Chapter 14
I crash, and then I have a relaxing day. The women grill me in the morning about my date. I don’t give a lot away. I don’t tell them it was my charity ball and that the date was catered to me. I don’t tell them it was prearranged. I simply tell them we went to a fundraising gala, had a nice dinner, and danced. I tell them it was a magical night, and that Sebastian was mostly a gentleman. Several of the women are insanely jealous and make snarky comments, but the others are excited for me and even more excited as to what their own solo dates with him might be like. They discuss the fact that he didn’t kiss me and hasn’t kissed anyone yet for a solid half an hour. Honestly, I’m a little surprised at how eager they all are even after Sebastian has been so difficult.
But after the morning tea session, they all split up. There’s another group date, and luckily for me, both Bridget and Calista are chosen to go. A whole afternoon without them. It’s bliss. I spend some time writing in my journal and getting to know the women in the house. Then I take a nap poolside for a while. After that, Willow and I decide to do our yoga together. Several of the other women join us.
When they start talking about moving furniture around to make room, I frown. “Why don’t we just use the gym? It’s huge. It’s got plenty of space.”
“There’s a gym?” a woman named Selena asks, perking up. “That wasn’t on the tour. I’d kill for an elliptical. All this sitting around and snacking all day isn’t doing anything nice for my thighs.”
“I wouldn’t mind a treadmill,” Katie, a 28-year-old sales manager, adds. “They won’t let us run around the property or down on the beach, and I can only do so many laps around the pool.”
“I think they want us all stir-crazy,” Emma says with a wince. “More drama that way.”
Oh, they definitely want us stir-crazy. Hence the reason there’s not even any TVs in this house. We literally have nothing to do but sit around and get on each other’s nerves. I think a good workout will do us all a lot of good. “Well, follow me, ladies. I know the way. The gym is a really nice one. They took me to it when they did my intro video after they signed me onto the show. Plenty of room for us to do yoga, and run or cycle to our hearts’ content.”
“Where is it?” Selena asks.
“On the west side of the property. Out past the guesthouse in a building near the stairs down to the beach.”
All the women’s faces fall. “Oh,” Katie says, sighing in disappointment. “No wonder we haven’t seen it. That’s where Sebastian is staying. They pointed it out on the tour when we first got here. It’s off-limits to us.”
I huff in frustration. Could this place be any more boring? I was hoping to dance for a while. They must have only brought me there because Sebastian was off on a date. Kind of like he is now…
The show wants drama? I’ll give them drama. “Who’s up for a field trip to the forbidden land?”
“To the gym?” Emma asks, blinking at me wide-eyed like I’ve just said something so scandalous she can’t believe it. “It’s against the rules.”
I shrug. “They don’t want us sneaking in to see Sebastian, but he’s not here, is he? What harm could we do? We go, do our workouts, and come back.”
Selena looks like she’s considering it. She must really want that elliptical. Her eyes flick to José and his crew. “They won’t let us.”
I glance at José. His face is blank. He’s not going to say one way or another until we decide to go or not. I give him a grin. “José’s not going to stop us. He wants the drama. A bunch of us sneaking around, causing harmless mischief? They’ll eat it up.”
“True,” Katie says slowly. “Let’s do it.”
Emma gasps. “Katie, Vivian, no. You’ll get in trouble.”
Katie and I exchange looks, and Katie shrugs. “What are they going to do? Kick us off the show?”
“They could,” Willow warns.
Katie shakes her head. “If they do, they do. As much as I’d love to get to the destination dates, I wouldn’t care if I go home. Sebastian is awful. Even if he gave me the final rose, I wouldn’t accept a proposal. Can you imagine being married to that man?”
A surprising need to defend Sebastian climbs up my throat, even though I totally understand where she’s coming from. Sebastian has been grouchy, rude, and standoffish since day one. He’s probably the only bachelor in the history of the show to alienate the majority of his contestants. “I don’t think he’s normally so bad,” I say. “I’ll bet he just really hates the cameras.” I think of Bridget and add, “And overly aggressive women.”
Everyone laughs. “Yeah,” Selena says. “I can’t imagine how his date is going right now with both Bridget and Calista there. I’m sure he’s losing his mind.”
“I bet he’s snapped,” Willow says. “He’s allowed to send any of us home at any time. I wouldn’t be surprised if he comes back from his date with less women than he left with.”
Selena elbows her playfully and quips, “I wouldn’t be surprised if the women come back with one less bachelor than they left with.”
That has us all in stitches. Even the quiet, shy Emma is giggling uncontrollably. “The show doesn’t even need us to have drama with each other,” she says. “Sebastian creates enough of his own.”
Once the laughter dies down, I bring us back to the original topic. “Well, I’m going to the gym. Anyone going to create a scandal with me?”
“I’m in,” Katie says.
“Me too,” Selena adds.
It’s Willow who surprises me. “Why not? I’m so bored.”
