Chapter 13
Chapter Thirteen
“How’d you sleep?” Trace asked, as I slumped onto a dining chair and poured myself a cup of coffee. Only she and Danny had arrived at breakfast so far.
“Oh, you know. Got five hours last night, so I’ll call it an improvement.” After I had left Eli, I had lain awake for hours before finally falling asleep.
“I’ve been sleeping like a baby ever since I got here. I think it’s all that mountain air.” Danny stretched and casually slung an arm across the back of Trace’s chair.
They were already so comfortable with each other. I envied it a little bit. For all the sparks I felt with Eli, I wouldn’t use the word ‘comfortable’ to describe whatever it was that we had.
“Get out of here, you two lovebirds. You’re making me sick,” Rachel said playfully as she walked into the room and sat in the seat opposite mine.
Trace giggled and Danny flashed her an irritated glare.
Arnie walked in next, followed by Eli, and my skin tingled at the mere sight of him. Without hesitation, Eli took the empty seat to my left.
“Morning,” he whispered. “Hope you slept better than I did.”
My lip turned up. “Not likely.”
As we started piling food onto our plates, I caught Arnie’s eye. He nodded between Eli and me before winking. I gave a subtle shake of my head, refusing to play into this narrative that Eli and I were somehow meant to be.
Eli nudged my shoulder. “How’s the hand?”
Holding my bandaged hand out in front of me, I flexed it a few times for good measure. It still stung a little, but the pain was completely manageable. “It’s fine.”
“Good thing it was your left. Couldn’t have anything affect your ability to write.”
“Thankfully all my fingers are intact, so I can still type.”
If I ever get another idea, that is.
Eli took my hand in his before turning it over to inspect it. “Did they rewrap it?”
“Uh huh,” I choked out, jarred by the electricity I felt where his fingers grazed my skin. “This morning.”
Eli dropped my hand as a loud clatter turned everyone’s attention to the end of the table. Sofia and Grant had arrived and she had just sat down so forcefully it shook the table. She glared at Eli and me before turning to sulk and stare out the window.
“That should make the rest of our time here enjoyable,” he said, his breath tickling my neck.
“Can you get over it already?” Rachel snapped at Sofia. “It’s not like you lost a soulmate.”
“You don’t know that,” Sofia barked.
“Don’t be dim. You don’t even know him,” Rachel pushed .
“You don’t have any idea what our relationship was like.”
“We didn’t have a relationship,” Eli pointed out calmly, picking up his mug and taking a sip of coffee.
Sofia set her icy glare on Eli. “You’re impossible.”
Grant cleared his throat. “Um, hello? I’m right here. Your partner, remember? Am I really that bad?”
“Yes,” Rachel said.
Grant pouted and pretended to cry into his napkin. I caught Trace’s eye and we exchanged an amused look.
Everyone simmered down as soon as Brady and Shay entered the room. Brady made a beeline for me, as Shay leaned in to whisper something in Danny’s ear.
“How’s the hand?” Brady asked, as if he actually cared.
“It’s fine.”
“Good,” he breathed. “You really scared everyone yesterday. We can’t be having too many injuries on set.”
“What did you need?” I nearly jumped at Eli’s cold voice. Turning, I found him shooting a dirty look at Brady. He must not be too fond of our captors—I mean, producers—either.
“Everyone needs to hurry up and finish eating. A storm might roll in, and we need to get the challenge filmed before that happens. Calla,” he said, shifting his attention to me. “This challenge involves the water. Your bandage isn’t technically supposed to get wet, but?—”
“Then she shouldn’t do it,” Eli interrupted.
Brady’s jaw flexed subtly, but his focus remained on me. “As I was saying, it shouldn’t get wet, but we’ll have a medic standing by to redress it as soon as the challenge is over, so you should be fine.”
“We’re swimming?” I asked, barely masking my horror.
“There will be swimming involved,” Brady answered.
“Shoot,” I said. “I can’t swim that well.”
Eli shook his head, irritation creeping across his features. “ You really weren’t kidding when you said you weren’t adventurous.”
He might not have meant them to, but his words stung.
“Calla can’t swim,” Eli called to Shay who stood on the other side of the room.
“I didn’t say that,” I hissed. “I said I can’t swim well .”
He looked skeptical. “Is there a difference?”
“There will be life preservers and wet suits,” Shay interrupted. “We aren’t monsters.”
That’s debatable. . .
“Go Arnie! Go Rachel!” I cheered, impressed by how quickly my former partner ripped through the water. We were at the edge of a large reservoir about ten minutes away from the lodge, where we had been driven after breakfast.
