They settled into the cabana around a fruit platter sitting on a low bamboo table. On it were fanned pineapple slices, a whole passion fruit cut open into a heart, and a juicy mango that looked like it would be messy to eat.
Skye plucked a piece of pineapple and bit into it. She had no idea what to say first or what questions to ask. Her mind was blank. Which was funny, since she was usually the one feeding lines to bachelorettes when things got awkward. She could practically smell Marla’s irritation from the tent over.
“So, how’s the villa?” Skye asked finally when Nova reached for a slice of mango.
“Hot,” Nova replied. “But in a good way. The villa is beautiful. Everyone is friendly, and I haven’t cried on camera yet, so I feel like I’m doing just fine, to be honest.”
Skye gave a polite chuckle. “You’re off to a strong start.”
Nova grinned. “You laugh, but I swear two of the contestants were already whisper-fighting this morning in the kitchen.”
“Classic day two tension,” Skye said before she could stop herself. That was exactly the kind of comment someone from the production tent would make. Certainly not a comment the bachelorette would make.
“Is that a real thing?”
Skye cleared her throat and glanced down at her knees, hoping she looked apologetic enough to avoid Marla’s wrath later. She had to fix this, and she had to do it now. “From what I’ve seen in previous seasons,” she added. “Day two is usually when the novelty wears off and people start realizing they’re actually trapped in a house full of strangers trying to date the same person.”
Nova laughed, and Skye would’ve sighed in relief if the cameras weren’t rolling.
“So, I heard you live in a van.”
“Who told you that?”
Skye winced inwardly.Fuck. How was she messing up this badly? Once again, she had said something she wasn’t supposed to know. The fact that Nova lived in a van with her Pitbull Athena and travelled cross country was in the woman’s bio. Bachelorette Skye would never have known that, not unless someone had told her.
“Amy,” she said quickly, because that would be something Amy, the most bubbly contestant, would probably have shared at some point. “How is that? Living in a van,” she added, hoping she had sounded convincing enough.
“It’s definitely an adventure,” Nova replied, not at all suspicious. “Small space. Lots of freedom. Plus, I get to travel wherever I want, which is great for my work as a freelance photographer.”
“What kind of things do you photograph?” Skye asked, though she already knew the answer. Dogs. The woman photographed dogs.
“Dogs,” Nova replied, smiling.
Even though she had no interest in knowing more, Skye was about to ask more in-depth questions about it when a sound somewhere in the distance suddenly caught her attention. A buzz of sorts. Or maybe something raspier, like an engine revving nearby.
She squinted into the bright sun right in time to see two jet skis cutting through the sparkling water. At first, Skye thought it was a staged stunt by the production team for a promo shot. But then she saw two contestants on the boats. One had sandy blonde hair whipping wildly behind her, and the other had brown hair tied in a ponytail that was swinging like a helicopter rotor.They were headed right toward them.
Skye had no idea what the hell was happening. This was not part of the carefully planned activities agenda. Therehad been no mention of jet skis, no impromptu date crashing during yesterday morning’s agenda. She squinted harder, trying to focus, to make sense of what was going on. Had she missed something? Was this a Marla thing to spice things up?
And then Marla’s voice rang out from the side. “Plot twist, ladies! It’s a challenge. Lucy and Charlotte are racing for a chance to steal the date. First one to the dock gets to take Nova’s place!”
Nova choked on her mango slice, her brown eyes wide. “Wait,what?”
Skye stood up, her legs moving of their own accord.
The jet skis thundered forward. The engines roared. Lucy and Charlotte leaned hard into the turns, splashing seawater everywhere.
It was close. Neck and neck. But with a final burst of speed, Lucy somehow managed to pull ahead and slammed her jet ski into shore first. Charlotte skidded in seconds later, clinging to the handlebars.
Lucy half-jumped, half-fell off the thing, and hit the sand with a wide grin on her face. Her feet sank slightly as she staggered forward. Water was dripping from her shorts, and her hair was plastered to her neck. She looked both windswept and giddy and so obnoxiously pleased with herself that Skye couldn’t help smiling wide. Too wide.
Then, before Skye could react, Lucy stumbled into the cabana and threw her arms around her neck.
“Hell yeah!” Lucy breathed, looking pumped. “That was so damn fun! Can’t remember the last time I was on a jet ski.”
She was dripping wet, warm, and sun soaked. Her arms were tight around Skye’s neck, not awkward, not hesitant, but full body, like they’d known each other for years.
Skye hugged her back. It was reflexive, of course, but her hands paused at her waist and smoothed up her back. The movewas just enough to register the lovely shape of her body, and just enough to feel how hot she really was. And before she knew what had come over her, Skye wasinhaling.
