by Sarah Gates
‘Why?’
‘Because it was getting too real,’ Anna whispered. ‘Because it felt real.’
‘What if it is?’
Anna felt the words like a blow to her chest. ‘It isn’t.’
‘Why not?’ He was everywhere. His body seemed to surround her, stealing her breath with his intoxicating scent. ‘Because it’s a TV show and the cameras were rolling.’
‘And what about now? There are no cameras. No one to watch us keep up the act.’
‘We’re not kissing now.’
In lieu of a reply, he cupped Anna’s face with his free hand and leaned down.
This kiss was hungry and urgent. Luke’s teeth bit her lip and his tongue fought to consume every inch of her mouth. It warmed her to every edge of her body, and tugged her heart into her throat. His hands dropped from her neck and explored the length of her back. Without her giving them permission, Anna’s fingers traced Luke’s waist and pushed underneath his shirt. They felt along the ridges of his abs as his kiss sucked the breath from her body.
His hands moved over Anna’s arse and squeezed. Just as she squeaked in protest, they dipped further to grab her thighs and lift her. Her hands flew to his neck and her legs wrapped around his waist but she didn’t break away. All logical thought had evaporated the moment his mouth closed on hers. Instead she revelled in the feel of his hair through her fingers as Luke swiftly carried her to the couch. He dropped her onto the plush material and lowered himself onto her, his weight trapping her.
Gravity made his shirt hang away from his body, giving her perfect access to his rock-hard abs. There was a completely separate hardness against her thigh. A hot tingling shot into Anna’s lower regions. She grabbed the hem of Luke’s shirt and ripped it over his head, forcing him to tear his mouth and hands away from her for a second. In that brief moment, she considered the wisdom of sleeping with a man who was dating four other women on national television. But the sight of him shirtless drove all other thoughts from her mind. He was, quite honestly, perfection. If there was a ‘hot athletes’ calendar, he would be featured every single month. And it would cost top dollar.
Their mouths met again and Luke’s hands trailed further down. Every lustful thought she’d had about him resurfaced. She wanted him naked. Now.
Another knock sounded at the door.
‘Ignore it,’ Luke growled in her ear.
The knock came again. This time it was accompanied by a voice.
‘Anna?’ Hadie called. ‘Are you there? I could really use a friend right now …’
‘Anna …’ Luke whispered in her ear. But all her doubts had come rushing back when Hadie’s voice had drifted through the door. Hadie had left her son to come on the show. She deserved better than this. The other women were emotionally invested in him. It wasn’t a game to them.
Shame flooded in. ‘Put your shirt on and stay quiet,’ she told Luke under her breath, then she went to the door.
Anna only opened it up a few inches. Enough that Hadie could see her; not enough for Hadie to see Luke.
‘You okay?’ Anna asked.
Hadie’s eyes were puffy and red. Her cheeks were swollen and her arms were wrapped tight around her waist. ‘Not really. Matty is sick, he has a bad cold, and I’m homesick.’
‘Aw, Hadie.’
The woman nodded tearfully and pushed the door, walking into the room before Anna had a chance to register what had happened. She would have made a terrible bouncer.
Anna turned to see Luke pulling his shirt back on. If only he’d been a little faster. There had been plenty of time for him to fish his shirt from the floor and cover himself up before Hadie had come in. They could have avoided the look of shock and hurt on Hadie’s face.
‘Nothing happened. I swear.’ Anna held up her hands. The other women had probably gone just as far as she had with Luke. Probably further, as much as the idea had her blood burning and bubbling. Hadn’t a bikini-clad, almost naked Yvette climbed all over Luke at the catamaran date? That had been way more skin-to-skin contact than Anna and Luke had ever achieved. Not that the justifications kept the blush from Anna’s cheeks.
‘Anna’s telling the truth. Nothing happened.’
Hadie’s narrowed eyes met Anna’s. ‘It didn’t look like nothing.’
Anna panicked. ‘We were just talking.’ Even if Hadie had been a completely impartial, trusted friend who was not in any way affiliated with Love Elimination, she probably couldn’t admit to or explain what had just happened.
