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CHAPTERTWENTY-SIX
Eli
The rest of the day goes by quickly. Way too quickly. We kept our promise to have an early dinner and veg out in front of the TV, watching Frozen, which wasn’t my choice. However, watching Audrey sing “Let it Go” at the top of her lungs was certainly the highlight of my evening. It was like listening to a cross between a cat being strangled and an adorable kitten meowing. I found myself laughing harder than I think I ever have in my lifetime. At one point during an episode of Friends, we fell asleep, and I awoke the next morning with Audrey curled in my arms, her soapy smell invading my nostrils and causing heat to rise throughout my body. Audrey wriggled, then moaned before finally shooting out of bed claiming she hadn’t meant to fall asleep when she did, and then running to the bathroom, slamming the door a little more forcefully than she probably intended. She seemed so flustered that she never even gave me the chance to get any words out of my own. I get it, though. She will always have that thought in the back of her mind that it’s not her body that’s being embraced, it’s not her body that’s being touched, and it’s not her body that I’m having a reaction to. I’m guessing she noticed with the way she shot up from the bed and ran with her eyes wide open. I can’t help that, though. It’s a natural reaction to have when you wake up to the most beautiful soul in the world. I find myself transported back to those awkward teenage moments where you’re obviously both attracted to one other, but at the same, you’re dancing around each other, wanting to say the words, but each one keeping quiet.
True to her word, Audrey meets up with Trent to say goodbye before we make the thankfully uneventful journey back to LA. A million calls await us both, so we dutifully go through as many as we can. My agent and assistant are still pissed at me, both telling me I’m mad because Kendra’s not worth the time, blah, blah, blah. Normally, I would totally agree, but this time, I have to bite my tongue. I know for a fact that Kendra’s not worthy of my time after the way she’s treated me. This is all for Audrey. Sweet, lovable Audrey.
“I could understand the amnesia, but this…” Jack says, leaning his back into the chair in disbelief.
The moment Audrey could, she rang Jack as she wanted to tell him everything. Apparently, he was the only one who knew something was wrong before I did, which kind of annoyed me. But then Jack gave her the time to be listened to when I did not. And for that, I only have myself to blame.
“I know it’s a lot to take in,” Audrey soothes, reaching out to pat him on the knee. “It’s taking a lot for Eli and I to get through. I just wanted you to know, because I really like you, and if… if I wake up, I want us to be able to keep in touch.”
Jack fixes his gaze on the wall and then bends forward, leaning his chin on his clenched fists. Once he’s taken a breath, his gaze locks on Audrey. “So, you’re telling me you’re a lady called Audrey from Sheridan, Wyoming, who made a wish on her twenty-first birthday to be Eli’s wife for a month and it came true?”
Audrey opens her mouth to say something, but I beat her to it. “I know it sounds crazy, but yes.”
Jack locks his gaze with mine before shaking his head. “Wow. Either this is true, you two are playing some kind of sick joke on me, or you’re both under some mass psychosis shit that I really need to call a doctor about.”
“I swear to you that we’re telling the truth. I wouldn’t lie about something like this.”
Jack stares at Audrey. “How would I know that, though? I really don’t know who you are.”
“I do,” I interrupt, causing them both to snap their heads towards me. “Audrey’s as honest as they come. She’s sweet, kind, caring, and… well, very funny at times.” I give Audrey a goofy smile and my heart lights up when she returns it.
“Wow!” Jack shouts, startling me. “It sounds like you’re in love with her.”
My perplexed gaze meets with Audrey’s as she gazes into my eyes. Can she see it too? Can she feel the undeniable pull between us?
Jack’s laugh pulls us from our stare. “I hate to be you when Kendra finds out.”
The mention of Kendra’s name causes Audrey’s gaze to drop to the floor in sadness. She’s suffering and I don’t know how to make this okay. If she were sick, I could seek help from a doctor. If she were cold, I would fetch her a blanket. If she were bored, I would pick her up, and take her out to dinner and a show, lavish her with all my attention until the boredom eventually became a distant memory. But this… this is something I have no idea how to fix.
Something seems to dawn on Jack. “Wait, if you’re here,” he says, pointing to Audrey, “where’s Kendra?”
“I don’t know,” Audrey replies. “I guess with my body. I really don’t know. The only thing I can tell you with certainty is that I’m somehow magically in Kendra’s body. I know I made that wish, but I certainly never meant it literally.”
“How did you mean it then?” Jack asks, causing Audrey’s cheeks to immediately flame. Despite her discomfort, it’s actually rather adorable.
“Well,” she responds, squirming a little in her chair. “I’ve had a crush on Eli since I was fifteen.”
My eyes widen. “Man, that makes me feel old.” And I’m only twenty-nine myself.
“Seriously,” Jack pipes up. “With everything that’s happening, your age is the one thing you take out from all this?”
“Oh, believe me, I’ve had a lot to think about since I found out.”
Jack gazes back to Audrey. “You were saying...”
She shrugs her shoulders. “What else is there to say?”
“What compelled you to pick Eli? Why not someone else who’s not married, perhaps?”
Some might take that as a dig at Audrey, but Jack seems like he genuinely wants to know.
“I started following Eli well before he got married. I used to dream that we would meet, fall in love, get married… have kids.” Her eyes sheepishly gaze up to mine, but my heart’s stopped. I find myself in this strange position where I so desperately wish I could have given that to her. In fact, the violence of it hits me so hard that for a moment, I can’t move, let alone talk.
“It was a crush that never seemed to wane, even after six whole years. Despite him getting married, despite him being unavailable, I still dreamed of it. I still wanted it. I know it sounds stupid. It probably even sounds very stalkerish, but I never imposed myself on Eli. I just always admired him from afar.”
