The Leftover

by Brooke Williams

  Megan frowned. He had to bring up the incident after she broke her toe? She was medicated! She didn’t know what she was doing. And it wasn’t like she had tackled and held him down or anything. She just made some inappropriate comments, right?

  “Outside,” Cane continued. “When that tree was falling. You were close to everyone in the group. You could have protected any of them, but you chose me.”

  And Andrew. Megan exhaled. He wasn’t talking about the broken toe debacle. She glimpsed his eyes resting on her out of the corner of her eye. Her wet hair hung in front of her face and created a shield between them.

  “I . . . I guess I’m not really sure.” Her quick calculations had told her Cane and Andrew were in the most danger. But her body had flung itself into action before she had been able to think anything all the way through. Everything happened so fast, and she had just reacted. She certainly hadn’t planned anything. And if anyone had told her that she would think to push Andrew out of the way of a falling tree, she never would have believed it.

  Cane rested his elbow on his bag and reached for her hand. Once his fingers were woven between hers, he sighed. “You chose me,” he said softly, “over everyone else. I was the one.”

  Megan wasn’t sure if his quiet words were meant for her or if he was talking to himself. She tightened her grip on his hand.

  She didn’t know what she was doing when it came to relationships, but the more she was around Cane, the more she understood what she wanted. She felt like he saw her—and not just her messy hair and wire-rimmed glasses. He saw her personality, and more importantly, her potential. He encouraged her to do her best on the show and supported her when things went wrong. For her whole life, she had avoided men and the dating scene—but Cane made her want to try. It was more than a crush on a TV personality. Cane was real and he was here and she felt more drawn to him than she ever imagined possible. He was the cute medic from Accept this Dandelion, but he was so much more.

  Bolstering her courage, she pushed her wet hair behind her ear and turned to face him. She let herself get lost in his eyes for a moment before speaking.

  “I’d do it a hundred more times for you, Cane.”

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  The storm raged on through half the night. Cane held Megan’s hand and watched as the hail slowed and then stopped. The lightning moved away and the thunder lessened. It was almost over. During the scary parts of the storm, they had settled into an easy conversation, neither wanting to sleep. Cane enjoyed hearing her talk, but he felt conflicted. He’d just finished telling himself there was no way he was going to get serious about Megan for the duration of the show. And yet when she had risked her own safety to save him, he realized he might be making a mistake to delay things. Here was this unique, phenomenal girl willing to sacrifice herself for him and he was going to push her away? It was insanity, no matter what their current circumstances.

  In the early morning hours, their conversation dwindled, and he watched her head sag in his direction. His shoulder gladly accepted its weight and he settled his temple against her hair. Her even breathing told him she was asleep. He wanted to move so he could see her. The peace on her face would be like that of an angel. Given how they were positioned, he had to make do with holding her hand and marveling at the feel of her shoulder next to his.

  All the promises he made to himself aside, he was doomed. Downright doomed. Whether she realized it or not, Megan Malone was taking his heart and there wasn’t anything he could do about it.

  Megan woke with a distinct crick in her neck. She cursed the rock that had made its way beneath her head as she slowly opened her eyes. The darkness confused her for a moment as her eyes adjusted. The rain was still coming down, but they weren’t in the open anymore. All of the contestants were in the basement of a house.

  Megan moved her eyes down her arm and found her fingers intertwined with Cane’s. Her heart skipped a beat as she realized the weight on the side of her head was his cheek. And the hard rock she thought she was laying on outside was actually his shoulder. She smiled, heart thudding in her chest.

  Their conversation had stretched well into the night. She’d watched Grace and Carson fall asleep against the wall. Andrew and Danae had crumpled on the couch. Mike finally let the camera operator stop filming when the storm let up, and the two of them had stretched out on the floor as well. They’d gotten all the excitement that occurred outside and after a while, they got bored of the contestants rehashing things and drifting off to sleep. It was once the camera lights turned off that Megan enjoyed the conversation with Cane. She was the only one awake now, and honestly, she wasn’t sure why. She couldn’t have gotten more than a couple hours of rest.

