Stuck on You (4 page)

Paige rolled her eyes. “Just take the picture.” She held up the note with the cache number card in front of her and smiled with a thumbs up for the camera, trying to look cute and giving in to her happiness at finding their first cache. She hadn’t mentioned it to Zoe, but she’d secretly been scared she’d come on this show only to be a part of the team who never finds a single cache. Ever. Thankfully, they seemed to work well enough together that it wouldn’t be the case.

Zoe snapped the picture then lowered the GPS. “That was perfectly dorky in every way. And you wonder why Brad didn’t keep you around.”

Bitch
. Her good mood dissolved instantly.

Paige kept her thoughts to herself and shoved the note back into the canister, securing it into its originally spot. Of course, shoving it up Zoe’s ass might make her feel better. Maybe she’d drive to their next cache and see if she couldn’t find a few more corners to take too quickly. Maybe then Zoe would be too busy to throw out any more unsolicited comments.

She grabbed the logbook from Zoe and quickly jotted down the location of this cache and the day and time they found it. Moving to the next one on the list, she read the coordinates to Zoe who entered them in.

“Looks like this one is a long drive — fifty miles from here.”

“Isn’t there anything closer to where we are now?” Paige asked.

“Maybe, but with five hundred coordinates to read through, it would take a while to find them.”

“Then I guess we better get a move on.” Paige turned on her heel not waiting for Zoe to lead the way with the GPS. First things first, they had to get their SUV out of the parking garage and Paige didn’t need Zoe’s help for that. Hell, she didn’t want Zoe’s help for anything anymore. Maybe she should ask Chip to let her run this race alone after all.

• • •

Paige and Zoe ran for the line drawn in white spray paint across the lawn in front of a gorgeous lodge. Other teams were already standing to the side as they crossed the line and stopped running. Paige moved to the side near the others, then doubled over, trying to catch her breath.

At five minutes until eight, they’d snuck in under the cutoff time for check in that night and with only a couple of caches to their credit. Not exactly the first day she’d been hoping for.

The last team — Team Grandparents — finished just behind Paige and Zoe.

“We might be last, but we made it,” they cheered, less out of breath than Paige was. She really should have worked out more before coming on a show like this.

Spencer moved from the sidelines to stand directly on the line and faced the teams. “Welcome, teams, to the beautiful Cascade Lodge. This is where you’ll be staying for the month while we film.” He paused while the teams looked at the lodge. “Each morning you’ll leave from this line at eight for check-out and every evening, you’ll check back in at eight. That gives you twelve solid hours of racing time. Use it wisely. And remember, checking in after eight will earn you a two-hour penalty the following day.”

The teams cheered, but it wasn’t as enthusiastic as it had been in the morning. Apparently Paige wasn’t the only one feeling like the day had taken it all out of her. Now that she’d finally caught her breath, she noticed other teams looked as tired as she felt.

“I know you’ve had an exciting day and I’m sure you’re all ready for a hot meal and a warm bed. So without making you wait any longer, here are the keys to your rooms.” Spencer handed each team an envelope with their names and a room number written across the front of it. “Go find your rooms, relax, eat, and rest. After every check in, you’ll be given a time slot for your daily wrap-up interview. The first one is tonight. You’ll find a filming schedule posted in the common room each evening.

“Oh, and one more thing, there are cameras mounted in the common room to catch all the after hours action since the cameramen are only filming out in the field with you during the day. However, there are no cameras mounted in any of the bedrooms. Rest assured, the privacy of your rooms will not be compromised by the show in any way. So if you need a place to talk strategy with your team, remember that. If there are no questions, let’s wrap this up. Goodnight!”

Paige yawned and followed Zoe into the lodge. Looked like she wouldn’t only be racing with Zoe each day, but sharing a room with her each night too.

The show kept getting better and better.

• • •

Miles threw his bag down on to his bed. It wasn’t the ritziest of hotels or the largest room, but it was clean and looked comfortable enough. And best of all, it was quiet after a grueling day of racing.