Swimming must be one of Arnie’s strong suits, because he and Rachel were tearing through this challenge. They’d probably have won, if it hadn’t been for Danny’s extreme athleticism. Even though Trace wasn’t the fastest swimmer, he had practically carried her through the water on his back as they’d completed the challenge with ease.
“This is a competition show,” Eli scolded, but his dimple appeared. “You shouldn’t be cheering for the other teams.”
“Sorry.” Was the only response I could muster. I still didn’t feel playful with him for some reason.
Aside from the time Arnie and I had won the cage-escape, these challenges had been completely humiliating for me so far. This one would likely be no different. If they actually wanted me to fall in love on this show, they wouldn’t have set up all these challenges that emphasized every weak point I had. Eli would be sick of me by the end of it for sure .
My cheeks already burned with the anticipation of embarrassment. I stuck a finger in the neck of my wetsuit and tried to peel it away from me so I could take a deeper breath. It clung to my body like Saran Wrap and bunched up in all the wrong places. Eli and I were set to go last. That meant I got to watch everyone else go before me and completely psych myself out before I even stuck a single toe in the water.
Eli entered my vision.
“You okay?” he asked.
God, I was pathetic. He always felt like he had to hold my hand through everything.
“Fine,” I insisted, taking in the menacing, dark sky. “Do you think this storm will hold off?”
He blew out a breath and followed my gaze upward. “It doesn’t look great.”
A massive dark cloud, large enough to consume the whole sky, had been angrily approaching us since the start of the challenge. Now it was almost upon us. It had been relatively calm two hours ago when we started, but now an ice-cold breeze whipped through our hair and stung our cheeks. Rita, who normally lingered during each challenge in case she needed to provide a soundbite, had left immediately after the girls had picked their partners to wait inside one of the vans.
The rest of the couples were wrapped in those tinfoil blankets they give people after running a marathon. Jealousy gnawed at me that they had already completed the challenge. Now their only focus was on warming up again and the showers they would get to take soon.
Arnie and Rachel raced out of the water together. He reached back and grabbed her hand, helping her onto solid ground. They had collected the pieces of their puzzle from the water and now hurried over to the table to solve it. Arnie would no doubt make quick work of it. He had to be the smartest person here. As they came closer and closer to finishing, and our turn approached, a knot tightened in my stomach.
“You sure you’re okay?” Eli’s worry cut through my nervous thoughts. “You’re white as a ghost.”
“I just want to get it over with,” I admitted. “This isn’t really my thing.”
He chuckled, but the concern didn’t leave his eyes. “That’s an understatement.”
Once again, his words stung. “Sorry I can’t be more athletic, or whatever,” I mumbled, attempting, but failing to mask my hurt. Why did I even care what Eli thought of me?
Because you’re starting to have feelings for him, you idiot.
Eli blinked a few times.
“Calla, I don’t care about that,” he said, turning to face me fully. “Do you think I do? Because I could give two shits how good you are at zip-lining down a mountain or swimming in ice-cold water. I was pissed off at breakfast because they keep making us do these dangerous stunts and trying to attach some kind of meaning to them. It’s all just for entertainment. They don’t have our best interests in mind. Do you think these are the kinds of things I want to do in my spare time?”
I frowned. “You did mention you like the outdoors.”
He ran a hand across his jaw and laughed in disbelief. “I didn’t mean this . This is just some form of hell a producer designed to torture us and make for good TV. I don’t care at all that you aren’t excelling at these challenges. I’m just...I’m just worried about you.” His voice started to trail away as his eyes searched mine. “You had a panic attack last time and you’re not looking like the picture of calm right now. I don’t want anything to happen out there in the water.”
His words reassured me that he didn’t mind having me as a partner, and I didn’t want to let him down—or become a liability again.
“I’ll be fine. I’ve got this to float,” I said, patting my life preserver. “And I swear I can actually swim, it just won’t be quite as smooth as everyone else.”
Cheers erupted as Arnie and Rachel finished the puzzle portion of the challenge. I tried not to gulp audibly. That meant it was our turn.
“Okay, Eli. Calla. Line up by the starting line. We need to wrap this up,” Shay barked.
Eli grabbed my hand and squeezed it. “It’ll be over soon,” he said, as we made our way to the marker.
The dark cloud was upon us now and the wind had picked up even more. Biting my lip, I scanned the mountains in the distance. A lightning bolt cracked, jarring me.
“Lightning!” I exclaimed, pointing.
Another bolt struck somewhere off in the distance. “What the hell. Is this even safe?” Eli demanded.
“It’s safe,” Shay insisted harshly.
More lightning flashed.
“Nah. Screw this. We aren’t going in the water in this weather.” Eli glared at her, still holding my hand.
“There’s a pretty hefty fine for not completing the challenges,” Shay warned, matching his glare.
