Chapter Eleven
“Are you going home?” Tyler paced the confines of his bedroom, his phone glued to his ear. The idea of Suzy leaving had him dragging his hand through his hair. Damn, his bloody hand was shaking.
“I’m not meant to tell you.”
“Please, put me out of my misery.” Tyler strode from his bed to the door and back, his nerves not allowing him to stand in one spot.
“Jasmine is going home.”
Elation soared then plummeted to the bottom of his gut. “Nolan picked you.”
“Yeah, I’m still in shock. So is Jasmine. She accused me of trading sex for my place on the show.”
“You’re having sex with me.” The possessive nature of the words flooded him with satisfaction. Huh, he was doing a caveman act—doing everything except beating his chest.
“Last night I thought Nolan suspected something.” Suzy paused. “I guess I was wrong.”
“You think Nolan is serious about you?”Over his dead body.
“I don’t know what to think.”
“Can you meet me tomorrow?”
“I’m sorry. If it’s fine tomorrow, we’re filming outside. The cameraman wants some farm scenes.”
“We haven’t had our date yet,” Tyler said. “Are you free tomorrow night?”
“The drive-thru isn’t on until the weekend.”
“No, wait. The show is tomorrow. I want to watch it. Friday night,” he said. “I’ll ring Nolan and ask him myself.”
The next day
“Do you know who Nolan picked?” Josie settled on the couch beside Tyler.
“Yes.” Tyler drummed his fingers on his thigh and waited for the reality show to start.
“Is it the same girl you’re meeting most days down by the dam?” Eric said.
Tyler’s fingers stilled. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Ooh, he’s good,” Josie said to her husband. “Just the right edge of innocence and surprise. If I didn’t know him well, I’d think we were way off beam with our assumptions.”
“Katey likes her. So do we,” Eric said.
“Nolan likes her too,” Tyler snapped.
“But you’re the one she visits in secret,” Josie said.
“I don’t want to sneak around. I don’t like it.”
“So you are serious about the girl,” Eric said with a healthy slice of satisfaction.
“The show is starting,” Tyler said. “From what Suzy says, we don’t want to miss a thing.” Eric and Josie exchanged a knowing glance, and even the fact they knew the truth didn’t settle the angst riding his gut. He needed to see, to hear what Nolan said on the show, how he worded his picks.
“Welcome to the knockout show,” Hailee cooed. “It’s been a very tense week down on the farm for our contestants and farmers. First, we’ll go to Graham in the far south and see which girls he’s picked to stay at the farm.”
Tyler’s fingers started into motion again, impatience fueling his need for movement.