That only leaves Emma. Everyone looks at her, and she blushes. She chews on her bottom lip, worry creasing her brow. “You don’t have to, Emma,” I say. “No pressure.”
Emma looks around the group and pulls her shoulders back. “No, it’s okay. I’ll come. If we all go, it’s a group effort. They aren’t going to kick us all off the show.”
I grin at her, and she stands a tiny bit taller. This is probably the most rebellious thing she’s ever done. “Excellent.” I clap my hands together. “Let’s go infiltrate the forbidden West Wing.”
As I predicted, José doesn’t stop us. He seems highly amused by our clandestine field trip and even directs us to do or say things again to get the best shots of it all. The women are thrilled with the gym. It’s honestly the most lively I’ve seen any of them so far. The laziness is getting to us all. Willow and I do our yoga, while Selena and Emma tackle the ellipticals. Katie hits the treadmill hard after admitting she’s a marathon runner. It’s impressive.
After a good, long yoga session, my toes are itching to hit the dance floor. “Hey, does anyone have any classical music on their mp3 player?”
Apparently, I’m the only contestant without a way to listen to music. They were told ahead of time that they weren’t allowed to have any devices capable of connecting to the Internet, but strictly music devices were allowed. All I had with me was my phone. “I’ve got The Nutcracker on mine,” Emma says. “Why?”
“That’s perfect. I need something I can dance to.”
Emma’s eyes light up. “You dance?”
I nod. “Since I was five. It’s usually how I get in my workouts. I’m feeling the itch pretty badly. Can I connect it to the sound system?” I look around the room. “Would you guys mind?”
“Not at all,” Willow says. “I’d love to see you dance.”
“Me too,” Emma chirps.
She hooks up her mp3 player to the room’s sound system, and she and Willow sit down against the back wall to watch me dance. Selena and Katie decide to join them, and I’ve suddenly got a captive audience. “I don’t have my shoes, so this might be a little less graceful than normal,” I warn.
“I’m sure you’ll be great,” Willow offers with a kind smile. I grin back at her. I love performing for people. It makes me nervous every time, but I like the adrenaline rush.
I did The Nutcracker with my dance troop a few years ago. I cue up “The Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy” and take a position in the middle of the room. For the next few minutes, I fall into the song. It feels good to dance and just let myself go after the stress of the last week. I completely lose myself in the song, and when I’m done, the girls erupt into cheers. I curtsy. “That was beautiful!” Emma gushes.
I laugh. “I wish I had my tutu.”
She gasps. “You actually have a tutu?”
“And a tiara.”
A rough, deep voice calls out from across the room. “Now I know why Jesse called you his beautiful ballerina,” Sebastian says from where he’s perched in the doorway of the gym.
My eyes pop wide. We’re so busted.
The women with me all stiffen and suck in quiet gasps. They’re nervous, and I feel bad. It’s my fault they’re here. I hadn’t expected to be caught. The date must have ended early.
Everyone jumps to their feet and gathers behind me. “Sorry we borrowed your gym,” I say with a cringe. “We were so bored, and it was too tempting. Totally my fault. I practically kidnapped them.”
He doesn’t respond. Neither does James behind him or Aaron, the show’s host, who has also made his way into the room. Aaron clears his throat and says, “Catering just dropped off dinner at the main house—where you are all supposed to be right now.” We all cringe again. “Go eat, and then it’s time to get ready for the rose ceremony. We’ll be starting it at six sharp.”
When he doesn’t lecture us or yell at us, we all breathe sighs of relief and quickly head for the exit. James and his crew move out of the way for us. Sebastian steps aside, but grabs my hand when I try to brush past him out the door. I freeze and look down at the soft grip he’s got on me. My heart starts to race. Is he mad? My breath leaves my lungs when I see the emotion in his eyes. Heat. Pure, unadulterated desire burns in his steely gray eyes. My heart stops. I’ve never been looked at in such a way before. I feel it all the way to my core.
Aaron snaps us out of the spell we seem to have fallen under. Sebastian lets me go and steps back, glaring at Aaron when the host moves to sling his arm over my shoulder. “Vivian,” Aaron coos in a sickly-sweet voice. It’s smarmy—arrogant and condescending all at once. How have I watched so many seasons of this show and never seen what a creep he is? “Walk back to the main house with me.”
I sigh. Looks like I’ll be getting a lecture after all. At least the other women aren’t getting it with me. I pull free of Aaron’s grip and head out the door. He follows after me, making me wait for James’s camera man to get in front of us. When we start walking, I’m impressed at how easily the camera man can walk backward ahead of us while keeping his camera steady and focused on us. We get outside the building before Aaron starts in on me. “Vivian,” he says with a sigh. “I know you were brought onto the show under different circumstances than the other women.”
I snort a laugh. “Yeah, just a little.”
“But you still have to follow the rules. You signed a contract.”
“Oh, come on.” I groan. “We used some treadmills. We didn’t hurt anything. You guys keep us so isolated and bored. We needed a physical release, or we were going to go insane.”