Ben had already flaked out on his bed, his leg elevated on a pillow, snoring gently. Miles would wake him in an hour for a late dinner.

Miles lay back on his own bed, folding his arms under his head as he stared up at the ceiling. The day had been harder than he’d expected and he was a seasoned traveler and climber. He could only imagine how hard it had been for Ben.

He tried not to look at Ben’s leg.

Damn it.

What he wouldn’t give to take that moment back. That one stupid moment that had made a mess of everything.

And every day Ben had to live with the reminder of everything that had gone wrong.

His friend rolled over in his sleep, his leg twisting on the pillow and his pant leg creeping up around his calf. The hard plastic of his prosthetic leg peeked out from beneath the material; forcing Miles to move his gaze back to the ceiling.

Miles went over their race day in his mind. The caches they’d found today hadn’t been that challenging which meant they’d been easier for Ben to reach, but also meant that they hadn’t been hard enough to deserve any extra reward for finding them. He’d really hoped they’d get lucky right off the bat and find a few caches with money in them. Money he could then help Ben pay off his medical bills with.

Even with good insurance, suffering an injury like Ben’s came with a big price tag. As if the pain and suffering wasn’t enough to bear on its own.

Or the money could be used to buy a fancier prosthesis for Ben. One that would make rock climbing again a real possibility.

And Miles would do whatever he had to to make sure that Ben and his family were taken care of. That his children could go to college. That Ben could have some money in the bank to ease the burden of everyday life. It was the least he could do.

If Miles could even help Ben realize that he still loved hiking and climbing, and that he could still do it even with his injury, well, then that would make coming on some silly reality show all the more worth it, especially after having to pull every trick in the book to get Ben here to begin with. The man was stubborn and convinced he couldn’t race. It was only when Miles begged him, claiming he had no other partner to run with, that Ben had finally caved and agreed to try and run the race. When Miles added that he missed having someone to climb with, adventure with … well, that was the final push Ben needed to sign up for the show.

Now they were here and Miles had to make sure Ben didn’t push it too hard. He wanted him to realize he could still do this stuff, but he didn’t want him to take any unnecessary risks that could result in another injury. Not on his watch. Not this time.

Paige settled herself into one of the wooden rocking chairs on the covered patio of the lodge, her back to the beautiful lake behind them. The room was more like a sunroom than a patio with twinkling lights strung from the beamed ceiling and screened walls separating them from the elements and bugs.

The sun would set any minute, but the twinkling lights above them as well as the crew lights would make it possible to do the daily wrap-up segment regardless of how late of a time slot they got. Luckily, they’d gotten the first fifteen-minute time slot this evening. After which, they would be free for the rest of the night to eat dinner and relax.

In the rocking chair beside her, Zoe sat looking more annoyed. “Are we ready to go yet? I really don’t want to waste my entire evening doing a silly interview.”

“I think we’re good. One more second,” Evan said, fiddling with some papers on the little table next to him.

Paige watched as he finished getting everything ready. It was strange to be sitting here in front of Evan since he’d always been the one to interview Cassidy on
The One
. And it made her a little sad, wishing for the hundredth time that Cassidy was here with her instead of Zoe.

“Okay, let’s get started. Paige how did you feel when you found out Cassidy wouldn’t be on the show?” Evan asked.

“I was shocked. And totally terrified that I’d be kicked off the show before it even started.” She glanced up to Evan who had that silly half-dazed smile on his face again like he had when he’d seen Cassidy at the start of the show. “And I was thrilled for Cassidy’s good news too, of course,” she added quickly.

“How did you feel when you learned you’d be paired with Zoe for the race?”

“I was terrified again. And annoyed that Chip would give me a new partner without even asking for my opinion.”

“Well, would you have agreed to be my partner if he had asked?” Zoe questioned, looking even more annoyed.

Paige shook her head. “No way. No offense.”

“Oh, none taken. I wouldn’t have said yes either.”

“Wait, you didn’t know who you were teamed up with before you got to the show?” Paige asked. How was that possible?

