Chapter Six
Noah
Ididn’t know what to expect when coming here, but whatever I was expecting, it’s been blown out of the water.
This place is a dream. The guys are chill, and the women?
Fuck. The challenges are going to be easy compared to trying to not have a boner all day.
I can’t deny I’m already locked on to one woman in particular, though.
Courtney… my God, I don’t think I’ve ever seen an ass move like that before.
I have to actively try to not get hypnotized when I walk behind her.
And the best part? Her personality is even better than her ass. Well, they’re tied.
“How was your night?” Landon asks as he climbs up into the top bunk and flops down.
When I woke up on the beach, he was in the chair next to me, shaking the brain fog away himself. He’s definitely surly, and I don’t see him lasting long here if the goal is to fall in love, but as bunkmates, I can’t complain.
“Great. I can’t believe this place is real. You have a good night?”
“Mhmm,” he mutters, almost like he’d rather be anywhere but here.
Don’t get me wrong, I’ve been to some gorgeous resorts, hotels and villas in my life.
My family owns several vacation homes around the world.
Those are so different, though. Those places ooze class and elegance.
A sort of refinement. This place… it’s like a playground for adults.
Somewhere we can party, live it up and have hot sex in fifty-seven different spots. Oh, and find love of course.
“Got your eye on anyone special?” I ask casually, though I’ll admit, I’m absolutely fishing.
I was pulled in about a hundred directions after my chat with Courtney.
I was flattered. I mean, what man wouldn’t want half a dozen women vying for his attention?
Still, all the batting eyelashes and risqué outfits couldn’t fully pull my attention away from her.
Then when I saw her and Landon talking by the bar…
it definitely sparked something inside me that I’m pretty sure I didn’t like.
“Nah,” Landon responds.
Okay…
“I’m not interested in Courtney if that’s what you’re getting at,” he tacks on.
I try to play it cool and shrug him off, but he beats me to it before facing the ceiling once more.
“You don’t need to bullshit me. If you want to claim her, just do it. If she’s what you’re into.”
“Why do you say it like that?” I ask curiously.
He opens his mouth like he’s going to speak before he shakes his head and closes his eyes.
Can’t lie, I’m curious why he feels that way, but I’ll take it.
It’s clear that Courtney is a lot different to the other women.
The rest of them are all gorgeous, manicured to perfection, no doubt about it.
Courtney, though, she’s that natural beauty.
The girl next door but with something… else.
She’s the kind of beautiful that takes you by surprise, and keeps you entranced from the moment your eyes meet and on your knees in the next moment.
Several other guys pile into the room, Mason and Connor bouncing off the walls, hooting and hollering before beginning to gossip like a couple of schoolgirls.
“Bro, I can’t believe you already made out with her,” Mason says, laughing, gaining all of our attention.
Connor shrugs, a smug smile on his face. “What can I say? The ladies can’t say no to Connor,” he says, holding his biceps up before kissing each one.
Several others laugh as Shane shakes his head.
“So, is Connor going to always refer to himself in the third person, because if so, that’s going to irritate Shane really fucking fast.” He laughs, his tone more playful than hostile.
“Fair enough, fair enough. I wasn’t the only one getting some action, though. Calvin, I saw you with that punk chick. Lily?” Connor says.
“Luna.” Calvin grins. “I don’t think her having purple hair makes her punk. She sure has a tongue on her, though.”
Andrew laughs. “Oh shit.”
“What about you, Mr. Popular?” Mason goads, and all eyes swing to me.
“What?” I ask as I look around at all of the expectant stares.
“He says what,” Mason scoffs. “We saw damn near every girl pull you tonight.”
Connor laughs. “They were like a pack of vultures, tearing at you.”
“And away from each other,” Dallas joins in.
I shrug, but a smile escapes me because yeah, that’s a pretty accurate description. Again, can’t say I hated it.
“Is there one you have your eye on over the others?” Andrew asks, genuinely seeming curious.
“Shit, why choose one when you can fuck them all?” Dallas asks as Mason high-fives him.
Calvin shakes his head as he and Andrew share a look. It’s easy to tell even on night one who’s here for the intended reason and who just wants their five minutes of fame.
“He wants Courtney. The mouthy one,” Landon mumbles from the top bunk.
The guys all look to him, then back at me.
My brows furrow once again. “Why do you think she’s mouthy?” I ask.
Landon doesn’t respond, but Connor seems happy to.
“I mean, she was a little… standoffish when we first got here.”
“She was confused, and more than a little concerned. Weren’t we all? She was the last to wake up.”
I know when I first woke up, I was disoriented as hell and confused.
Was drugging us really necessary? I mean, it’s kinda fucked up, but once the production team explained their reasoning and gave their apologies, I understood where they were coming from.
She wasn’t given that time to adjust before being thrown into an orientation.
Shrugging off the guys’ comments and hushed conversations, I head for the shower before getting ready for bed. Really fucking looking forward to what tomorrow will bring.
In the morning, we’re all woken up by some jazz tune about love blaring through the speakers in the ceiling.
Odd, but alright.
Everyone goes through their morning routines before getting dressed. All of us agreed that unless told otherwise, the dress code is casual beachwear.
I grab my teal board shorts and a white tank top before heading out. There are already a few girls cooking breakfast in the kitchen inside. I smile politely at each of them as they wave to me and smile in return, but I don’t see the smile I’m looking for.
