The door opened, and Elise walked in. She was wearing khaki shorts, a tucked-in white T-shirt, and leather boots that didn’t go higher than her ankles. Vivian was temporarily stunned at Elise’s calves. They were far more muscly than Vivian ever would’ve guessed. She marched across the villa to the deck until she stood right in front of Vivian and tapped her little black Moleskine against her thigh.
“Why aren’t you dressed yet?” she asked, frowning deeply. “You’re supposed to be at breakfast. We’re filming morning moments for B-roll. You’re supposed to be mingling with the girls. Didn’t you get my email?”
Vivian twisted in her chair. “Well, good morning to you too.”
“Morning,” Elise said, but only because she was forced to. “I need you up there. The girls are already jumping into the buffet, and we want some shots of you interviewing them.You know, asking them how their first night went, what their expectations are for today.”
“We’ve never done that before,” Vivian pointed out. She never ever joined the contestants for breakfast. Not just because she believed breakfast consisted of a cup of black coffee and some peace and quiet, but also because the girls weren’t expected to be dressed up and ready for the day until the first date activity.
“I’m trying something different this season,” Elise said. “You’d know all about it if you read my email.”
“Fine, I’ll go to breakfast,” Vivian said only because she wasn’t in the mood to argue. She leaned forward as if she were about to get up, which had Elise looking pleased enough to turn around and head toward the door. But as soon as the producer left, Vivian sank back into her chair and sipped her coffee calmly and slowly and let herself watch the springboks zigzag across the grass for a few more seconds. When her cup was empty, she closed her iPad, walked back into her room, and got ready.
Today she decided to go with a pale lemon-yellow silk slip dress. Knee-length, thin straps, and perfect for the heat. She threw on flat strappy sandals, grabbed a wide-brimmed hat, her tube of SPF 50 and stepped onto the wooden walkway that led to the main lodge.
She gave a quick glance left and right in case any animal decided to ambush her, and then immediately remembered monkeys climbed trees and glanced up at the branches instead.
“Hi,” said a voice to her left.
Vivian nearly jumped out of her skin. “What the hell!” she cried, whipping her head toward the voice, only to realize it was Sienna walking toward her.
“Sorry,” Sienna said quickly. “I didn’t mean to scare you.”
“Why aren’t you at breakfast?” Vivian asked. The way the words tumbled out sounded more like an accusation thananything else. She took in a breath to calm her jittery heart, which was only beating so fast because she’d thought an animal had snuck up on her. “I mean, I thought everyone was already at breakfast,” she said, this time slower and more ladylike.
“I’m running late,” Sienna said, tucking a strand of wavy hair behind her ear. “Had a bit of an emergency this morning.”
“Emergency?” Vivian looked her up and down, searching for any other grazes or bruises. But she couldn’t see anything. Unless, of course, they were concealed by the safari green linen dress that hung like a fashionable sack off her muscular shoulders. “What kind of emergency?” she asked. “Did you fall again? Are you okay?”
Sienna’s mouth parted, looking slightly stunned. It was only when she shook her head, frowning slightly, that Vivian realized her hand was out, as if she were trying to save Sienna.
For fuck’s sake. Why was she acting like this?
“I’m fine,” Sienna said after a beat. She looked obviously amused, which made the whole thing feel way more awkward. Vivian wished the planks beneath her feet would just split open and swallow her up. “It was more of a fashion emergency.”
Now it was Vivian’s turn to frown. “What does that mean?”
Sienna laughed, and her cheeks turned a rosy pink. She ran her fingers through her hair. “You remember when I said I was clumsy?”
“I do.”
“Well, I wasn’t lying. Somehow, and don’t ask me how, I managed to spill an entire tub of sunscreen in my suitcase. Everything, and I mean everything, is coated in a gooey mess.” She glanced down at her dress and did a little half-twirl, which Vivian thought was adorable.
“This dress is actually Fi’s,” Sienna added. “I’m lucky we’re the same size.”
“Well, you look great,” Vivian said, feeling heat rise to her neck. She wasn’t sure if it was the sun rising above the treetops beating down, or the sudden, unbidden thoughts about what was under that dress. “We should probably get to breakfast,” she added quickly before she allowed her thoughts to drift into even more dangerous territory. She took a few steps forward, and Sienna followed.
Vivian expected her to trail behind until they reached the main lodge, but the next moment, Sienna was beside her. “How are the villas?” she asked. “The tents aren’t bad at all. I mean, you can hardly call it a tent. There’s a bathtub, actual electricity, and everything’s extremely decadent. I know they call it glamping...”
Vivian was only half-listening. A staff member in a khaki skirt and a white blouse with the Ndloveni logo etched on the pocket appeared ahead with a tray of what looked like breakfast: a halved papaya, a golden muffin, a tiny glass of yogurt with granola spilling prettily over the tip, and a silver dome that almost certainly hid bacon and eggs. She was walking right toward them with her eyes glued to the tray.
Vivian wondered if this was how breakfast was supposed to be delivered to the villas and, if yes, maybe she’d give up her habit of no breakfast and give it a try tomorrow morning. But before she could get a better look at the papaya, Sienna sidestepped abruptly to get out of the woman’s way and bumped right into Vivian.
Instinct took over. Vivian’s hands shot to Sienna’s waist to steady her. Which would’ve worked perfectly, except Sienna’s sandal caught on a raised deck plank, and suddenly they were both off balance, tipping toward each other like two trees caught in the same gust of wind. Their knees brushed. Shoulders crashed. Vivian’s fingers flexed involuntarily against the soft linen of Sienna’s dress before she even realized what she wasdoing. And then for a second, neither moved. There was just the buzz of the cicadas, the call of a bird Vivian didn’t recognize, and the smell of Sienna’s perfume.
Vivian stepped back quickly, as if she’d touched a hot stove. “You really are clumsy,” she said, straightening the straps of the dress, even though they didn’t need any straightening.
“I know,” Sienna said a little breathlessly. She brushed a stray strand of hair from her cheek and seemed to look everywhere but at Vivian. Which, frankly, Vivian was grateful for. There was no way she could look Sienna in the eye right now and not think about how close they were a second ago.
