My Twin Sister's Ex Boyfriend (E-book)

Bad boy. Good girl. The stage kisses that change everything.

Jessilyn:
Getting paired with my twin sister’s ex for a kissing scene in Maple Creek High’s drama competition screams forbidden romance, but Bennett Andrews isn’t the bad boy everyone warns me about. 

He’s protective, hardworking, and unfairly easy to fall for, especially when our stage kiss feels real. 

I need this win for my college applications, and with a secret relationship, twin rivalry, and a mean-girl ex watching my every move, one slip could ruin everything.

Bennett:
Jessilyn is the good girl, the theater overachiever from The Heights, and completely off-limits. 

But she believes in me, even while I’m barely holding on at Maple Creek High. 

Passing this project is my last shot at graduation, and Jackilyn’s desperate for revenge. 

With opposites attract, poor boy/rich girl, and first love written all over us, I should walk away.

But Jessilyn makes me want more, and I’m done pretending she’s not worth fighting for.

A sweet small-town high school romance set in the charming town of Maple Creek, this opposites-attract good-girl/bad-boy story blends forbidden first love, twin rivalry, and stage-kiss tension. Perfect for fans of To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before and Mean Girls. Grab your copy and fall in love with Maple Creek today.

Chapter 1: Bennett

“Bennett, it looks like your grade in drama is an F.”

I ran my hand through my hair and held back a groan. Drama. I’d thought it was going to be an easy class, but it turned out that Mr. Brownley liked to challenge his students. It had been much tougher than I’d anticipated. I’d barely put in the minimum effort, and clearly, that hadn’t been enough for the teacher. But why try hard when everyone already expected me to fail? It was easier to give them what they wanted.

“If you want to graduate, you’re going to need to pull it up to at least a D.”

My stomach sank. I didn’t want to be one of those people who never graduated.

Mrs. Monroe looked at me from across the desk with kind eyes. “Have you tried talking to Mr. Brownley to see what you can do to improve your grade?”

“No. I haven’t talked to him about my grade,” I growled. The walls felt like they were closing in on me. I didn’t want her sympathy. I was tired of being the guy everyone felt sorry for.

“You’re a smart kid. I know you can do it. But you’re going to have to work hard. I can encourage you all day long, but in the end, it’s up to you to decide if you want to graduate. I know it’s what your mom would have wanted.”

I didn’t want to talk about my mom. Before she'd died, she'd been friends with Mrs. Monroe. Graduating wouldn’t bring Mom back, but Mrs. Monroe was right. Mom would have wanted me to graduate.

“How are things at home?” she prodded.

I clenched my jaw. “It’s fine.”

The clock ticked above us on the wall. She paused like she was waiting for me to elaborate, but I stayed silent. “I know it’s been several years, but have you considered that your mom’s death might still be affecting you?”

I gripped the edge of her desk. “It’s not affecting me. I told you I’m fine. It happened a long time ago.”

“Well, I’m here for you if you ever want to stop by and talk.”

I pushed my chair back from the desk, and it scraped against the floor. I stood. “What do I need to do to graduate?”

Mrs. Monroe stood too. “I’ll speak with Mr. Brownley to see what we can do about getting your drama grade up. But I think you should try reaching out to him as well. Other than that, you’re good, provided you can keep your other grades up.”

“I’ll talk to him.” I didn’t want her pity. I wanted to graduate. For Mom. For me.

I pushed out of her office and headed toward my locker. The bell rang, and the halls filled up. When people at Maple Creek High saw me, they averted their eyes. I was used to it by now. Who cared about impressing anyone at school? I wouldn’t change who I was to get them to like me.

I had drama class next. Time to figure out how to get my grade up. I turned the corner and headed down the hall to my locker, and a familiar giggle bubbled up. My ex-girlfriend, Jackilyn Martin, stood nose to nose with Kellen Jones.

What was she doing with him? Kellan wasn’t exactly known for being a model citizen. But then again, Jackilyn wasn’t the nicest person either. I would know. One of the reasons I was okay with our breakup was because I saw how she treated people like garbage.

She’d only dated me because she knew it would make her parents mad. She got a rush out of disobeying them. It was a big game to her. When you had everything you could ever want in life handed to you on a silver platter, you tended to get bored. That was Jackilyn. Looking back on it now, I couldn’t figure out why I’d ever wanted to date her.

Kellen could have her.

She had her back against the lockers, and Kellen leaned in like he was about to kiss her.

I cleared my throat, and Jackilyn narrowed her eyes at me.

“What’s the matter with you? Jealous?”

“You’re standing in front of my locker.”

“Oh.” She huffed out a loud breath and stepped aside. Kellen pulled back to a normal distance just in time for Mr. Klaton to pass us in the hall. The AP Calculus teacher was known for handing out detentions to kissing couples, but somehow, Jackilyn always managed to avoid getting caught. She was a pro at putting on an innocent face whenever teachers were around. Just like the look she’d managed to pull off right now—all sweet, like she hadn’t just been about to break a school rule.

As soon as Mr. Klaton had passed, a sour look returned to Jacki’s face, like she was mad that I didn’t seem to mind that she’d been about to suck face with Kellen. I was over Jacki before the relationship had ended. I bet she sensed it, and it drove her insane that she couldn’t control my emotions.

When she broke things off between us, and I didn’t immediately beg her to change her mind, she got angry. I glanced over at her as I pulled my books from my locker. She swung her long, blonde ponytail over her shoulder, her eyes on me.

“Is there something you need?” I couldn’t figure out why she was staring at me like that.

