The Leftover

by Brooke Williams

  Megan leaned away slightly as Kat squealed and pressed against her side.

  “When it’s not your turn, you can get to know one another better.” Wendy winked dramatically. “You never know what time away from the group can do for your game.”

  Megan felt Andrew’s eyes run down her body and her skin crawled.

  “Who’s up for a ride?” Wendy hopped in her dune buggy and Andrew swiftly jumped into the front seat. Megan and Kat sat on the bench seat behind them and folded their legs into the small space available. They gripped the cross bars so they wouldn’t fly off. “Let’s do it! Wendy Weathersby over and out.” Wendy floored the pedal, showering Megan’s sandals and legs with sand. Megan hastily pulled her knees up and shook her feet as they rocketed toward the parking lot . . . and the warm, fresh water that waited.

  Chapter Fourteen

  When they arrived at the shower, Kat insisted Andrew take the first turn. “He’s the best dressed man on the beach, after all,” she said with a wink at Megan.

  Megan could see his legs under the makeshift shower and averted her eyes when he flung his tie over the side. She didn’t want to see any more than she already had.

  “I wasn’t sure you were going to pick me,” Megan admitted as Kat tapped her nails against her leg.

  “Were you going to pick me if you won?”

  “Of course,” Megan reassured her. No need to make enemies. “But I knew there wasn’t much chance of that.”

  Kat smiled knowingly. “Yeah, I suppose not.”

  Megan frowned. What did that mean?

  “What can you tell me about Carson?” Kat scratched her cheek with a manicured nail.

  “Carson?”

  Kat gave her an are-you-serious look. “You know, one of the guys you’re sleeping with in the lean-to.”

  “Carson, of course. Carson.” Megan was beginning to understand there was an ulterior motive to Kat picking her for the reward. Carson was a good looking guy—blond, strong jawed, and well built. Of course he would catch Kat’s eye. “Carson’s great. He’s a PE teacher and coaches a local Little League team too.”

  Kat rolled her eyes. “I know all that. Is he single?”

  Megan squinted into the sun. “I . . . well, he’s not wearing a wedding ring.” She didn’t want to admit that she had yet to speak directly to him.

  Kat cackled and bumped her shoulder against Megan’s. “I like the way you think, girl. If he’s not married, he’s free for the taking.”

  “I didn’t say–”

  “And you’re right. Girlfriends come and go. Even some wives too, I suppose.”

  “I really don’t know if he’s seeing anyone or not.”

  “Thanks for the info, Megan. I’m going for it.” Kat sat back and started examining her nails, which had held up surprisingly well after digging in the sand for the puzzle.

  Megan made a face, wondering what poor Carson was in for. Andrew stepped out of the shower with a towel around his waist.

  “Now that,” he said with a grin, “was refreshing.”

  His exposed hairy chest was too much for Megan, who blushed and stared at her feet. She hadn’t enjoyed his business suit, but it was better than near-nakedness.

  “Sorry. Am I offending you, Megan?” he asked with sarcasm in his voice.

  “No offense taken,” she mumbled. “Just trying to protect myself.”

  “Protect yourself?” Andrew scoffed, and his feet came into view as he stepped closer to Megan. “Now that you’ve seen the goods, you don’t think you’ll be able to keep your hands off me, is that it?”

  Megan blinked. “Not exactly.”

  “Get a grip, Andrew. She has a crush on Cane.” Kat shoved him away playfully.

  “What? I do not.” Megan’s eyes shot up to glance at Kat as her cheeks turned a dark red. How did Kat know?

  “Come on, I saw the way you stared at him during the first competition. What girl like you wouldn’t want a guy like him?”

  “Trevino, huh? That’s how you like it?” Andrew backed away. “I understand now. I’m too much man for you.” He stepped into the makeshift changing room and dropped the towel. Megan stared daggers at him as his tie flew from the side. She wanted to grab it and pull until it was too tight around his neck.

  “Your secret’s out now, girl. Sorry.” Kat shot the glib comment over her shoulder as she took her turn in the shower.

  When Andrew came around the corner, back in his suit, Megan refused to meet his eyes.

