out, I couldn’t let her know that she was right. She would chastise me for telling her that Reyan was gay.

  “What are you thinking about?” Reyan interrupted my thoughts.

  “Oh, it’s nothing. Do you need to go back to the hospital for a follow up?”

  “Maybe in a week to get my wrist checked.”

  I nodded looking at the plastic sleeve on his left hand.

  “Thank you, Vinnie.” Reyan reached to take my hands in his and held them firmly.

  “You are welcome,” I said smiling at him.

  “It was ridiculous of me to have you ride in the ambulance with me, but I am glad you did.”

  I sat in silence unable to make eye contact with him and ended up staring at his thumb that gently stroked the back of my hand. I sat deliriously wondering why I followed him to the hospital in an ambulance, shamelessly flirted with him even when I thought he was gay, and I was letting him touch me.

  “You are the hero of our family, and you have your Bhatia family fan base.”

  I looked into his eyes and smiled taking in the intensity in the air.

  “I am glad you are feeling better, and I agree with you about Neel’s car. When you squeezed out of the car, I wondered how you fit in it.”

  Reyan threw his head back and laughed. The sound of his sheer joy echoed in the empty space and sent my heart on a rampage. I struggled to maintain my composure and took in a few quick deep breaths. He smiled looking at me as if he could see through me and feel everything I felt.

  “What happened that night? Why did the car go off road? You weren’t going that fast,” I asked hoping to distract myself.

  He smiled leaning forward and whispered. “I fell asleep at the wheel.”

  “What?” I almost screamed.

  “Do not tell Neel. He thinks I was distracted because of the argument we had just before I left his place. I am going to use that to get him a real car.”

  It was my turn to laugh and as my laughter died, I noticed the wicked smile on his face, and I knew he was enjoying the effect he had on me.

  Get a grip Vinnie!! He is just another pretty face!!

  “What did you guys argue about?” I was curious to find out what grown men argued about to storm out of someone’s house.

  “Well, Neel is technically still in the closet,” he whispered.

  “What?” I asked in disbelief.

  “With his family, I mean,” he clarified and added, “His brother is getting married in the summer, and I wanted him to tell everyone before the wedding.”

  “Why did you leave in Neel’s toy car?”

  “He didn’t want me to leave and took my keys so I grabbed his keys and left.”

  “You guys are so silly,” I said, shaking my head.

  “I know!!” he said taking another sip of his beer.

  “I have to go…my break is almost up.” I stood up and smiled at him.

  “Will you text me when you are free?” he asked standing up.

  “Maybe!!” I smirked, tilting my chin up and quickly turned away from him to walk back to the bar.

  “Vinnie…” he called out.

  I turned around smiling only to crash into Reyan’s chest and felt his arms wrap around me. I got a whiff of his sexy cologne as his lips brushed against my cheek.

  “I am a man of my word, and I do what I say. I told you I wanted to kiss you.”

  I smiled remembering our flirtatious texting and said, “Very smooth, Reyan. I am tempted to crush your family jewel, but I will spare you this time.”

  “Thank you for not cracking my assets,” Reyan planted a kiss on my other cheek and said, “I will see you tomorrow.”

  “Tomorrow?” I asked curiously.

  Reyan stepped away from me and smiled without responding as he walked backwards away from me towards the bar. I stood rooted in my spot and watched Reyan and Neel leave.

  He is not like the other guys!!

  “You let the guy kiss you, and he walked out of this place in one piece,” Dave summarized in disbelief.

  I shook my head refusing to let the conversation continue. All I could think about was when I would see Reyan again. I knew I had to figure out what it was about him that turned me into a softy when I had punched and crushed numerous balls when men misbehaved with me in the past.

  Chapter 4

  “Fine. I will take you tomorrow,” I said to Meg over the phone when she called me at the bar.

  “What time will you be home?” she asked cheerfully.

  “I will come get you from school, and we can go to the bike store.”

  “Okies…so…Can I go hang out at Lisa’s place after I buy my bike?”

