An Ex for Christmas(66)

The hallway’s empty.

“All clear,” I say, stepping hurriedly into the hallway. It’s open air, as much of the villa is, and the faint scent of tropical flowers is vastly preferable to the astringent smell of the cleaning supplies.

I inhale and turn around to face Gage, who’s closing the closet door.

I extend my hand with a confident smile. “So. We have a deal? I’m the first one home?”

He looks at my hand, then his gaze flicks up to meet mine. His eyes do look a little more like emeralds in this light, but I’m not about to tell him that. I stand by my guacamole assessment.

Finally Gage reaches out and shakes my hand. “Sure. First one home.”

I feel a surge of relief, even as my hand is far too aware of the warmth of his palm against mine. “Thank you. Truly. I’m sorry I’ve wasted your time on your hunt for true love, or whatever. I’m sure one of the girls here will think your eyes positively sparkle.”

He opens his mouth, but before he can reply, the sound of feminine laughter pierces the air, only to stop completely when three of the contestants round the corner and find me and Gage standing face-to-face, my hand in his.

I tug my arm back, but it’s too late. Cora, a gorgeous lawyer of Middle Eastern descent, and Hannah, a pretty southern second-grade teacher with a penchant for headbands and passive aggression, are both giving me dirty looks.

The third woman plays it smarter.

“Hey, guys!” the stunning blonde says, giving us both a friendly smile as the trio approaches. “We were just taking a tour of the villa, it’s gorgeous.”

Meet Brooklyn. She’s basically the most gorgeous woman I’ve ever seen. She’s got long, shiny blond hair that she wears in loose, low-maintenance curls. She’s got straight white teeth and Disney-princess blue eyes. Add in the C-cup breasts, tiny waist, and legs up to her chin, and she’s pretty much perfect.

She’s also exceedingly friendly to everyone, me included, and I should like her. I know I should, but I can’t shake the sensation that every single thing she does is preplanned, and it makes it hard to relax around her.

Gage, apparently, doesn’t feel the same, because his welcome smile seems entirely genuine. “Ladies, good to see you. You all ready for the kickoff dinner tonight?”

“Yes, totally,” Hannah drawls prettily. “And I can’t wait for tomorrow’s pool party. My poor winter skin is totally overdue for some time in the sun.”

Cora lets out a confident laugh. “I’ve never had to worry about that.” She subtly juts out a long, exposed thigh beneath her white skirt, as though waiting for Gage to take in her naturally bronze skin.

But instead of checking out Cora, Gage’s eyes find Brooklyn, who gives the slightest of playful eye rolls at the other woman’s antics, which Gage answers with a quick wink.

Irrationally annoyed by their silent flirting, I take a step back from the group. “Thanks for the directions,” I tell Gage, trying to convey to the other girls that I was just lost, not hiding out in a coat closet making deals with our very own Runaway Groom. “This place is huge, right?”

“Oh, sweetie, did you get lost?” Hannah says melodramatically. “You poor thing.”

“Just took a wrong turn looking for my room,” I lie, lifting a hand in farewell. “See you all at dinner.”

Cora, Brooklyn, and Hannah all give me a singsongy goodbye, but Gage doesn’t even look my way as he drapes an arm over Cora’s and Brooklyn’s shoulders. “Ladies, care to join me on the patio for a beverage?”

I’m clearly not included in the invitation, and I tell myself it’s a good sign—a show of faith that he’ll stick to his promise to send me home first.

But as they walk away, his manners far more charming than they were when he was talking to me, I stare after them for just a moment, wondering which Gage Barrett is the real version: the silver-tongued charmer out to fall in love for the sake of ratings, or the guy in the cleaning closet whose avocado-colored eyes hinted at dark secrets.