He slides me a glance with a raised eyebrow. His look says that’s exactly the point. I roll my eyes. “What does it matter? We were still all together. We were still in front of the cameras. We bonded, we gossiped, we even talked about Sebastian, and I know there were a few good soundbites.”
Aaron steps close to me and chucks his arm over my shoulders again. “That’s not the point.”
I weasel my way out of his grip again. I must look obvious to the camera, but Aaron doesn’t seem to notice I keep escaping his touch. “Sneaking around like that was a harmless way to bring more drama to the show. You should be thanking me.”
We pass the pool house and cross the main backyard. Hopefully this scolding is over when we reach the main house. I’ve already hit my Aaron limit for this encounter.
“Look, I get it,” Aaron says. “No harm was done this time. But you’ve planted seeds of rebellion in the other women.”
I laugh. “Yeah, we’re a bunch of revolutionaries about to stage a revolt.”
He cuts me an unimpressed look. “You’re bold, and I like that.” He reaches out and runs his finger down my arm. I shiver in disgust and step out of his reach. “You’re the house favorite. The show’s darling. The other women love you.”
When I laugh again, he clarifies, “Most of them love you. They’re going to follow your example, so it’s your responsibility to make sure they behave.”
My brows fly up. “I’m the group babysitter now? Those women all knew what they were doing. They made their own choice to go, and even discussed the possibility of repercussions. I didn’t force them, or pressure them.”
“Not a babysitter. A leader.”
I stop in my tracks and turn to him, trying my hardest to keep the grin off my face. “So punish me. As the ringleader of this escapade, I deserve to be punished. Make an example of me so the other women won’t step out of line anymore. Kick me off the show.”
A wry smile crosses his face. “You know that’s not going to happen. You’re this season’s golden ticket.”
I know this, but it was worth a shot. “But the ball is over now. You got hours of footage filled with celebrities. Let me go back to being behind the scenes.”
“We can’t. Your relationship with Sebastian is too intriguing. And, believe it or not, you’re the only one who’s managed to break down some of his walls.”
I scoff. “Sure, okay. I totally got him to open up.”
“He responds to you. He’s interested in you.”
“If by responds, you mean glares at me.”
Aaron smirks. “The only glaring he did last night was at all the men who tried to get your attention.”
That has me pausing. Could it be true? I hadn’t noticed. Had he been jealous last night? He did ask about Jesse after the ball. And he did stick really close all night. I consider the possibility, trying to ignore the feelings stirring in me at the thought of Sebastian being possessive of me. I shouldn’t like that, but my stomach flutters at the thought of him being territorial and warning off other men.
“He likes you,” Aaron insists, slipping his arm around my waist. “I like you,” he murmurs in a lower voice. “The nation is going to love you. We need you.”
Ugh. He’s like an octopus with the grabby hands. Good thing I’m like an eel. I slip from his grasp. If he grabs me again, I’m going to put my one self-defense class to use.
“We’re not going to kick you off the show, but I’d hate to see you sued for breach of contract if you break the rules. You get a free pass this time, but consider it a warning. I doubt the network will be forgiving a second time. Especially if you continue to corrupt the other contestants.”
Now that is a threat I’m sure they’ll follow through on. They’d probably serve me papers on camera as a warning to any future contestants.
“They’ll sue the others, too. You don’t want to be responsible for getting them sent home or sued, do you?”
I sigh. “No.”
He smiles his big, too bright, too wide TV host smile at me, and pats my head. He pats my head. “Good girl.”
I wave him off and glare at him. It makes me feel like Sebastian, but I really hate his creepy, arrogant, chauvinistic attitude.
“Now, go eat and get ready. I can’t wait to see you all dressed up for the rose ceremony. You looked so beautiful last night. I’m sure you’ll look exquisite this evening.”
He places his hand on my lower back and runs his palm up and down it, getting a little too close to my butt. I spin toward him and grab his wandering hand at the wrist. “Stop. Touching. Me,” I grind out through clenched teeth.
Surprise washes over his face along with disbelief and then a quick flash of annoyance. His eyes glance toward the camera, and he quickly conjures up a placating smile. “No need to get hostile. We’re all friends here. I’ve already got a moody bachelor; I don’t need a grouchy contestant, too.”
“Then keep your hands to yourself.”
His eyes flash with anger, but his smile never breaks. He holds up his hands in surrender. “No offense meant. I’m a friendly guy, but I can respect your space. I know you’re saving yourself for Sebastian.”
I snort again, and his smile eases into an amused one. “He’s a lucky man.”
I don’t bother to argue that I’m not Sebastian’s woman. I roll my eyes and point to the back door of the main house. “As much as I’ve enjoyed this talk, I should really go get ready.”
“All right. I won’t keep you any longer. I’ll see you this evening.”
He winks at me and walks off. “Ugh, I really hate that man,” I grumble before remembering the cameras are rolling. Oops.