Outback Hearts (Beyond Reality Book 1)

by Stoker, Susan

  It was a subdued group that made its way back to the bus. Even Robert didn’t seem inclined to put on his show airs and announce the winners of the contest. Everything was on hold until Kathi came back from the hospital. Sam already decided to keep her mouth shut. She knew she didn’t belong here and there was nothing she hated more than to know that someone was faking an injury. She’d grown up with it in her water polo career. Her teammates were constantly faking some sort of injury to get out of hard practices. Their shoulder hurt, their knee hurt so they couldn’t tread water, they had a migraine...the excuses never ended. Sam supposed that was why she hated to show any type of weakness today and why she was mentally stronger than a lot of people.

  She couldn’t tell Al, he probably wouldn’t believe her anyway. She’d tried to tell a coach once that one of her teammates wasn’t really hurt and she got in trouble. The coach yelled at her in front of the entire team and made her swim extra laps. The fact that she’d tried to do the right thing and got in trouble for it had already happened once on this show, with the barn incident, and Sam wasn’t going to put herself in that position again. The hell with everyone. She knew, however, that she wasn’t going to even try to be nice to Kathi after today. And she’d stay away from Courtnee as well. Those two were in this scam together and she wasn’t going to have anything to do with it.

  The women were all too keyed up to really do much when they got back to camp. They all waited around to see when Kathi was going to come back. Sam hoped they weren’t going to keep her overnight. She wondered how she was going to explain to the hospital staff that she wasn’t really sick after all.

  Eventually, they saw a car pull up. Al got out with Kathi leaning heavily on his arm.

  “Thank you, baby, for helping me. I don’t know what I would’ve done without you here. You saved my life,” she said, looking up at him with wide eyes. Sam watched cynically as Al walked Kathi to the tent with the rest of the women following along behind. He helped her into the tent, assisted her in lying down, kissed her on the forehead, and covered her with the blanket.

  “Sleep, you’ll feel better later, I’m sure.” Alex turned to the other women who were now inside the bunkhouse with them. “She needs to sleep, make sure you don’t bother her. She had a close call today, but she’ll be fine. I’ll see you all later.” And with that he walked out of the bunkhouse, got back in the car and was driven away.

  Sam looked sadly at the car driving away from the camp. A part of her wished Al had seen through Kathi’s rouse. He hadn’t even looked at her as he left the tent. Maybe it was a sign that the feelings she had for him were only one sided. Hell, she was sure that was it. There was no way he could think she was attractive, especially compared to the other women. Sam was disappointed in Al. She’d thought he was different. It was an awful feeling to think she was wrong. That he was like most of the other men she’d met in her life. Superficial and only concerned with his libido.

  Sam sighed and came back to the present when the women gathered around Kathi.

  “Are you really okay, Kathi?” asked Amy with a furrowed brow.

  “Oh, yeah,” Kathi responded a bit too cheerfully. “Are you kidding? Being carried and held and cosseted by a hunk of a man all afternoon? I’m great, just great.” She smiled and looked at everyone. “Worked out better than if I won the competition. I wanted to win a one-on-one date, but I got one anyway and didn’t have to finish the stupid course.”

  Courtnee stood up and shooed everyone back to their bunks and away from Kathi. “She needs to sleep, you heard Al. I’ll stay right here and make sure she’s all right, the rest of you just go to bed and you can see her later.”

  The other women grumbled a bit, but went back to their bunks.

  “Okay, give!” Courtnee said to Kathi in a low voice as soon as everyone was away from their sides. “I want to know every detail!”

  Kathi and Courtnee talked for over an hour. Kathi told her new friend all about how concerned Al was, how he wouldn’t leave her side, and when she thought she was losing his attention all she had to do was moan a bit and he’d be looking at her with concern all over again. He held her hand just about the entire time. She told Courtnee how Alex had helped her into the hospital gown since all she’d been wearing was her bikini. Kathi told Courtnee about how she faked the coughing and the pain in her chest when the doctor was examining her. She did have to get an x-ray done to make sure there wasn’t any more fluid in her lungs, though. They laughed at that since there was no chance of there being any fluid in there in the first place since she held her breath the entire time she was underwater. They laughed at how Kathi had taken the wind right out of Sammi’s sails after her great performance.

