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Dani grimaced. “I’m not sleeping in. We’ve only got two days together. Resting doesn’t factor into that. How about a spin class? I haven’t done one of those in ages.”
“Great. That calls for another beer.”
Gia glanced around for their waiter, who was somewhere lost in the crowd. Instead, she caught the eye of the bartender—a nice-looking blond guy about their age, who was hanging out behind the bar, mopping the countertop, in a rare free moment. Gia signaled to him that they just wanted two beers on tap. He snapped off a salute, siphoned their drinks, and walked over, setting down their glasses.
“Sorry, Gia, I think your waiter ran out for a cigarette break…” His words trailed off, and his startled gaze darted from one of them to the other.
“Gia?” he asked tentatively, focusing on the girl who’d flagged him down. “That’s you, right?” He eyed her longer hair, obviously using that as an identification marker. “You have a twin?” This time he stared at Dani. “Wow, identical honeys!”
Both girls grinned.
“Even the same smile,” he noted.
“Yes, Jay, it’s me,” Gia said. “And I hate to disappoint you, but we’re not twins—just friends. This is Danielle.”
“It’s nice to meet you, Jay,” Dani replied.
“Friends my ass.” Jay was practically drooling as he ogled them, one by one. “Danielle. So you’re the twin. Different hair. Different accent. Dead ringers. Why the secrecy?”
“No secrecy,” Dani assured him. “Just fact.”
“You live in the Midwest?” the bartender asked her. “I went to college there. I recognize the twang. I’m not just a bartender,” he hastened to explain, clearly eager to impress. “I do this for extra cash. I’m in finance.”
“Good to know.” Dani was having a hard time not laughing out loud. “And, yes, I do live in the Midwest—shrewd observation.”
“I go back a lot to visit friends. Give me your number before you leave. I’ve tried to pry Gia’s out of her a couple of times, but no luck. Maybe you’ll be easier on a guy’s ego? We could have dinner, either while you’re in town or when I’m in your neck of the woods. No strings.”
Fortunately, Dani didn’t have time to answer. Another patron called out for Jay, and reluctantly, he turned away. “Gotta go. But I’ll be back to get your number and to hear your deep, dark secret. Whatever your reason is for this pretend-to-be-friends thing, I’ll tell you now, it won’t work. Identical twins are identical twins. But nice try.” He winked and headed off.
“You have a new fan,” Gia commented, taking a swallow of her beer. “Do you think Gabe would mind?”
Dani’s lips twitched. “I think Gabe’s feeling pretty secure right about now. But at least I have a gentle way to let Jay down. There’s nothing like the words ‘I have a boyfriend’ to pour cold water on another guy’s hopes.” Her brows knit quizzically. “What about you? In your messages, you said you don’t date much—too overwhelming a career. I can relate. Until I ran into Gabe again, I was practically a nun. Not a healthy lifestyle balance.”
“You’re right.” Gia gave a rueful sigh. “I hear about it from my parents on a weekly basis. I do actually date—at least once in a while—but so far I haven’t met Prince Charming. Also, remember that most of the guys I meet are about to be married themselves—to other women. Kind of limits the future of the relationship.”
“I see your point.” Dani paused, her finger tracing the rim of her glass. Clearly, her thoughts had taken a different turn. “I also see Jay’s. Not about a date, about us. We do look exactly alike. Unfortunately, I don’t have a genetic lineage to trace. I was adopted.”
“What?” Gia did a double take. “So was I.”
A long moment of silence hung between them.
“We can’t be twins,” Gia said finally, her mind working through the details. “Believe me, I’m an only child. My parents tried for years to have a baby. If they’d had a chance to adopt two, they’d have grabbed it with both hands.”
Dani nodded. “So we’re each an only child. We’re also the same age. Facebook says your birthday is January twelfth. Mine’s Valentine’s Day.”
“Different birthdays. Still, is it possible we share some blood ties—cousins or even half sisters, maybe? Our biological father could have been spreading the wealth around.”
“Great. Two simultaneously pregnant women, both of whom he dumped. Nice guy. If that’s what happened, I’m glad I never met him.”
“Do you know anything about your biological parents?”
“Nope. Closed adoption. No contact and no knowledge.”
“Same here.” Dani blew out her breath. “I can’t believe we’re having this conversation.”
“How could we not? Since the moment I saw you, my mind’s been racing from one possibility to the next.”
“Mine, too.” Dani gestured at Gia’s shoulder bag. “Do you have those baby pictures with you? I brought mine.”