Fine? I couldn’t pay a fine. In the beginning I had been trying to be all high and mighty when insisting I’d leave, but the truth was, I was broke.
“Let’s just do it,” I said. “We can get it over with before it gets worse.”
Eli looked down at me, bewildered. “You’re willing to risk your life for this?”
I stood on my tiptoes so I could whisper in his ear. “I can’t pay a fine. Let’s just hurry up. ”
He scoffed and shook his head. “Fuck that. I’ll pay your fine.”
“We really need you two to get out there.” Shay was obviously irritated. “We have footage from the rest of the cast, and we can’t have another incomplete challenge.”
Eli and Shay started full-out arguing as I tried to shrink away and calm my rapid heartbeat.
Robert rushed over, waving his hands. “Hey, hey. Let’s all calm down.” He turned to Eli. “I promise you, the weather is not impacting the safety of this challenge. That storm that you see over there in the mountains is still miles away. It won’t be overhead for at least another hour. There’s plenty of time to finish up your leg of the challenge.”
Eli’s face softened slightly as he looked from Robert to me. While Shay might not be trustworthy, Robert was. He wouldn’t endanger us when his entire job was ensuring our safety. The set of Eli’s jaw said everything—he was ready to keep fighting if I was still uncomfortable. And while I didn’t feel great about this, Robert had assured us that it was safe. I couldn’t be the only wimp who didn’t complete the challenge.
“Let’s do it,” I said.
Eli gave a slight nod. “I’ll be with you the whole time, okay? I’ll swim right next to you.”
I followed him to a mat at the edge of the water and forced myself not to look at the storm again.
“Okay, drama queens. I’ll count you down,” Shay said.
“You’ve got this, Calla,” I heard Arnie cheer from somewhere behind me.
“Go, Calla!” Trace called.
Their encouraging words only spiked my anxiety more, knowing that every eye was on me.
“Hey.” Eli captured my attention. “Just focus on swimming, okay? Don’t worry about anything else. ”
“I got this,” I promised, even though in reality I had no idea how it would go.
A whistle blew and we were in the water, limbs flailing and water splashing around us. I made an awkward dive and splayed my arms out in front of me, pushing the water back and thrusting my body forward. The wet suit helped fight off the chill of the water more than I had expected, but my hands and exposed face still felt the icy drops with every stroke.
The buoy that held our puzzle pieces bobbed up and down in the distance and I set all my focus on that orange target in front of me. One arm in front of the other. Kick. Kick. We were almost there. I could hear muffled cheers, but my focus on swimming was so intense that the world felt muted around me.
Ten more feet.
Five.
I reached out and lunged forward, grabbing the buoy. Gasping for breath, I clung to the flotation device like my life depended on it.
Eli was swimming right behind me and grabbed the buoy mere seconds after me. He grinned as he reached out and grabbed my face. “You were amazing. Are you kidding me? I could barely keep up with you.”
I coughed and wheezed but managed a brief, “Thanks.” Panic had propelled me forward more than any real skill, but I wasn’t about to tell him that. Before I could mentally process that I had to turn around and do that all again, a huge gust of wind came through and the water grew choppier around us. Large rain droplets fell, a few landing on my face. I could barely distinguish them from the water lapping around us.
Eli squinted up at the sky. “We better get moving before the downpour starts.” He made quick work of the knots fastening the puzzle pieces to the buoy. “I’ll carry these back. ”
Before I could completely catch my breath, Eli had already dove under and swam a few strokes away. I let go of the safety of the buoy and my tired body fell back into the now-rough water. My strokes didn’t have the same determination as they had just minutes ago. The adrenaline had worn off and now my body was cursing me for exerting it so hard. But I continued to push through. I could see Eli’s head bobbing just in front of me, glancing behind him every few seconds to make sure he wasn’t getting too far ahead.
The wind picked up as we fought through small waves. It felt like I wasn’t even moving—like no stroke would be enough to get me closer to shore.
I gasped as a small wall of water hit me right in the face. Water shot down my throat and I coughed. I didn’t have a chance to close my mouth before more water hit me.
Even though I was floating, I couldn’t keep my face clear. Looking ahead through the waves filled me with dread. We weren’t even halfway to shore yet. My coughing fit continued, water relentlessly filling my mouth with each gasp.
Then arms were around my waist, lifting me up ever so slightly so I could get relief. There was fear in Eli’s eyes as he held onto me.
“We’ve got to get out of the water!” he yelled over the wind.
I nodded but couldn’t respond because of all the choking. My stomach spasmed.
“I’m going to swim with you!” he called. “Just try to lie on your back! You’ve already swallowed too much water.”