“Nope. And if I had, I would have thought a lot more about it before saying yes. I’m the one who has to put up with you long enough to do the whole show.”

“Gee, thanks.”

“You’re welcome.”

Paige motioned for Evan to move on with the interview.

He cleared his throat. “Back to the provided questions. How do you think you did today after your first full day of racing?”

“I think I would have done a hell of a lot better with a partner who could work a GPS or drive,” Zoe said. “I can’t do everything myself.”

Bitch.

Paige closed her mouth, which had fallen open at the rudeness of her partner’s words. “You’re no prize partner either, you know. You’re the one who wanted to stop at the salon to get your nail fixed while we’re running a race. I wish Chip had given me a partner who was less superficial.”

“There’s nothing wrong with wanting to look my best. If I look my best, I perform my best.”

Paige sighed. “Sure, ’cause having perfect nails really helps us find caches faster.”

Zoe narrowed her eyes.

“Anything you’d like to add to that, Zoe?” Evan asked.

Zoe folded her arms across her chest and leveled her gaze at the camera. “No.”

Good. There wasn’t anything she could say to justify a salon stop during a race and she knew it. Maybe tomorrow she wouldn’t make another stupid request to stop for something else ridiculous and unnecessary.

“Last question before our time runs out for tonight. What do you think of the other teams you’re racing against?”

“I think we have our work cut out for us. Some of the other teams seem way more prepared to do these kinds of challenges. But I still think that if we work hard together we’ll be able to hold our own.” Paige smiled, hoping she looked confident in her answer because she certainly didn’t feel it.

She was pretty sure they would lose. Horribly.

• • •

Paige eased into one of the cushy oversized chairs in the common area and curled up, cuddling her cup of hot chocolate in her hands, the three giant marshmallows in it slowly melting. The large stone fireplace threw enough heat to make her feel warm and cozy without feeling cooked. Perfect for relaxing at night after competing all day.

If only Zoe would wander off and find somewhere else to hang out for the night. Like the snake hole she’d slithered out of for the show.

Currently, Zoe sipped a glass of wine and glared at Mr. Muscles where he sat in another armchair opposite Paige. If only she could figure out why Zoe was acting like that. They hadn’t even exchanged names yet and already she seemed to have a rather large chip on her shoulder whenever she spotted him.

His partner carried a drink in his hand as he wandered over to the couch, hobbling a tiny bit, almost as if one of his legs was stiff or sore, then settled himself onto the couch near Zoe. Perhaps he’d gotten hurt at one of the caches.

“How did you girls do today for caches?” the friend asked. “I’m taking a tally of everyone’s progress.”

“Ben, you can’t ask people that kind of thing,” Mr. Muscles interrupted.

“Why not? I’m not asking where the caches were, just how many they found. Relax, Miles. We’re all friends here.”

Miles shot a glare at Zoe. “No, we aren’t.”

Zoe responded with an equally disgusted look right back at him, but said nothing. She turned to Ben and spoke directly at him. “We found a couple. But our first was pretty far away so we spent a lot of time driving instead of searching.”

“How many did you guys get, Miles?” Paige asked, hoping that directing the question at him would release some of the tension that had built up around them so quickly.

Miles. Interesting name. Maybe because he has miles and miles of lean muscle.

When her gaze traveled back up his chest to settle on his face again instead of all those wonderfully sculpted muscles she could see under his fitted T-shirt, she found him staring back at her. And if she wasn’t mistaken, he knew exactly where her eyes had just been too. Her stomach fluttered.

“Four. Not as good as I would have liked.” Miles shrugged.

Paige was relieved he didn’t look at her with the same look of loathing as he did Zoe. So it wasn’t because Zoe was on another team. There seemed to be something about her that rubbed Miles the wrong way. Not really surprising. Zoe rubbed everyone the wrong way.

Except for the producer Chip. He seemed to be able to handle Zoe without much trouble at all. That was probably part of the reason he kept putting her on shows when all of the other contestants were always annoyed with her. He wasn’t annoyed at all.

“Four is better than our two. How many did the other teams get?” Paige asked.