Love 'Em or Leave 'Em

by Angie Stanton

  "Then the press jumps all over you about why you threw a certain pass, or why you ran the ball instead of kicking a field goal. You give it your absolute best, and you can barely drag yourself off the field at the end of the day, and then you have to face stupid questions after the game. And you know what else?"

  Ashley shook her head.

  "You have to treat the reporters with respect, because if you answer their stupid questions with idiotic answers, they'll edit it together to make you look like a fool. They can take anything a person says and turn it around so you appear like an uneducated, back-hills moron."

  "I had no idea. You always seem in such perfect control out there. I don't know how you do it. If it were me they were hounding, I'd crawl under a rock until they left. I'd never read another paper or turn on the TV again."

  "Well, I must admit I don't read any of the local sports pages. It's great to read the good stuff, but the bad doesn't benefit me. Trust me, I know when I don't play well. I don't need the newspaper to tell me."

  "See, this is another reason why you and I could never be together. I hate it when the media gets too personal, nosing into people's private business." Ashley shrugged and picked up a strawberry, rolling it between her fingers as she spoke. "I could never rise above it and say the right things. I would blow. It would be ugly and nasty and embarrassing. People would know my inner secrets. Ugh. How awful. I don't know how you do it."

  "I have pretty thick skin. It doesn't hurt that my dad was tough on us growing up, and my brother never lets me take myself too seriously. He keeps me down to earth and gives me regular reality checks." He looked at Ashley closely. "But why in the world are you here if you dislike the media? Don't you realize how much PR they're going to do when this show hits the air?"

  Ashley stared at him. "I never thought about that. Are you sure?" she said with her mouth full.

  Luke saw dread wash over her. "I haven't looked ahead at the schedule, but I assume it's all part of the contract. Media tours, all that stuff."

  "Oh great. That's just fine." She took a gulp of wine and looked off into the distance. "Shoot me now."

  "You want to elaborate on that?"

  "Well, if that stupid camera was here right now, I wouldn't be saying any of this."

  Luke nodded in understanding.

  "How can I explain?" She reached for a large piece of chocolate. "I'm a really private person. Don't get me wrong. I have lots of great friends and I love to have fun, but I don't want my life broadcast to anyone other than my closest confidants" She took a bite of the chocolate. "Let me say-being on this show was a bit of a ... surprise ... a last-minute decision. I guess you could say I am stretching myself here. I'm not used to putting myself out in front of people like this, especially not a television audience." Ashley hesitated and then took another bite. "Once I got on the show and met you ... no offense, but I knew we weren't a good fit."

  Luke regarded her skeptically. He didn't buy her story for a minute. Chemistry spoke louder than words.

  "Well, there was this mob of gorgeous, skinny women surrounding you at every turn. I knew there was no way I could compete with any of them, and quite honestly, I don't want to"

  Luke laughed, recalling the golf outing and how determined she had been despite her obvious lack of skill. Apparently she didn't realize how hard she tried to be competitive.

  Ashley continued. "I am not interested in fighting for someone. Those women don't know anything about you, and yet they throw themselves all over you and claim to be in love. It's such a joke. You don't fall in love with someone in three days. It's a big game, and I guess I don't play games well" She popped another large piece of chocolate into her mouth.

  "Well then, how did you get so far in this one?"

  "It's a mystery to me," she answered, her mouth full of chocolate. "My plan was to fly under the radar and get out of here quick. I had no intention of hanging around to see what it was all about. But you," she said and pointed her finger at him. "You messed up my whole plan by giving me those dumb roses. I even asked you not to. So you tell me. Why are you keeping me here when you know I'm not interested?"

  Luke stared at her and watched color rush to her face. Their kiss on the side of the ledge had indicated that she was very interested. And so was he. He hadn't felt that kind of heat from a kiss in a very long time, and he'd bet Ashley hadn't either.

