Page 47 of Glamour & Gumballs

When I realized there were two sets, I relaxed a little.

Glancing at my sides, I found Kaden and Chris walking with me.

“So,” one of them said.

I didn’t reply.

The other cleared his throat. “We all had a discussion while you were gone,” he said. “And we think it’s unfair that we refused to let you sleep beside any of us when we knew you were too cold to sleep alone.”

“You think?” I drawled.

“Yeah. We’re sorry about that,” Kaden admitted. “And we have a proposition for you.”

“You do know that the term proposition has sexual connotation, right?”

His eyebrows lifted.

“An offer,” Chris clarified. “We’ve all agreed to set up a rotation, and not to target whoever you sleep beside for that reason alone. I volunteered to go first.”

They were more than a little late. Something told me that sleeping next to anyone but Rhett would be an instant no for him. That would create the kind of chaos I didn’t want. The kind that would probably get him voted out of the game.

But I had to be careful about how I approached the offer. It would be too easy to imply that I wanted Rhett if I outright refused them. I had to give a valid reason.

“Did you also talk about the fact that I’ve been shivering from the cold nearly all day every day?” I asked, my voice even.

Neither of them responded.

I didn’t think so.

My lack of enthusiasm about being the prize they were competing for had somehow managed to make them look at me like I wasn’t a person at all. Let alone a woman they wanted to marry. They were focused on the game, and nothing but the game.

Or they just cared more about winning than about how I was feeling.

“Or the way I sit alone constantly, because you’re all too chicken to talk to me? Or the differences between the kindnesses you’ve offered me and the ones you offered Molly during her season?”

More silence ensued.

Though I itched to bring up that Rhett was the only one who’d been kind to me, I didn’t want to risk making him a target. So, I had to leave him out of it entirely.

“You don’t get to pick and choose when you want to treat me well. I’m not participating in your shitty rotation.”

With that, I picked up the pace and left them behind.

They watched me leave.

My chin lifted higher. Even if Rhett hadn’t been there, playing for me, I wouldn’t have gone along with their ridiculous plan. If they wanted to win me over, they should’ve started with a damn apology.

Then again, that also might not have worked.

I could hold a really great grudge.

I walked down the beach. Though the breeze made me cold, the lack of falling rain made up for that.

Taking a deep breath, I let it out slowly.

Everything was going to work out.

I just needed to make sure we got Julian out soon, and talk to Rhett about not staring at me. Even though I liked that he did.

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