“Hey!” Trace giggled and shoved him lightly in the shoulder. “It was hard to focus when you were screaming instructions at me. I don’t work well under pressure.”
He smiled down at her. “Clearly.”
At least one of the pairings was going well.
Hot water—almostscalding—ran down my body as I scrubbed away every remnant of today’s challenge. The girls had been able to do our interviews first this time, and it felt amazing to be able to wash the grime away as quickly as possible. Sighing, I turned around and rinsed the conditioner out of my hair.
Today had been pretty perfect so far.
I had successfully avoided Eli by sitting at the far end of the breakfast table. Then Arnie and I had won the challenge. Even my interview had been the easiest one yet. Brady hardly pressed me at all when I gave short answers; he just asked mehow I felt Arnie and I were doing as a pair, to which I’d responded, “Great.” Then he’d asked if we planned to stick together and I had told him we definitely were. I had expected him to push a bit about Eli, or bring up Michael again, but there was none of that. The whole thing had only lasted ten minutes.
I shut off the shower before stepping out onto the fluffy bathmat.
As I applied my minimal makeup and blow-dried my hair, I thought about how this experience might actually fly by if every day were like today. Arnie and I had become friends, and I could easily see myself getting closer with Trace and Rachel. Maybe Piper had been right all along. This could be good for me. Even though Eli made me a little uncomfortable, he’d be easy enough to avoid if we weren’t partners. I was sure he’d eventually get bored of the chase when he realized I wasn’t budging.
I pulled on my favorite pair of light-wash jeans and a cream and light blue checkered sweater that I’d knitted myself ages ago when I had convinced myself that I needed more hobbies. I played with the soft, worn edge and remembered how Michael had told me I should stick to writing. We had just moved in together and it had been our first winter in that apartment. He had been right, of course. The checkered pattern was littered with imperfections, and I’d discovered that I didn’t have the patience for knitting. But I loved this sweater anyway. It reminded me of that time, and I wore it every winter.
Pulling on my boots, I took one more look in the mirror before leaving the peace of my room. My stomach growled softly. No dinner had been delivered tonight. Since Arnie and I had won the challenge, we’d be going on a dinner dateshortly. My mouth watered as I envisioned whatever delicious feast awaited us.
When I arrived in the lounge, Trace and Rachel were already leaning against the bar by the massive windows, pouring themselves drinks.
“Great job today,” Trace said.
Rachel pulled out a third glass from the cabinet. “Wine?”
“Just a little,” I said as I perched on a barstool and took in the expansive mountain views.
Rachel followed my gaze and snorted. “You’d think with such a romantic setting it’d be easier to pretend to feel something.”
“I think you’re just feeling pessimistic because you’re partnered with Grant and he’s already found love with himself,” Trace countered, causing them both to go into fits of laughter.
“You seem to be getting along a lot better with Danny than I was,” Rachel continued as she handed us each a glass of red wine. “He was actually laughing when you lost that challenge and making googly eyes at you.”
Trace ducked her head. “You think? He’s so intense and hard to read.” She peeked over at me for reassurance.
“He seemed totally different with you today,” I assured her.
“You tamed the grizzly bear,” Rachel said before clinking her glass against Trace’s.
Trace beamed. “I don’t want to get my hopes up, but I think there’s something there.”
“There is,” Rachel insisted. “And there’s no way Arnie or Eli is going to steal you and face the wrath of the big guy, so you’ll definitely have a chance to see where things go.”
“Do you really think Eli is going to pick Sofia? Especially since...” Trace trailed off.
“What?” I asked, already not loving the direction of this conversation.
“He just doesn’t seem to like her as much as she likes him,” Trace said carefully.
“Plus, he can’t stop staring at you,” Rachel added bluntly.
“I wasn’t going to say it, but he does look at you a lot,” Trace confessed. “Danny said he wanted you to pick him this last round.”
I guess it was impossible to keep secrets among a group of eight people living together. “He might have said something about that,” I said, trying to be as nonchalant as possible. “But it wasn’t a big deal. I think he just doesn’t want to be paired with Sofia.” I lifted my glass in Rachel’s direction. “Maybe he’ll pick you, Rachel.”
Rachel looked to the floor. “Yeah, maybe.”
The rest of the group filtered into the lounge and saved me from answering more questions about Eli. Of all the girls, Sofia had taken the longest to get ready, and it became clear why as soon as I saw her. It was almost as if she had a full hair and makeup team come in and get her glammed up for a red carpet. She wore a plunging sweater that showed off her assets. She sauntered in, trying to keep pace with Eli, but he barely acknowledged her. Instead, his eyes once again found mine before anyone else’s. I gulped and turned back to Rachel who already had a knowing look on her face.
