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six

ERIN

The tension eased over the next few days.

The rain didn’t.

It got crazy windy a few times, enough so that it tore apart the leaves over the top of our shelters, but the men rebuilt them stronger with bamboo.

Waking up on top of Rhett’s erection every day kept my pheromones from easing up, despite the utter misery of the rain, but the men were avoiding me too thoroughly to wreak more chaos.

So, I kept to myself.

It was kind of lonely.

Or a lot lonely.

And it gave me way too much time to think about the fantasies I kept having of me and Rhett.

That was going to be a problem in the long run if I couldn’t stop it… but hopefully I’d move on. Because the last thing I needed was to choose a man who was going to turn me down at the end of the game.

But there was still plenty of game left.

Too much game left, in fact.

If there was a fast-forward button, you can be sure as hell that I would’ve pressed it.

On the afternoon of day five, we were all packed in a speedboat like sardines, and hauled off to an island nearby.

When we saw a huge, square area full of what was undoubtedly mud, I grimaced.

Just what we needed—more of a mess.

The rain was still coming down endlessly. My skin was a wrinkled mess, cracked and bleeding in more than a few spots, and the only time I stopped shivering was when I was pressed up against Rhett at night.

It was already hellish.

Why not throw in a little mud to make it worse?

I slumped down on the bench provided for me, pulling my legs up and holding them against my chest as the men lined up in front of Jordan.

He was in just as terrible shape as the rest of us, though the fae seemed to be handling it better than I was.

“The second challenge is mud wrestling,” Jordan said, flashing the guys a grin that looked genuine despite the hell we were all going through. “The top two will fly with Erin to a spa nearby, and spend more than twenty-four hours relaxing indoors, with all the food they can stomach.”

“Indoors, as in, out of the rain?” Harker asked, eyes glittering with hope.

Maybe the guys were suffering as much as I was, minus the shivering.

“Yup,” Jordan confirmed.

“What kind of food?” Rhett asked.

“We have chefs there to make whatever you want.”

The steel that set into Rhett’s eyes told me he was going to play this time.

A few guys exchanged grimaces.

They must’ve put that together too.

No one had told me much—they mostly avoided talking to me—but I’d gotten the impression that Rhett wasn’t someone that anyone messed with. He was at least strong enough that he’d been chosen to guard Molly during her season.

Kyle grinned. “Let’s get this show on the road.”

The groans that echoed from two of the smaller guys said everyone knew who was going to win.

And sure enough, when the wrestling began, Kyle and Rhett destroyed everyone else. It wasn’t even a competition.

An hour after the challenge began, Rhett had me crushed against his grumbling chest as he, Kyle, and Jordan took off from the beach.

I didn’t mind at all, because I was finally going to get dry.

The spa was a small building just off the beach of a massive island. The building looked new enough for me to think the Society had paid to have it built themselves.

I didn’t ask where in the world it was.

I didn’t really care, honestly.

Just wanted to get out of the rain.

Rhett landed on the smooth porch, shifting his wings away as the roof over our heads protected us from falling water.

Jordan led us inside, and a friendly woman gave us a quick tour of the place.

There was a mud bath—hard pass—and a sauna—harder pass—in one room. Three massage tables in another.

A bedroom with a gigantic bed across from a large TV in a third.

A luxurious bathroom with a big jacuzzi tub and a bigger shower in a fourth.

My eyes landed on the towels first.

Fuck, I wanted to dry off, but they were clean and I was not.

“Go take a shower,” Kyle said, waving me toward the bathroom. “We’ll finish the tour and wait our turns.”

“All there is left is a kitchen and small dining area,” the woman said pleasantly. “It’s not a problem to show Erin the way afterward.”

“Thank you.” Though my words were for her, my eyes were on Kyle.

I needed it.

Badly.

I’d shower fast, so they weren’t waiting too long.

He dipped his head, and was still grinning when I shut the bathroom door behind me.

I ignored the hell out of the mirror, not wanting to see what I looked like. I didn’t need it to know I looked like shit.