  “Aw, I’m sorry, Megan,” he said, almost sounding genuine. “I didn’t mean to embarrass you.” He sat down next to her and placed his hand on her knee, and when she looked at him, he feigned sheepishness. “Tell you what, I promise not to tell another soul about your little crush if you do a favor for me.”

  “What?” Megan spoke between her teeth. She felt like she was making a deal with the devil and she wasn’t sure she even wanted to hear the terms.

  “You came pretty close to winning that first competition for protection. Of course, I beat you out in the end. But if you were ever to win, I want you to hand protection over to me, no questions asked.”

  “And if I don’t?” Megan seethed.

  Andrew removed his hand from her knee. “I might fall ill just long enough to have a long discussion with our resident medic.”

  Megan stared at the sand below her. She didn’t want Cane to hear she had feelings for him . . . especially from someone like Andrew. He would probably twist it in such a way that Cane would be repulsed and she would be humiliated. It was just a little crush, but still. And Kat had already spilled the beans without having any real proof. There was no telling who else she might tell.

  “Fine. But you have to keep Kat quiet.” She spoke with force.

  “That’s easy.”

  “Then you have a deal,” Megan muttered between gritted teeth.

  “What’s that?” Andrew asked as he adjusted the tie at his throat.

  “I said you have a deal. I win, you win.”

  “Ah.” Andrew patted her knee again. “That’s what I like to hear.”

  Megan stood and summoned every ounce of courage she had. “One more condition.”

  Andrew’s eyebrows rose with interest.

  “Don’t ever touch me again.” Megan turned and stormed into the shower as Kat pranced out and around to the changing area.

  Megan ripped her clothes off and stood under the warm stream of water. She brushed her teeth so hard she was sure one of them would fall out, her thoughts a torrent of emotions and memories.

  She was sick and tired of people like Andrew pushing her around. He was no different than the bullies who had teased her when she got glasses, the jocks who prodded her about her hair, the jerks who shoved her in her gym locker, and the former coworkers who whispered about her behind her back. All her life, she’d bowed to jerks like him just to get through the day, and here she was doing it again. She’d had enough. Her sister had stood up for her enough times that Megan understood how it was done. But Molly wasn’t on the beach with her. It was time for her to take back her power, her life. No more being pushed around!

  Megan reached for the small towel the crew had provided and wrapped it around her body. It barely covered her chest and backside at the same time. She felt renewed after the shower and she was ready to give a piece of her mind to Andrew.

  She pulled back the shower curtain, prepared to lay into both Kat and Andrew. She was grateful to Kat for bringing her on the reward, but that didn’t excuse the way she’d acted either.

  Megan opened her mouth, ready to let them have it, but she was met with a few empty logs. The cameras were gone too. Megan glanced about in confusion and reached for her clothes. Missing.

  Panic welled up in her throat. Think, Megan, think. What would her sister do in this situation? She shook her head. That didn’t help. Her sister would never be in this situation. She was too lovable and popular for anyone to pull a prank like this on her. Even if they did, she’
d probably strut confidently back into camp in her little towel and find the perpetrator. But not Megan. The towel barely covered enough to keep out the breeze, much less allow her comfort in front of a camera. She would have to come up with another solution.

  She had stepped into the changing area to think when she heard the telltale sound of footsteps on the beach.

  “Megan!” the voice shouted. “Megan?”

  Megan buried her face in her palms. Kat and Andrew were evil geniuses. It wasn’t enough to steal her clothes and leave her with nothing but a hand towel. They also had to send Cane running.

  “Are you hurt?” he called as he neared the shower. “What happened?”

  “I’m fine,” Megan called. “Physically,” she muttered under her breath, then spoke at a normal level. “It seems as though my clothes may be in trouble.”

  Cane’s voice came from just outside the curtain. “What?”

  Megan sighed. “Nothing’s wrong with me other than the fact that I don’t have any clothes.” She covered her face with her hands in embarrassment. At least the changing room gave her a bit more shelter to hide from his piercing eyes.

