and Shveta looks nothing less than horrified. Will motions them over to a set of bleachers, where Ace is positioned behind Shveta. They both look utterly thrilled.
Then Will Wang looks at me. “Our number two, the lovely and brilliant Dr. Penelope Carpenter.”
There’s mild applause as I suddenly realize that I’m going to be paired with one of these men. Will looks down at my balloon. I struggle to pop it, squeezing my eyes shut as it does. Will picks up the paper and looks down at it. “As we mentioned, there is still a chance for our people from the losers’ wall. And now one lucky loser is about to come back into the game, courtesy of our fair doctor.” He hands me the paper. “Please read the name aloud.”
I look at it, and for the first time, I’m glad. Because for the first time, I think I might be in good hands.
“Luke Cross.”
Luke
My strategy? I have the same strategy in life. Be good to people, and the rest’ll take care of itself.
—Luke’s Confessional, Day 1
“Luke Cross has been saved by the shy but very lovely Dr. Carpenter!” Will Wang shouts. “Come on over here, you big lug!”
Will Wang has already begun to annoy me, but fuck it.
I’m going to round two. Fifty thousand dollars.
I pump my fist and break free of the losers’ wall, then give him a hug, waving to the cheering audience of fake fans. “Don’t thank me—thank your girl,” he says.
I advance on her to give her a hug, but she takes a step back, almost falling into the pool again. She has that deer-in-the-headlights look on her face, I think from all the cameras. I give her a thumbs-up.
“Is he my partner?” she mumbles softly, looking shell-shocked.
“Indeed he is! But we’ll get to that part in a minute!” Will says, so brightly I wonder if he had crack for breakfast. “Let’s meet our next seven couples!”
Will goes down the line, pairing off couples. Next is Ivy, my bodybuilder alliance, and Cody, this slight Asian guy I don’t know. I stand next to Penny on the platform, and I can almost feel her shaking.
“You okay?” I ask her.
“I—I can’t believe I made it this far,” she says.
“Yeah? Well, I’m going all the way,” I tell her. “You can come with me.”
She raises an eyebrow. “You’re not going to clean the floor with my ass?”
“Hell no. Not now that you’re on my team.”
She’s quiet for a minute as the applause from the next announced couple—one of my athletics, Brad, and an older, badass motorcycle woman in a leather bustier and piercings by the name of Natalie—dies down. “I think I’m going to weigh you down.”
I laugh. “How much can a little thing like you weigh?”
“I’m just saying . . . if you want to win, I think you’d be better off with—” She points to the others. “Any one of them.”
“Maybe. But I have you. I’m good.”
The rest of the teams are decided, bringing us up to nine couples. Will Wang says, “Here they are, people! Your original Million Dollar Marriage teams! Each individual here is guaranteed a minimum of fifty thousand dollars!”
We all cheer. Fuck yeah.
“But, losers . . . there’s still a chance that you can get into the game, and we’re going to go over that right now.”
The lights dim, and some intense music plays overhead.
Will Wang says, “Teams, you have the choice to participate in the next challenge. If you decide to, you’ll receive a minimum of seventy thousand dollars! All you have to do is say YES!”
I shrug and call out, “Hell YES!”
Will laughs. “Hold on, buckaroo. There’s a catch you might want to know about. And that brings us to the main premise of the show. John Phillips, are you out there? Please, join me on the podium.”
A man in a suit stands up, and the crowd parts to let him through. He jogs up to the podium, shakes Will’s hand, and stands beside him.
“John is here for a very special reason. A very special ceremony, if you will.”
The cameras are focused on our faces, and I know something is up.
“Yes, in fact, John happens to be a justice of the peace.”
The crowd gasps. Next to me, Penny’s body stiffens.
“Yes. In order to participate in the next challenge and any challenges going forward, you and your partner must be man and wife!”
Louder gasp. The screens overhead focus in on the shock of the contestants. Penny’s trembling. Ivy looks pissed. Ace is