After making my way outside, I see a few girls sunbathing on the pool deck, accompanied by Connor and Calvin, who look like they’ve temporarily swallowed their tongues.
I don’t fucking blame them either. The girls are all dressed in strappy suits with mesh coverings.
Hell, Angel is wearing a bikini that’s about as thick as a piece of fettuccine pasta. Literally.
Several girls are walking around with fruit smoothies, avocado toast and even a single hard-boiled egg before I see Courtney in the outdoor kitchen, frying up some bacon.
“Good morning,” I say, smiling as I make my way towards her.
She glances up only for a moment before a smile spreads across her face. She attempts to duck her head and hide it, but it’s too late. I saw it, and I fucking love it.
“Morning,” she says. “Sleep good?”
I nod. “How about you?”
“Decent. Luna snores unfortunately.”
“I do not!” Luna shouts back from the plush couch a few feet away.
“Trust me, you do,” Courtney tosses back, and they both laugh.
I watch as she uses tongs to pull the pieces of bacon off the skillet, then places them on two plates that already sport a large Belgian waffle each.
“One of those isn’t for me, is it?” I ask with a knowing smirk.
Courtney’s deep brown eyes meet mine before she gives me an apologetic grimace. “Um, actually no.”
My eyebrows knit together. “Seriously?”
My surprise catches her off guard, and I instantly feel like a dick. Why the hell would I assume?
“Yeah, sorry. I made breakfast for me and Luna. I didn’t know that was, like, expected.”
“It’s not,” I rush out to say. “Sorry. I was just flirting. Or failing to flirt, clearly.” I laugh, a pathetic attempt to lighten the weird mood I’ve created.
“You’re good. I’d offer you some of mine,” she says as she looks down at her plate, “but I like my food too much.”
I throw my head back as a short but loud laugh escapes me. “Who am I to get in the way of my girl and her food?”
“Yeah, that’s smart. I didn’t get these curves from crunching on salads,” she says with a wiggle of her hips that has my eyes moving down to her bikini.
I don’t know how I didn’t notice it before, fuck me for the wasted opportunity.
It’s definitely not as revealing at the other girls’ suits, but that doesn’t take away from how good she looks.
The black one-piece has several cut-outs in the front and one on each side.
Her skin just barely peeks through, like the ultimate tease.
She sneaks past me and moves to sit beside Luna, and goddamn… her ass has never looked better. With each step she takes, it jiggles the perfect amount to have my cock hardening and my mouth watering.
I notice a cameraman look our way before heading towards us. As discreetly as I’m able, I attempt to push my hard-on down because America really doesn’t need to see that.
Savannah and Kiera walk by with their shakes, sneering down at Courtney’s plate.
“Wow, that’s a lot of carbs,” Savannah says. “I could never.”
My eyebrows rise, but Courtney doesn’t seem to mind or even hear her. Instead, she takes her biggest bite yet, smiling through a mouth full of food as Savannah rolls her eyes and saunters off to the daybeds.
I take a seat beside Courtney as she and Luna practically devour their breakfasts before Dallas comes over and takes Luna’s plate away from her, setting it to the side before hoisting her up and over his shoulder.
“Hey, I wasn’t done,” she cries before he smacks her ass and takes off running for the pool. “Fucker! You can’t just—”
That’s all she gets out before they’re crashing into the water, sending a wave of water onto the pool deck, soaking Savannah and Kiera. They both shriek and curse Dallas out as he resurfaces, Luna still in his arms.
She wraps her arms and legs around him as they start going at it. I clap in encouragement, and others hoot and holler as several of the camera crew rush over to them to get in on the action.
I look over to see Courtney’s reaction, only to find her completely unbothered, happily munching away on her food. Something about her easygoing personality puts a smile on my face, and I lean back into the couch, wrapping my arm around the back of it.
She glances at my arm before her eyes meet mine. “Smooth, buddy,” she says through a mouthful of waffle that has me laughing.
“I’m trying. You’re kinda hard to impress. I’m not a waffle.”
She laughs, and I grin.
“I think you have all the other guys intimidated,” I fake-whisper.
Courtney frowns. “Why?”
I shrug. “Pretty girls have that effect on stupid boys.”
She nods thoughtfully. “Good point.”
I scoff and nudge her shoulder as she laughs, setting her plate to the side.
“So, how are you feeling so far?” Courtney asks.
A buzz question we’ve been told to ask frequently to any and everyone that we speak to. I guess it helps connect the audience with the contestant and gives people insight on what’s going through our minds. And it beats watching people sit in awkward silence, I guess.
“I’m feeling good. I’m glad to be here. Beautiful island, beautiful house, beautiful girl,” I say with a pointed look at her.
Courtney rolls her eyes and playfully shoves my shoulder. “You just won’t quit, will you? Do you have an off switch somewhere?” she asks as she rises up on her knees and begins running her fingers through my hair, pulling my ears forward as if she’s looking for an actual switch.
I laugh, allowing her to do whatever she wants to me, and then a camera guy comes closer, practically shoving the lens in our face. Courtney freezes before she seems to remind herself to pretend the cameras aren’t here. Easier said than done, though.
Our eyes lock, and her hands are still on me when I drop my arm so it’s wrapped around her waist. My gaze bounces from her eyes to her lips, anticipation heavy between us as we both begin leaning towards one another.
But before our lips can touch, an annoying-as-hell voice comes booming from the other side of the yard.
“How we all doing?” Alex smiles as he struts in, commanding the attention of everyone.
Including Courtney.
Damnit.