  “Al didn’t even mention the contest or the show the entire time we were together,” Kathi gushed. Kathi was pleased with herself. She knew she’d made a great impression on Al and she couldn’t wait to see him again and show him she was better, but not too much better and that she needed some more TLC.

  Chapter Fifteen

  “God, what a day,” Alex said out loud, even though no one was in his tent listening. This had to be one of the scariest days of his life. He’d almost seen another human being, a woman at that, die in front of his eyes. It’d taken everything he had to not break down in front of everyone when he knew Kathi was going to be okay. Kathi was really scared and she was obviously in a lot of pain on the way to the hospital. He’d held her the entire way. While he was scared for her, he was also a man and couldn’t help but remember how well she fit into his arms. She was a good looking woman and he couldn’t help but think about how they might fit together outside of the show.

  Once they got to the hospital he stayed by her side for as much of the examination as he could. The doctor told them she wasn’t any worse for wear and she could return to the show. She seemed to be better on her way back to the camp, almost back to normal, but once they pulled up and saw the other women waiting and watching for them, she seemed to get weak again. He couldn’t understand it, but was certainly glad she was on the mend. She’d scared ten years off his life.

  Alex gathered a clean set of clothes and headed to the communal bathroom to take a quick shower. He could hear the excitement around the camp. This would make for great television once the show aired. He was under the impression that sometimes he still didn’t know what was going on, even though he was able to watch the tapes from camp each night. He really didn’t think it was appropriate for Kathi’s near death to be made into “must see” TV, but he knew what he thought didn’t matter to Eddie. He’d do what he needed to do to make his show successful.

  Later that night when he was relaxing in his tent he heard a soft “Alex?” come from outside his door. It was Kina. He remembered she was the camera operator who had shared her concerns about Sammi after the snake incident. She slid into his open tent after Alex invited her in and handed him a tape.

  “I’ve already watched the day’s tapes,” he told her, shuddering as he remembered watching Kathi in the water and his rescue from earlier.

  “This is the tape that Eddie didn’t want you to see,” she told him solemnly. “When you’re done watching, put it out behind your tent and I’ll grab it and put it back so he doesn’t notice it’s gone,” and with that, Kina slipped out the door.

  Alex wondered what was on the tape and why he hadn’t been allowed to see it earlier. What was Eddie trying to keep from him? He got pissed just thinking about it. He’d known all along that Eddie was sneaky, but he’d hoped he was being honest with him. Alex glanced at the tape in his hand and prayed it wasn’t of the women getting dressed or something just as offensive. He just didn’t feel right watching that, although the women didn’t seem to care a camera was watching them inside their bunkhouse.

  He put the tape in the player and watched the scene from earlier that night as he helped Kathi to her bed. This was the tape from inside the bunkhouse at the women’s camp. Alex watched as he walked out the door and Court
nee shooed everyone away from Kathi and back to their own bunks.

  Alex couldn’t believe what he saw on the tape. He knew the contestants on shows like this could be one person in public and another person when interacting with the other contestants, but for some reason, he never saw this coming. This was low. This was beyond low. Alex watched the tape three times, making sure he was hearing what he thought he was hearing. Kathi and Courtnee were talking about Kathi’s “accident.” He’d never been so furious in all of his life. She’d done it on purpose! Kathi wasn’t drowning, she’d only pretended to be in trouble in the water and had used him. If he was back in his world he would’ve destroyed her, but he wasn’t. He was here in the Outback on a ridiculous dating show with ridiculous women who thought they could manipulate him. He felt ashamed at how he’d felt earlier in the day with Kathi in his arms. He’d been holding a wolf in sheep’s clothing.