  "Okay, let me get this straight. You entered a reality game you don't believe in. You decided I was a loser and you wanted out. So you tried to ... What was it? `Fly under the radar' so you could get off the show. And now that I've kept you here this long and selected you for this fabulous date, you tell me you aren't even a little bit interested?"

  He laid on the guilt very well. Somehow he knew Ashley would never hurt his feelings. For all her sarcastic wit, she didn't have a malicious bone in her body, unlike many of her competitors whom he had already sent away.

  "It's not that I'm not interested in you." She fumbled for words. "It's just-I don't feel that you're my type. And I'm certainly not yours."

  "Whoa, don't go putting words into my mouth. Now you're beginning to act like the media."

  "Sorry, but we're very different people. You're a public person and I'm a private one. Considering your line of work, I don't see how it could work. It's nothing personal"

  "It's business," he quickly interjected.

  "Something like that" She smiled. "Listen, I really do enjoy your company, so let's make the best of this adventure. Hey, we lost our cameraman and producer. The world is our oyster and ours to explore. Let's see what else this paradise has to offer."

  You are the pearl in the oyster. He narrowed his eyes at her. "Bet you can't get to the waterfall before me," he said.

  "Bet you I can" She leaned toward him.

  "Prove it." His eyes fixed on hers in challenge.

  "Fine. On the count of three. One... two... Oh, look!" She popped up and pointed back to camp. "The camera crew's back"

  Luke swung around, startled and disappointed, only to hear Ashley say, "Three!"

  Ashley knocked her plate to the ground as she took off running.

  Luke pounced after her like a wildcat pursuing its prey.

  She ran as fast as she could, letting out little shrieks as she heard Luke coming up behind her. Her heart pounded. She dodged small plants and rocks as she went. Ahead lay the waterfall. Behind her, Luke leaped over obstacles with the agile grace of a true athlete. Right before she reached the pool of the waterfall, Luke was on her. He snatched her around the waist and swung her away from it.

  "No, no, no," she squealed. "I was almost there."

  His strong arms held her firmly in place. Ashley's legs kicked and swung as she tried to get down, but he'd have none of it.

  "You little cheater!" His breath warmed her neck.

  "Put me down," she demanded, laughing. His solid chest pressed tight to her back, and his firm arms against her sent tingles down her arms.

  "You're not getting off that easy" He lifted her up higher, tossed her in the air and readjusted his hold. He now held her cradled to him with her legs over his arm.

  "Stop it!" she squealed.

  "Cheaters must be punished."

  Ashley fixed him with her meanest glare. "Don't even think about it."

  He walked toward the pool of water.

  "Don't you dare!" She squirmed in his iron grip. "Luke, I'm serious. Put me down" She pounded against his chest. "This isn't funny," she said, trying not to laugh.

  He pretended to trip and faked a fall, leaving her momentarily suspended in air before he caught her. She screamed, then started to laugh and put one arm around his neck to hold on.

  "You scream like a little girl-did you know that?"

  "Well, you're a bully-did you know that?" Ashley's heart beat faster.

  He walked to the edge of the pool and pretended to toss her in. She tightened her hold around his neck. He held her easily against him.

  "Well, wel
l, well. What are we going to do about this?" He looked first at her, with a glint in his eye, and then at the water. He shuddered for effect.

  Ashley tried a stubborn don't-you-dare-do-it expression.

  "Seems to me there's more than one way to skin a cat," he said, as though trying to decide what to do.

  "Put me down. Over there," she quickly added, pointing to the side where there was a carpet of soft grass. "Remember, I'm hurt. I've been through a traumatic experience."

  He ignored her. "The way I see it, we can do this fast or we can do it slow." He grinned. "I'd prefer fast, 'cause you're getting kind of heavy" He stepped into the water one step at a time.

  "Brrr. Nothing like fresh mountain water."

  "Please" She looked at him pleadingly, hoping the sweet-and-polite thing would work. She let go of his neck to show him her wrist. "I don't want to ruin my watch"

  "You are so lame" Her watch was smashed with broken hands. "Time's up!" Luke launched her so fast, she had no chance to hold on. So this is what it must feel like to be a football shot down the field. She barely had time to scream before she plunged into the pool.