  “Don’t push it Meg. I am giving up my time of peace and Zen for your bike shopping.”

  “Fiiiine!! What time will you be home tonight?”

  “I have to close tonight.”

  “Did you meet Reyan yesterday?”

  “Maybe I did.”

  “You did, and you didn’t tell me? Does he look like he looked in the picture on his driver’s license or better?” she asked enthusiastically.

  My heartbeat started to quicken at the memory of Reyan from last night and at the anticipation of seeing him again.

  What the heck? Why the reaction?

  He was very vague when he left the day before, and I wasn’t going to sit around waiting for him to show up.

  “Okay, fine, don’t tell me,” Meg whined.

  “I met him Meg. I gave him his stuff, and he left.”

  “I’m sensing that something more happened but I don’t wanna know,” she said with a touch of sarcasm.

  “Oh, I was gonna tell you everything Meg but since you don’t wanna know, I will spare you all the hot details.” I smiled to myself.

  “I was kidding Vinnie, what happened? Please, I wanna know?” She sounded so desperate it was almost cute.

  “I would love to chat with you rest of the night, but I need money to pay my bills…got to go.” I ended the call before she virtually pouted over the phone.

  “So where is your hot boyfriend and his super hot friend?” Dave elbowed me as I put my phone away.

  I laughed and purposely chose not to respond. Dave was on cloud nine after his twenty-dollar winning bet and kept reminding me about how I was wrong about Reyan.

  I couldn’t believe I was convinced that Reyan was gay. I had not failed to notice his well-built structure even when he lay in a vulnerable state on the gurney Saturday night, and I felt like a perv for admiring his masculinity. I wondered if I convinced myself that he was gay so my thoughts didn’t wander too much as dating was the last thing on my mind.

  “Well, hello…look who’s here, darlin,” Dave purred.

  I looked up to have my eyes lock with Reyan’s deep eyes. He held his casual expression while I lost all control of my lips as they curved up involuntarily. He smiled back at me, and my heart sputtered a moment before kicking back into its regular rhythm. A small group of people followed Reyan to one of the tables, but I did not care about looking at anyone else. I refused to be the first one to look away and as if he realized what I was thinking, he winked with a crooked twist to his smile and that did it. The blood rushed through my cheeks heating them up, and I looked away unable to hold his gaze.

  Crap!! He won again!!!

  Reyan and I seemed to be in a perpetual banter mode from the time we flirted over text messages just a couple of days ago. I wondered what he had up his sleeve that night.

  “Oh burn!!!” Dave uttered under his breath.

  “What?” I asked looking at him.

  “Check out the chick sitting next to your boyfriend,” Dave said angling his chin towards the group.

  “Dave, he is not my boyfriend, and it doesn’t matter who is sitting next to him.”

  “Are you sure he is available?” Dave wondered out loud.

  “It doesn’t matter, Dave,” I sneered.

  “What? I didn’t realize you
were into orgy stuff,” Dave chuckled enjoying my expression.

  “Dave!!!” I snarled and added, “I meant it doesn’t matter to me if he is single or not because I am not interested.”

  “Liar, liar...pants on fire…oooh, here he comes…I’m outta here,” Dave said and disappeared to the back room pretending to have forgotten something.

  “Hey!!” Reyan’s tone was cool.

  “Hi Reyan, what can I get you?” I asked with a hint of professionalism in my voice.

  “What do you think I should be drinking tonight?” he asked smiling at me.

  “I think I know and when I get you the drink you want, I want you to be honest and tell me if I got it right. Deal?” I asked cheerfully.

  “Deal.” He flashed his charming smile as he leaned onto the bar.

  “Your drink is coming right up.” I winked at him and caught the surprise in his face.

  “What time is your break today?” he asked as I looked around the bar for the liquor I wanted to use for his drink.

  “In forty-five minutes,” I said looking up at the clock.

  “Could you please join us at our table, I’d like you to meet my friends?” he asked his voice warm and smooth.

