Chapter Twenty-Three #2
Marla let out an exasperated groan, but Skye was adamant about saying what she needed to say.
She needed to let the truth out. Even if it meant she would lose her job.
Even if it meant America would see the blurred lines she’d crossed and how she’d twisted rules and trust alike by sleeping with Lucy when she knew that she shouldn’t.
She just couldn’t keep up the charade anymore.
“I’m sorry, Amy,” Skye added, her throat tight.
“I’m sorry to all of you for leading you on, and for letting you all think there was even a chance to be the one.
Because the truth is, all this time, I’ve been falling for Lucy, and I can’t deny it anymore.
I can’t deny that I’m falling in love with her.
” She shook her head, feeling rather helpless.
Lucy’s breath hitched.
Skye turned to face her, and the rest of the world blurred at the edges until it was only Lucy. Wide-eyed, stunned, beautiful Lucy.
“You,” Skye said in a voice that was trembling slightly from the adrenaline.
“It’s always been you. You’re the one I think about when the cameras shut off, when I can’t sleep, when I start convincing myself I don’t deserve something real.
I took this job thinking if I buried myself in work, if I kept chasing something that looked important, maybe I wouldn’t notice how empty I felt.
But I hate it, Lucy. I hate the long hours, the fake smiles, the constant pretending.
I hate who I’ve become.” She shook her head, her neck hot and cheeks burning.
“But then I got suckered into the role of bachelorette and I met you and suddenly I couldn’t pretend anymore.
You’ve made me laugh when I didn’t want to.
You see through me when I’d rather hide, and it’s terrifying.
” Her chest rose and fell in uneven breaths.
“Because I haven’t felt this way about anyone before. ”
“But you feel it for me?” Lucy whispered. She’d been sitting frozen beside Amy, but then suddenly she wasn’t. She stood up and took a step forward, toward Skye.
“I do,” Skye replied. “I’m in love with you, and—”
She didn’t get to finish. Lucy crossed the space between them faster than a heartbeat and grabbed two fistfuls of Skye’s dress.
She pulled her close, and their lips met in a rush.
Skye let out a startled laugh against Lucy’s mouth before sinking into it.
Her hands flew to Lucy’s waist. The world tilted, and her heart hammered so fast it was ridiculous.
But she didn’t care. Lucy kissed her like she’d been waiting for years, like she had no intention of ever letting go.
Gasps from the production crew rippled across the catamaran.
Marla said something in the background, but Skye barely registered it.
Lucy’s lips were too soft, too insistent.
Her breath mingled with Skye’s, and her fingers threaded up into Skye’s hair.
All she could think about was getting off this boat and somewhere alone.
Lucy pulled away just a fraction. “I’m in love with you too,” she muttered, barely moving away enough for Skye to study her face. “I fell for you the moment I met you.”
Skye chuckled and swept her hands up Lucy’s sides.
“Really,” she said teasingly. “Well, I’m glad I made quite the impression on you then.
” Out of the corner of her eye, she watched as Amy stood up.
A lump suddenly thickened in Skye’s throat.
As perfect as this was, she still couldn’t help the guilt creeping along her arms and legs.
But Amy didn’t look upset. On the contrary, she was grinning.
“Makes way more sense now,” Amy said, strolling toward them as if she had all the time in the world. “I should’ve seen it coming.”
“What makes sense?” Lucy asked, snapping her head back.
Amy laughed and turned to face them both. She pointed a finger at Lucy and shook her head amusedly. “Why you’ve been a total wreck since night one.”
“I wasn’t a wreck,” Lucy retorted. But her face went pink, and her voice was a little shrill, and so of course Skye had to believe Amy.
She chose to believe her. It was kind of endearing to think that Lucy had been flustered over her this entire time.
No one had ever been a nervous wreck around Skye, and she would be lying if she admitted it didn’t make her insides mush.
“You were,” Amy said, smiling as if she didn’t mind that Skye had gone behind her back, as if she wasn’t bothered by it at all. “Kept going on and on wondering why Skye was ignori—”
“Skye!” Marla’s voice suddenly cut through the moment, dragging everyone’s attention back. She was marching toward them, her small body stiff. “This is completely unprofessional. This is not how this show works.” She waved her hands frantically at the crew. “Turn those fucking cameras off! Now!”
“I quit,” Skye blurted before she could stop herself.
The words rang out sharply, startling even herself.
Her hands trembled slightly, but she didn’t take the words back.
Instead, she turned toward Lucy and stepped closer, letting everything else—the cameras, the crew, Marla’s furious expression—fade into the background.