  At first he wanted to storm into Eddie’s tent and quit, no matter what his contract said. Alex was disillusioned and couldn’t believe anyone could stoop as low as Kathi had today. He thought about all the other times he was with the women and wondered how else he’d been manipulated by either the women or by Eddie. He wanted to lump them all in the same category as Kathi and Courtnee, but something wouldn’t let him. He thought about Lori and Amy and Sammi. He felt relatively sure they, at least, were being honest with him. He thought about it a long time. He thought about what his next move should be. If Kathi wanted to make herself seem as if she was a completely different kind of person, he’d play it her way…for now.

  Alex put the tape outside where he and Kina arranged, and lay back down on his bed. There had to be a reason why Eddie didn’t want him to see the tape. He wondered again what else he hadn’t seen. While the production team might have made him think he was one of “them,” it was obvious now they were using him as much as they were using the girls. It was all about the ratings, and they didn’t care who got hurt in the process. He was done playing by their rules. He’d tried, but they’d upped the ante. He’d play their game, but he had a few aces up his sleeve as well.

  Chapter Sixteen

  Sam was still pissed the next day. Since she’d placed first in the competition her time with Al would be the last one-on-one date and it wouldn’t be until the next day. Kiki was going on her date this morning and Ashley would be going on hers that afternoon. It was a good day to relax, but that was something Sam was finding hard to do. She remembered Kathi’s performance that morning about how she should have the first shot at the shower since she was still weak. Whatever.

  Sam and the rest of the women watched as a giant hot-air balloon slowly appeared to the west of the camp. Holy Crap! Kiki’s transportation had arrived. The balloon gracefully landed and Al climbed out. He first walked over to Kathi to see if she was feeling better. She told him yes, but that she was still weak.

  Alex responded, “Make sure you get some rest today then,” and grasped her hand in his, kissing the back of it.

  Then he turned around and walked up to Kiki and took her by the hand. They strolled back toward the huge balloon and Alex assisted Kiki into the basket of the balloon. Everyone watched they rose up into the air until the balloon couldn’t be seen anymore.

  Kathi immediately huddled with Courtnee to compare notes about Al’s attention to her and what it meant. Sam was disgusted. She knew she’d told herself she wasn’t going to walk around by herself anymore, but dammit, she needed some time alone. Nothing was really going on at camp so there was only one camera around to film. Sam figured it was because most of the cameras were scheduled to film the dates, which was definitely more interesting than the rest of them just sitting around. Sam knew she could sneak away without being followed, either by the other contestants or a camera operator.

  Sam climbed up the rise to the spot she’d spent quite a bit of time at in the past, and found a comfortable spot where she sat and tried to relax. She thought about the last few days and the other women on the show. She thought about Al, what she liked and didn’t like about him. It was ironic that she’d be going on a one-on-one date with him because she was probably the only woman who really didn’t care that much about “winning” him. Sam knew relationships formed by these reality dating shows usually didn’t end up working in the end. There were a few—maybe two—that had, but those were few and far between.

  She did like Al, he seemed to be a gentleman and he was polite to all of them. She was also very attracted to him. How could anyone not find him attractive? But how well did she really know him? How well did any of them know him? What was his favorite color? Did he have any siblings? Were his parents still alive? What kind of music did he listen to? There were about a million other things Sam wanted to know about him. If this was a normal courtship she’d probably already know some of the answers. Some of the contestants wanted to “win” so they could become famous and perhaps have an active career launched. Others wanted to win because Al was rich.

  All Sam had ever wanted out of her life was to be content. She got lonely, but she wasn’t about to marry someone for the sake of marrying them. Her life was just fine. She was employed, had a place to live, and was happy with her life. There were times on the weekends or when she wasn’t that busy when she wished she had someone to talk to and share her thoughts with other than her three dogs and friends, but not enough to tie herself to anyone just for the sake of being married.

