The Next Contestant (18 page)

ALL FUCKING WEEK
I ignore her texts. My plan was to blow her off, ignore her, but I can’t stop thinking about her and it’s driving me crazy. Mostly because I don’t know why she lied. But part of me wonders if I’ve been set up. I mean shit. It would be a perfect set up. Kolby using his sister as bait knowing I’d fall for her, that it’d take me out of the game.

I stoop as low as talking to Nick, asking about Timber. I got an earful and also learned that Kimber’s ex use to be a frat brother, that he dated Kimber, but he roided out and apparently, in a fit of rage, took it out on Kimber after they’d broken up. Stabbed her in the gut and put her in the hospital.

After Nick graced me with that knowledge, I kind of understand and feel bad for what happened to her, but that’s not a reason to lie, not if you really like or care about someone. I make a decision. I’m going to play her game for a while, see if she’ll tell me the truth; if she ever plans on telling me the truth.

The more I lie staring at my ceiling, thinking about this bullshit, the fact that I’ve taken her places I’ve never taken anyone before, and the fact this charade Timber… no, Kimber. Fuck! I hate to admit she stole my heart. It pisses me the hell off.

I snag my phone and text her.

J: I want to see you. Can I pick you up tomorrow?

I wait for her to respond. Ten minutes later, my phone dings. I swipe the screen and read her reply.

K:
What time?

J: Five-ish?

K:
Yes, five-ish. Text me tomorrow and let me know. ;) I miss you.
xx/oo

Well shit. I don’t even know how the hell to handle this situation.

J: You got it. Miss you too. Sorry, got to go. Tons of homework. I’ll text you tomorrow.

Yeah, I totally lied, but I can’t sit here and converse with her knowing what I now know.

I toss my phone on the nightstand and continue to stare at the ceiling until I finally fall asleep.

IT’S EARLY WEDNESDAY
evening. I’ve picked Kimber up and as we’re heading toward Indian Rock Park, I hear Kimber—I want to call out her ‘real’ name—inhale sharply. I find an open spot and park my Jag. After opening her door for her, I grab the cooler from the back, lock the doors, and grab Kimber’s hand. We walk, our fingers entwined, along the path leading toward the boulder.

During the week, Indian Rock is usually less crowded so I’m hoping I’ll be able to get Kimber to break down and be honest with me.

“Have you been here before?” I ask, breaking the silence between us.

“Yes. I’ve been here with Dev—” she catches herself, and then hesitates. I know instantly what she almost let slip. “With Kolby, my ex, and his friend, Devin,” she corrects herself as she raises her thickly lashed eyelids to glance at me. So fucking innocent, yet she can’t bring herself to tell me the truth about who she really is.

As we move further along the trail, I reach for her hand. She locks her fingers with mine but glances nervously at others passing by. Once we reach the rock, Kimber pauses, closes her eyes, and takes in a deep breath. She opens her eyes and smiles.

“Thirsty?” I ask.

“Yeah.”

Dropping the cooler, I unzip it and pull two water bottles out. Kimber snags one from me, opens it, and chugs half the bottle. “Ah,” she says as she wipes the dribbles of water from her chin.

Smiling, I grab the cooler, reach for her hand, and lead her up the steps carved into the boulder.

Indian Rock
displays a breathtaking view of the San Francisco Bay. It’s a cloudless evening so the skyline will be amazing at sunset.

There are a few people scattered about but plenty of room and privacy for Kimber and I.

“Wow. I forgot how pretty it is up here,” Kimber says as she gazes at the bay.

The sun is fading and the air is cooler. Kimber shivers so I snag the blanket from the cooler—yeah, kind of girly to pack one, but I knew she wouldn’t likely have a jacket—and step behind her, draping the blanket over her shoulders. I wrap my arms around her waist, pull her back against my chest, and hook my chin over her shoulder.

God, she smells so damn good that I have to restrain myself from kissing her neck.

“Mm. Thanks,” she says as she drapes her hands over mine and leans her head into my chest.

Inching my fingers down her abdomen, I pause to see if she’ll protest. When she doesn’t, I slip my hands under her shirt and softly stroke her stomach. Working my hands upward, I secretly search for the scar where her loser ex stabbed her. Apparently I’m his replacement on the team and in the fraternity, though his previous room is Nick’s room, which would explain why Kimber wasn’t bothered by sleeping in my bedroom.

Kimber shifts uncomfortably and places her hands over mine. When I reach a spot slightly between her ribcage and left hip, I let my fingers settle over the raised thickened area. She grunts and squirms and then she tugs my hand away from the scar.

“What happened?” I ask.

“It was a long time ago,” she says but doesn’t give me anything more.

I flip her around, crouch down, lift her shirt, place my lips over the old wound, and kiss lightly. Kimber is staring down at me wide-eyed and guarded. Then she grabs my hair and pulls me away.

“Don’t.” She observes me warily.

“Why?”

“I don’t like it.” She pushes my head back, pulls her shirt down, and tucks it tightly into her jeans.

Coming up to stand in front of her, I reach for her hands and rub my thumbs in circles over her palms. Why can’t she just come out and tell me the truth, make this a lot easier on me.

Kimber’s cheeks flush and she won’t look at me. She presses her lips together, brows furrowing. The tip of her tongue darts out and she licks her lips nervously.

“Did someone hurt you; cut you?” If that isn’t enough of a hint, I don’t know what is.

