I grab the green one and put it in the first slot. She’s already picking up the purple one. I take it from her hands and stick it into the second slot. She goes right down the line, directing me which one to pick up, one after another, not even pausing to think or break a sweat.
When I have them all down, she nods.
“That’s it.”
There’s no question at the end of that sentence. She’s all confidence.
She just knows.
That’s my fucking badass wife.
FINISH LINE
Nell
I had so much fun. It was easily the best experience of my life. I’m sorry. I’m not allowed to say more until the final live episode.
—Nell’s Final Interview, Day 14
Ivy and Cody are just arriving as I step away from the puzzle and Luke and I raise our hands.
Will Wang approaches us with the microphone. “Let’s see if the brilliant doctor and her stud are up to the challenge.”
He pauses for effect, but I don’t need the pause to know I’m right. Everything else I just survived at. This is what I’m good at.
I catch a glimpse of Ace, who’s hefting a cinder block into his arms and watching us carefully as Will checks our work. The crowd seems to be holding its collective breath.
“Ladies and gentlemen, I give you the winners of the first season of Million Dollar Marriage . . . Penelope Carpenter and Luke Cross!”
I can’t help it. I start to cry.
There’s cheering, but I don’t pay attention to that. People wildly flying banners with our names on it. Cameras zeroed in on us. Ace throws a cinder block with impressive force at a parked car, and its alarm goes off.
But in all this?
Luke comes gently up to me. He engulfs my face in both of his big warm hands, and he dips his head, leaning his forehead against mine. I focus on nothing but the feel of him, the desire that I have for him that permeates me to the very core. We don’t talk. I’m not sure we do anything else but breathe each other in as chaos erupts around us.
“Penny,” he finally whispers, and all that bravado is gone. It’s like he can’t believe it himself. “We did it.”
I love that he calls me Penny. I love that his competitive side never took over and made him a total ass, like Ace. I love that he thinks of me before he thinks of the game. But more than anything, I love that we are going to be man and wife. More than anything, I love Luke Cross and the idea of spending the rest of my life with him.
I guess that doesn’t make very good television, because a second later, Will pulls us apart and puts one arm around each of us.
“You look very cozy like that. And of course, the whole world is waiting to know your answer!” he says, and I’m already missing Luke’s touch.
Besides, the answer is yes.
Yes. Yes. YES.
Let’s get it over with. We want our happily ever after to start now.
I peer past Will, in his bright Hawaiian shirt, and find my husband. He winks at me. He looks just as impatient as I am to get this show on the road.
We both open our mouths, in complete agreement.
And then Will says, “But we’re going to ask you to hold that thought as we wait for our live finale! Yes, our live finale, airing direct from Hollywood on December seventeenth! Don’t miss it!”
I balk at the date. December 17? I’ve lost count of the days, but we’re not even anywhere near Thanksgiving yet. Is he saying we need to . . . wait?
What?
Luke’s looking just as confused as I am as the rest of the audience cheers and the cameras stop rolling. They all abruptly start packing up to leave.
“Hey, wait. What the fuck was that?” Luke fixes him with a hard stare. “What are we supposed to do in the meantime?”
Will completely ignores Luke. “Congratulations, you two,” he says, giving me a perfunctory pat on the back. “Someone will be here shortly to explain things.”
Random people come up to congratulate us. The crowd starts to disperse. Luke grabs my hand. “Don’t worry. We’ll get this settled.”
Eloise Barker appears. “Hey, guys! Congrats.”
“So, what?” he asks. “What’s this about not giving our decision until December?”
She nods. “Right. Well, the season doesn’t start airing in the States until this Sunday. Ten episodes in all . . . December seventeenth. It’s in your contract, hottie. But I have to