Page 13

thirteen

Alice

“Isn’t it beautiful?” I turn my phone and move it so my parents can see the ocean.

I want to show them the house, too, but photos and videos are strictly prohibited by the contracts everyone had to sign. They’ve only been to the beach once, though, so my mom is wowed by the view here.

“I’d. Rather. See. You.” My dad’s computerized voice says, responding to the words he pecks out with his hand.

I put the camera back on my face. “Okay, me again!”

“I can’t believe you get to wake up there every day, honey,” my mom says, wonder in her tone. “It’s like a painting.”

After sunrise yoga, Dalton locked his gaze onto mine and gave me a secret wink. It filled me with happiness, and it made me realize something.

Farrah can be ridiculous, but I also let her take advantage of me. I told her to text me after her workout so I could make her breakfast. Instead of spending her workout time taking a five-minute shower and prepping things for her, I took a walk so I could FaceTime my parents.

“I miss you guys,” I say as I walk toward the pier.

“We miss you, too,” Mom says, wistful. “But we know you’re having adventures and making memories, and we’re so proud of you.”

“Does Dad have therapy today?”

“He has speech therapy at eleven fifteen.”

“How’s that going, Dad?”

He types out an answer. “Still. Sound. Like. A. Computer. When. I. Speak.”

I smile, glad he’s still cracking jokes. “I think you should go on the road, Dad. Make a stand-up routine and kill with these jokes every night.”

He types, his brow furrowed with concentration. “The. Stand. Up. Part. May. Be. A. Challenge.”

“There’s your angle. The world’s first sit-down comic.”

There’s a ringing sound in the background and my mom cringes slightly. “That’s the home nurse, honey. We have to go.”

“Okay, bye guys!” I wave at them and blow a kiss. “I love you.”

“Love you, too,” Mom says.

I wait for Dad to finish typing out a message to me. “Keep. Shining.”

I blow him another kiss and end the call, tears flooding my eyes. He’s been saying that to me since I was a kid and it warms me like I just got a hug from him.

As I head back toward the beach house, I feel lighter. This was exactly what I needed. Now I’m ready to really start my day. It’s not a crazy busy day, but now I have a new challenge: pretending I’m not replaying that kiss on repeat and thinking about Dalton.

That evening, I’m still in a daze as I park the Bronco and walk to the beach house. The day took a very unexpected turn when Alex switched up the filming schedule. Farrah had an appointment at a local spa for a massage, facial and pedicure, but instead, she and the other contestants were sent on a scavenger hunt as a competition for the show.

It would be an understatement to say she was unhappy. But she did it, and she told me to take her appointments at the salon.

I felt guilty as I was being treated like an A-lister at a posh salon, getting polished and buffed and pampered. If she knew about that kiss last night...

She doesn’t, though. I moved past the guilt at the start of the hot stone massage, which was basically heaven on earth.

“Girl...” Misty’s eyes widen when I walk into the sunny, plant-filled great room.

“How was it? I haven’t heard from Farrah and I’m getting worried.”

“She came in next to last in the scavenger hunt. I heard she got mobbed for autographs at a shopping center.”

“Oh, crap.”

She wanted me to go with her, but Alex told her no way. The other contestants didn’t have assistants helping them, so she couldn’t, either. That’s how I ended up at the spa.

Misty looks over both shoulders to make sure no one is nearby, and then she breaks out into a huge grin. “I have a date with Dom tonight!”

“Good! So you’ve changed your mind about him?”

Her gaze turns dreamy. “Yeah, I have. He’s actually...soulful. He plays his guitar and sings for me, and he’s a literal rock star in bed.”

“I’m happy for you.”

She whispers the next part. “Farrah has a date with Josh Sellers.”

My jaw drops. Farrah will be on the warpath for sure. The rising star politician isn’t someone she has any interest in a date with. “Oh, God. I better go find her.”

“Good luck.”

Steeling myself, I go to Farrah’s room, where I find her sprawled out starfish style on the bed. She turns her head in my direction as I come into the room and close the door.

“Worst fucking day ever. EVER.” She covers her face with her hands and groans. “I didn’t even have time to text you because they had me racing all over the place looking for the stupidest shit imaginable. I was so sweaty. And now I have to go on a date with Josh .”

She sits up, glowering. “How was the spa?”