  Water filled her open mouth.

  She came up sputtering, hair covering her face. "It's warm!" she choked out in delighted surprise. "The water is warm!"

  Luke grinned.

  "You knew!" She stood up, her clothes drenched and clinging. She pushed the hair out of her face as she stepped forward, then slipped and fell back into the warm water. "You are such a jerk!" Ashley splashed warm water at him.

  Luke removed his shirt, entered the pool, and swam out beyond her to deeper water. "Pretty awesome, don't you think?"

  He stole the words right out of her mouth. She didn't think she could have spoken anyway. Seeing him bare chested in such close proximity took her breath away.

  They floated around as he shared what the producers had told him about the natural hot spring. An active volcano several miles away heated the ground-water throughout the region. This was one of several natural hot springs in the area. And it was their private paradise for a few hours.

  The warm water caressed her skin and felt decadent. "There must be special minerals in the water that make it so soft and pure" It felt like nature's kiss upon her skin.

  They played in the water, floating on their backs and gazing up through the overgrown vegetation at the dimming sky. They swam under the waterfall and let the hot water beat against their weary muscles. Ashley found a natural shelf off to the side where she sat and relaxed, letting the water do its magic. The sound of water cascading over the rocks proved hypnotic.

  Water sluiced over Luke's sculpted muscles. He seemed unaware of the beauty of his body or its effect on her.

  Ashley lifted handfuls of water and let it run through her fingers.

  Luke swam over and sat next to her on the cozy ledge. After a few minutes of relaxed silence, he said, "I have to say I don't think I've ever heard a girl scream as much as you."

  Ashley sent a small splash his way. "Hey, so I'm not a tomboy, I'm not athletic, and I'm not competitive. I guess you could say I'm a girlie girl. Except that I don't look like one."

  "You look better than most of the girls from the show."

  Zing. "The last time a guy chased me like that was in kindergarten when we played `Catch 'Em and Kiss 'Em' on the playground." She skimmed her hand over the top of the water letting it run between her splayed fingers. Being chased by the boys gave her a special feeling in her stomach even back then. She felt it now with Luke.

  "Did they ever catch you?"

  "Once in a while." She smiled, remembering back. "It was always Gerald Newton who caught me"

  "Gerald, for a five-year-old? He sounds like a winner."

  "You don't know the half of it." She pictured the short little guy in his starched white button-up shirt. "He wore a crew cut on his round head, and thick black glasses"

  "You're making it up."

  "No, honest. It's the truth. He was a nerd" She looked up with a grin. "I guess that's where my love of nerdy men started, way back in kindergarten." Ashley continued to let the water run through her fingers and watched it splash into the pool.

  "So, what would Gerald the nerd do when he caught you?"

  "He'd push me up against the bricks of the school wall and give me a hard peck on the lips."

  Moving closer, Luke placed an arm on each side of her and held onto the rock shelf. "I caught you. Does that mean I get my kiss?"

  Ashley squirmed. Luke's kisses were as soft as the enchanting water. He was like a drug she was becoming more addicted to every day. Her head took over and she responded, "I don't think that's such a good idea."

  "I think it's a great idea. We're in this beautiful setting. There's no one else around. You don't have to worry about being caught on-camera, at least for a few more hours" The low timbre of his voice was spellbinding.

  "But Luke . . "A flush of warmth heated her skin.

  "Shush" He put his finger against her lips. "If you let Gerald kiss you in the school yard in front of everyone, it's only fair that you let me kiss you here in paradise where no one can see us"

  He had a point there. If she ever wanted to really enjoy kissing Luke, this might be her only chance.

  He slowly took his finger away and replaced it with his lips in a gentle, sensual kiss.

  Ashley didn't bother fighting it. Her insides turned to jelly. He rested his hands on the embankment behind her as he slowly kissed her senseless. How could a body be so relaxed and yet so tightly strung at the same time?

