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Chapter 8

Sienna was at Ada's side as they left the challenge platform, and Cas jogged up right behind them. It probably looked a bit silly, running after them like she was in school, but she needed to make sure Ada was okay.

She hadn't reacted, she had just stood there, blank-faced, until Reece's phone pinged and announced the end of the challenge, but the small sigh she'd let out as she climbed underneath the railing and dropped into the dust...

"It's okay," Sienna was saying, her voice low and her mouth nearly pressed against Ada's ear in an attempt to prevent her comment from carrying. "Come on, babe, let's go talk. You're okay."

"I know." Ada's voice was thick, though whether with tears or suppressed anger or something else, Cas didn't know. She didn't have tears in her eyes, but maybe she was phenomenally good at controlling them. "Let's just get back into the villa and then I'll talk to you."

Sienna steered Ada into the back garden, her steps remarkably quick now that she wasn't wearing towering high heels. Cas could hear everyone else starting up behind them, the sound of their laughter ringing through the air, but Sienna wasn't distracted in the least. She led the three of them down to a small seating area off in the far corner, well out of the way from the center of the action.

Sienna eased her arm from Ada's as they approached the sofa and guided her gently to a seat in the middle of the curved white couch. Sienna and Cas sat down on either side and Ada exhaled a rough laugh.

"This feels very dramatic."

"We just want to make sure you're okay," Sienna said.

Cas nodded. "It's fine to take a minute to be upset."

Even if Brad was disgusting and offensive on about a thousand levels, it was still callous, shouting about someone else like that in front of your partner.

"I'm not upset. I'm pissed off." With the way she was cutting the words out on her teeth, she certainly sounded like it. "Yesterday, he comes storming in and interrupts us; last night, he's all over me; today, he's going feral over getting to kiss some girl right in front of the other girl"—she jabbed a finger into her chest—"he's partnered up with!"

"He was practically frothing at the mouth," Cas said. It was probably the wrong thing to say, but—

Ada laughed, her whole body shaking a little with the effort. "Right? He looked like he was gluing himself to her."

"If it makes you feel better, I don't think Tia enjoyed it," Sienna said. "She was wiping her mouth when he finally pulled away."

"That doesn't surprise me," Ada said. "I had to, too."

"I'm not surprised," Cas said. "It sounded like you were making out with a waterfall."

Ada snorted and dropped one of her hands so it came to rest on Cas's thigh. The contact was sharp, instant, and it sent a pulse of want through Cas. Even through the sticky foam coating her skin.

Ada left her hand there for a long second before she pulled away and sighed again.

"Honestly, he's just fucking rude and careless, and it's pissed me off."

"And now you have to share a bed with him and not smother him in his sleep," Sienna said.

Ada groaned. "I'm sleeping on the couch tonight."

"You can bunk with me," Cas said. "Femi won't mind."

Ada laughed. "I'm sure he wouldn't, two gorgeous girls snuggled up on either side of him."

"That'd probably be his dream," Sienna said.

"Attention, lovers." The speaker was directly next to them in the garden, and the voice was loud. Sienna screamed. "One by one, you're going to make your way into the confession hut and share your thoughts about today's challenge. No one is permitted to shower until after their confessional has been recorded."

The groan that went through the villa was palpable.

Cas had just finished settling into the round rattan chair when a speaker on the wall opposite crackled to life. "Hey, Cas, it's Chloe. Are you ready to talk about the challenge?"

"Yeah." Cas crossed her arms, tucked one foot up underneath her. It was unsettling, talking to someone you couldn't see. "Definitely."

"Perfect." Cas could hear the rustling of papers over the line. "So what did you think of the challenge today?"

Seeing as she was still covered in a layer of grime so thick Cas was sure she'd need a chisel to get it off, she wasn't thrilled about it.

"It was really fun!" She smiled at the camera and hoped the truth wasn't etched into her face. "It was great getting to know everyone; I think it really helped us bond."

"Did you learn anything surprising about your fellow lovers?"

Cas thought for a moment before she barked a laugh, falling back into her chair. "I was surprised that Reece has had a foursome."

"Why was that surprising?"

"He just seems so... innocent." It was the nicest way to say that Reece seemed like he still curled up with a stuffed animal every night. "I didn't expect it of him."

"What did you think about Brad's kiss with Tia?" Chloe was quiet for a long minute, but when Cas didn't speak, she clarified. "Did you think that Tia chose Brad on purpose?"

"Well, she had to guess who she thought fitted just like the rest of us. And Brad defo seems like he'd brag about sleeping with people, so I can't say I was surprised she thought it was him."

"You looked annoyed during the challenge, though, would you say that's fair?"

Fuck, had she? She needed to control her damn face.

She paused for a long moment, weighing her words carefully before she spoke. "I... was just more concerned about how Ada was feeling."

"How is she feeling?"

Cas grit her teeth together. "I think that's more for her to say. I don't want to speak for her."

Chloe hummed and there was more rustling of papers over the line. "Is it fair to say that you and Ada have bonded quite a bit already?"

"I think that's fair."

"Do you think it was okay for Brad to kiss Tia, then?"

There were so many layers to this question. It seemed so simple on the surface—did she think that Brad was within his rights to kiss Tia or not—but the more Cas thought about it, the more she realized that there was no clear way to answer this, at least not within the social guidelines of the show.

"I think that everyone is well within their rights to get to know whoever they want. That's the entire point of being here, right?" She pressed her lips together as she tried to formulate her next sentence. "My issue with the whole thing, though, comes from the fact that Brad was talking to Ada like she was the sun itself since they were partnered up yesterday afternoon and then he turned around and literally tried to inhale Tia.

"If he wanted to be open to knowing people and exploring and whatever, that's fine, but he should have made that clear to her. He should have said that he thought she was cool or whatever the hell he thinks about her, but he also should have said that he wanted to get to know other people. Though, honestly—"

She knew she was spiraling a little out of control, but she was getting carried away by her frustration now.

"I actually think that so many men come on this show and do exactly what Brad just did. They act like the woman they're partnered up with, whoever she is, is the best thing that ever happened to them, only to turn around and snog the hell out of the next person they see that even remotely takes their fancy. They talk about finding a connection, but none of them actually make a real effort. You're not making an effort if you're going around snogging everyone.

"I know they like to talk about it like it's some test"—she did the world's most sarcastic set of air quotes—"but that's—I'm sorry, that's bollocks. You know how you feel or you don't, you don't need to shove your tongue down someone else's throat to figure it out. And if you do, maybe you need help, I don't know."

She stopped abruptly, nearly swallowing her own tongue in her haste. She was angry, yes, but there was no reason for her to let it all loose like this. Not in the second episode. Not before people really knew who she was.

She exhaled sharply and with such force she was surprised she didn't fog up the lens of the camera.

"I don't know. Whatever. Anyway, I think he just needs to have a conversation with her."

Chloe was quiet for a long moment, so long that Cas actually started to think that Chloe had either left or was dismissing her without so much as a goodbye. Finally, the speaker clicked on and Chloe's voice spilled into the confession hut.

"Fair enough. Thanks, Cas, that's all we need from you today. Can you send in Sienna, please?"

Cas struggled to her feet and, with a perfunctory wave at the camera, made her way out of the confessional.

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