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“We have a competition.” I have to break up the sexual tension in the room. He’s usually the first one to pull away, but today it’s going to be me. I’m going to be strong enough to resist him.
“We have a game to win,” he says as he places both his hands on my cheeks and kisses me full on the lips. His tongue grazes my lips, but before I can open and allow him in, he pulls away.
He wins.
He’s always pulling away.
* * *
The six ofus stand at the back door and wait for it to open. We see what our competition is at the same time so that no one has an unfair strategy. The door opens automatically, giving us each our own vantage point. When I see what’s before us, today’s outfits make sense. The guys are dressed in board shorts, each a different color, and only Cole and Gary wear T-shirts. My husband, of course, has opted not to put one on; either that or the producers didn’t give him one. Amanda, Millie, and I are dressed in board shorts, much shorter than the ones the guys are wearing, and bikini tops. We color match, with Joshua and I wearing Navy blue.
Outside, the backyard has been transformed into a mud pit. The guys rub their hands together when they see this and I can only imagine what is going through their minds right now. Mud wrestling is not something I’ve ever wanted to try.
Millie and Cole step out first, hand-in-hand. Seeing them together like that brings a smile to my face. There needs to be some blissful happiness in here even if it’s not me. Well, it is me because, believe it or not, spending any amount of time with Joshua worth what I’m doing to myself. When this is all said and done, and we walk out those doors, I have these memories that no one can taint or tell me it was wrong. No one knows the agreement we have, or rather the one he’s insisting we have, so technically I can be as free to fall in love with him as much as I want.
Except I want him to fall in love with me, too.
Joshua reaches for my hand and I let him take hold. I welcome the warm tingly feeling I get when he touches me. Just that alone is worth the eventual pain. We walk to where the banner says ‘The Wilsons’ and all I can envision is our Christmas card, and then the immediate let down that we won’t have one. I need to stop dwelling on what I can’t change, and focus on something else.
Like making him fall madly in love with me.
“Newlyweds, welcome to the Pit of Doom.”
The computer voice trails off, exaggerating the word doom as if it’s supposed to scare us. Above us, the skies are blue and the sun is shining. Not exactly something I fear.
“You will enter the Pit of Doom and search for your name. But only one of you out of your pair may enter at any one time. When you find your name, place it on the board and then your spouse may enter. The first couple to retrieve the most names in less than two minutes earns a week in the coveted master suite.”
Josh looks at me and smiles. “We can win this.” I nod in understanding. He has a game plan, and it’s in full effect now. He wanted to wait a week and let everyone settle in before he really started competing.
The bell sounds and I jump in first, shrieking at how cold and gross the mud feels. The mud is knee high and sloppy, making it hard to trudge through.
“Drop down to your knees,” Joshua yells and I hate that I didn’t think of that because now both Millie and Amanda have done the same thing.
“This is so gross,” Amanda whines. I agree, but won’t say anything. I’m focused on the task at hand and that is finding my or Josh’s name. My fingers bump into something hard and I grab hold of it. The suction from the mud, air, and my arm pulling out is like a vacuum. I yank and free my hand, wiping the mud onto my arm and bingo,Joshua & Joey Wilson. I smile at the sight of our names together and hate that the only time I’ll see it is in this house or on my annulment papers.
“That’s my girl,” Joshua yells when I stick the name card up in the air. I try to run using the high knee method. Joshua moves like he’s going to help me, but stands back. He has to wait his turn and while I appreciate it, I don’t want us to get disqualified. I climb out of the mud pit and run to the board, slapping our name up there and in he goes.
I turn around in time to watch Joshua jump into the mud pit. Millie is out now, but Amanda is still looking. Gary is trying to direct her to locations, but he’s unsuccessful. They really ought to work on their teamwork. It’s not all that fair to Gary.
Joshua is back in no time, and I’m slightly jealous that he had an easier time than I did. I jump in, drop to my knees, and trudge across the pit. My arms are submerged and my fingers are grabbing at anything and everything possible. The next card I pull out isn’t ours and I bury it quickly in the mud. I want to win. I want that master suite because with no cameras maybe I can crack Mr. Wilson. The stolen kisses are nice, but I’m going to test him. I’m going to push his limits. I have years’ worth of fantasies to play out in my head. I’m just hoping he’s willing.
The next card I pull out is ours and I make my way back to the edge. I’m already breathing hard, but can’t give up. I slap the card on the board and glance at the others while Joshua is busy finding another. All three guys are in now, but we’re in the lead. Millie is cheering on her husband, while Amanda tries to wipe mud off of her arms. I really hope the viewers are seeing what I am witnessing right now.
“Come on, Josh. You got this, baby.”
He looks at me surprisingly, but the grin on his face tells me otherwise. He liked hearing it as much as I liked saying it. He holds his hand up and tries to move as fast as he can to the edge. The countdown has begun over the loud speaker, ten. . . nine. . . eight. . .
“Hurry,” all three of us yell at the same time. It doesn’t matter because Joshua and I are winning, but the support for your spouse could be a voting boost I suppose. I jump in Joshua’s arms after he puts our name up and the timer goes off. He holds me, mud and all, to his body and kisses me.
I pull away quickly and he sets me down. “We won,” I say, for lack of a better icebreaker.
Cole and Millie come over and congratulate us, as do Gary and Amanda.
“Well, I guess I know what you guys are doing tonight,” Gary adds with a wink. I roll my eyes and deduce that he and Amanda are perfect for each other. She’s vain, and he’s crass. They complement each other perfectly.
“Come on, let’s get cleaned up.” Joshua pulls me toward the outside shower, taking it before anyone else can claim it. He pulls the curtain shut and turns on the water.
“One week in the master suite with a king size bed, Jacuzzi tub, and all the food you can eat. Technically, we don’t have to leave that room for seven days, except for our hospitality comp.” Joshua takes the nozzle off the hook and starts running the water over my skin. The warm water feels good after bathing in mud for the past few minutes.