I hesitate. “Oh, you know. It sucked. There was a power outage and I had an allergic reaction to the facial.”

Her brows hike up. “Really?”

“No.”

A laugh bubbles out of her. “You always know how to make me laugh. I wish you could’ve been there with me. I would’ve come in last place on purpose. It’s not like I care about winning a scavenger hunt. Dalton and JP competed like it was the Olympics.”

Dalton. My stomach flips just from the mention of his name. “Did one of them win?”

“No, Josh did. Dalton was doing great, but then, apparently, he couldn’t find a place that sold strawberry ice cream. How easy is that? There’s an ice cream place on every block. So he doesn’t get a date tonight.”

I keep my expression neutral, not letting my relief show.

“I shouldn’t even shower before this date,” she says. “I should just make him inhale my funk all night long.”

“That’s one approach.”

She sighs dramatically. “I’d have to smell myself all night long, though. I’ll shower, but I’m not wearing perfume and I want you to find me something super unflattering from the wardrobe department.”

“Um, a bedsheet is flattering on you.”

“True. But you know what I’m saying. Find something that doesn’t show any cleavage. We’re going mini golfing.”

I fight a smile. She’s going to hate that.

“Don’t you dare laugh.” She scowls. “I can’t believe I agreed to do this stupid show. Touching a sweaty golf club someone else just used when we could be on a yacht in France.”

“I’ll make sure the production people have a new golf club for you.”

“Fine. I’m taking a shower.”

I close the door to her room, waiting until I’m halfway down the hallway to laugh. She’ll have to pretend she’s having fun for hours, which won’t be hard for an actor. And I get the evening off.

Which I deserve. And I’m going to enjoy it.

Dinner at the house that night is a taco bar. I load up two soft shells with meat, cheese and toppings, adding chips with queso and salsa on the side. I’m sitting on one of the patios with dinner, a glass of wine and a book when a deep voice says, “May I join you?”

It’s Dalton, and there’s a gleam in his eye. I nod, excited and anxious at the same time.

He leaves an empty seat between us, setting down a plate overflowing with tacos and a glass of iced tea.

“Sweet or unsweet?” I ask him.

“You mean me or the tea?”

A smile tugs on my lips. “The tea.”

“Unsweet.”

“What is it with you and sweets? I hear you had trouble finding ice cream today.”

He shrugs. “I choked. Could’ve been out on a one-on-one tonight, but I had no idea where to look for strawberry ice cream.”

My heart leaps. His tone confirms what I already suspected; he deliberately lost today so he could be here. No matter how much I tell myself to stop playing this dangerous game with him, I can’t.

It feels too good. It’s been so long since I did something just for me. Years. And even then, it was never anything like this. Being with Dalton is heady and indulgent. There’s a buzz between us that makes my skin heat and my heart pound.

Some of the other contestants are swimming, yelling as they splash water on each other and line up bottles and cups to make a swim-up bar.

“You feel like taking a walk?” Dalton asks me.

I look away. “Yeah, but I don’t think we should.”

“Yeah, guess not.” He stands up, and I get a sinking sensation when I realize he’s leaving.

“I need to return an email from my agent and I have to do it from my laptop because of security.” He glances over his shoulder, making sure no one is close enough to hear him. “So if I happen to come by your room around eight, will you be there?”

I should say no, but I don’t even consider it. Instead I just nod, not trusting my voice.

His gaze darkens slightly, raking over me like a long, sensual stroke. He picks up his plate and glass from the table, then comes over and takes mine, too.

“See you soon,” he murmurs, his lips hardly moving.

I’m so worried about giving away my excitement that I force my mind onto something bland. My grandma used to knit hats. I make a mental inventory of every hat she knitted for me and Will. My favorite one was pink and purple with a giant fuzzy ball on top. He didn’t have a favorite; he pretended to love the hats in front of her and then pulled them off and stuffed them into his pockets before anyone at school could see them.

Okay, that helped. I sigh heavily, feigning boredom, and scroll on my phone. Inside, I’m doing jumping jacks, though.

I got all of Farrah’s spa treatments today. I’m fully polished, waxed and moisturized. Even if Dalton just wants to hang out and talk, I at least smell nice.

My heart is galloping at full speed, though, because I’m hoping he wants more than that.

I know I do.