‘About what?’
They paused, each waiting for the other to speak. Finally Luke took a step towards Hadie, his shirt still askew.
‘I knew Anna was having a hard time being away from home right now. Homesickness, you know?’
‘He was just checking up on me,’ Anna added. The moment she saw Hadie’s face, she knew they’d made a mistake.
‘You are having a hard time?’ Hadie almost screamed. She jabbed her finger in Anna’s direction. ‘Try being away from your two-year-old son for the first time. Try leaving him with your aging mother just to go on some stupid TV show to find the man of your dreams, only to find out that he’s only had his eyes on one girl from the very start.’
‘Hadie—’
‘I should’ve never done this. It’s all a setup, isn’t it? You were chosen before the show even began, or you knew each other already, or you’re an actress who’s just happened to start shacking up with him on the side? Are there cameras in here now? Is this all part of your scripted drama?’
‘No! It’s not like that. None of that is true.’ Anna’s heart beat erratically.
‘Hadie, it’s not like that,’ Luke said.
‘And that’s why you have a phone. And why you keep sneaking away for long periods of time. Just tell me, are you meeting with the producers or Luke? Or both?’
‘I’m not.’
‘Tell me the truth, Anna! Just tell me the truth. Have I been wasting my time, being here? Do you even want a relationship with him at all?’
‘Okay, fine!’ Anna took a deep breath. ‘Luke, you should probably leave now.’
‘Maybe I want to hear what you have to say,’ he replied, dropping back into the couch. He tapped the pillow beside him, gesturing to Hadie. Anna waited until Hadie was sitting on the couch where she and Luke had been getting hot and heavy only moments before.
‘Do you want a coffee, tea, hot chocolate?’ she asked, more to buy time than out of hospitality.
‘No.’
‘Okay then …’ Anna sat down, the plush couch adapting to her shape, and tried to figure out how to tell Hadie the truth but not get herself, or Kate, in trouble. Not to mention dealing with Luke’s reaction.
Their only hope was Hadie keeping her mouth shut. A few days ago, Anna would have trusted her. At this point, Hadie was her third closest friend—after Ben and, weirdly, Luke. The thought caused Anna to pause, distracted from the situation in front of her. She shook her head. Hadie was the only female friend she had that she wasn’t related to—and right now, Kate didn’t feel like a friend at all.
‘You’re right that I’m not a normal contestant.’ The truth spilled out. One word became a sentence, and she spoke until all her secrets had been revealed. The other woman’s eyes grew wide as Anna told her about being roped into the show, how her sister is a producer, and how Luke had found out.
‘But you’re still here,’ Hadie stated as Anna finished.
‘Only because there were people Luke wanted to get rid of quickly. And then, apparently, I became popular on the outside. So they cut me out of the group and single dates, hoping the viewers would forget about me.’
‘So the show is rigged?’
‘Some of it,’ Luke jumped in. ‘Not entirely. I have to keep some of the women here for the ratings, but the winner will be someone I choose. And I get to keep my favourites, obviously.’
‘Do you choose your own dates?’ Hadie asked.
‘Most of the time. But I
often get a shortlist from the producers and I’ll choose from that,’ he replied evenly. ‘Are you okay, Hadie?’
He reached over and rubbed her back. It was the polite, friendly thing to do. It’s what Anna would’ve done. But Anna’s heart tightened, reacting before she could tell it that she didn’t care. It pained her to watch Luke touching another woman.
‘Should I leave you two alone? You wanted to talk to Anna about something, right?’
‘Yeah. Thanks,’ she mumbled. Luke nodded and swiftly left the room.
The moment the door clicked closed, Hadie spoke. ‘Luke picked you for the first date,’ she said in a flat voice. It was so unlike her that Anna moved to where Luke had been sitting and squeezed the other woman’s hand.
‘Yeah, because he wasn’t sure who he liked best yet. So he went with the one person he knew wouldn’t get attached or draw meaning from being the first one invited on a single date. Me.’