  “Sure.” I reached for a whiskey decanter knowing exactly what I was going to make for him. I needed to know if he felt the tension that was building up between us. I decided to give him something that would blast his taste buds.

  A Sriracha Hot Toddy. Just the right mix of Sriracha sauce, honey, ginger, and twelve-year-old whiskey.

  I placed his drink on the coaster in front of him and stood looking at him.

  “You need to be honest,” I demanded.

  “I told you I would,” he said reaching for the intimidating orange drink and took a whiff.

  “That’s cheating,” I mocked.

  He laughed and took one sip of the drink. I saw the flow of reaction starting from his lips to his eyes, and I saw what I wanted to see. Sheer surprise when the heat from the Sriracha sauce hit him, then the relief with the smoothness from the whiskey and the freshness from the ginger and lemon.

  He looked at me, and I could tell that I had his drink nailed. The Sriracha Hot Toddy would have been my go to with the emotional chaos I had been dealing with, and I knew at that point I wasn’t imagining the sexual tension between us.

  “So…you don’t need to tell me how awesome I am!! I already know that,” I said in a cocky tone.

  “Easy there, how do I know that wasn’t a total fluke?” he challenged.

  “Not convinced huh…I do this for a living, and I can tell who is in the mood for what just by talking to them for thirty seconds.”

  “Very interesting…let’s give it a try…shall we?” he taunted.

  “Bring it on!!” I said not taking a step back.

  Reyan looked at me for a few seconds as I beamed with confidence at my latest accomplishment.

  “Ok, let’s do this.” His voice was calm but rough.

  He turned around and called out to the woman who was seated next to him at the table, “Annie, come here.”

  The woman excused herself from the others at the table and walked towards the bar. I knew what Reyan was thinking or I thought I did.

  The woman who was walking towards us seemed to be in her mid-twenties, a few years older than me. I could tell from the way she carried herself and the way she smiled at me, she was poised and wouldn’t let anything or anyone intimidate her. She commanded attention and made a few heads turn as she walked towards the bar to stand next to Reyan.

  “Annie, this is Vinnie. Vinnie this is Annie.”

  I smiled at her and shook hands.

  “Annie, you tell me your real name, and I will tell you mine,” I said looking straight at her.

  The partially fake smile on her face morphed into something delightful and genuine.

  “You have a real name?” It was Reyan’s turn to be surprised.

  “Yes, I do!!” Annie glowed.

  “Does Neel know you have a real name and that it’s not Annie?” Reyan asked laughing.

  “Neel probably knows I have a real name, but I doubt if he remembers what it is…Neel is my first cousin by the way,” Annie explained as if she caught my expression as I wondered what was going on between Neel and Annie.

  “What do you think my real name is Vinnie?” Annie challenged.

  My kinda girl!!!

  “Hmm…Neel’s family is clearly from India and that means your parents are from India or are of Indian origin so Annie is either Anika or Anneka or…your name has to be Anika,” I declared.

  The poised and strong exterior was shattered by the squeal that escaped Annie. She covered her mouth with her palm and looked at me in disbelief.

  “Anika, it is my pleasure to meet you. I am Vinitha,” I said extending my hand over the bar.

  She took my hand and said, “I have to give you a hug. I don’t remember the last time when someone addressed with my real name.”

  Annie came around the bar and wrapped her arms around me. It wasn’t until she came to stand next to me that I realized that Annie was petite and had skyscrapers under her feet to give her the extra inches.

  “Reyan, where did you find her?” she asked turning around to look at Reyan.

  “Well, she found me. Remember the crazy girl who agreed to ride in the ambulance with me?” Reyan winked at me.

  “That’s you? Oh my gawd...thank you, thank you!!!” Annie squealed hugging me.

  “Why didn’t you tell us we were meeting your rescuer, Reyan?” she snubbed.

  “I didn’t really rescue him, c’mon,” I said laughing.

  “Don’t be too nice…he was too scared to be in the ambulance by himself and needed a babysitter,” Annie teased.

