Brazen Girl by Ali Dean Page 0,47
bathrooms were the only places off-limits, and I’d assumed there were a few throughout the house that I hadn’t spotted. It looks like they were holding off for the perfect moment to present the most enticing story to the viewers. They’d already shown one scene of Camila straddling me as I sat on a chair out back. They hadn’t shown how I’d stood up and she’d tumbled to the ground, which I actually thought would have been funny for viewers. Apparently, they had a different plan in mind and were planting the seeds for it with that scene. I had no idea this was coming, and I have to admit, they did a decent job making it look real.
As the closing credits come on, everyone is quiet. It’s not the celebratory vibe I thought we’d all be enjoying together. No, it’s awkward as hell. Everyone in this room knows I’m in love with Jordan, and have been for nearly a year. Everyone also knows things were rocky between us for a bit there, around while I was filming. Do they actually think I was secretly messing around with Camila? Even Mom looks rattled.
“You guys know that was all bullshit, right? She was trying to get with me the entire time, but we weren’t having some secret affair.”
“Boy, they sure do a good job of making it look a certain way, don’t they?” I can hear some relief in Mom’s voice, but it’s a little shaky too.
“The music definitely set a certain tone,” Marco says thoughtfully.
“Good thing Jordan wasn’t here,” Summer states the obvious.
“You said she wants to watch the whole season?” Naomi asks with a cringe.
“She can handle it. She trusts me. She’ll know it’s all just for viewing numbers.” I’m trying to convince myself more than I am my little sister at this point.
“Well, Camila definitely won’t be repping Brazen now,” Griff says. “She’s a piece of work. I never trusted her, but damn, didn’t realize what a schemer she was either.”
“Wait, you were considering her for Brazen?”
“Yeah man, she reached out to me before the show aired. At first it was a hard no, but her popularity has skyrocketed with each episode. I couldn’t help but consider it. She’s probably the hottest female skateboarder out there right now. And after that little stunt,” he nods at the TV, “people would go crazy with you two as the primary brand reps.”
“You just said you’re not considering it though, right?” Naomi confirms, her voice a little threatening. I love this girl.
“Nope. Give me some credit, I might not be quite the sacrificial lamb as Beck here, but I know where my loyalties lie.”
Moses stands up to stretch. “I was there. It’s all bullshit. Our boy spent half his time on the phone with Jordan, or looking at his phone waiting for her to text or call.”
“Hey, no one’s said it yet, but congrats, man. You won.” Taylor gets up and gives me a hug.
“You already knew I won. But thanks.”
Conversation switches to the housing arrangements, but my mind is only half there. I thought tonight’s episode would finally be just about skateboarding, drama free, but that was naïve of me. How the hell am I going to talk to Jordan about this? If she comes back to compete, Camila’s going to be right there, along with others on the show. Not to mention everyone in the skateboarding community watched the show and will think I had some secret love affair.
Then again, when we announce we’re together we’ll have to say it’s a new thing to avoid a contract breach. So at least people won’t think I cheated on her. Oh man, the speculation about whether we were together before all this, about her and Griff, it’s going to be brutal.
“So, what do you think?” Griff asks, and I realize he’s talking to me.
“Huh?”
“It’s a ten-bedroom house. If the four of us live there, plus Brie, that’s only five. We could convert the other bedrooms to Brazen offices.”
“Aren’t you going to need more space than that for Brazen?”
“Eventually, but it’d work pretty well for a while. Just an idea.”
It’s not a bad one. The place is humongous and I’m not real eager to fill it with roommates. But then I remember the main reason I was motivated to win in the first place. At first it was for Brazen, but that changed. Jordan’s private skatepark won’t be so private if half the house is an office building.
“Let’s hold off on that