Body Games (Games #5)(31)
Author: Jessica Clare

Saul was the next to pull, and he got purple. Alys got purple as well, and she high-fived Saul as she stepped onto the mat next to him. I watched them thoughtfully. Both had been playing as singles and looked far too delighted to have a partner again. They were going to bond simply because they were now paired together, and that meant they needed to be watched closely.

Leslie drew the next rock – green. I was surprised when Emilio, her partner, also pulled green. “Looks like the two of you get to stay together,” Chip commented. Oddly enough, Emilio and Leslie didn’t look super pleased. They exchanged glances and headed on to the mat together. I wondered if there was some room to plant a bit of dissension between them…if I ever got a chance to talk to them alone. After all, if they weren’t working together, it was better for me.

“Well, shit,” Kip said under his breath.

I looked over at him, curious. Then I looked at Chip. He strolled over to us, in no hurry. “Well, since we only have one man and one woman left on the two teams that still need to be filled, it looks like there’s not much mystery in whose team you’ll be on, Kip and Annabelle.”

Oh. I hadn’t even noticed. I looked over at the mats, and then swallowed hard. Kissy stood on the red mat by herself, and Jendan was on blue…

Jendan was now my partner. My heart did a crazy little leap in my breast, and then dismay swept over me as I realized what that meant. If we lost a challenge, I might have to vote Jendan off to save myself.

Shit. I suddenly wanted Kip back.

Kip dragged the red rock out of the bag Chip held out for him, looking supremely unenthused. He sighed heavily at the red rock in his hand and then went to Kissy’s side, so much annoyance on his face that I was rather pleased to see it. Kissy crossed her arms over her sagging br**sts. “Ain’t like I’m happy to be with you either, young man.”

Everyone laughed. Everyone, that is, except Kip. His face just purpled a bit under his tan, and he glared at the rest of us. Kip now had the smallest basket, and I’d have bet money that it contained a coconut and water.

I couldn’t help it. I smiled broadly.

Then Chip was at my side, holding out the near empty bag to me. I put my hand in and pulled out the last remaining rock – bright blue. I showed it to everyone with a faint smile on my face and strode over to Jendan’s side. He gave my shoulders a squeeze as I moved next to him, and looked delighted.

I was conflicted. So conflicted. Part of me was so thrilled to be Jendan’s partner.

Part of me was horrified. Because if we went to Judgment and lost…what was I going to do?

The answer was obvious, of course. Just don’t lose. But that was easier said than done.

Chapter Fourteen

“I can’t tell you how happy I was that Annabelle was my partner. Not only do I get to rescue her from that jackass, but I get to be around her twenty-four seven. Which means constantly fighting my attraction to her. She’ll have to be the big spoon in the shelter at night, because I don’t think I’ll be able to not react to her presence. Which makes me so screwed, since we’re doing the friendship thing. The only thing keeping my libido in check is how NOT thrilled Annabelle looked to be my partner. What’s up with that?” — Jendan Abercrombie, Day 14, Endurance Island: Power Players

The boat dropped Jendan and I off at a new section of beach I didn’t recognize. It was an entirely different island, and I mourned the loss of the waterfall. At least I’d gotten the secret word – kere kere – before we’d left. We hopped off the speedboat into the knee-deep water, me carrying Jendan’s blanket, and him carrying the basket. A cameraman hopped off with us and kept a few feet away, always filming. I ignored him.

“Well,” Jendan said as we walked onto the beach. “Looks like we’re starting from scratch.”

“Kinda looks like it,” I told him, raising a hand to my brow to shield my eyes from the sun as I gazed down the beach. “Do you suppose this was someone else’s camp? Maybe they had a shelter somewhere.”

“We can check it out,” he said, then pointed in the opposite direction of where I was looking. “I think I see a flag in that direction.”

I turned and sure enough, there was a patch of blue in the distance. “That’ll be where our machete is. Let’s go.”

After a quick walk, we found the flag, the remains of a nearby shelter that hadn’t survived last night’s storm, and the crate for the machete and cooking pot. To my surprise, it was intact. “We can take the crate apart and use the wood as part of the base of a new shelter,” I suggested.

“Good idea,” Jendan said, setting down the basket and opening the crate.

I started forward, remembering the clue to Pandora’s Box from before, but when we opened the container, there was nothing but the pot and the machete. No canteens, no maps, no notes. “I guess they didn’t leave their map.” Or their clue.

“Huh.” He dug through the box for a moment, then shook his head. “Not here. Should we head off and find water before we do anything?”

“Let’s check what we have in the basket,” I suggested. I was starving, and the thought of food sitting right there, just waiting for us to eat, was enough to make my shrunken stomach do flips. “Maybe we’ll have enough to last the day.”

“Here’s hoping we got something better than coconut and water,” Jendan told me as he undid the latch on the lid. We pried it off…and gasped.

Inside was a jug of fresh drinking water, a small round loaf of bread, some cheese, and a couple of grilled chicken br**sts. A few pieces of bright, juicy fruit rounded out the meal.

“Oh my God,” I moaned, dropping to my knees next to the basket. “If this wasn’t the big prize one, I can’t imagine what was in it. This is amazing.”

“I could cry,” Jendan said with a laugh. He picked up the water jug. “And look. We can keep this and use it over and over again.”

“Perfect,” I exclaimed, thrilled. I couldn’t have asked for better. “Let’s put the blanket down and have ourselves a picnic, shall we?”

“No,” Jendan said, and his hand grabbed mine, stopping me. I looked up at him in surprise and he gave me a sheepish look. “If that blanket touches the sand, we’ll never get the sand out.”

“Oh.” I quickly wadded it back up again and clutched it in my arms. “Sorry about that.”

“Don’t be sorry,” Jendan said. “It’s your blanket now, too. We’re sharing everything.”