Page 78 of Surviving Love

“No, Sherry said so.”

“Oh.” To be honest, I was kind of dying to see the photo myself. I wasn’t sure why. It would probably only hurt even more to put a face to his wife and kid.

“Maybe we should bring it up in front of everyone. See what he says.”

I grimaced. “You think so? That would be super awkward. Especially since Jack obviously wanted to keep his family a secret.”

“I just can’t figure out what the big deal is. So what if he’s married? I’m married, and I’ve never hidden that fact. Did he plan on seducing the women on the show to help keep him here? Maybe he figures if they know he’s married, it’ll cramp his style?”

I had a bad taste in my mouth as I grumbled, “I wouldn’t put seduction past him. I think he’ll do whatever it takes to win.”

Harold laughed sheepishly. “I mean, so will I, to be honest. But I still don’t get what his angle could be with the wife and kid thing.”

“He has one, I’m sure. Jack works all the angles.”

“Yes.” He studied me. “Sherry won’t be on board with voting Jack off. Whatever plan we come up with, we’ll have to hide it from her.”

“I agree.”

“Lydia says she can get Rob on board.”

It bugged me to have to work with Rob and Lydia again, but if I wanted to vote Jack off the show, we’d need numbers. “When our tribes merge, I think Larry will work with us.”

“I suspect the merge is coming in a week or so.”

“Do we have to wait until the merge to get rid of Jack?” I hoped not. Having him around was difficult. Sleeping next to him did funny things to me, and I’d prefer it if he was just gone.

“I’ll need time to figure that out. There’s the two of us, and Rob and Lydia for sure. We need one more for a majority.”

“Mary is loyal to Jack.”

“Agreed. I think there might be some wriggle room with Billy. He’s no fan of Jack’s.”

I gave Harold a suspicious look. “Promise you’re not setting me up? For all I know, Jack and you are testing me again.”

He laughed, and his face flushed. “No. This is real, kid. It occurred to me the other day that evenIwas being charmed by Jack. I was just going along, basically acknowledging he’d beat me in the end. I swear, the guy could charm a porcupine out of its quills.”

“Yes,” I said softly. “He’s dangerous.”

“We’d better head back. Jack is probably already suspicious.” He sighed. “I’ll talk to Billy and feel him out. If he agrees to vote with us, we’re golden.”

“Okay.”

“I’ll go back first. See you in a bit.”

“See ya.” I watched him go, annoyed that I felt guilty at plotting behind Jack’s back. He deserved this. He’d played me like a cheap fiddle. Of course I resented being used. Naturally, I’d want revenge.

I was tired after the challenge, and I decided to go back to camp and nap. When I got to camp, Jack was talking to Sherry down by the beach. I rolled my eyes and climbed into the shelter. The sound of the waves and the conversations around camp were lulling, and I found myself drifting off.

I didn’t know how long I slept, but when I opened my eyes, Jack was kneeling over me, holding the machete and looking troubled. Shocked to see him, I scowled. “What do you want?”

He held out his hand. “Don’t move, Mason.”

Frowning, I started to ignore him, but something about his expression stopped me. “What’s wrong?”

“There’s no need to panic.”

Feeling breathless, I whispered, “Why would I panic?”