Kimber’s eyes go wide, jaw slack. She closes it, opens it, and closes it again. Finally, she glances at me but won’t meet me eye-to-eye. “No. I flipped over a fence and a piece of uncapped fencing was bent up and caught my flesh. That’s all. I don’t like the ugly scar and I don’t want to talk about it,” she bristles.

The sun is setting; the beauty of it lost while I struggle to keep it together. My anger is rising. My heart is falling. I want to pretend I never discovered the truth, that she will ultimately put me up against the fraternity and ruin me. I hate this, hate that I’m forced to push her away.

Stepping back, I shake my head and rake my fingers through my hair.

Fuck!

Kimber turns away and stares at the falling sunset. “It’s beautiful; all the colors rolling on the clouds, the stretch of ocean.”

“Yeah. Well, I think we need to go,” I say bitterly.

She drops her head and slowly turns toward me but again, she doesn’t lift her head to meet my gaze. “Okay,” she whispers.

We walk the trail in silence.

We drive in silence.

Several times I glance over at Kimber. She has her head against the headrest and stares out the window. I’m pissed that she doesn’t question my anger or the silence between us. I pull in and park in front of her building.

The longer we sit here, the more I want to fucking rip my hair out. How can she do this? Pretend she has no clue when I know damn well she has to suspect I’m on to her little lie. Pretty good fucking acting. I should clap my hands or bow down. Pft! I shut the car off, slide out and slam my door. Then I force myself to open her door, roughly. When she doesn’t move, I prompt her.

“We have classes tomorrow. I’ll see you to your dorm,” I tell her, which prompts her to scurry out of the car.

“No. Don’t bother, Jax. You’re obviously pissed so I’ll let you go.” Without waiting for my reply, she rushes to the front door while digging for her keys. She lets herself in and continues on without a backward glance.

“Fuck!” I slam the passenger side door shut and then slam mine after I slip into my seat. I’m fuming and peel the fuck out of there.

Kimber wants to toy with me, let the motherfucking games begin!

The entire week, I’ve either ignored Kimber’s texts, or replied with shrewd single word answers. I’ve also done nothing but lie in bed and stare at the ceiling, depressed over the entire situation, at the idea of not seeing her or being with her. It’s killing me, for us to be apart, but I’m running in circles, not getting the truth out of her and I have no choice but to push her away.

I’M ENTERING THE
house and of course it’s party central. I’m not in the fucking mood, not after my shitty week. I push through the crowd.

“Jax! Dude, your girlfriend is here,” Jaden shouts from the living room. I search frantically for her, wondering why the fuck she’d come here and blow her cover in front of the guys, especially Kolby. What the hell am I going to say? Your sister is at fault. I had no idea she was your sister. She said she was your ex? But then he’ll demand to know why I didn’t tell him when we went to her dorm, why I didn’t tell him what his sister did, how she lied.

I turn toward Jaden who is now working his way toward me, a tall blonde following right behind him, and it’s not
her
! As they approach, I see a striking resemblance between the tall blonde and Kimber.

Ah fuck. This must be the real Timber. How the fuck am I gonna get out of this one? Fucking Kimber. I’m going to find a way to fuck her over the way she’s just done to me.

Jaden pushes the blonde in my direction. She’s looking at me, a single brow raised in question.

If the guys find out I’m not dating this girl, they’re going to think I’m a liar. I do the only thing I can think of. I grab her hand and drag her through the crowd, toward the stairs.

“Wait!” she cries and tries to pull away from me, but I keep dragging her along until she trips and falls against me. I turn, lift her up, and wrap my arms around her when she tries to get away.

“Let me—” she starts to holler, attracting attention, but I stop her by grasping her jaw in my hand, pulling her head back against my chest.

I whisper in her ear, “Sh, sh. I need to explain why they think you’re my girlfriend. Please, just come upstairs with me. I swear I’m not going to hurt you.”

She nods her head and reluctantly, I let go of her chin. She smiles at the audience now watching us, then she turns around, wraps her arms around my neck and whispers in my ear, “This better be good because you’re freaking me the fuck out.” Then she pecks me on the cheek, obviously putting on a show for our spectators.

Once we enter my room and I shut and lock the door, she flips around, her eyes narrowed, teeth gritting. Looking at her closely, I notice she has light brown eyes and her face is too thin. From a distance, she resembles Kimber, but up close, not so much. The blonde wavy hair is the only thing they have in common.

“Well? I’m waiting,” she says, hands on hips, foot tapping. She’s quite the bitch if you ask me.

“They think you’re my girlfriend because my soon to be former girlfriend said she was you.”

She smirks. “Is that the best line you’ve got, because I’ve got to admit, it’s a clever come-on.”

Well shit. “Sorry, but it’s not a line, it’s the truth. Now I’m fucked because A. They’ll think I made up a story about dating Kolby’s ex. B. If I tell them the truth, Kolby’s gonna flip the fuck out because I broke my oath, but not purposely.”

“And this is my problem, why?”

Bitch!

“It’s not your problem. It’s my problem and I’m asking you to help a guy out.” This is so fucked up. I’d like to call her a fucking cunt because she is one and I hate bitches like her. I would have loved to meet her while I was in the game, use her ass and kick her to the fucking curb. That’s the only hard on I’d get from a girl like her because her attitude sucks ass.

“Hm.” She taps her lips with a single pink fingernail. “And what’s in it for me? Because you know this is major, what you’re asking of me. Kolby can be a real ass and if he thinks I’m involved in any way, in this little charade you’ve got going on, he’ll find a way to ruin me.”