My sports bra, t-shirt, and running shorts were on the floor in a heartbeat, and I stepped beneath the falling water without waiting for it to warm up.

It heated quickly, and I fought a groan when I finally soaped up my hair and scrubbed the sand off my body.

Blissful.

It was blissful.

Though I enjoyed it, I really wanted to be dry, so I didn’t stay in any longer than the time it took to get clean.

Stepping out, I couldn’t suppress my groan when I wrapped myself in the towel.

The water was finally leaving my skin.

Finally.

I felt so good when I was done drying off, my hair up in a towel, that I almost cried.

Maybe I should chop my hair off before I went back into the game.

Did the spa have scissors anywhere?

I’d have to ask. Long hair was shit in constant rain. It dripped on me even more than the trees.

Anyway, there were three folded piles of clothing on the countertops, each with a nametag label over the top.

My fingers skimmed the fabric of mine.

A gray cotton underwear set, and a matching robe.

Perfect.

I pulled them on without hesitation, the dry fabric feeling luxurious on my skin.

It might’ve been the best day of my life.

The best day of my month, for sure. Maybe the best day of my year, considering how shitty things had been.

After giving myself a minute to take it all in, I finally slipped out of the bathroom and walked toward the smell of cooking food.

I found Kyle chatting with Jordan at a four-person dining table. All three men had large plates in front of them, and though the plates were empty, there were signs that there had been food on them at some point.

“Sorry, I tried to be quick,” I said, taking the empty seat. There was no plate in front of it, but I could hear food sizzling behind a door nearby.

“No need to apologize. We’ve been having a good time,” Kyle said, patting his chiseled abdomen. “The chef is fucking fantastic. Go ahead, Rhett.”

Rhett left silently.

I couldn’t stop my gaze from tracking him out of the room.

“You like him,” Kyle said, as soon as Rhett was gone.

I didn’t answer, assuming he was talking to Jordan about whatever they’d been discussing earlier.

“Erin,” he said.

“Hmm?” I looked over.

“You like him. Rhett.” He nodded in the direction Rhett had gone.

My face heated, though I tried to prevent it. “Bullshit.”

Kyle grinned. “I was awake the morning your pheromones started. They started because of him.”

“Like hell they did.”

He laughed. “Don’t bother denying it. I’m on your side here.”

I scoffed. “You’re competing to win me like a prize, asshole.”

“If it was that simple, I would’ve won the last season.” His grin widened. “I’m competing to get to the end. You might be the prize, but you’re also the only one who awards it.”

“So?”

“I got to the end with Cameron and Molly. I’ve figured out how this game works.” He nodded toward me. “So, we should make a truce.”

“A truce ?” My voice raised, slightly incredulous.

“A truce,” he agreed. “I’ll do what I can to get Rhett to the end, and continue convincing everyone that he’s not a risk for as long as I can. In exchange, if you can’t convince him that you’re worth staying alive for, you pick me.”

“Why would you ever agree to that?”

“Because I’ve been friends with Rhett for a long-ass time, and I don’t want to watch the bastard fade when there’s a woman interested in him. And if he doesn’t mate with you, I don’t think he’s living long enough to play another round.”

My stomach clenched. “He doesn’t want me.”

“He doesn’t know what he wants. Hasn’t since Kellie broke his heart. Give him a reason to live, and he’ll be the best fucker you could ask for. You’ve seen how much the other guys on the island respect him. You know that’s true.”

“I don’t know him well enough to make a decision like that right now.”

Kyle nodded. “I get it. You can take some time to think about it; I won’t tell anyone what I’ve realized. Let me know when you make up your mind.”

The door to the kitchen opened, and a new woman came out with three massive plates of food. She smiled at all of us, not batting an eye at Rhett’s absence, and left the food with the three of us.

The conversation ended as we dug in.

And damn, I could get used to staying at the spa.

Rhett returned before I’d finished my plate. He took Kyle’s seat and remaining food.

After sharing an island and eating off leaves while rain poured on us for days, a few germs were the least of our worries.

“Enjoy,” Kyle called over his shoulder as he left. “I’m going to take a long-ass bath. Don’t wait up.”

