“May I?” I ask, gesturing to the harness, acutely aware of the fact that Julia is also on set watching. After all, there was an endless number of waivers for shooting at a zip-lining adventure.
“Yeah, sure, that’s fine,” Catherine says, with a soft laugh, indicating that she also finds this to be fucking absurd.
But Richard isn’t giving us much leeway. Since I refused to do a retake of that shot with Evelyn at the rodeo, I’ve been on his shit list. And he’s been finding every chance to get me to touch someone or stage moments where creative camerawork can tell a story that’s not true.
So while there may not be any kissing or any truly sexual contact, I know what he’s doing. He can create something out of nothing as long as I get down on my knees and make sure that Catherine is strapped in right.
I hate it. I suspect Julia hates it, but she’d never tell me.
She is grinning and bearing it at every turn. And when I ask her if I should stop, she always tells me to just keep going, that we’ll make it through. That she trusts me.
As I crouch and fall to my knees in front of Catherine, I hold out the harness for her to step into before pulling it up her waistand situating it neatly above her hips. I avoid as much actual physical contact as possible.
I try not to freeze up when Catherine’s fingers play with the neckline of my simple white tee. The contact feels a touch too familiar. Especially now.
“Hurry the fuck up!” Richard snaps as he storms over toward his staff member.
Then I sneak a peek at Julia, who’s wearing that same matching workout set she did the day she hiked Prickle Point by herself—and ended up bent over my kitchen counter.
Our eyes meet for a beat. Her expression is blank. She might be better at faking it than I am, because I’m certain my expression right now is pained.
Forcing myself to focus, I look back at the buckle before me, finishing the task at hand.
From above me, Catherine giggles.
“Something funny?” I mumble as I continue working at the straps. As soon as I’m done, someone professional will check them for actual safety, but I’m still putting on a good show of it.
“Yeah, what’s funny is that everyone seems to think you’re going to be able to pick a winner for this show when you’re clearly in love with her.”
Catherine doesn’t look at Julia, but she gives a subtle tip of her head in that direction.
I glance up at her, and shock must be clearly written across my face because she laughs again. Her voice is so quiet that I wonder if I misheard her. We may not be mic’d up right now, but the crew is all around us.
“Oh, you poor thing,” she whispers. “I do not envy you in this position. I’ve read about some sad shit, but this? This might be the saddest.”
I drop my eyes and groan out a pained chuckle because she’s on to me, and there’s no point in denying it. Plus, she doesn’t seem all that upset by the development.
“Sorry,” I say lamely. But I’m not sure what to say to a girl who spent weeks living on my family farm, doing daily activities, all to have me possibly fall in love with her—or at least choose her as the winner.
Catherine smiles. “Don’t be. It’s been… kind of a privilege to watch this whole thing develop. I spotted it early on and thought to myself, how unique to be on a show where we’re all looking for love, and there you are, finding it where you least expect it. That’s just how the world works, isn’t it?”
I stare at her dumbstruck. There’s a thoughtful, tenderhearted vibe about the woman, and I find myself flattered that she’s noticed the connection between Julia and me for so long.
It strikes me that maybe Catherine noticed before either of us did.
“Well”—I dust off my hands—“I don’t know what to say other than that I very much appreciate your mature approach to my being a fucking mess.”
She throws her head back and lets out a hearty laugh before dusting a bug off my shoulder, which I’m sure the cameras will twist into something far more than it is.
“Happy to be of assistance. Now, should we try these things out?” she says, tugging at her harness.
“For sure,” I reply, trying not to be distracted by Richard ranting and raving behind me.
“You’re done. Fired! We just missed that whole conversation thanks to your incompetence. Get the fuck off my set!”
My jaw ticks as I turn to glare at the man. But he doesn’t see me, instead he’s shouting at the drone operators to get close enough to capture audio.
The entire crew has resorted to keeping their eyes downcast, focusing on their tasks and trying to escape his scrutiny. Julia too. Which only makes me want to go check on her.
