Page 58 of The Love Dare
“Will you accept this puzzle piece?” he asks, the words almost silly compared to everything else they’ve shared today.
Winnie beams. “Yes.”
She gathers her hair to the side as he reaches around her neck to clasp the chain the way he has twice before for her, but not for a single other woman in this room. He’s never seen the show, so he’s not entirely sure what the normal protocol for the necklace is, but he’s perfectly fine letting everyone else hold it. Moving so much into her personal space feels intimate in a way he doesn’t want to feel with anyone else. It’s their thing, especially as he brushes his lips against her ear, preparing to whisper another stolen soliloquy. He meant what he said before—she deserves someone who can write sonnets for her. But that will never be him. Hell, he can barely string a sentence together most of the time. Luckily, that Shakespeare class is the only bit of college curriculum that managed to stay with him, probably because he vividly remembers every second Winnie spent on his bed, her voice patient as she explained every romantic quote, not realizing that each one made him think of her.
Tyler spent the entire car ride back deciding on the perfect bit of pilfered poetry, some way to tell Winnie exactly how he felt with words more meaningful than he could ever string together on his own.
“To you I give myself,” he confesses softly. “For I am yours.”
She holds the pendant in her clasped fist as she makes her way back to the bleachers, a soft smile on her lips. With every other name he calls, he waits for it to fade, his relief palpablewhen it doesn’t—a little sign that maybe, just maybe, she is finally starting to believe him.
After he says goodbye to the dismissed girls, the producers pull him to the side. After that first disastrous night with the cue cards, he explained his dyslexia in more detail to the crew and thankfully, they worked with him on a different approach to the speeches. He’s got a pretty good memory, so they spend a few minutes saying and repeating a few planned phrases to introduce what will be the next episode and the next phase of the show. It’s finally time to ditch the mansion in favor of exploring the world, and though he’s not looking forward to forced dates with the other women, the travel does bring a little buzz to his skin. It’s something he’s always wanted to do, but never really found the time or reason to actually attempt. Aside from Canada, which he frequents for work, he hasn’t really left the country. The Rusus did bring him to Romania with them once during their usual summer visit, but it wasn’t really a touristy type of trip. Their extended family lives in a smaller town in the northern region and they spent the entire stay there. He loved finally meeting all the people he’d heard so much about and learning more about their customs—his tattoo of Winnie’s zgardan design was a big hit—but he has a feeling traveling with the show will be a helluva lot different.
Iceland is the first stop and he’s actually excited, which surprises no one more than it surprises him.
“To Reykjavik,” he completes his toast.
They clink glasses.
Before he even has time to think about trying to speak to Winnie, he’s ushered outside by the producers and hastily sequestered back in the guesthouse, their number one rule being no fraternization once the cameras go down. He fills his usual spot by the window, searching the shadows, wondering which one might be hers.
“You made great TV tonight,” Nina says as she slips open the door.
He keeps his eyes on the mansion. “You think I give a shit?”
“No,” she concedes. “But I thought you should know because I don’t have to be your enemy, Tyler. If you work with me, we can make great TV together—you, me,andWinnie.”
“Why do I sense abutthere?”
“Nobut.” The producer leans against the frame and cocks her clipboard against her hip. “Now that we’ve moved into the international portion of the show, things will be a bit different. We’ll still have a group date every week, but instead of three mini one-on-ones, you’ll get two full-day dates of your choice. The way we have everything scheduled in Iceland right now, the individual dates are first, followed by the group date. I have Winnie assigned to the first one-on-one?—”
“Really?” He can’t stop himself from interrupting. “Because I’ve been told that lie a few times before.”
“No lie. I can tell that after tonight there’s no keeping the two of you apart. I know a losing hand when I see one. So you’ll get your date. But I need names for everything else.”
“I really don’t care. You figure it out.”
She simply nods. “Got it.”
He waits a minute, no sound but the scratch of her pen.
“That’s it?” he finally asks.
She continues scribbling as if she hasn’t heard him, then looks up as she wedges the clipboard under her arm. “That’s it. Get some sleep. It’s an overnight flight to Reykjavik, then a five-hour drive to the first location. Your date with Winnie starts that afternoon.”
She leaves with a curt nod.
He’s not convinced by this sudden docile act. Nina’s a killer, and a leopard doesn’t change its spots.
I know a losing hand when I see one.
Her words plague Tyler long into the night. There’s no way she’s about to let him and Winnie ride off into the sunset when there’s still four and a half more weeks to film. Which leaves one very important question.
What’s her winning hand?
Because she’s got one.
He has no doubt about that.
