“For sure,” I reply, trying not to be distracted by Richard ranting and raving behind me.

“You’re done. Fired! We just missed that whole conversation thanks to your incompetence. Get the fuck off my set!”

My jaw ticks as I turn to glare at the man. But he doesn’t see me, instead he’s shouting at the drone operators to get close enough to capture audio.

The entire crew has resorted to keeping their eyes downcast, focusing on their tasks and trying to escape his scrutiny. Julia too. Which only makes me want to go check on her.

But I don’t. Instead, I focus on the person who has arrived to do our safety checks. And when all of that is set, we begin.

We glide from platform to platform. The crew relies mostly on drone footage and tactfully placed cameras. Mountain vistas stretch out below us, and gently burbling creeks spill over dark moss-covered rocks, the stream of water disappearing between thick sections of Ponderosa pines.

We hit the first platform before the drone catches up. I can hear Richard blowing another gasket, but Catherine doesn’t spare him any attention. Instead, she turns to me and whispers, “If you need help with Richard or getting in and out of your house or anything like that, just let me know. If I can’t find my own love story, I want to be able to tell my kids one day that I played a part in making a real one happen.”

I don’t know what I was expecting her to say after we launched across a deep valley with the wind in our hair, but it wasn’t this.

“Are you serious right now?” I can’t tell if she’s fucking with me. “This just seems… I don’t know. I’m suspicious after all the drama that’s unfolded with the other women. I—”

“Listen, Emmett, I came here because I had the time, because I was single. And because sitting in my house recording a true crime podcast with only a few weekly listeners was fucking depressing. I figured I had nothing to lose, and I don’t. And helping two people who do have something to lose make it work, well, that takes nothing away from me. If anything, it would bring me great joy to stick it to Dick Wad and Evelyn.”

My eyes bug out because that might be the meanest thing I’ve ever heard this woman say.

She only proves me right when she clarifies, “Stick it to them in a subtle and mature way, of course.”

The hum of the drone draws near and I catch sight of it speeding toward us. Part of me wants to laugh because this entire exchange is so absurd, but the other part is touched by her offer.

Plus, she seems to agree that Richard’s true and rightful name is Dick Wad, which automatically means we are on the same team.

Without a second thought, I reach forward and shake her hand. “Deal,” I say.

“Deal,” she responds.

“What did they say? Please tell me someone got whatever they were shaking on? None of you can do your jobs at all?” Richard’s seething voice echoes across the canyon and this time all it does is make me smile.

A smile that carries me through the rest of the date.

OceanofPDF.com

OceanofPDF.com

CHAPTER 36

Julia

“OKAY, SO YOU’RE going to sneak around the back, and I’m going to distract Emmett and the cameras at the front.”

I nod at Catherine, trying not to giggle at how excited the woman looks. She literally claps as she bounces on her feet. Me? I’m feeling a little sick about it. But Emmett and I both agreed that it would look strange if he left his house and didn’t come back every single night.

Which is what we have been doing all week. So we’re flying over the radar in order to fly under the radar—or something like that.

“I feel like I’m pulling off a heist! This is so romantic.”

“I can’t believe you’re doing this,” I mutter, walking beside the taller woman as we head toward my car.

“No way.” She bumps her shoulder against mine with an unexpected level of camaraderie. “This is fun. Someone here might as well fall in love, and it sure isn’t going to be me.”

“No?”

She lifts a brow in my direction. “Well, for starters, no one here is going to get Emmett’s attention when it’s been on you since day one. And I don’t think I like him like that. I could see us being friends under different circumstances. He’s a good guy, even though Richard is doing his best to make him seem otherwise.”

My shoulders relax at her explanation. She sounds genuine. And I have to admit when Emmett told me about her plan, I was suspicious. Women like Evelyn have me second-guessing all the contestants.

But to her credit, Catherine strikes me as a real girls’ girl.

“We owe you one,” I say, tugging my car door open and propping one foot inside.

She waves me off. “Get outta here.”

We exchange a quick smile and then I pull off the farm, looking to everyone else on the show like I’m driving off into the setting sun, heading home for a perfectly normal night.

Except I turn the opposite direction at the end of the driveway and head straight to the Prickle Point parking lot. From there, I lock my car, grab my duffel bag, and jog across the road where I duck straight back onto Stal Brandt property.

I tiptoe along the road, heart beating so loudly in my ears that I can barely hear anything else. It’s only as I creep closer toward the house that I can make out the indistinct murmurs of Catherine and Emmett talking.

Is Catherine crying?

I shake my head and decide not to overthink it. I let her put on whatever kind of show is fun, because I imagine being stuck here filming for several weeks has gotten stale as hell. I almost feel bad that she’s spent so much time here all for nothing. But at least the end is in sight.

When I make it through the back door—almost silently—I click the lock shut and let loose a heavy, relieved sigh.

Then a small laugh. Because what the fuck am I doing? Sneaking around like this is… hilarious. Ridiculous.

They say that love can make you crazy, and I can’t help but wonder if that’s why we’re here. Doing this.

With Emmett still out front, I pad through the house, analyzing it with fresh eyes. It’s barren, basically unlived-in. There’s not much character in the place, no real sentimental pieces dotted throughout. Even though this is where he spends his summers, it feels like a stopping point.

I make my way toward the living room, avoiding the front entryway and any of the windows that might face out toward Emmett, Catherine, and the army of cameras I’m sure is eagerly recording their every move.

“I promise it’s going to be okay,” Emmett says, and his voice sounds reassuring as Catherine sniffles something back quietly.

“Have a good night and don’t overthink it,” he responds. “We’re going to make it through this, all right?”

I know they’re faking it for the cameras, but my hackles still rise at the use of we.

Unable to sit still and wait, I prop a hip against the back of the large leather couch and stare at the antique-looking piece of cowboy art hanging on the wall behind it. It reminds me of hotel art. Most likely one print of millions.

Nothing special in many ways.

And yet it ended up here. I wonder how.

The sound of the door clicking shut doesn’t make me turn. I can hear Emmett’s footsteps as he pads into the living room, and just knowing he’s approaching sends a spray of goose bumps across my bare arms.

I can feel the burn of his stare when it lands on me, and my stomach erupts with butterflies. I feel like a teenager with a crush. I want to turn and gawk at him, but the thought of making eye contact also makes me nervous.

As though we haven’t been alone before.