Following his instructions, I rolled onto my back. He kept one of his arms wrapped around my waist and started to swim. Even with my face further from the water, it still seemed to be crashing down on me. I tried to focus on kicking, but in the process, I inhaled more water and started to choke violently. I could feel our speed increase. I tried to lie as still as possible, in the hopes that Eli would get us to shore faster that way. At this point, I felt like I might pass out.
My legs drifted underwater and then finally hit solid ground.
“Can you stand?” Eli asked, pulling me to my feet and draping one of my arms around his waist. We were barely two steps out of the water before I collapsed.
“She needs help!” he shouted, as he pulled me to shore.
“The medical van is over here,” Brady yelled. Eli put his arm behind my knees and lifted me off the ground. He jogged the last few feet until we were at a white van.
I tried to tell him that I was fine, but I couldn’t get the words out between coughs.
“She swallowed a lot of water,” Eli said, setting me down on the ledge at the back of the van as the medic who had bandaged my hand the other day came rushing out to help.
“I think—I think she might be panicking a little bit too,” Eli continued. He bent over so that his face was level with mine. I could see him pleading with me to calm down, but he didn’t quite know what to do.
“Lean forward and just keep coughing,” the medic instructed. “Your body is trying to force the water out of your lungs.”
A few more violent coughs, and water gushed out of my mouth. I sniffled and breathed in through my nose for the first time since we started the swim. I coughed a few more times, then shakily took a breath.
“I think that’s better.” I could finally speak.
Eli exhaled loudly. I stared at my feet, and tried not to think about what he must be thinking in this moment. I’d briefly impressed him with my swim out there, only to once again become dead weight. We didn’t even finish the challenge.
The medic rewrapped my injured hand in a dry bandage before wrapping the whole thing in plastic to combat the rain that now fell steadily from the sky.
“Just sit here and rest a while longer,” she said, her voice kind. “I’ll tell the producers that you need a minute to recover and can’t be interrupted.” She winked at me before leaving.
I was sure Brady and Shay wouldn’t allow us to be alone for long, but I relished even the tiniest moments of peace. I inspected my fingers, which had turned a light blue from the icy cold of the water. Squeezing my hands together, I focused on anything other than Eli.
“I guess you’ll get to look like an action star after all,” I finally joked, once I couldn’t take the silence anymore.
He squeezed his eyes shut, which made me want to retreat from the weight of his disappointment. Rain pelted his face but he made no move to seek shelter.
“This is so embarrassing,” I whispered.
Eli scoffed loudly and scowled down at me. “ Embarrassing ? That’s definitely not the word I’d use.”
“Humiliating? Mortifying?” I offered.
His jaw clenched in irritation. “Try again.”
“I’m really not cut out for this.” I wanted to ease the tension that currently sat heavily on his shoulders, but he winced.
“I’m just trying to lighten the mood,” I said, exasperated. Why was he the one who had gone quiet all of a sudden? Shouldn’t that be my job?
“This is all my fault,” Eli muttered.
My eyebrows shot up. “What? How? No, it’s not.”
He raked a hand through his hair, pushing his wet curls off his forehead. “You’ve only been getting hurt since we partnered up.”
“To be fair, the challenges have gotten progressively more intense. Also, I almost got mauled by a goat in that first maze challenge,” I pointed out.
He didn’t smile.
I reached for his hand and he allowed me to take it. As soon as we made contact, though, he jerked away for a second before scooping up both my hands in his.
“Shit, Calla, your hands are freezing.” He proceeded to blow his hot breath on them while I shivered in contentment. It stung slightly, but it was so good to feel anything warm.
“Look,” I continued. “I know I seem like a mess, but this is all so far outside my usual realm that it’s unreal. I doubt I would have even made it this far without you. You made me actually want to try instead of just giving up.”
He searched my eyes before gently dropping my hands and cupping my face instead. My heart sputtered as he inched closer.
“I’m going to kiss you now,” he said roughly. “Is that okay?”
“Yes.” I had barely squeaked out my response before his mouth was on mine.
As soon as our lips met, I forgot all about how cold I was or the rain that was now coming down even harder. Eli’s thumbs stroked my cheeks as his mouth moved carefully over mine. My hand fell to his chest and I gripped the material of his wetsuit. His scent engulfed me.
His lips were smooth and the fluttering sensation in my stomach immediately moved further south. I had almost forgotten what it was like to feel this way. I reached up and tangled my fingers in his hair. Raindrops rhythmically hit my cheeks and every sound around us seemed to fade into nothing. He flicked his tongue gently against my lips and I allowed him to deepen the kiss. We explored each other tentatively. Based on his reputation, I thought Eli might be rougher—more demanding. But this kiss was sweet and cautious, and his gentleness just made me want more.
“Save it for the cameras.”
We jerked apart. Shay stood next to the van, holding an umbrella.