  She reached her free hand up and over her head. She could no longer resist. Cane’s hair was slightly damp and felt like heaven to her touch. She gently patted it before threading her fingers through the soft curls. She allowed them to run through her hand before she singled out one curl and twirled it around her index finger. What a beautiful man. How was he still single? Any woman would be lucky to have him. And he was holding her hand.

  She smoothed the curl back onto his head and threaded her fingers through the mass. She wasn’t sure she could stop. It was the softest thing she’d ever felt.

  “Mmm,” Cane mumbled into her ear.

  Megan’s hand froze as her body stiffened. She hadn’t meant to wake him.

  Cane nestled against her and smacked his lips. “Eva,” he whispered.

  Megan’s eyes widened as she fully awoke. Had he just said Eva? He had admitted he was trying to get over her, but he shouldn’t be holding Megan’s hand if he still wanted to be with Eva. Why was he flirting with her? Why had he laid his soft, curly, perfect head of hair on her shoulder?

  Megan drew her hand back and stuffed it under her leg. Suddenly, she was uncomfortable in her seated position. A moment ago she thought she could stay this way forever, but now she had to move. She pulled her other hand out from Cane’s fingers and placed it under her knee. Her head was still on his shoulder and his head was on hers, but she wasn’t going to allow any further connection.

  As she stared into the night sky outside the basement windows, she felt like she was falling into a deep chasm. Here she thought she had a chance with a man like Cane. What an idiot she’d been. He was still hung up on Eva. Of course he was. She was petite, gorgeous, every man’s dream. And what was Megan? Megan was awkward, poorly dressed, and . . . well, Megan. That was enough to scare most guys away.

  Megan spent the next hour watching the sunrise over the horizon, holding back tears, and building a sound, solid wall around her heart.

  The muscles in Cane’s shoulders ached as he awoke and lifted his head. He noticed his hand was cold, but Megan was still close. The moment he removed his head, she scooted away.

  “Good morning.” He smiled. He didn’t want her to move, but he did want to look into her eyes and see how she was reacting to the change he felt between them.

  “Yep, it’s morning,” Megan muttered.

  Cane rubbed his eyes, recalling the conversation they’d had the night before. Everything had fallen into place where Megan was concerned. He was still worried about getting hurt, but he believed she was worth the risk.

  “I had a dream last night.” Cane turned to shift the bag he’d used to prop himself up, and when he turned back around, Megan had scooted ten feet away.

  “I gathered that.” She wasn’t looking at him.

  Cane frowned. Where was she going? He wanted to tell her about his dream. It was further proof he was headed in the right direction. In the dream, he’d seen Eva out on the street. He’d said hello and that it was nice to see her. Then, he shocked himself by saying, “Eva, I’d like you to meet my girlfriend. This is Megan.” He’d turned to the woman beside him and wrapped his arm around her shoulders. Eva looked happy for him as she smiled and greeted Megan. Normally, when he thought of Eva, his heart ached. But when he saw her in the dream
, his heart was tugging him in another direction. One that led him toward Megan.

  “Oh good, everyone’s awake.” Mike interrupted the conversation Cane so badly wanted to have, though Megan seemed to be moving farther away by the second. “I’ve spoken with the Cove Bay Beach authorities. Apparently the beach sustained quite a bit of damage and the bay was struck by lightning. To make a long story short, you won’t be allowed to stay on the beach until cleanup is complete. Given what I heard about the storm’s affects, that could be weeks.”

  Cane rose to his knees and stretched his back. What would this mean for the show?

  “Obviously, since The Leftover is set to air next month, we don’t have that kind of time. I’ve decided to speed up the game rather than find a new location. The authorities are allowing us to film one more challenge today and then we are to vacate the premises for the cleanup crew. Take a few moments to wake up and we’ll all head back to the beach. The rest of the camera crew was called in an hour ago and will meet us there to get started.”

