“Come on, girls,” Vivian called when none of them had bothered to get off the picnic mat. “We don’t have all day.”
~~
Alexis already had a vague idea of what was coming before she stepped off the deck leading to the pool terrace. The last season ofThe Sapphic Matchhad volleyball as one of the surprise dates, and she half-expected something equally humiliating.
“Our viewers have spoken,” Vivian called, striding to the center of the terrace where all the contestants were standing ready to receive the surprise. “They’ve decided your next challenge is a poolside relay to win Alexis’s heart.”
Everyone clapped, some more excitedly than others, which Alexis knew was mostly for the cameras. Because honestly, grown women did not like to play frivolous games to win anyone’s heart.
“Here’s how it’s going to work,” Vivian said smoothly. “Each station earns points. The contestant with the most points at the end gets to go on a one-on-one date with Alexis.” She gestured to the gaudy obstacle line that production had cobbled together. “Station one: balance beam dash. Cross the beam without falling, grab a heart-shaped pillow and sprint back. Station two: water balloon toss to pop the floating targets.” She gestured again, this time toward the bobbing inflatables shaped like arrows and hearts. “And finally, station three: a quick trivia challenge about our bachelorette. I hope you ladies studied the notes we handed out earlier.”
Alexis suppressed a small groan. So that was what that was for. She hadn’t realized the mortifying Q&A she’d filled out a week ago with questions likeWhat’s your ideal date, your favorite food, etc., had been turned into a trivia quiz.
“And remember,” Vivian went on, glancing smoothly in Alexis’s direction like they were in on a secret together, which they weren’t. “Our bachelorette will be watching each of you closely, so let’s make sure you put your best heel forward.”
Alexis watched as the contestants lined up about fifty yards from the pool’s edge. They faced a balance beam that stretched across the glittering blue water, narrow enough that Alexis was already imagining the production team scrambling for liability waivers. Not that a little risk of injury would stop an activity like this.
Her gaze drifted before she could stop herself. She caught Birdie’s eye. And in that moment she remembered the heat from Birdie’s fingers on her inner thigh, that Dolce Gabbana scent she had smelled on her skin back in that hotel in Portland.The thought was so real, so big, so in her face that Alexis snapped her head away. She turned so fast her neck twinged. And then her gaze landed right in Kinley’s line of sight, who, of course, chose that exact moment to wink at her.
Alexis managed a smile back before she focused on the task at hand as an enthusiastic bachelorette ready to cheer on the contestants.
“Alright, let’s see what you’ve got!” Alexis called, pitching her voice with just the right amount of fake enthusiasm.
“We all like a little healthy competition!” Bianca called back, looking Alexis’s way. “I don’t know if I told you this yet, Lex, but I was an Olympic athlete.” The nickname was not missed. “High jump.” She pointed to her ankle, where Alexis now noticed the ink of five interlocked Olympic rings. “But don’t worry, I’ll take it easy on everyone.”
Several of the contestants behind her exchanged looks. They rolled eyes and forced tight smiles. Nina, the woman with a head of blonde corkscrew curls, muttered something under her breath. Alexis didn’t blame them. Bianca did look like a natural athlete, and two of the activities required a bit of athletic ability.
“LET’S GO!” Vivian shouted into a bullhorn that was pressed to her lips as if her voice alone wasn’t enough. She punctuated it with an air horn blast that made Alexis, who was standing close, flinch.
As expected, Bianca was the first to surge forward, her long legs eating the space between the start line and the pool. She hit the beam first and put her arms out for balance. Lyra was next, teetering at the start but somehow managing to stay upright. Then came Claire, who gasped as she stepped onto thebeam, slipped, and fell straight into the pool. Birdie was slower. Deliberate. Not exactly a sportswoman, but Alexis had never thought she was anyway.
For some reason, Alexis’s stomach twisted, not because she cared who won, but because a part of her wanted Birdie to fall into the water. She wanted to see her break the surface, dripping wet, her wrap dress plastered to her skin, her curves outlined in the clingy cotton, and her hair slicked back.
And she hated that part of her internal vision.
“GO GIRLS!” Alexis yelled, clapping so hard her palms stung. She hoped that the mere act of cheering would shove the thought away. But it didn’t. In fact, it intensified it. All she could think about was a wet, naked Birdie emerging from the water, walking toward her in slow motion, breasts bouncing, eyes locked.
She cleared her throat and focused on the women already moving onto the second station. It went about as well as expected. Half of the contestants missed their water balloon targets entirely. Lyra somehow nailed three in a row like she’d been practicing for weeks, and Danielle managed to hit Vivian in the thigh instead of the target. At least Vivian, whose outfit was soaked, remained civil about it, overly so. Alexis wasn’t even sure if Birdie had hit any targets because she forced her attention to Bianca, who was swearing under her breath when her Olympic skills appeared irrelevant in a game of water balloon toss.
By the trivia round, the energy was high and the nerves even higher. Isabelle blanked on Alexis’s middle name. Ironically, her middle name was Isabelle. Nina guessed wrong about her favorite pizza toppings, and Louise correctly answered every question except the year Alexis had graduated from college. As for Birdie, Alexis hadn’t let herself listen to her answers. She hadn’t trusted herself to.
When it was finally done, Vivian gathered the contestants together and said, “Well done, ladies. But there can only be one winner, and that is…” She drew out the moment, drumming her palms against her thighs. “Lyra!! Well done. You win a sunset date with our bachelorette.”
Lyra threw her hands up triumphantly, and Alexis pasted on her brightest, most camera-ready smile that completely overshadowed what she was actually feeling. Confusion.
Because some part of her, the part that clearly wanted to ruin her life, had secretly been hoping Birdie would win.
Chapter Ten
Birdie was exhausted.
Physically, her body hurt from the grape stomping and the sprinting between stations. And mentally, she couldn’t get her damn brain to shut down. It kept replaying Alexis’s face over and over. The panic when she’d slipped on the grapes. The surprise when Birdie had said she suited Provence. The way she would find Birdie’s gaze, either accidentally or on purpose, and then whip her head away like she’d just witnessed two people kissing passionately.
But no matter how tired she felt, sleep just wasn’t coming. Which was why Birdie dragged herself from the bedroom and headed toward the kitchen. Bianca was snoring, a whistle-like snore that didn’t help Birdie’s insomnia.
The villa was quiet enough that she could hear the dim chirp of crickets somewhere outside. When she reached the kitchen, a large space with a limestone countertop, cabinets painted the soft green of sage leaves, and a backsplash of hand-painted tiles in cobalt and burnt orange, she was surprised at how dark the usually sun-flooded space was.
Outside, the moon was covered by a dense blanket of cloud. Not that Birdie bothered with a switch. She didn’t need any light to know where the fridge was. She headed straight for the double doors in a way only muscle memory allowed and yanked them open.