  "Come here" Oblivious to everything around her, Ashley let him lead her into slightly deeper water where they could stand or float. He gently touched her face. Tracing the outline of her chin with his finger, he slowly moved to her cheek and back again. Each touch awakened more nerve endings. He took her into his arms and recaptured her mouth. Ashley's pulse quickened.

  Arose is coming my way, and I'm actually excited. Who would've thought?

  "You sure look content," Cricket commented. She took a seat in a cushioned deck chair next to Ashley's.

  "Is it that obvious?" All she could think about was her time alone with Luke. The experience had left her a changed woman.

  "Yes"

  Ashley noticed Cricket wore a big smile as well. "Looks like you enjoyed your getaway too"

  "I did. They taught us how to sail on our trip up the coast. What an amazing boat. Luke is so much fun. He kept me laughing the whole time."

  "He does have the gift, doesn't he?" A warm glow grew inside Ashley whenever she thought about Luke.

  They sat on the back deck and shared stories as they waited for the producer to give them the heads up for the next rose ceremony. The air felt warm and fresh as the sun began to set.

  "Aren't you a couple of peas in a pod?" Tami sauntered onto the deck, hips swaying. "I hate to break it to you girls, but one of you is going home tonight." Tami plopped down into a lounger. "After our night in South Beach, baby, he's all mine. In fact, you can both go home tonight."

  Ashley and Cricket raised an eyebrow at each other. "Is that right?" Ashley knew it wouldn't take much to get Tami to spill the beans.

  "I had the man wrapped around my little finger." She waved her pinky at them.

  "Where's South Beach?" Ashley asked.

  Tami repositioned her dress to better display her shapely tan legs. "Miami, you idiot. You really are a country bumpkin, aren't you? It's the hottest place in the U.S. All the top models and A-list stars go there. It's the place to be seen. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if we make the cover of Star"

  Ashley shrugged her shoulders. How was she supposed to know about South Beach? She knew State Street in Madison, and even Rush Street in Chicago.

  "Did I mention the white sand beach?" Tami continued. "Let me tell you, after one application of suntan oil, he was all mine" She fanned herself.

  "So you had a good time?" Cricket asked.

  "Good doesn't even touch it."


  "What did you do when he wasn't polishing you with suntan oil?" Listening to Tami talk about Luke made Ashley's stomach sour. Her time with him was so special, it was impossible to believe Tami's could have been as well. At least she hoped not. Prayed not.

  "Well, after our afternoon by the ocean, did I tell you that we strolled the beach? He wore those amazing swim trunks, showcasing his six-pack in all its blessed glory. I swear every woman on the beach watched him. But he was all mine," she said. "I wore my gold suit. We stopped traffic. We put all those starving models and big, strong firemen to shame.

  "Later, we hit the boutiques. I made sure those snotty sales girls knew exactly who they were dealing with. Once they knew I had the NFL MVP on my tail, they gave us the red-carpet treatment. It's so nice to be with a celebrity."

  Ashley and Cricket exchanged looks again. Tami certainly had an ego.

  "Anyway, we ended up at Nikki Beach" She looked at Ashley. "You have heard of Nikki Beach, haven't you?" Ashley shook her head. "You are so pathetic!" Tami continued without pause. "It's the hottest night spot in South Beach. It's on the beach, obviously, and instead of tables and chairs, everything is white beds and pillows. I spent the entire night with Luke. Dancing and talking. The poor sot wants me so bad he can't see straight." Tami ran her long fingernails up and down her arms. Her goose bumps were visible from where Ashley sat.

  "My word, but you're shallow!" Ashley exclaimed.

  "What? He's eating right out of my hand. I can make him to do anything I want. I have the power. I want his money and he wants me"

  "You don't know him very well, do you?" Ashley asked.

  "Well enough. He's a jock and needs to be told what to do" She stood up. "All's fair in love and war." She flashed an evil smile and strutted back into the mansion.