  Sam heard a commotion back at the camp. She sat up and realized she’d fallen asleep. She strolled down to the camp in time to see Ashley and Al getting into a Hummer. Obviously, Al and Kiki made it back from their date.

  Al helped Ashley into the passenger seat and leaned over her to buckle her seatbelt. It was a very gentlemanly thing to do. Sam’s belly tightened. Everything she’d told herself while sitting on the rise felt like a lie watching Al take care of Ashley. She never thought she was the type of woman who would enjoy that type of pampering, but Al was quickly changing her mind. Sam could practically see the other women sighing at Al’s actions as well. As they drove off, the other women gathered around Kiki to hear all about her date.

  Sam wasn’t really interested, but figured it might be enlightening to listen. She might get a better insight into Al’s personality and she might learn more about him. Kiki talked about how they were in the balloon for a while and how Al was so protective when she got scared. He held her hand while they landed to help calm her down. They touched down at a site that overlooked a valley. There was a lunch all set up for them. She exclaimed about how much of a gentleman Al was and how romantic the entire thing was.

  In Sam’s eyes it sounded a bit contrived, but she wasn’t there, so she had to take Kiki’s word for it. That was a problem. Who knew what the truth was and what was embellished by Kiki showing off. After they ate, Kiki explained, they went and sat under a tree. Al held her to him as they talked about what they wanted out of life and what they wanted out of this reality show experience. Kiki said that the mood was just getting right when they had to leave. She didn’t get to kiss him, except on the cheek, but she was damn sure not going to let the opportunity pass her by again.

  Sam sighed. It sounded wonderful all right, but she now knew not to trust anyone and what they said. Again, who knew what really happened on the date. The rest of the day passed slowly. The women were anxious to hear back from Ashley and see what she did on their date. They were bored with themselves and really wanted something to do. Even Courtnee seemed to be getting irritated with Kathi after spending large amounts of time with her.

  Evening fell and still Ashley and Al weren’t back. A bonfire was lit around the fire ring and most of the women sat outside and watched the flames.

  Suddenly, they heard Ashley’s voice, “What a beautiful night!” They all turned around to see her walking back into camp and into the fire circle. Everyone started talking at once. Where was Al? How was the date? What did they do?

  Ashley held up her hand. “Is everyone here? I
only want to tell it once.”

  Finally, once they were all settled around the fire Ashley talked about her day. They’d driven to a small air strip where they’d then gotten on a small airplane. Al had flown the plane—which got lots of sighs since no one knew he was a pilot too—and after about twenty minutes they landed on a dusty airstrip. At first it didn’t look like there was anything around, but Al led Ashley toward a wooded group of trees, and there was a picnic set up for them. They sat and talked and ate. Afterward, Al wanted to go for a walk, but Ashley told him she’d rather sit and talk some more. Ashley explained how they talked into the evening and it wasn’t until it was getting dark that they realized what time it was and that he had to get her back.

  “We stood up and Al took me into his arms. He looked into my eyes, said my name and gave me the sweetest kiss you can imagine.” She enthused.

  Most of the women thought it was the most romantic thing they’d ever heard, but Sam could also see that most of them were jealous as hell and resolved to do whatever they could in the future challenges to be the one in Al’s arms. She shook her head. It sounded good, but again, how much was truth and how much was embellishment?

  Missy suddenly turned to Sam and said, “So what do you think you’ll be doing tomorrow?”

  “I have no idea,” Sam responded slowly. “But in keeping with the theme of the last two dates, I’m sure it’ll be something extravagant.”

  * * *

  The next morning, Sam made sure she was the first one out of bed so she could use the shower first and be ready to meet Al. She wouldn’t put it past some of the girls, especially Kathi, to try to sabotage her “getting ready” time. She was actually looking forward to the date. For one thing it would get her out of the camp and away from Kathi and Courtnee, for another she really did want to get to know Al better. She wasn’t sure if she could really trust him, but she’d try to give him the benefit of the doubt.