Body Double by Alane Hudson Read Free Book Online

Lighthouse running, but with a ten-million-dollar wedding gift. What if I pay you half? Five million dollars. Would that make you feel better about taking this job?”
    The thought of that much money was enough to make her head swim. She would never have to worry about money again. But was her integrity worth five million bucks? No. It wasn’t. Not five, not ten, not one hundred million dollars. The guy deserved to say his vow to the woman he was marrying, not some doppelgänger.
    What if he knew?
    Andrea chewed her lip. They could tell him. “The money isn’t the issue, but listen. What if we sit him down and explain everything? Tell him your plan and my part in it. If he’s willing to accept a stand-in at his wedding and on his honeymoon, I’ll do it.”
    Sarah and Charlotte shared a glance. “What if he’s not?” Sarah asked.
    “I won’t do it if I have to deceive him. Either he’s on board, or I’m out.”
    “I can respect that. Let me see if he’s free.” Sarah picked up her cell phone from the desk.
    Andrea sat down and crossed her legs and folded her arms, refusing to be swayed away from her decision.
    “Hi, Blake, it’s me... I’m fine, how about you?” Sarah put the phone on speaker.
    “Doing great, babe. What’s up?”
    Hearing his voice made him a real person in Andrea’s mind, a person with a heart that could be broken. Hearing him made everything real.
    “I was wondering if you were free for a late lunch,” Sarah said.
    “I’m on the golf course with my mom and your dad. We’re only at hole three, so it’ll be a while before I’m free. I’ve got a couple of appointments this afternoon. Can we meet for dinner? Around seven?”
    “Um, let me check my calendar.” Sarah raised her eyebrows questioningly.
    Andrea chewed her lip, unsure whether to agree or not. She’d envisioned Sarah introducing them, but Sarah wanted to be on a plane by then.
    “Give me one sec,” Sarah said. She pressed a button on her phone. “It’s on mute. One of us is having dinner with Blake tonight. Which one will it be?”
    She didn’t want to have dinner with Blake alone—at least, not without first agreeing to this scheme.
    “Can you meet us for dinner and catch another flight to Colombia in the morning?”
    Sarah shook her head. “Traffickers move the girls every few days to keep the Policía Nacional off their trail. Rise Up has eyes on them now, but if we delay too long, we might lose them again. Our best shot at saving those girls is for me to get down there ASAP. They’ve lined me up with a pilot in Mexico who can fly me down more quickly than if I go commercial, but he’s on a tight schedule. If there was any other way, I’d never have brought you into this mess.”
    That meant Andrea would have to either talk Blake into it on her own, or bow out now without knowing if he was amenable. And what if he was? She’d be giving up a million dollars, but it wasn’t just the money she would sacrifice. This was her chance to help those girls being groomed for slavery, thinking they were embarking on an exciting new life and new opportunities in America. Could she turn Sarah down, knowing those children would likely be beaten, raped, starved, and perhaps murdered within a matter of weeks?
    “Okay,” Andrea said, unsure why her mouth was taking over when her mind wasn’t yet made up. “I’ll do it.”
    From the phone, she heard a woman’s voice ask, “Is that Sarah? Tell her I can’t wait to see her at the rehearsal on Friday.” Sarah’s mother-in-law to-be sounded so nice.
    And I’m supposed to deceive her too.
    Wait, she started to say. But Sarah had already pressed the button on the phone. “Seven will be fine,” she told him.
    “Great. I’ll pick you up at a quarter til.”
    Andrea shook her head fervently, waving her hands in a calling-off gesture.
    “Um, I’ve got some things to take care of after work,” Sarah said. “How about I meet you at Ruby’s instead?”
    “Sure,”