Page 95 of The Baking Games
We fall silent, allowing the music and moment to speak for us. The rhythmic sway of our bodies feels like a silent conversation, one that's been building over the weeks we’ve been here. His hand on my back moves in slow, soothing circles, and I can't help but relax into his touch.
The song reaches a particularly tender moment, and Rhett pulls back slightly, just enough to look into my eyes. The intensity of his gaze takes my breath away. There are no pretenses, no barriers between us at this moment. He leans in, his forehead resting against mine.
"I never thought I'd say this, but I'm glad we got to do this competition together, Sunny.”
"Me too," I whisper, my voice barely audible over the music. Time seems to stop in its tracks as he tilts his head slightly, his lips brushing against my cheek, then my temple, in a series of feather-light kisses.
I have never felt my heart race so fast, but I'm not afraid. I close my eyes, savoring how it feels to be close to him. To drink him in. To smell his cologne.
Finally, in what seems like the longest lead-up in history, his lips find mine in a chaste, almost hesitant kiss. It's soft and sweet. There's the promise of something more. The simplicity of it makes my heart swell with emotion, and I realize how much I've come to care for this man who once drove me crazy. We pull back slowly, our foreheads touching again.
I open my eyes to see Rhett watching me, which makes my heart ache in the best way possible. The song ends.
"Thank you for the dance," I whisper.
"Anytime," he replies, his lips curling into a smile. “Literally anytime, Sunny."
We stand there for a moment longer, wrapped in each other's arms, letting another song start. This is a memory I'll always cherish, a glimpse of what could have been.
CHAPTER 24
SAVANNAH
After our date the other night, I feel like I've been walking on Cloud Nine. Rhett and I have continued to pretend like we're a couple, holding hands, snuggling on the sofa outside, and stealing the occasional quick kiss—nothing major, but enough to convince the audience that we're in a budding relationship. Do I want a deeper kiss where we maul each other like in the movies? Um, yes. But do I want my little sister to see that on national TV and taunt me for the rest of my days? No.
Whenever he gives me that quick peck on the lips, I wait for something more, but I don't think he wants to overdo it. He probably wants to do just the least amount possible to convince people to vote for us and not lead me on at the same time.
I’m willing to take whatever I can get, whether it’s a hug or holding hands. I've never felt so connected to someone. Even after dating Connor for two years, we didn't have a connection anywhere near like this. The other bonus of us pretending to be a couple is that it's driving Connor insane. He can't stand it. He hates to lose and makes snide comments whenever given the chance.
Today is the first challenge where we will dwindle down to three contestants. I could go home today; any of us could. It's unnerving to make it this far and think that there's a chance you might be leaving in mere hours.
I'm standing in the industrial kitchen with Rhett on one side and Lainey on the other. Connor is on her other side. Of course, they're not speaking because they broke up. I don't think it was ever really official, anyway. Lainey just thought it was, but she's been much easier to deal with since their breakup. She's actually talking to me, and we've had some decent conversations. Lainey isn't as bad as we all thought she was. She just puts on a really nasty suit of armor, but slowly, I think she's letting that go.
"Good afternoon, contestants,” Dan says. I like Dan. He's growing on me. His teeth aren't. They're the size of skyscrapers and way more white than anyone's teeth should be, but I don't mind him as much as I did in the beginning. "I can't believe that we are entering the last week of competition," he says, smiling at us. It's more of a genuine smile than it was when we started. I hated the fake smile he would do at the camera, although he still does it sometimes. He's the perfect TV host. In fact, I can't really think of another job that he could do without scaring people with those teeth.
"In our first competition, where we will lose one contestant, your challenge is to make an opera cake. Make it unique. The judges will look at the flavor and the little details you put into it. The audience, of course, will be voting at home. For those at home who don't know what an opera cake is, this classic French dessert consists of multiple layers of almond sponge cake soaked in coffee syrup and then layered with rich coffee buttercream and dark chocolate ganache. It's also topped with a smooth chocolate glaze. The cake is usually rectangular in shape and looks polished when it's done correctly. Contestants, your challenge is to do a new take on an opera cake. Switch it up and impress the judges. You'll have three hours to complete this task, so let's get started. Your competition begins in 3, 2, 1… go!”
We all run to our stations. I don't have time to look at what anyone else is doing. I'm just going to focus on my own task at hand. I decide to think outside the box and do a raspberry and white chocolate opera cake. I will lightly soak the sponge cake in raspberry syrup. I'll use a raspberry buttercream made with sweet, fresh raspberries. Then, I'll make white chocolate ganache and use a raspberry glaze to give it a vibrant pink color. Hopefully, it will be enough to win.
RHETT
We are down to the wire. We only have three challenges left before someone is crowned the winner, and today, somebody's going home. At this point, it could be any of us. I think we're all on a fairly even playing field.
I've had the chance to watch what these other pastry chefs can do, especially Savannah. I know anyone could pull this out at the end. Impress the judges and the home audience, and you get to stay. Make one mistake, and you might be going home. It's a lot of pressure. I would hate to think I got this close to winning the whole thing and then got sent home before Connor or Lainey. If I lose to Savannah, I won't feel nearly as bad.
The last few days of faking our relationship have been the best days of my life. Holding her in the garden and dancing, finally pressing my lips to hers. These are things I never thought would happen, but they are the greatest blessings in my life right now.
It's not that I haven't kissed other women before. Of course, I have, but I’ve never felt anything as I did with just that simple little kiss on Savannah's lips. I hadn't planned it, but at the moment, it just struck me as the right thing to do, and she seemed to be okay with it. In fact, we've done it a few more times, but I haven't pushed it further than that.
It's bad enough that I asked her to fake a relationship. I don't want to feel like I'm pressuring her into something she's not interested in or ready for. So I have to be okay with just holding her hand, putting my arm around her, and occasionally sneaking a peck on the lips. Then I go take a cold shower.
Right now, I have to focus on making an opera cake. It's not something I've made a whole lot, and Dan made it clear that it needed to be innovative. So I decide to do a hazelnut and caramel opera cake. I'm soaking my sponge cake in hazelnut liqueur syrup. I'm making caramel buttercream and a milk chocolate ganache. The glaze will be a shiny caramel glaze that I think will really wow them.
I can't afford to look over at Savannah, or I'll stare at her. I'll watch what she's doing. I'll sit there impressed by her skills, and then I won't get my own cake done. Then, I’d be leaving here in a few hours. I can't let that happen, so I continue to work on mine.
This is it. We're coming to the end of this competition, and as much as I want to stay in this house with her forever, I also want to win. I want to get to the end. I want to make that money and start my life. But winning would mean Savannah lost, and that's something that's hard to deal with as well. One of us is going to win, and one of us is going to lose. There's no way around it.
SAVANNAH