  “Annie…err…Anika, can I get you a drink?” I offered.

  “Surprise me, Vinitha!!” she giggled.

  She went around the bar to sit next to Reyan as I mixed up a drink for her.

  I placed Annie’s cocktail in front of her and said, “I hope you like this,” I said smiling confidently at Annie.

  I didn’t have to look at Reyan to know he was looking at me intently. After all the commotion with Annie, Reyan and I were back to the unspoken competition he had in mind.

  “Looks interesting,” Annie said pointing at the thin slice of grapefruit on the edge of the glass.

  “There isn’t a drink made you can’t handle, Anika,” I encouraged.

  Annie paused and looked straight into my eyes. “How much has Reyan told you about me?”

  “Nothing. Didn’t know you existed,” I said flatly.

  “I am very close to declaring you as my soul sister.” She gingerly picked up her drink and took it to her lips.

  I laughed and leaned over the counter. “I guess the Texas Bourbon and Grapefruit cocktail will give me my soul sister today.”

  “Holy shiiiiiit. Is that what this is?” Annie stared at her drink.

  “Try it out, let me know what you think.” I looked at Reyan as Annie took a sip of her drink. He had been awfully quiet all along, and I kept wondering what he was thinking about.

  “Oh my lord!!! This is the drink I badly needed, especially after the crappy day I had.” Annie looked up at the ceiling.

  “A taste of home for my Texan soul sister,” I laughed.

  “Who are you?” Annie blurted and added, “How did you know I was from Texas?”

  “I just knew…you’ve got a tad bit of the Texan in you.” I winked at the bubbly girl at the counter.

  “I am a believer in soul sisters, thanks Reyan. I am not sorry about your accident.” Annie put her arms around his arm.

  “So, do I get to call you Anika?” I asked smiling at Annie.

  “Yes and only you, Vinnie.”

  “Hey, whatever happened to the years of friendship?” Reyan grumbled.

  “Bunch o’whiners.” Annie elbowed Reyan and added, “We should go introduce Vinnie to the gang.”

  “I a
gree!! We can do that as soon as she starts her break,” Reyan said looking at his watch. The same watch I had given to him the previous night. The watch still had its face cracked.

  “What’s with the broken watch Reyan? There is an option to get it fixed you know?” I asked looking at the stainless steel watch which looked like an antique piece.

  “It’s a reminder of how you broke my heart that night by leaving without saying bye to me,” he said with such intensity that my heart fluttered even though my brain called bullshit.

  “Quit being an ass and stop flirting with her,” Annie slapped his bicep gently.

  “What’s the story behind that watch Reyan? You clearly did not walk into a store and buy it,” I asked looking into his eyes.

  “It’s my grandfather’s watch, and it was his retirement gift from his close friends,” Reyan said softly.

  “Only if I had known sooner, I could have held that baby for ransom.” I shook my head.

  Reyan and Annie laughed, and Annie went back to the table to join the crowd after reminding me about my break in fifteen minutes.

  “So, do you agree that I am awesome at predicting people’s drinks and also finding my soul sisters?” I asked when he sat at the bar in silence.

  “I will after you go on a date with me,” he blurted out taking me by surprise.

  “Nice try, Reyan. I don’t date my customers.”

  “Don’t give me the crap you give to all the other guys who have asked you out. We technically met outside this bar,” he smirked.

  “True, but I have had too many people ask me on a date just for a hookup, and I am not interested,” I shook my head.

  “Hey...I am not that kinda guy. I am the kind where women beg me to touch them.” It was his turn to be cocky.

  “Really, I will believe it when I see it,” I mocked.

  “And when you do, will you go on a date with me?” he asked adamantly.

  Just ignore the question. Don’t respond.

  “Scaredy cat,” he whispered when I did not respond.

  “Fine!!” I was annoyed.

  “Vinitha, get ready to go on a date with me. I will be back tomorrow.” He sounded extremely confident.