Page 73 of The Amazing Date

Kelly stomps her foot and disappears into the elevator, and Caitlin follows. I can’t resist. “No pushing, ladies.”

Kelly flips me off just as the door closes. I turn, but Roberto is already approaching Ronnie.

“You guys didn’t check in? Did the blondes beat you to the mat?” he asks.

Ronnie shakes his head. “We were here first but decided to wait.”

“Wait?” I ask. “Why? For what?” I’m dumbfounded.

“For you two, silly,” Thelma states as if the answer is obvious. “You guys gave us a first-place finish already. It was a night we’ll never forget. Besides, Rylee, this is your plan. You guys were ahead of us. You knew about the second observation deck. You could have easily just continued up the stairs and won, but you didn’t.”

Ronnie picks up for his wife. “We’re so grateful for you just including us in the plan. Seeing the look on their faces when the elevator door opened and they saw us was priceless. When Wilma told them no team had checked in yet and they pushed us out of the way to jump onto the mat, I nearly peed my pants. I hope they videotaped it. It was epic.”

Tears well up in my eyes, and my chest constricts. This special couple has done it again. Wilma continues to look at all of us with admiration and confusion. She taps her watch. “You do know it won’t take them long to race up the stairs. Anger is rocket fuel. Chop chop.”

We all share a final laugh as competitors. My mind shifts to the prize money. Life-changing money. I can give Gabby my share and convince her to move to New York. We could get a nice two bedroom. It’ll be just like college, with my best friend and roomie. Roberto could use his share to take six months off from work. Maybe finally make it to Europe and sketch all the things he missed four years ago. He won’t have his professor or his contacts, but he’ll have the freedom to draw whatever he wants.

Roberto slips his hand into mine, and our gazes meet. We are a team. We are about to finish in first place in a couples competition that five days ago seemed a laughable thought. We are partners, connected from this day forward. We’ve learned so much about each other and can practically read each other’s mind.

“Are you thinking…” I begin, and I slip my other hand into Thelma’s.

“What I’m thinking?” he completes my question, slipping his other hand into Ronnie’s.

“On three,” I say through tear-filled eyes.

“One,” Ronnie counts down.

“Two,” Thelma adds.

“Three,” Roberto finishes.

Four sets of sneakers land on the finish mat at the same time. Two deserving teams that worked together.

Wilma’s hand coils to her chest. “I’m happy to report you are all the winners of the It Takes Two Thirtieth Edition.”

The four of us wrap our arms around each other, hugging and laughing.

“Never in the history of this race have we had a finish like this,” Wilma chimes with humor in her voice. “Best. Season. Ever.” She punctuates each word with a clap of her hand.

I lean into Roberto, a beautiful smile on his face, and whisper, “Best. Date. Ever.”

Behind us, I hear Ronnie, “Best. Wife. Ever.”

We’re two kissing couples, who ignore the laughs and claps coming from Wilma and her team. The loud smack of a door banging open so loud you’d expect King Kong to burst through the door breaks the celebration.

“Damnit.” An exhausted Kelly appears in the doorway.

Caitlin sways side to side, hands on her knees, bent over behind her. “I can’t believe the world’s oldest couple beat us,” she huffs out.

Kelly shoves Roberto to the side and steps onto the mat. “Well, at least your loser self didn’t win,” she mutters and signals for Caitlin to join her on the mat.

Wilma straightens her back, reverting back to her official voice. “Kelly and Caitlin, I’m happy to report that you are officially team number two.”

A look of confusion fills their faces. “Wait, what? Who messed up? I knew it?” Kelly laughs. She pokes Roberto in his chest. “Pretty boy, you screwed up, didn’t you? Serves you right.”

I would normally feel a sense of protectiveness toward her treatment of Roberto, but I already know how this will play out. I step forward to twist the knife. “We,” I start, emphasizing the word to indicate we are a couple and a team, “didn’t mess up. There’s a tie for first place.”

I don’t expect Kelly to believe a word I say, and she doesn’t. She turns toward Wilma, who nods.

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