Body Double Read Online Free PDF Page A

so lovely, with a gorgeous purple and green iris theme. You’ll see. Anyway, the idea of consummating the marriage fills me with repugnance. Yes, I could squeeze my eyes shut and lie there while he does his thing, but that’s not fair to Blake. He’s a decent man, and he deserves to at least have a good time on his wedding night, and for the two-week honeymoon in Hawaii. You said he’s handsome, right? You find him attractive?”
    “My God, Sarah,” Andrea whispered, sinking back into the chair. “You’re asking me to... to sleep with your husband. For money!” Any minute now, she’d wake up and laugh at this absurd dream.
    “No. Andrea, no, I’m not hiring a prostitute. I’m hiring a woman to act on my behalf as power of attorney in all matters pertaining to my marriage to Blake Thomas. All matters, legal and domestic. That means standing in my place at the altar, making decisions about our joint living arrangements, financial affairs, and yes, sleeping with him if you choose to . What happens between you and Blake is entirely your affair.” She waved her hand. “I didn’t mean affair. It’s entirely your business. If you don’t want to sleep with him, you have every right to refuse.”
    Andrea tried to wrap her head around this bizarre request. Only once in her life had she ever hooked up with a guy she barely knew, and it wasn’t something she’d do again. Yes, he’d been hot, but Andrea wanted more than just a bump and grind relationship. Hiring someone to fake-marry one’s fiancé and go on her honeymoon with him? It was ludicrous. Who did that?
    A lesbian who had some compassion for a man who was entering what would ultimately be a sexless marriage.
    “Does he know you’re a lesbian?” Andrea asked.
    Sarah glanced sheepishly at Charlotte. “I’ve been meaning to tell him, but no. Not yet.”
    “Sarah,” Charlotte said in an exasperated tone. “You said you were going to tell him.”
    Andrea felt sick. That poor man. “He deserves to know before he marries you.”
    “You’re right. I agree, but that won’t change anything. He’ll still go through with it, because his mama needs him to.”
    Andrea shook her head in disbelief. This was like a soap opera. “She’s asking her son to marry a lesbian so she can make money on a business deal?”
    “No, Gloria doesn’t know. She’s convinced that we’re in love, that ours is one of those once-in-a-lifetime, true-love, whirlwind romances that only happen in novels. She doesn’t realize my father is applying the pressure, and Blake made me swear never to tell her. He doesn’t want her to feel guilty over his choice in the matter. She would never ask him to marry a woman he doesn’t love, let alone a lesbian who could never develop any passion for him as a man. Our marriage is as much a business arrangement as Gloria’s deal with my father.”
    “He’s a great guy,” Charlotte said. “Charming, respectful, gentlemanly, sexy... Gloria and her husband, Blake Sr., raised him right. I’d gladly take the job myself, but I can’t get the Southern drawl down right.”
    Sarah laughed. Charlotte’s brown skin, black hair, and brown eyes were the most obvious differences between them, but Charlotte was also a good three inches taller than Sarah. “My father wouldn’t look twice at a bull with teats, but I think he might notice you under that veil.” Her smile fell away. “I know this is a lot to take in, Andrea, and I’d normally ask you to at least sleep on it a few days, but the clock is ticking, and I have to make a decision.”
    “Whether to cancel the wedding?”
    “No, I won’t cancel the wedding. Like I said, I’m stuck between a gator and a water moccasin. This wedding is happening whether I like it or not, and whether Blake likes it or not.”
    “Couldn’t he just explain to his mother why he can’t marry you? If his mom backs out of the business deal, your dad can’t hold that against you. He wouldn’t pull funding