The look of uncertainty hadn’t shifted from Hadie’s face. If anything, the crinkles of her frown deepened.
‘He went to so much effort to help you meet your favourite chef. He was trying to woo you.’
‘No. I just really wanted to go home and work on my café renovations—instead of wasting my time on a dating show when I wasn’t interested in love. But they wouldn’t let me be evicted, so Luke took pity on me and tried to make it up to me with that date.’
A thick silence fell between them. Hadie’s thoughts and emotions ran across her face.
‘I’ll be going home this week,’ Anna reassured her, not expecting the pang in her stomach. She told herself that it was Hadie and the adventurous dates that she’d miss. And her friendship with Luke. A small part of her hoped they’d stay in contact after he fell in love and married one of the other contestants, making little humans of his own to join him in the snow.
‘But you’ve fallen in love with him. Haven’t you?’ Hadie set her unwavering gaze on Anna.
‘What?’ Anna stared. ‘No. Of course not.’
‘Yes, you have!’
‘No way. I’m not looking for a husband, or even a casual hook-up. And even if I was, Luke and I are so different.’
‘Don’t lie to me,’ Hadie said in a bossy-mum kind of way. It was the first time Anna had heard that voice from her usually gentle and excitable friend. ‘And no, you’re not. You have different careers, sure. But you have tons of the same interests. You seem to look at the world the same way. And you fit together. That’s probably why you’re the favourite to win—and why the producers won’t let you go home.’
Anna squirmed in the seat, resisting the urge to pull at the threaded edges of the cushions.
‘In fact, your sister probably arranged this whole show to set you up.’
‘Hadie—’
‘She chose well. You two are great together. It’s pretty much the ultimate blind date.’
‘That’s ridiculous! It was a last-minute accident. I am not in love with Luke Westwood. Trust me, I will be going home at the next opportunity,’ she said. ‘Don’t give up on this. You’re the best person left on this show. Luke had better pick you. He’d be lucky to have you.’
‘He’s not interested in any of us, Anna. He only spends time with us when forced,’ she replied. ‘Whenever we’re on group dates, you’re the one he looks for.’
‘That’s totally wrong.’
‘No, it’s not. I’m not the only one who’s noticed. Pretty much all the others talk behind your back. Especially when you were out on that second single date before most of us had had our first.’
‘Coincidence. And there’s nothing better to do in the villa than gossip, speculate and over-analyse.’
‘If it’s so ridiculous, then why was he in your hotel room tonight?’
There was no easy answer to that. The truth was, Anna didn’t know. What had Luke wanted from her? Was he just after a quick lay? As angry as she had been that morning, learning about his promiscuous kissing, she didn’t think he was the playboy athlete she first assumed him to be. So maybe he really liked her? A flicker of something warm lit inside of her. She extinguished it as quickly as it appeared. They wouldn’t work. They couldn’t. Even if her ego needed almost as much convincing as Hadie did.
When Anna didn’t answer, Hadie threw her a guarded look. ‘Maybe you need to do a little more analysing yourself? Figure out what you’re feeling, before it’s too late.’
CHAPTER
16
A small crowd lined the stage behind the cameras facing the women. They were back in Australia and halfway through the second month of filming. Doing this for the billionth time did nothing to improve Anna’s mood—nor that of any of the other women. Hadie bit her lip. Liu Kun looked like she wanted to faint. Jessica tapped her hands against her sides.
Anna wasn’t any better. She couldn’t keep herself from glancing at the screens behind her. Would they play the sound from her kiss with Luke even if they had no footage of it? Would she be facing questions about it? Her hands shook as she wiped them on her dress.
‘Take a seat, ladies.’
The audience cheered, calling out their names, some with greater frequency than others. Anna cringed each time she heard hers, but Hadie’s name was being yelled louder than ever before. As was Yvette’s. As a chant in Yvette’s favour started, Anna looked across and shared a grimace with Jessica, sitting next to her.
