Page 77 of Most Eligible
Roland looks like he doesn’t totally understand what just happened, but having only four women left spikes the tension in the air. I glance at Rhett, who’s deep in thought, pacing a hole in the bearskin rug.
Lainey takes a deep breath, squeezing her eyes shut like she’s trying to go to her happy place. “Roland? Are you ready?”
“But Lainey,” he protests, “I can’t—”
“You can and you will. Or do I need to remind you how precarious your position is?” She steps closer to Roland and lays a hand on his forearm. “You can’t marry a woman like that,” she says quietly. “You have a reputation to uphold.Ihave a reputation to uphold.”
Roland swallows hard, nodding, as Olie trembles, still in Norbert’s firm grasp. Roland lifts his head to look at the four of us, then he looks back at Lainey, who just nods. A death signal if I’ve ever seen one. But I can’t tell if it’s me or Olie getting the axe.
I stand up straighter, ready to go out with my head held high.
“Olie.” He says her name so tenderly it breaks my heart. If I have to leave, I’m glad she gets to stay a little longer.
Olie wrenches free from Norbert and runs up to Roland, throwing herself against his chest. “Thank you,” she sobs. “Thank you so much, baby.”
Roland pats her hair, tears leaking from his eyes. Slowly, he detaches her from his chest and looks down at her, setting his jaw. She freezes, as my stomach drops with sick anticipation.
“No, you have to go, baby,” Roland says.
“Wh—but, what’re you saying? You can’t do that—she can’t make you do that!” Olie looks frantically at the sea of producers, at Lainey, at Norbert, but no one moves. “Rolie, baby, please,” she begs, grabbing onto his arm. “Please don’t do this. Please!”
“I’m sorry,” Roland says, voice tight. “I’m so sorry. I don’t have a choice.”
I look between him and Lainey as Olie breaks down in sobs. Lainey’s mouth is set in a grim line, but she makes no move to interfere.
Norbert steps forward, pulling Olie gently back from Roland.
“Rolie—Roland, please,” Olie cries, but Norbert starts to haul her away, her heels skidding on the hardwood floor.
“Out you go, lass,” Norbert says, and even he sounds a little sad.
Monica turns her head so she doesn’t have to witness Olie’s undignified exit. I’m tempted to do the same, but something keeps me watching until she’s out of sight, her howling sobs echoing through the foyer.
I half expect the producers to start interviewing us about how Olie’s leaving makes us feel or some other bullshit, but once Roland retreats to his room in tears, the cameras cut.
“What, no champagne toast for the winners?” Addison asks, tossing her blanket onto the couch, apparently fully recovered from her “near death” experience.
Monica throws her a dirty look. “How do you live with yourself?”
Addison just smirks as Monica trudges upstairs.
I’ve never felt less like a winner. Maybe I’ll feel better tomorrow, but somehow I doubt it.
I ignore Addison and follow Monica upstairs. In my room, I peel off my clothes and pull on a pair of loose-fitting jeans and a T-shirt. It’s only midafternoon but I’m exhausted—and starving. The vodka sloshes around unaccompanied in my stomach, but the thought of eating anotherLove Shack–approved salad or bran muffin isn’t appetizing. What I really want is a grilled cheese. Or a burger. Or literally anything that would make Lainey turn up her nose.
There’s a soft knock on my door, and I press my eye to the peephole. But it’s not Lainey come to scold me for my impure thoughts about cheese. It’s Rhett, his face bulging in the warped glass.
I open the door a crack, and he glances up and down the hall, then steps into the entry of my room. He has a set of keys in one hand and a black baseball cap in the other. On the front of the cap, the wordsRhett Auburnare stitched in white thread,accompanied by a small horseshoe. He reaches up and puts it on my head, tugging on the brim so it sits more snugly in place.
I peer up at him. “Why are you giving me merch?”
He twists his jaw to the side, smirking, and pops up the collar of his jacket as he says, “Want to get out of here?”
Was Rhett arrested last night? A friend saw him downtown with cops.
—@loveshack_fandom22, Instagram comment, one year ago
Chapter Twenty-Six