We ate in silence until the food was gone, then leaned back in our chairs. With my belly so full, I was starting to get tired.

“So, Chaos,” Rhett said, his voice rough in a way I loved.

I needed to stop loving it, but that didn’t change the situation any.

“So, Rhett,” I drawled.

His lips curved upward just the tiniest bit. It was like the laughter I’d gotten out of him a few times—so quiet, it was hard to identify.

“You never told me why you were so focused on wreaking havoc. Or why you stopped.”

“I paused because of the rain,” I said. “It’s hard to come up with brilliant plans while you’re suffering.”

“Of course.”

“And you never told me why you’re so against taking a mate after the last one broke your heart.”

I watched for a flinch, waiting for a reaction, but Rhett didn’t seem triggered at all by my words.

He just studied me.

It made me feel kind of naked, even though I was damn sure I was wearing a gloriously soft robe.

Finally, he dipped his head. “Most of the guys would tell you I’m still in love with her. Kellie.”

“I’m not asking most of the guys.”

“You’re not,” he agreed. “And I’m not in love with her. Haven’t been for a long time. She was disgusted by what I was. I was too, for a while.”

“Then why are you against it?”

His gaze lingered on the wall behind me. I itched to look back, to see if there was a painting or something, but didn’t want to risk shutting him up by doing so.

“It was always a battle,” he finally said. “I’d ask her what she wanted for dinner, she’d tell me she didn’t care, and then she’d be upset that I hadn’t realized she wanted Chinese. She’d ask me to plan a special date night, I’d spend a few hours trying to come up with romantic shit, and she’d be disappointed when we got home because what I planned wasn’t what she’d envisioned.”

He let out a long breath. “The way I folded her laundry when I did it with mine wasn’t exactly how she wanted it. The food I made for dinner wasn’t what she happened to be craving. I woke up too early on the weekdays. Too late on the weekends. I made more money than her, which bothered her, but when I tried to pay for things, she insisted I was insulting her. The only thing we weren’t shit at was sex.”

If he was anywhere near as good as my fantasies, I didn’t have a problem believing that much.

“So, the summary of your reasoning is…” I trailed off, wanting to hear him explain his thoughts.

“I don’t want to spend eternity like that,” he said bluntly. “When she threw the engagement ring at me and walked away, it hurt—but I was relieved. So fucking relieved. I’d rather fade than land myself in another relationship.”

Well, that was… not what I was expecting him to say.

“I’m not exactly the poster-child for safe, happy relationships, but you do know that it’s not always like that, right? There’s therapy. There’s learning how to communicate. If she had been willing, you could’ve gotten there.”

He shook his head. “Not with her.”

“She obviously wasn’t the right person for you. But just because she was shitty, doesn’t mean all women are. Letting yourself die because you’re afraid to risk more pain seems like the coward’s way out to me.

Anger flooded his eyes. “I’m not afraid .”

I lifted an eyebrow. “You got thrown off the horse, and you didn’t get back on. It’s absolutely your right not to, but don’t lie to yourself. Fear is fear.”

“You don’t understand,” Rhett bit out.

I laughed humorlessly. “I grew up watching my mom’s boyfriend abuse her in every way. Experiencing him abuse me, too. I’m Chaos because I have no choice but to marry a stranger, and I’m fucking terrified that I’m going to end up paired off with someone just like the monster who haunts my childhood. If a little havoc weeds out a few of the weaker men, then yeah, I’m going to wreak as much as possible.” I stood up, pushing my chair back as I did. “I’m calling it a night. Enjoy your food.”

With that, I left him at the table alone.

Jordan had to follow me.

Part of me hoped that Rhett would too, but he stayed where he was, undoubtedly still pissed off that I’d called him out for being scared.

He could be as angry as he wanted—he wasn’t the one who was being forced to mate with someone he didn’t know. Someone who was bigger and stronger than him in every single way.

My fingers still itched for scissors, to chop through the wavy mass of my hair, but staying up to cut it would likely lead to another conversation with Rhett.

So, I let myself retreat.