She kept her eyes on me. “I just want to make sure you’re okay.”

“What are you talking about?” Jacki wasn’t exactly the type to check up on people. She was usually too busy with her own agenda.

“I heard you might not graduate.”

My heart pounded. How could she know that? I’d barely found out myself. My body tensed as I fought to cover the anger pulsing through me. “Who told you that?”

“I saw your file on Mrs. Monroe’s desk when I was putting in my volunteer hours during lunch.” Jackilyn volunteered for the school office to help her college applications look good.

“You had no right to read that.” I spoke in a carefully controlled tone. I had to calm down, or I would lose it.

“I only did it because I care about you, Bennett.” She used a soft voice that made my hair stand on end, like a spider crawling up the side of my neck.

“Yeah, right,” I spat. Why was I letting her get to me? The best way to deal with Jackilyn was to stay neutral and detached. Never let her see you take the bait. “I’m pretty sure you’re not allowed to go around looking at other student’s files.”

She gave me a sickeningly sweet smile. “What are you going to do about it? Are you going to tell on me?”

“You know he won’t.” Kellen smirked. “No one would believe him over you.”

Jessilyn Martin, Jackilyn’s identical twin sister, walked up to us with her books in her arms. Her golden blonde hair fell over her shoulders in shiny waves. She was every bit as beautiful as her identical twin, but she had a sweetness that Jackilyn could never match. “Jacki.”

Her sister turned to look at her. “What is it?”

“Do you have the note Mom wrote for me for my dentist appointment this afternoon?”

Jackilyn gave her an exasperated look. “Why would I have your note?”

“I hoped since you left later than me, you might have grabbed it. I forgot to get it before I left.”

“Why don’t you just write the note yourself? That’s what I always do.”

Jessilyn’s bright blue eyes widened like her sister had suggested she commit a crime. “I can’t forge Mom’s signature.”

“Why not? It’s not like they’ll know the difference. How do you think I’ve been getting out of Calculus all year long? I told them I’ve been going to therapy.”

Jackilyn in therapy? Please. She’d been skipping class with me for weeks. I never bothered with notes. The school called, but my dad didn’t care.

Jessilyn’s pretty little red mouth fell open. “No wonder your grades have been suffering!”

Jackilyn folded her arms and narrowed her eyes at Jessilyn. “I have a B in Calculus. I wouldn’t say my grades are suffering.”

I coughed to cover a laugh. Jessilyn considered a B a bad grade? She ought to see my report card.  

Jessilyn got a stubborn look in her eyes. “I’ll just see if Mrs. Derby in the front office will take the note tomorrow.”

Our group headed in different directions. Only Jessilyn was going to the same place I was. She and I both had drama next. “I thought you had to go to a dentist appointment.”

“Not until the last half of class.”

I would have used the opportunity to skip as much of the class as I could.

Jessilyn clutched her books to her chest. “I don’t like missing drama.”

That made sense to me. Jessilyn was one of those people who took the subject way too seriously. I just needed another elective.

We walked into the classroom together just before the bell rang, and I slid into one of the only open seats. Mr. Brownley began passing out a sheet of paper.

“Your final project in this class will be the drama competition. The competition will be open to the entire school, but all of you are required to take part. The winning team will be guaranteed an automatic A for the entire course. I want you to fill out this sheet. It will give me an idea of the type of scene you’d like to perform. I’ll be assigning you partners for this project. Part of your grade will be how well you can work with someone else.”

He handed me the paper, and I looked it over.

“Start filling it out now. When you’re done, put it on the table by the door.”

He wanted to know if we were okay with kissing. I shrugged. Why not? The rest of the questions were basic, and it didn’t take me long to fill out the form. When I had it completed, I put it on the table.

“Next class, I’ll let you all know who your assigned partners will be.”

Halfway through class, Jessilyn left for her dentist’s appointment. When the period ended, I decided to discuss my grade with Mr. Brownley. The room had cleared, and I was glad for a moment of privacy. I didn’t need any more people knowing about how close I was to not graduating. Not that I expected Kellen or Jackilyn to keep it a secret.

“Mr. Brownley,” I started.

The teacher looked up from the stack of papers he’d collected. “What can I do for you?”

“I need to get my grade up so I can pass this class, or I won’t be able to graduate.”

Mr. Brownley rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “I see.”

He clearly wasn’t used to me caring about my grade, but that didn’t matter. “What do I need to do?”

“You’re going to have to put some serious effort into the final project. It’s a big percentage of your grade.”

“Graduating is really important to me. I’m willing to do whatever it takes.”

“You’re going to have to work hard to get your lines memorized. Getting memorized is the bare minimum required to pass the final project.”

“What if I’m partnered with someone who doesn’t bother getting memorized? Will that reflect badly on me?”

Mr. Brownley looked thoughtful for a moment. “How about this? I can pair you up with someone who I can trust will memorize their lines, but I need your word that you’ll do your best on your end. I don’t want to put you with one of my best students, only to have you drop the ball on the project and mess things up for them.”

“You have my word.” I looked him in the eye so he knew I meant it. “I’ll take off work to get in all the practices if it helps.” I had no idea how I’d get the bills paid if I took off work. It wasn’t like Dad was going to back off his drinking habit to make sure the lights stayed on.

“You can do this, Bennett. I know you work long hours, but don’t forget how important your education is too. You’re a bright student. Don’t sell yourself short.”

“I appreciate that. And I won’t.” I didn’t know how I could make a promise like that, but I was going to try my hardest to keep my word.