Partner Games

Page 39

 
 
Swift and I cuddled and kissed for hours, though we never went that far again. It was nice to just relax and flirt, and doze in bed with our fingers intertwined, faces close enough to mingle breath. I was a little sad when he got up from bed and started to get dressed. “Time to go?” I asked between yawns, sitting up.
He tugged a shirt over his head and nodded. “I have to be on the mat shortly.”
“Good luck.”
He bounded back to the bed, pulled me against him, and gave me a quick, fierce kiss. “I should be wishing you luck – you’re going to need it since they broke your glasses.”
“Ugh. Don’t remind me.”
He kissed the tip of my nose and then returned to packing his things. I flung my stuff back into my bag. We’d arrived about a half hour after the guys had, and so we’d be leaving not long after they did. Time to go find my twin.
My face was hot as I slipped out of Swift’s room and knocked on the door to the room I should have shared with Georgie. It was late at night – since we only got twelve hours to rest up, and my knock felt embarrassingly loud. Was this what the walk of shame felt like?
Georgie answered the door immediately, her makeup pristine, hair carefully fixed. She looked me over and then wiggled her eyebrows. “Nice beard burn you got there.”
I touched my cheek, horrified. “Really?”
“Yup. Come on in and let me throw some powder on you.”
I sat on the toilet lid as Georgie dabbed a makeup sponge over my cheeks, smoothing on foundation. She was quiet. Maybe too quiet. “You’re not going to ask me about where I was?”
“Clemmy, I know where you were. Why, do you need a condom talk?”
“God, no.” My face burned.
“Just make sure he wears one.”
“We didn’t go all the way. We just, you know, fooled around.” He put his face in my lap and I lost many brain cells thanks to his magic tongue. It was fun.
“I’m not judging. You do you, sis. If you want to give him rim jobs from here to Turkey, that’s your business. I just want to make sure he treats you right.”
“So far so good.” I was feeling awkward with all of the focus on me and my love life, so I tried to turn the tables. “What did you and Plate do while we were uh, busy?”
She shrugged. “He brought some food up and we watched movies. It was kind of nice to just chill together.”
I knew what she meant. The best part of spending time with Swift (well, other than the kisses and the oral) was just holding hands and talking. Having that mental connection. I had the bond with my sister, but this was different.
Georgie finished with my makeup and rebraided my hair, and when I was deemed acceptable, we headed back downstairs to wait our turn on the mat. My broken glasses were in my pocket in case I had to read something, but otherwise, I’d just have to get used to the blurry forms around me.
I crossed my arms and glared at the teal blurs of Team Houston, standing on the mat ahead of us. Jerks. The production team signaled them, and they ripped their card, heads bent together, and then raced off, their cameraman trotting behind.
“Your turn,” someone said, and an arm waved.
I held on to Georgie’s arm as we moved forward, letting my twin guide me. We were handed our clue disk, and I held Georgie’s backpack so she could read.
“And…time! Go!”
Georgie immediately flipped and began to read. “Your next destination is Morocco. Make your way to Marrakesh and seek out the Hammam de la Rose. On this leg of the race, the last two teams to arrive at the mat will be eliminated, so time is of the essence.” She leaned over and squinted. “There’s some small print, too.”
“You need to move off the mat,” production said, pointing off into the night. “Your taxis are that way.”
“Right, thanks.” Georgie grabbed my hand. “We’ll finish reading in the car.”
We got into the taxi and headed to the airport, excited. “Where is Morocco?” I asked. Georgie was the big traveler, not me. “It’s somewhere in Africa, right?”
“Just south of the Strait of Gibraltar,” she said with a nod. “I’ve been to Casablanca for a shoot. It’s really nice. Hot, but nice.” She peered at the clue and then nodded. “Ah. Yeah, I was wondering about this. They’re instructing us to dress appropriately.”
“Oh?” I leaned over her shoulder even though I couldn’t read the words. “What does it say?”
“Please note that all contestants must watch their attire and be respectful at all times,” she read. “Women are to be covered from wrist to ankle, and men from shoulder to knee. Please do not wear exceedingly tight clothing out of respect for the beliefs of the country you are visiting.” She shrugged. “No surprise there.”
I nodded thoughtfully. It made sense. “We can change at the airport. I’m more worried about the whole ‘two teams in last place eliminated’.”
“Who arrived in last place yesterday? Green Machine, right?”
“Yeah, and Team Daddy was eliminated.”
“That leaves…” She counted off on her fingers. “Us, the boys, Green Machine, Houston, those orange lovebirds from Endurance Island, the Red Hat ladies…and who am I forgetting?”
“The doctor moms,” I reminded her. Those ladies in yellow were always hot on the heels of Team One Percent. If they got first place on every leg, the doctor moms were always a step behind them.
“Okay. There’s some low hanging fruit there. I think if we run a good leg, we can get ahead of the Red Hat Ladies and maybe Jendan and Annabelle. I like them, but we’re better than them at challenges.”
“Is it too much to hope that we can get out Team Houston or the Green Machine?” I asked. I hated both of them.
“Hope springs eternal,” Georgie said in a singsong voice. “Now, let’s see about getting tickets.” She leaned forward and tapped the driver on his shoulder. “Can we use your phone to call the airport?”
 
~~ * * * ~~
 
When we arrived at the airport, two big, blurry men in black shirts were waiting near the front doors for us. “Swift and Plate,” Georgie murmured as we walked in.
“You guys gotta hurry,” Swift said, grabbing my backpack from my shoulders. “The flight we’re on leaves in 35 minutes and the seats are almost full–”
“British Airways?” Georgie said. “Already called. It’s full. We have standby on Lufthansa, and they’re an hour and a half behind you guys.”
He cursed. “The doctor moms are on the flight with us. Houston, too.”
“We’ll be fine,” I assured them, though I was a little worried. After all, if we got booted out of the game this round, what was going to happen to our relationship? Just when things were getting…exciting?
Swift leaned in and pulled me into a quick kiss. “We have to head to our gate.”
“Go,” I said, my spirits lifting at his easy – and public – affection. I noticed that Georgie had her arms wrapped around Plate’s thick neck and she was giving him Eskimo kisses – nose to nose. From what I could tell, he had a dopey expression of happiness on his big, broad face…