“Some of the girls here have such thick accents I can’t understand them.”
I would not get annoyed or let her provoke me. Hopefully, Dante would see right through Abigail and kick her off the show too.
She noticed me then and said, “Oh, no offense.”
“Bless your heart. Lots taken.”
She gave me a dirty look, which let me know that she did indeed understand me, but had singled me out as her first victim in what was sure to be a six-week smear campaign against all the competitors.
I sat down on a bar stool and asked the bartender for some Sprite. Dante made his way over to me, with a cloud of desperate women clinging to his heels. They stayed a few steps back as he sat next to me. His leg accidentally brushed mine, and I refused to acknowledge the way it made my stomach go fluttery.
“You’re not drinking?”
I probably should drink. It might help dull the boring. But on the other hand, it would definitely make me more susceptible to him. “Nope. Kat’s my spirit animal.”
He looked confused. “Your what?”
I noticed that there were no cameras nearby, which meant I could explain without getting embarrassed. “My spirit animal. My life choices guide. She has what I want—a degree; plans for her international children’s charity; and she landed the man of her dreams, who just happens to be an actual prince. So I’ve adopted her lifestyle and am giving up certain things. Like alcohol.” It was a weird flaw of mine, and was probably because I was both super competitive and mildly superstitious—if somebody went on a three-day cleanse and lost five pounds, I’d do it for a week and lose ten. Kat went without alcohol and sex and had all her dreams come true, and so would I, only better.
He gave me a knowing grin, while I took my soda from the bartender. Dante asked for a scotch.
“What? It totally worked for her.”
“You could have landed a prince too, without forgoing anything.”
I sighed and shook my head while he laughed. He stopped mid-laugh with a quizzical expression.
“Wait, does this mean you and the fiancé haven’t . . .”
I put a hand over his mouth. The cameras were everywhere, and even though they’d left us alone a minute ago, now we had like five of them pointed right at us. My relationship with Sterling was my personal business, and all of America did not need to know about it. His eyes sparkled with mischief, and I pulled my hand away.
“No, we haven’t.”
That grin got bigger, and I decided to ignore it.
“Challenge accepted,” he said.
“What? What challenge?”
“The no alcohol thing.” The bartender came back with Dante’s drink, but he waved it away. “It will be my first task.”
His first task? “What in the world are you talking about?”
But before he could explain, a petite brunette was at his elbow, tugging at him to come and talk. “I’ll tell you later,” he said as he allowed himself to be led away.
I didn’t know how much time had passed, because I had nothing to do but drink my soda and watch the women preen and posture as they tried to get Dante’s attention. He seemed to be loving the situation and had nothing but smiles and compliments for everyone. Always so polite, always so charming.
It was early summer in California, and despite the open windows, I was hot. The overhead lights, all the bodies, the weather—everything contributed to making the room stuffy and unbearable. I didn’t know how Dante was doing it in that tuxedo. I was pulling my jersey away from my body to try and let some breeze through, while he looked cool and calm.
Genesis had wandered off, and I’d lost track of her hours ago. Taylor had told me that the producers would be pulling the girls aside for interviews and what they called “In The Moments,” or ITMs. She told me that some of the crew called them TMIs, because it wasn’t uncommon for a contestant to share way too much information.
Somebody kissed Dante on the cheek, leaving pink lipstick. I quite literally had a flash of red before my eyes as she giggled and wiped his cheek clean.
I’d had about all I could stand, so I escaped to the backyard to get away from the heat, the alcohol-induced fights, and the raging hormones.
There was a pool, and then a massive yard behind it with trees, rows of flowers, and open green spaces. It reminded me of our ranch back in Georgia. I found a massive old oak and sat on the side opposite to the house. Taylor could yell at me later.
I looked up at the full moon and realized that I had no idea what time it was. I was totally reliant on my phone for everything, including checking the time, and so I never wore a watch.
Thankfully, by this time tomorrow, I would have my phone back and things would return to normal.