Page 43 of Unscripted

“You’re serious?” I asked, not understanding why he would suggest such a thing. We didn’t like each other. Why would we stay together any longer than necessary?

“Yes, why wouldn’t I be?”

“I thought you couldn’t stand me.”

“I can fake it.”

“How nice of you,” I said. I’d had enough of whatever game he was playing and moved to slip past him.

He stopped me with a hand on my arm.

“I also need to stay here as long as possible,” he said. My curiosity got the best of me, so I stopped, listening to what he had to say. “I have my own reasons.”

“Which are?” I asked, suddenly desperate to know exactly why he was here if it wasn’t to find love.

“None of your business.”

I rolled my eyes. Of course he wasn’t going to share.

“Look, I’ve studied this show,” he continued, undeterred by my attitude. “The matches who get together in the beginning have the highest chance of making it all the way to the end.”

It seemed we had both done our research before arriving. He was saying exactly what I had been thinking since entering the villa but hearing it said back to me now, from him specifically, was frying something in my brain.

I said nothing in reply, simply blinking up at him as I tried to process what he was really saying.

My silence spurred him on, and he continued. “If we get to the finale and, by some miracle, actually win the whole thing, you can keep all the money.”

My stomach dropped at the thought. Making it all the way to the end of the show and winning the cash prize had seemed so far-fetched that I hadn’t considered it an actual possibility. My goal had been simply to stay for as long as possible so I could continue to receive the weekly compensation checks. But to win the prize money? And to be able to keep it all? It was almost too much to wrap my head around, but I knew, even in this tense moment in the tiny pantry, it would give me the breathing room I was so desperate for in my real life.

Callum kept going. “Neither one of us has found a good match yet, have we?”

James’ face flashed through my mind. Did our stilted conversation earlier in the evening mean we weren’t a good match in the long run?

Callum took my silent contemplation as agreement and carried on. “The other girls are nice, but they’re all actually looking for love. If there was someone else I thought I could do this with, I would, but it seems you’re my best bet.”

“You’re really winning me over with all that flattery,” I said.

“I’m sorry, but it’s the truth. If we do this, the one thing I promise is that I’ll always be honest with you,” he said, looking at me as if his entire life hung on what I said next. On the decision I would make.

“I . . . ” I started but couldn’t find any words after that. I didn’t know what to say. The turn of events had thrown me for a loop, and I was struggling to keep my thoughts straight.

“Think about it,” he said.

We stood there then, neither of us moving, simply staring at each other. Time and space seemed to stretch for a long, weighted moment.

I was still as a board, suddenly not wanting to move, not wanting to break the spell we were under. We were so close to each other, mere inches away, and I could feel the warmth of his body radiating out and wrapping around me, his annoyingly delicious scent infiltrating my senses.

Was I leaning forward? Or was he? Everything felt jumbled and heavy, until—

The pantry door was pulled open from the outside, bursting our bubble. I jumped back, away from Callum.

“Found them!” Jess exclaimed. She gave me a wink before turning and walking over to the kettle and clicking it on. I’m sure it looked like Callum and I had just been caught in a very compromising position.

From an overhead speaker, a producer called out, “Callum and Poppy, you’re cut off from drinks at the cocktail party tomorrow night. Bellas, hiding in the pantry and turning off your mic packs is not allowed.”

I flushed at the embarrassment of being called out in front of everyone. I was sure that my face was bright red as I stepped out of the pantry and quickly walked away from Callum, heading to the daybeds.

I sat next to Chiara and Jess and was immediately inundated with questions about what exactly had gone down.