  Cane watched the contestants react to the news. Everyone looked shocked and confused as to what this would mean for the game.

  “We’ll have Wendy explain everything when the time comes.” Mike shook his head. “Would have been nice of Mother Nature to hold off, but what do you do? The show must go on.”

  Cane noticed that Megan was now standing next to Grace and Carson. He wasn’t going to get a chance to tell her about his dream this morning. Why had she seemed to shrink away from him? His positivity and confidence plunged, but he tried to shrug it off. The conversation would have to wait. If his emotions held any truth, they would have plenty of time to discuss that and many other things. Maybe even a lifetime.

  He tried to catch her eye again, but she resolutely examined her sandals. A bad feeling was growing inside him. Was he reading things between them all wrong?

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Megan kept her eyes on the sand surrounding her sandals. Her clothes were finally dry, but the humidity after the storm made them stick to her body. She shuffled her feet and tried to shake off the horror that rose within. She had let Cane into her heart, bit by bit. And he still had Eva in his.

  When she arrived on the beach, all thoughts of Cane flew from her mind. Her jaw dropped as she surveyed the damage. Branches lay haphazardly here and there. She couldn’t believe how many dead fish floated in the bay. The lightning strike had done a number on the water. Who knew if there were any fish alive or how contaminated the water was. That was probably a big part of why the show was moving at a rapid pace. They needed to vacate the beach for their own safety.

  Wendy was standing on her board near logs placed upright in the sand. “Welcome back to Cove Bay Beach.” She drew their attention away from the wreckage. “As you can see, the bay took a beating last night.”

  Megan inspected Wendy’s face. Her makeup was heavier than normal and she wondered if she was trying to cover bags under her eyes from a long night. She had a home and a bed, but she had experienced the storm as well.

  “Today, we’re speeding up the contest. The remaining six contestants will stand on top of these logs.”

  Megan stared at the logs behind Wendy. They did not look very large, maybe six inches in diameter and three feet high. She was going to have to balance up there?

  “In order to whittle the group down to four, we need to eliminate two people with the competition. The first two that come down from their logs are off the show. The rest of you will still want to remain up there as long as possible. The last one standing will receive protection from the vote, which will take place immediately after the competition.”

  Megan did some math in her head. When two people left the logs, they would be down to the final four. The four would then eliminate one more person. That would leave the group open for someone to rejoin the ranks if anyone had found the Protection Piece.

  “The sun will be hot soon and the logs are not comfortable. Wendy Weathersby wishes you luck.” Wendy smiled, but it looked forced. “Leftovers, choose your logs.”

  Megan walked to a log in the center of the group.

  “Take your positions,” Wendy ordered.

  Megan placed one foot on the log and hoisted herself up. She couldn’t fit one entire foot on the log, much less both feet. It was highly uncomfortable and it would become painful very quickly. She envied Grace’s smaller feet but hoped that Andrew would feel the pain faster than she would. She glanced down the row of logs. Leo, Carson, Grace, Danae, and Andrew were all in position atop their own uncomfortable logs.

  “Everyone’s ready. The competition begins now.” Wendy shifted her feet on her board. Megan wondered if Wendy Weathersby felt more out of place on the beach than normal. The dead fish didn’t give off a pleasant odor and the fallen branches were a reminder of how scary the storm had been.

  Megan took a deep breath and tried to remind herself how lucky they were. The storm could have hurt or injured any of them, but they’d escaped with just one close call.

  Out of habit, her eyes roamed the beach until they landed on Cane—but the memory of him murmuring Eva’s name came flooding back, and she quickly shifted her gaze. She needed to concentrate. No distractions. Her foot ached so she shifted her weight and placed the other foot on the log to give the first one a break. Her toes curled over the edge of the log. The injured toe did not appreciate being bent in this manner and sent waves of pain up her leg. She wouldn’t be able to use her bad foot for long.

