Love Elimination (21 page)

It was hard to concentrate on the conversation with a cameraman sitting two tables over, pointing his not-so-discreet lens in their direction. But Hadie and Jessica managed to ignore it while they complained good heartedly about their sore bodies.

‘This is torture! We don’t even get to spend much time with Luke.’ Hadie massaged her thighs under the table.

‘Oh, I think Anna is probably doing okay,’ Jessica said.

‘What do you mean?’ Hadie ceased her massage and looked at Anna. Combined with Jessica’s penetrating gaze, the look made Anna feel like she was being interrogated by her parents—at least, how it had been before her dad died and everything fell apart.

‘He just wanted to try a harder slope. And it just happens that I’m the most confident skier out of all of us,’ she said, trying to distract them from the truth. Her thoughts were running darker than usual and she felt like she might just explode. She couldn’t handle another interrogation like that post-kiss interview.

‘The question is, why aren’t we snowboarding?’ Anna stirred her cappuccino. ‘Why would Luke choose skiing?’

‘Because it’s easier. That’s what he told me,’ Jessica replied.

They sipped their drinks, savouring the fact they weren’t out in the cold, then they went for seconds. Or, in Anna’s case, dessert. The lemon curd tart was better than she expected it to be. She was enjoying its bitterness when Liu Kun walked in, brushing the snow from her shoulders. Liu Kun’s face split into a grin as she spotted them. Jessica dragged a chair from the table next to them and they all shuffled along until there was room for one more.

‘Thanks!’ Liu Kun took the seat Jessica offered her. ‘Hey, can you believe Yvette is still out there?’

It was easy to laugh at the image of Yvette skiing slope after slope, trying to keep up with an elite athlete, but of all of them, she probably had the best chance of succeeding. Her determination, plus the time she spent in the gym, gave her a huge advantage. Not that she needed any more advantages when all Anna wanted was to go home.

Anna had checked her Twitter and Instagram accounts the night before, finally succumbing to curiosity—not that she could post even if she wanted to. Ben had created them and no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t guess the passwords to shut it down; he’d obviously predicted her plan to stop the constant flow of pictures and information about her. But she could check Ben’s, her followers and what he had been sharing. It was then that she discovered that the hashtag #TeamLuna was trending worldwide—as was a whole Tumblr centred around ‘Luke and Anna’s wedding’, which was full of entirely photoshopped images of them as bride and groom. Her fans had planned her special day more carefully than a real bride would. The commitment scared her. All she wanted was to fade back into obscurity when this debacle was over. Would she instead be recognised as ‘that girl on the dating show’ when she returned to her real life? Her dessert café should be the star, not her.

For fear of getting caught with the contraband, Anna hadn’t looked any further.

What did surprise Anna now was the way she was accepted into this group. She hadn’t spent a lot of time with any of the contestants recently, except Hadie. Her popularity with Luke made her a pariah in the house and if the women knew the full extent of it, they would be a lot more cruel than they were now. Yet Liu Kun hadn’t blinked at Anna’s presence and Jessica had welcomed her to share the table. Anna didn’t know what to make of it, but she wasn’t about to question it. The women seemed to have forgiven her for any previous favouritism and Anna was relieved.

‘Has Luke kissed any of you?’ Liu Kun asked and Anna’s attention immediately returned to the conversation with a sinking feeling.

‘Why? Did you snag a kiss today?’ Jessica said.

Anna fidgeted in her seat, keeping her eyes locked on her plate and stabbing at the remaining crumbs of pastry. She shouldn’t care about the answer.

‘No. The furthest we’ve gone is hand holding and a peck on the cheek.’

‘I’ve kissed him.’ Hadie hung her head. She looked like a puppy who knew it shouldn’t have peed in its owner’s slippers.

‘Me too.’ Jessica was less remorseful.

A sudden pain shot through Anna. She wrapped her arms around her waist and held herself together. She willed herself not to give anything away, but her body wanted to scream and cry and fling the remains of her coffee into the other women’s faces. She could hardly believe she cared so much. But she did. The image of Luke kissing the other contestants wouldn’t shake from her head.