  “They . . . took your clothes?” He paused. “But you’re okay, right?”

  “I’m okay,” she reassured him. The worry in his voice made her smile. He still cared even though she’d grabbed his rear, however inadvertently.

  “I’m gonna kill them,” Cane mumbled.

  “What? No, wait!” Megan peered out the dressing room flap and watched Cane storm away. “Cane, don’t!” That was the worst thing he could do in this situation.

  Megan rushed out of the dressing room and flew to his side. She grabbed his shoulder and turned him to face her.

  His eyes met hers and Megan wrapped her fingers around his arms.

  “Please don’t poke the bear,” she insisted.

  “Poke the bear?”

  “It’s very nice that you want to stand up for me, but if you go after them, it’ll only make things worse. Trust me. I know.”

  “This has happened to you before?”

  Megan glanced down at her towel. “Not this exactly, but things like it.”

  Cane gently clasped one hand around her elbow. “You don’t deserve this, Megan.”

  “I know. No one does.”

  “I didn’t say that,” Cane answered. “I said you don’t.”

  Megan’s eyebrows knit together as Cane’s arm snaked around her waist. He hugged her gently and when he pulled back, he looked into her eyes.

  “You’re a special girl, Megan. Don’t let anyone make you believe anything different.”

  Megan was speechless. Who was this man? He befriended her, promised to be her sounding board, and now wanted to defend her against bullying competitors? She never wanted the swelling emotion in her chest to disappear.

  “I won’t poke any bears,” Cane promised. “But I am going to get your clothes back.”

  Megan’s eyes widened as she backed away from him, acutely aware of the size of the towel. “Oh.” She placed her hands across the small piece of fabric, holding it in place. “Oh yes. Please do.” She slipped back into the changing area and peeked out the flap as Cane shook his head, put his hands in his pockets, and turned back to the beach.

  Megan put the back of one hand against her forehead. Was she swooning? She’d stood half naked before that man twice now and he still managed to make her feel better than anyone else in her life ever had. She didn’t care what happened in the game. He made her feel worth the trouble.

  Could he be right?

  Chapter Fifteen

  Cane pulled the folding chair outside his tent and sat angled toward the bay with his book in his lap. The air was stifling and the tiny bit of breeze was lifesaving. He eyed Kat and Andrew and watched as Megan returned with her clothes in place. He shook his head. Andrew denied it all, but Kat sheepishly returned the clothes when he’d asked. Ridiculous. They were adults, not teenage pranksters.

  It looked like the others were trying to create a boat from branches and some of them were attempting to create a fishing pole. They were all hungry. And with good reason. The crew delivered food to Cane on a regular basis, but so far, nothing to the contestants. At least they had water. Dehydration was more dangerous at this point.

  Cane read the same sentence three times. He couldn’t keep his eyes off the beach scene. More than that, he couldn’t stop thinking about the way he felt when Megan was wrapped in his embrace. She was an entirely different creature than Eva. When he held her, he felt needed, and he’d never experienced that in a relationship before. When he was with Eva, he hadn’t realized that she had never needed him—they would have been good together, but he wouldn’t have completed her. Cane wanted to fulfill something missing in a woman and for that woman to fill something missing in him. He wanted to be someone’s other half.

  He wished he were a camera operator so he could be part of what was going on by the water. Eliminations were looming and he wanted to know who they were talking about voting out. He wished he had a say in the decision.

  Cane returned to his book and was finally engrossed in reading about a new procedure when commotion on the beach caught his attention. Leo was running and waving his hands in Cane’s direction. Cane slammed the book shut and jogged to meet Leo.

  “What’s going on?” Cane asked.

  Leo struggled to catch his breath. “It’s . . . Andrew . . .” Leo made his finger into a hook and stuck his finger in the side of his mouth, acting out the injury. It looked like Andrew had been hooked. Leo pointed toward the edge of the water.

  “Got it, thanks.” Cane picked up speed and broke through the ring of people standing around Andrew near the water. “Coming through. Andrew, are you okay?” He knelt by the man whose suit, though wrinkled, still looked rather decent.

