I followed Julian back up the beach, but when he returned to the mansion, I veered back to the bonfire. By now, the fire was dying down. Veronica and Jessica were sitting with their backs to it, facing the ocean. They each had a glass of wine and a marshmallow in hand. The opened bag sat between the

My feelings for Nicholas, however, were not likely to change any time soon. If I had free reign here, Nicholas was the one I would pursue. But the fact was, the cards were stacked against me from the start. I was only in this competition to increase the viewership. I never had a chance of actually

The next morning, I awoke to a knock on the door. Beside me Elva began to rub her eyes. I hadn’t indulged in too much alcohol, unlike some of the other girls, but I still felt a pressure in my head, probably from having stayed up too late. I wanted to turn over in bed and ignore the knocking, bu

“Excuse me,” Nicholas said to Bridget and walked away from her. He met me at the base of the stairs. Behind his back, Bridget narrowed her eyes slightly, but then shrugged and walked back into the kitchen. I still had no idea how she could be so bright. Maybe she’s slipped some liquor into her cof

He was entirely keeping his word when he’d promised to pretend the kiss never happened. I needed to get better at doing the same. I looked back to Nicholas, but a servant interrupted us next. “Please excuse me,” she said. “Nathan is calling everyone out onto the deck for a meeting.” “He’s no

I entered my bedroom with Nicholas right behind me. He placed his hand on the small of my back, helping lead me further inside. I was still blushing fiercely from his words. With the door safely closed behind us, leaving us alone in my room, I turned back to look up at him. What I saw stole my bre

After a few kisses, Nicholas excused himself to change into his own swim trunks. I opted to stay behind, knowing if I went with him, we would be thoroughly distracted for so long that our absence would definitely be noticed. No, it was better that we parted for now. I went into the bathroom and

If the save required her to dive for it, she adamantly refused. Though Nicholas had no obvious outward reaction to her lack of commitment to the game, after her fifth time no making no effort, his muscles clearly tightened, likely in frustration. Jessica, meanwhile, gave the game her best effort

Veronica and I sat on either side of Julian on the couch on the deck. Veronica held the bag of ice I had retrieved from the kitchen to the top of Julian’s head, even though he continually insisted it wasn’t necessary. “Your head could swell,” I said. “We don’t need you growing a bigger head than

We hadn’t been alone since the kiss. While we weren’t exactly alone now, with the others nearby, we were speaking privately. A faint heat began to rise in my cheeks. I didn’t know what to say. Julian blinked. He lifted his head and looked at me more critically. “Piper…” he started but didn’t finis