Luke Westwood was playing with her. Seducing her. Playing right into her vulnerabilities. He was kissing other women. Making out with all of them. And worst of all, his tactic had worked. She felt awful.

‘Anna?’ Hadie asked. All eyes turned to her and Anna choked on a crumb she had sucked off her finger. If her eyes became watery, they would blame it on that. As she spluttered for air, Jessica answered for her.

‘I think that’s a “yes”. They’d probably go further if the cameras weren’t on us twenty-four-seven.’

At the comment Anna coughed so hard she thought she might faint. She shook her head but Jessica ignored her. So much for forgiveness.

‘I would never!’ Anna finally spat out.

‘What about when he took you on that foodie heaven date? To meet that chef you really like?’ Jessica said. ‘That screamed “opportunity to get into Anna’s pants”.’

‘What?’ Anna squeaked in shock. ‘He left me alone with the chef, remember? It’s not like that between us. We’re just getting to know each other.’

‘Okay, I believe you,’ Jessica said, smiling. Did she
not
hate Anna? Was that just her style of getting information out of others? Anna couldn’t even trust her own instincts any more, thanks to this whole experience that was people pretending to be something they weren’t and manipulating others into giving them some specific reaction.

‘But you’ve kissed,’ Liu Kun said and Anna blushed bright red. ‘So it’s just me who hasn’t locked lips with him?’

‘I bet Yvette hasn’t got near him,’ Jessica said. It didn’t seem to comfort Liu Kun, but it made them all giggle.

‘No, she would’ve planted one on him with or without his consent. Probably without. She’s probably also “accidentally” felt the poor man up.’ Hadie grinned at them.

‘This is mean. She might have her qualities …’ Liu Kun trailed off. ‘I think she’s really here to fall in love. She’s just a bit desperate.’

‘Amen,’ Jessica cried, holding her hands to the ceiling.

Anna kept quiet about what she saw on that first group date: Yvette stealing the first kiss before any of the others had a chance to even speak to him. With just Yvette, Jessica, Rachel, Liu Kun, Hadie and Anna left, the contest was getting serious. She wasn’t about to add fuel to their ill will for each other.

They drained the last of their drinks, but didn’t move. ‘When do you think we can head back to the hotel? I’m beat.’ Jessica looked to the window apprehensively. Anna agreed with the sentiment entirely. She’d had enough drama for one day. A few more slopes would do nothing to improve her mood, not if she had to watch out for Luke the whole time—and she couldn’t run into him again. Not now she’d found out about him kissing other women.

It was a television show and they were all playing exaggerated versions of themselves and following a script nobody knew except the director. But it still hurt. Anna’s insides ached with the knowledge that she wasn’t special. That what she thought was between her and Luke was really the manipulation of the crew. If there had been any semblance of doubt about leaving the show after their molten kiss today, it was gone now. She was falling for Luke Westwood but he was not falling for her. He was playing the field, like the rich, gorgeous, playboy athlete she first expected him to be. And it killed her.

‘What do you mean, no?’ Anna demanded. Pitching ideas, begging, demanding and threatening—none of it worked. The answer was the same. Kate wasn’t even listening any more. Her phone had her attention.

‘No, Joe will not agree to a dramatic exit where you reject Luke. No, I won’t convince Luke to send you home.’

‘Why? Tell me why!’ Anna couldn’t understand her sister refusing to help her now. Going on the show in the first place had been a favour and now she was being held hostage. They were halfway through the second month of filming. It was high time she left.

‘Because you’re so close to the end. When you win, you get the ring. It will pay off a chunk of your loan. And if you’re turning that down to leave it’s because your emotions are getting in the way of your business mind. Which means that you’re falling for Luke. So you should stay.’

‘That’s crap.’

Kate looked up. ‘I have a job to get back to. Now, can I trust you to play this out?’ Her phone beeped and her attention was diverted once again. ‘I have to go.’ With that, she strode from the room.

When the door to Kate’s hotel suite opened, Anna glimpsed Joe on the couch, documents spread around him and his shirt open to his bare chest.

* * *

Anna shook as she dressed, fingers fumbling to close the clasp of her bracelet. Not because she was nervous, but because her anger wasn’t fading. She would have to ride
Love Elimination
out to the finale, if that’s what Luke Westwood chose. Or she would lose her paycheque.

