Filming an engagement reality show without the groom? Bold strategy.
Even without spending half as much time online as Cam does, I can already see how this’ll blow up. The edits, the fan theories, the headlines practically write themselves.
–
And for a brief second – despite everything – I actually feel bad for her. They haven’t even said “I do,” and he’s already pulling a disappearing act.
If this is the start of forever, it’s looking pretty shaky.
Becca claps her hands, her smile snapping back into place like it never left. “Cameras start rolling now! So have all the fun you can – tonight we regroup for couple games!”
EMILIA
After a while, the group naturally splinters off. Some join a walking tour. Others rent bikes. I, however, have reached the limit of how much walking I can physically or emotionally tolerate. So Liam and I find a quiet bench overlooking the water, just slightly out of the way, and sit.
I watch people stroll past–families, tourists, a group of kids racing on scooters. Liam, meanwhile, scrolls on his phone, presumably trying to find something that doesn’t involve hiking up a hill or wandering for hours.
000%
17070
Chapter 96
288 Vouchers
“My feet hurt,” I grumble, swinging them slightly off the edge of the bench. “And renting bikes still involves moving, so that’s out.”
“You want me to find you a horse–drawn carriage?” he asks without looking up.
“Don’t tempt me.”
A flash of colour catches my eye–Céline and Lacey walking side by side, with Tonia a few steps behind, now sporting lime green hair and holding a crumpled map like she’s auditioning to be a tour guide.
I’m about to wave them over, but then I remember what Liam said before the whole kissing fiasco. Before I sort of… threw myself at him. The memory creeps in like a blush I can’t control.
I fight the urge to bury my face in my hands and instead blurt out, “Hey, what were you saying about Céline earlier?”
Liam glances up from his screen, brows raised slightly. “Hm?”
“You were going to tell me something about her. Before I… you know.” My voice trails off, as if I’m hoping the ground will open up and swallow my embarrassment whole.
His gaze locks with mine, the sunlight turning the blue of his eyes almost silver at the edges. It’s the kind of look that makes me feel a little off–balance – steady but unreadable. Soft in a way that feels dangerous, but not in the bad way
Then he looks away.
“That night,” he says quietly. “Did you notice anything weird?
25.68%
1707D
Chapter 96
1288 Vouchers
Like… smell anything strange?”
I pause. Of course I know which night he means. But I don’t remember any weird smells.
Before I can answer, he shakes his head. “Never mind.”
I don’t ask again. I don’t bring up Stone, either–even though it’s strange that I haven’t seen him around. Not today. Not for a while.
Instead, I look at his screen and try to lighten the mood. “Let’s ride the couple’s canoe!” ·
Liam’s brows shoot up. “The what now?”
–
I point toward the floating dock, where heart–shaped canoes yes, actual red–and–pink, ridiculously adorable heart–shaped canoes — are bobbing gently in the water. “You know. For couples. People in love. Holding hands. Whispering sweet nothings. That sort of thing.”
He stares at me. I stare back. A camera clicks nearby.
He exhales, muttering under his breath, “This feels like emotional blackmail.”
“You love it.”
He doesn’t answer, but the tips of his ears turn a very obvious shade of pink. That’s a yes.
So we end up in a canoe, squished close enough that our knees touch. I pretend not to notice, but it’s all I can focus on. That and the fact that we kissed this morning and now we’re
pretending we didn’t.
54 40%
17.07
Chapter 96
17 288 Vouchers
Except we’re not pretending. We’re really not talking about it.
Fake dating is so simple, right?
The canoe wobbles slightly, and I instinctively grab the sides. Liam notices.
“Nervous already?” he asks.
“Only because you look like you’re about to reenact a shipwreck,” I shoot back.
He picks up the oars. “Alright, Captain. Which way?”
“Left.”
He paddles right.
“No–left! Your left!”
“That is my left!”
We spin.
Then spin again.
By the third turn, I’m laughing too hard to care. “We’re going in circles.”
“It’s a technique,” he says, huffing. “You wouldn’t understand.”
“And where did you learn it from, huh? Vikings?”
He gives me a look, “Are you going to help or just keep giving commentary?”
“I think I’ll just look pretty and judge you.”
60 13%
170703
Chapter 96
288 Vouchers
He opens his mouth to fire back–but in that second, the canoe tilts. And then, before either of us can steady it, we’re in the
water.
EMILIA
96.85%
