‘Do we actually get to eat the food?’ Dylan asked.
‘You sound exactly like your boyfriend,’ Murray said. ‘If you get through filming fast enough, sure, you can eat the food. Also, it’ll be brunch instead of dinner for you, Amanda. We’re shooting Kumiko tonight, you during the day tomorrow, Dylan G in the evening, then the Necklace Ceremony right after. All back-to-back, so you can’t compare notes.’
‘Is there going to be some kind of surprise, then?’ Kumiko asked.
‘How about you start getting ready for your date so you can find out?’
Kumiko left for hair and make-up. The crew packed up their stuff. Dylan and I each filmed quick ITMs with Murray, and then we were by ourselves in the Villa.
‘Do you know how many times when we were alone in here,’ Dylan whispered against my lips, my legs around her waist as I perched on the bathroom counter, ‘I thought about kissing you?’
She kissed her way down my neck. ‘You’d just be standing there, brushing your teeth, or combing your hair, or taking off your make-up,’ she said, her breath hot against my skin.‘Normal things. Everyday things. But you’d be driving me out of my fucking mind.’
I wasn’t the only one who was good with my hands. When she touched me, it felt like the whole world was shaking.
I could do this. I could have this. Marry Me, Julietstars Dylan Gilchrist and Amanda Mitchell out to lunch,the paparazzi captions would read.Their friendship had some rocky moments during the show, but we’re glad to see these two gals are back to being pals!
They wouldn’t know that it was like this when we locked ourselves in the bathroom. They wouldn’t know that the second the doors were closed behind us we were tearing each other’s clothes off. They wouldn’t know that it was tectonic whenever we touched each other.
They were joined later by Gilchrist’s boyfriend Dylan Jayasinghe Mellor,the captions would read.It doesn’t look like there’s any hard feelings, even though Mitchell was one of the final contenders for Mellor’s heart.
‘Are you with me, Mandie?’ Dylan said, her breath coming heavy.
I wrapped my arms around her neck. ‘I’m with you,’ I said.
All I had to do was wait.
I didn’t sleep well that night. When the first rays of sunshine peeked through the gap in the curtains, I was already awake.
‘Where’re you going?’ Dylan mumbled.
‘I’ve got to get ready for my date,’ I whispered.
‘Hhhhmmmmokay,’ she said. ‘See you at the Necklace Ceremony.’
I leaned down and pressed my lips to her temple. ‘Goodbye, baby.’
She’d given me a hickey, I realised as I combed my hair out in the mirror. It wasn’t in an especially obvious place – just above the curve of my left breast – but if I wore a low-enough cut top, you could see it.
There was a shirt I had that’d be perfect. It was the black one with the scoop neck that she hadn’t let me wear on my Lambo date. I pulled it out of my suitcase and fingered the material.
But then I sighed, put it down, pulled a baby blue one with a higher neckline over my head instead, and went back into the bathroom to cover up the hickey as best as I could, just in case someone noticed.
They’d set up brunch on the deck of Romeo-Dylan’s boat. He was waiting for me, wearing white shorts and a green shirt and a smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes. When I went below deck halfway through our date to use the bathroom, I saw that his bed wasn’t made, the sheets all rumpled and twisted like he’d been tossing and turning all night.
Apparently I wasn’t the only person who was struggling. Probably not the only person who wished more than anything that the notion of Dylan + Dylan = A Love Story To Heal The Nation had never entered Murray’s mind, either.
It didn’t stop me wanting to push him into the lake. If only he weren’t so fucking goddamnperfect.
‘Are you okay?’ he murmured to me as they struck our brunch set from the deck.
‘Not really,’ I whispered back. ‘You?’
‘Not really.’
‘Shut up, both of you,’ Murray barked. ‘No talking unless we’re filming.’
‘I just want you to know,’ Romeo-Dylan said.