The dress Anna chose for the latest eviction was a dark charcoal grey. It was the only dress Anna had picked out on her shopping spree with her sister that Kate had let her buy. It hugged her body, but it also had a high, elegant neckline and capped sleeves. They’d been instructed to dress in formal attire, ignoring the weather, and to be prepared for hair and make-up.

When the make-up artists appeared they buzzed around her like flies in the outback. Their hands flitted around her face and twisted her hair until it hung in loose waves. The trio rushed away to the next contestant before Anna had time to decide whether she liked her hair or if the shade of foundation they’d applied suited her skin. Not that any part of
Love Elimination
was about what she, a contestant, liked. Anna sighed and made her way to the hotel’s ballroom.

‘Welcome!’ Mason Lockier called when all the women had filed in. His voice echoed across the vast space. The crew explained how they’d leave through the opposite door if Luke selected them to stay. Luke would have one last dance with the eliminated contestant.

Anna couldn’t help but roll her eyes. A romantic dance with the woman he was sending home? Were they trying to make the poor woman even more in love with Luke than she already was? Then she realised that it might be her. Would be her, if everything went right.

Determination was clear in each contestant’s eyes: every single woman was prepared to fight for Luke Westwood. Not that there were many left. Just six: Hadie, Jessica, Yvette, Rachel, Liu Kun and Anna, the one person who hadn’t wanted to be there from the start. They were nervous: fidgeting or jiggling on the spot, glancing at each other or avoiding eye contact. They all thought Luke was perfect. More than that. Each woman thought he was perfect for
her
.

The one who should be going home was Anna. She was a fraud and as the competition got closer to the end, she felt her lies digging deeper. They planted themselves around everything she said to the other women, feeling all the more real after a two-hour chat to Jessica—who was actually really interesting when they got talking about her life. Jessica could be cutthroat, but she was just trying to protect herself and her chance for love with a kind, successful, handsome man who also wanted to settle down. Or, at least, that was what the show’s producers told her—and all the women—Luke Westwood wanted. Meanwhile, Luke was kissing them all and telling Anna that he wasn’t ready for marriage or kids. That was the only part Anna could still trust to be true.

‘Without further ado, let’s get our suitor in here. Come on in, Luke!’

He walked in like a man born with all the privilege in the world, wearing a sleek, closely fitted suit. Anna wanted to faint, and she wasn’t exactly the type of woman to swoon at the sight of a man. But this man was even more beautiful in a suit than he was in ripped jeans or board shorts. The collared shirt was buttoned at his neck and a tie pressed against his jugular. Anna felt a strong urge to pull the tie away and unbutton the shirt until she could see his neck, and then his abs, and then the shadow of hair leading down into his pants. She’d seen it on the beach and on the yacht date. The image was imprinted into her memory.

‘Wow,’ Jessica breathed.

Anna bit down on her lip to keep her reaction inside. But Luke’s eyes met hers and she knew that he read her desire. Just like he’d felt it earlier, when he kissed her. When she kissed him back.

She shook her head. The gesture was supposed to be imperceptible to the cameras, but not to Luke. She hoped he would see it and know that she didn’t want to stay.

‘Luke Westwood. There’s no getting out of the dramatic announcement today. Tell me, who would you like to stay on the show?’

A jolt ran down Anna’s spine. She hung her head, looking at the ground so she didn’t have to watch Luke. If she let her eyes meet his, she might just melt.

‘Will you please stay …’

Anna couldn’t help glancing up. Luke smiled as he withheld the name for a few seconds. He clearly couldn’t take himself, or this moment, seriously. Even if five of the six women before him were desperate to hear their name. As if being saved from elimination would amount to being loved.

‘Hadie.’

Hadie skipped forwards and threw her arms around Luke. Her grin stretched across her face and happiness exuded from her every pore. Anna was glad her friend had been chosen first. If anyone was to win
Love Elimination
and Luke’s heart, Anna hoped it was the fun, loving, trusting young mother who had become her best friend on the show.

Hadie left the room and the tension rose once more.

‘Who is next and will not be going home?’ Mason prompted.

‘The next person I’d like to stay is … Liu Kun.’