  She glanced down the row. Grace looked completely comfortable and at peace. Her eyes were closed and she had a slight smile on her face. She’d do well. Danae wavered a bit. Megan watched as she swayed and switched feet to regain her equilibrium. Leo wasn’t faring well either and Megan was certain he wouldn’t last long. The time on the beach had weakened all of them, making a relatively simple task much more difficult. She had no illusions of gaining protection, but if she could outlast two of them, she could at least get to the final four.

  A sudden motion caught Megan’s eye and she swiveled her head to the right.

  “Enough of that.” Andrew stepped from his log and sat in the sand, rubbing his foot. He stood and brushed the sand from his suit pants. Megan’s eyes widened. Andrew was giving up? He was out! He walked past her log and caught her eye.

  “See you in the finals, sweetheart.” He winked.

  A slow smile spread across Megan’s face. Of course. He thought he was in the final four because of the beaded creation he found in her bag. Boy did he have a rude awakening coming. His ego didn’t allow him to play fair and square. He wanted to rub it in their faces that he’d found the Protection Piece. Megan took a deep breath and steeled herself against what was to come. Andrew would not appreciate her in any way, shape or form very soon.

  The breeze blew against her shoulders as she switched back to her other foot. She imagined her sister’s face when she found out Megan had made it to the final five. It was astounding. She wasn’t sure she would last through the first vote and yet here she was.

  Megan reviewed the past few days in her mind to keep her thoughts as far away from the pain in her foot as possible. Some of it had been pure luck, but there were parts that Megan played intentionally. She’d had a hand in getting several dangerous players voted out while keeping the lean-to crew safe. Her group surrounded her now on individual logs with Grace on her left and Carson next to her. Leo was on her right. They’d made it this far together.

  “We’re at the ten-minute mark.” Wendy held her hair up off her neck and fanned herself.

  Megan sighed. Ten minutes? That was all? It’d felt like an hour. Her foot was screaming and she wasn’t sure she’d be able to shift back onto the other one. Her injury could cause her to falter sooner.

  “Whoa!” Leo called from the end of the log line next to Megan. One moment after he cried out, he hit the sand. He stood and brushed himself off. “Got off balance,” he explained. “I guess that’s it for me.” He hung his
head as he joined Andrew on the patch of sand next to Wendy.

  The log was starting to cause pain to radiate up Megan’s leg and into her hip. As much as it hurt, she knew switching to her other foot would be infinitely worse. If she hadn’t stubbed that baby toe, she’d be able to last longer by going back and forth.

  “Twenty minutes.” Wendy gave the competitors a sympathetic smile.

  Carson dropped to the sand just after the pronouncement. “My feet are too big for this,” he announced. “Besides, Grace could be here all night.”

  Megan shot a glance at her friend on the next log. She hadn’t moved. Her eyes were still closed and she looked perfectly at ease. Carson was right and Megan wasn’t going to last much longer. She tried Grace’s tactic and closed her eyes. Her sister and the fast-paced training session she’d put her through flooded her memory.

  Megan remembered how her legs had burned after all the stairs Molly made her run. She hadn’t thought it would make a difference, but here she was, mentally forcing her body to stay on this log, just like she had forced her way up the stairs. And she had watched the Survivor marathon just to humor Molly—but that too had come in handy, cluing her in on using her glasses to start the fire. Molly had pushed her through those experiences because she seemed to think more of Megan’s skills than Megan did. But now, Megan realized, she was doing this by herself.

  “Danae, you’re out,” Wendy called.

  Megan opened her eyes. It looked like one of Danae’s feet had hit the sand. She tried to cover it up by jumping back on the log, but Wendy caught her.

  She shuffled past the remaining two contestants. “Hey, final four works.” Danae shrugged. She wasn’t safe past that, but she seemed to be happy with that outcome. It was more than Leo could say. Unless he had the Protection Piece, he was out.

  Megan closed her eyes again and remembered the conversations she and her sister had about the show. Her sister promised to let Megan name her child if Megan won the show. Megan ran a few names through her mind. Evan. Sadie. Jordan. Kaelyn. She wasn’t sure what she would choose. And it probably didn’t matter.