The lights dimmed. ‘Attention!’ a voice boomed. ‘We start filming in three, two, one …’
Four assistants held up placards and the audience went wild with applause and wolf whistles. The screen lit up with images of their host, Mason Lockier, and the star of the show, Luke Westwood. Both waved to the live audience and the cameras before Luke descended the steps and took the lone swivel chair opposite the women. He looked across and met Anna’s eye, offering a raised eyebrow and a smile that provoked a heat inside her stomach and lower. A chasm lay between them.
‘Welcome. Tonight we have a treat for you: another interview and episode screening with our five remaining contestants! See their reactions as they watch last night’s episode play out on the screens behind me.’
The crowd yelled and applauded once more, even if they heard the same spiel every week.
‘Now, shall we get started?’
The screens burst into life and the Love Elimination theme song blasted from every speaker. They watched credits: the eliminated and current contestants, interwoven with shots of Luke. Shirtless. Running. Snowboarding. Posing. Laughing. Grinning. The images took Anna’s breath away. She only remembered to inhale as the title appeared.
From there, it only got worse. On the screen, Luke flirted with every single woman. Yvette sank her hands into his arm and placed a kiss on the corner of his mouth. Jessica and Luke stood a mere centimetre apart at the top of a slope. Liu Kun fell into the snow and a laughing Luke helped her to her feet. Then there was Hadie: sharing a slice of cake, learning how to ski, accepting a high five. They were adorable together. Anna was shown disappearing down the off-limits slope with Luke. If she still held it, the position as most popular contestant fell out from under her as she watched. It was written all over the faces of the audience.
Anna had become the resident bad guy.
Then they showed footage from the hotel and Anna’s heart jumped into her throat. The screen showed Hadie sneaking into the pool room. She had the prohibited mobile phone with her. Anna gritted her teeth. Why would Hadie do that? Why wouldn’t she just take the call in her room—in the bathroom if she was worried about cameras? They heard Hadie talking to her mother, then her son. Music swelled as Hadie broke into tears. Her every sob was synchronised with the melancholy backing track. A timer appeared in the bottom right-hand corner of the screen. It jumped forwards by three minutes, ten, fifteen—showing exactly how long Hadie sat there crying after she hung up. How long it took her to recover from hearing her son’s voice.
Pain bit in Anna’s chest. They watched Hadie leave the pool room
and Anna knew where she was going next. To Anna’s room—to her closest friend on the set. The person who had lent her the phone.
The episode ended. The lights returned to full brightness. Anna couldn’t help but glance at Hadie. Her face was hard, eyes staring straight ahead and lips pressed into a thin line. A few rogue tears escaped down her cheeks.
Mason clucked his tongue. ‘It seems we have a rule breaker in our midst.’
The crowd booed, but Anna didn’t see the placard holders doing any prompting.
‘It looks like we’re going to see two women heading home tonight.’
Anna gasped. Her head spun towards Hadie. The other woman’s stony expression hadn’t shifted. She simply nodded at Mason.
‘Hadie. It has been a pleasure having you on the show. But as you know, phones are expressly forbidden on Love Elimination. You have had an unfair advantage over the other women here, women who are also missing their friends and family. Some who have taken leave or quit jobs that they love or depend on. No exceptions can be made, however sad this moment may be.’
‘No,’ Anna breathed. She meant to say it louder, but the glare of the cameras and stare of the audience sapped at her bravery.
‘Do you have any final goodbyes, Hadie?’ Mason asked.
Hadie slid down from her chair. ‘Thank you, Luke, for making me believe in men who can love and accept me and my son. You have been nothing but supportive, kind, considerate, understanding and generous in getting to know about me and my son. You’ve been wonderful. But I know you are not falling for me. You have eyes for another woman.’
Anna stumbled to her feet. ‘No. You can’t evict her!’
The audience whispered to each other and Mason turned his gaze on her, as did the cameras.
‘It’s not her phone. It’s mine.’ Anna looked wildly around the room, trying to catch everyone’s reaction at once. But she got stuck on Luke’s face. His frown was deeper than she’d ever seen it. Despite the chaos around them, his eyes didn’t move from her.