  “Not exactly.” Andrew spoke in a muffled tone.

  The hook was protruding through Andrew’s upper lip and while there was a little blood on his shirt and chin, Cane was fairly certain the damage was superficial.

  “Where did this come from?” Cane asked, examining the hook.

  “It’s mine.” Kat played with the remaining earring in her right ear. The piece of jewelry was fashioned to look just like a fishhook. The only indication that it was indeed jewelry were the small stones on the edge. “It’s pure silver, in case you were wondering. I wore this pair specifically in case we’d need something with a sharp hook.”

  “It’s definitely sharp,” Andrew muttered.

  “How did you hook yourself?” Cane helped him to his feet to move him to the medic tent. He needed to sterilize the wound and remove the hook—er, earring.

  “I didn’t.” Andrew’s menacing stare fell on Megan.

  “They were just plunking the line in the water,” Megan explained. “I thought if we cast it out more like fly fishing, it might attract the fish.”

  “It worked too,” Grace chimed in. “We could see the fish in the water. We didn’t get a bite yet and then Andrew got in the way . . .”

  Andrew’s eyes widened. “This is my fault?” His words were garbled through his swollen upper lip.

  “Come on, let’s get you fixed up.” Cane led the man away by his elbow, glancing behind him to see Megan trailing along.

  “I’m really sorry, Andrew,” Megan said. “I didn’t know you were standing that close.”

  Andrew glared at her. “I’ll send you the dry cleaning bill.”

  Cane opened the tent flap and helped Andrew enter the makeshift emergency room. “It’s okay, Megan,” he reassured her before ducking in behind Andrew. “He’ll be fine.”

  “And his shirt?” she asked. “Dry cleaning can be costly, you know.”

  The twinkle in her eye made Cane wonder if she’d hooked the man on purpose as revenge for stealing her clothes. “I’ll let you know.”

  Andrew rocked back and forth on the cot, examining his lip with his fingertips.

  “Sit still.” Cane pulled gl
oves on his hands and grabbed the disinfectant. He swabbed the liquid on Andrew’s lip and allowed the man a moment to wince. “Okay, I’m going to slide the earring back out. Do you want me to numb the area?”

  “No, I can take it.”

  Cane nodded and grasped the sharp earring. He carefully slid it around Andrew’s lip and popped it out the other side.

  “Ow!” Andrew proclaimed.

  Cane set the hook aside and pressed gauze to the wound. “Hold this,” he instructed.

  “That idiot. Of all the stupid things to do. She can’t catch a man so she goes and hooks one on the beach. Can you believe the nerve?” Andrew’s words were muffled around the gauze.

  “You think she was trying to flirt with you?” Cane asked. A camera had followed them into the tent, and he was certain the producer was eating up this situation. Andrew was opening himself to drama.

  “I have absolutely no interest in her kind.” Andrew straightened his tie, which now had a few drops of blood on it to match the splotch on his shirt.

  “Her kind?” Cane pushed Andrew’s hand away to examine the wound. It would sting, but as long as he kept it clean, it would heal fine.

  “I can have any woman I want. Why in the world would I go for some washed-up geek?”

  Cane blinked. Megan may have been a stereotypical “geek” in appearance due to her wire-rimmed glasses and low-maintenance look, but Cane found her witty and kind. Besides, name-calling was never okay. “I think Megan is very nice.”

  Andrew scoffed. “Do nice girls throw dangerous weapons at people?”

  Cane glanced at the nearby earring. A weapon? He held back the laughter building in the pit of his stomach. “No,” he agreed. “I guess they don’t.” Andrew was acting like she’d run him down on the beach with nunchucks. If the man couldn’t hold up against one tiny little earring, he had more problems than Cane could count. As much as he wanted to make fun of Andrew’s overreaction, he had to remain professional. All he could hope was that the group would get rid of the whiny, tie-wearing Mr. Andrew sooner rather than later. Maybe even that night.

  “I’m going to place a bandage where the earring pierced the outside of your lip. There’s a small tear, but don’t worry—lips are one of the fastest healing areas on the body. You should be as good as new in a day or two.”