Page 44 of Reputation
“Hate to break it to you, but I’m pretty sure her cats have a better voice than you,” he teased.
She scrunched her brow as her mouth pulled into a pout.“I’m pretty sure you’re thinking of Taylor Swift.”
Eric chuckled, shoulders shaking as he adjusted his grip on the wheel.Hearing the sound she’d relied on so much as a child brought a lightness to her chest.
“You can’t sing like her either.”
Eavie huffed, crossing her arms in mock annoyance as she settled back into the comfortable leather seats of her brother’s rented Mercedes SUV.They fell silent as the soulful lyrics of the music softly played in the background.The sun peeked through the clouds, warming her face as she looked out the window at the blur of trees.
They’d been on the road for an hour and had just crossed out of the greater Toronto area.As Eric navigated off the major 400 series and onto the smaller country highways, concrete and buildings gave way to trees holding onto the last vestiges of green in the bright autumn morning.
“So, do you want to tell me what’s bothering you?”Eric suddenly asked, disrupting the companionable silence.
Rolling her head, she looked at him, one hand casually holding the top of the steering wheel.The other rested gently on the gearshift between them.It was a habit he’d picked up from growing up on the farm.Most equipment was standard transmission, and he never dropped the reflex, even when he drove automatic.
She gave him a quizzical look.“What do you mean?Nothing’s bothering me.”
It wasn’t exactly a lie.She was soaking in the comfort of having her twin around, and lord knew she needed a reprieve from the endless, confusing stream of thoughts plaguing her all week.
“Come on, Vie,” he said with a shake of his head.“I know when something’s bothering you.You can’t hide from me,” he continued, looking at her quickly before focusing back on the road.“What’s going on?”
She rolled her eyes, but the smile on her lips belied any real annoyance.She and her brother shared the unique twin quality of “feeling” the other’s emotions, a rarity not usually seen between fraternal twins.
It was hard to describe the knowing.It was like a sixth sense, attuned only to each other.Their mother had taken them to the doctor once when they were six, after Eric had fallen out of a tree in the forest surrounding their farm.Eavie had started screaming where she’d been playing in her bedroom, causing her mother to rush in, panicking at her wailing.When she’d asked what was wrong, Eavie told her she felt a pain in her chest.Just after her mom had settled her at the kitchen table, a steaming cup of hot chocolate in front of her tear-streaked face, their dad had come in carrying Eric, who was sporting a nasty broken leg, matching tears streaming down his face.
The doctor had proposed it could be what was called the “third twin.”Similar to identical twins, she explained there had been cases where an egg splits after the conception of two different sex babies, which could explain not only the shared emotions but their unique identical looks, too.
“Nothing, really,” she said, shrugging.“I was thinking recently I haven’t been on a date in a while.I thought maybe it was time I see what the scene is like these days.”
Eric was silent for a minute before he responded.“Okay, that’s fair.But I don’t think that’s what’s bothering you.”
Sighing, Eavie gave in.“Sometimes being a twin is a pain in the ass,” she muttered, casting an annoyed look at her brother, who chuckled in response.“Fine, that’s notexactlywhat’s bothering me, although I have been thinking about it as well.”She absently picked at a loose thread of her worn jeans.“I was recently reminded of my lack of dating because of something…” She paused, blowing out a breath before continuing.“I met someone recently that I…have a connection with, I guess, is the best way to describe it.He’s ridiculously handsome and…charming.Well, kind of,” she muttered, remembering first his awkward charm from the bar, then his cocky one from her first day.“He’s completely not my type, but I can’t help but feel an attraction to him.”
“Okay, so what’s the problem?He may not be your type, but sometimes stepping outside your comfort zone isn’t a bad thing.”
“No,” she said, holding up her finger to emphasize her point.“I don’t mean my type, as in he’s artistic or a partier.I mean, he’s not my type, as in he’s a first-class alphahole.”
Although, was that what she still thought of him as?
Shaking her head at herself, she reminded that ever-hopeful voice that it didn’t matter and was not the point.
“Andthe problem is,” she continued, “that he is completely off limits.”
“Ah,” her brother said, nodding.A crooked smile tugged at lips that were a mirror image of hers.It was so unfair how the exact same features made him handsome in an entirely unique way.“He’s one of the players, isn’t he?”
Chuckling, Eavie said, “I should have known you’d figure it out.”
“Does that mean there’s an NFP in place?”he asked, referring to a non-fraternization policy.
“Sort of,” she answered.“I signed a policy against internal relationships, but it is essentially an NFP.”
“Ah.Well, I’m sorry, Vie,” he said, reaching over to squeeze her hand.
They continued in silence for the next while, the only sound coming from the music playing through the speakers and the white noise of the wind against the car’s exterior.When Eric spoke next, it was about something entirely different, and Eavie was relieved he moved on to another topic.
They pulled into the long, tree-lined driveway leading to their parent’s farmhouse just after one in the afternoon, and the sight of it filled her with pure elation.Hitting the button to open the window, she practically hung her whole upper body out, drawing in the scent of country air in the fall.It was one of her favorite times of year on the farm—besides Christmas.
As they drove down the long stretch of drive, Eavie felt a rush of comfort.It was the same feeling that filled her every time she came to visit her parents.There was nothing more beautiful than the countryside in autumn.
