Page 23 of His Choice

I pursed my lips. “Are you asking what I recommend you wear? Because I wouldn’t even make it past the introductions.”

“I’d wear trunks. Speedos are kind of gross. And who can walk around stage with a smile on their face when all they’re thinking about is giving the boys some air and freedom to move?”

Aaron grabbed a glass of champagne when James approached. I took another for myself.

I guzzled my fifth drink of the evening, placing the empty glass next to the first four on an intricate side table. “Shit, you don’t think those will leave rings, do you?”

Aaron glanced at the table and shrugged. “Too late now. Why are you drinking so much, anyway? You never drink.”

I crossed my arms, the movement making me wobble. “Why do you think? I should never have let you talk me into this.”

“I also told you to behave with confidence and stop whining like a child, but you don’t seem to mind ignoring that advice,” he pointed out.

I sighed, my body starting to feel warm and my head beginning to fog. “Yeah. I’m sorry. I’m just…scared.”

Aaron put an arm around me again. “I’ve got you, Mikey. Come on, how did your meet and greet go with Walker? Did you still get butterflies when you saw him up close?”

My cheeks heated. “It was awful.”

“Awful?”

“Wonderful. I mean, he’s so good looking. But I stammered like I was being judged at the pearly gates. I was probably three seconds away from him calling for medical assistance.”

Aaron laughed. “For you or for him?”

I winced. “Both. One to address my malfunctioning brain, and another to help revive him from a boredom-induced coma.”

“It was only sixty seconds. I’m sure it wasn’t that bad,” Aaron assured me. “You look cute. He must have noticed that. And he remembered your conversation. He mentioned to me that there was another guy from White Pines competing.”

I shrugged. “Considering I had just mentioned it to him about three minutes before you spoke to him, that isn’t that big of an accomplishment on my part.” I glanced around the room, envious at how everyone else seemed to be mingling without issue. “How did your time with him go?”

Aaron shook his head. “Fine. It was too early to sing your praises. I promise I will, though.”

“S’okay,” I replied, suddenly feeling woozy. “I’ll bet he…thought you were…hot.”

Aaron peered at me funny, and I knew it was because my words were becoming slurred and delivered slower and more emphatically. My brain knew what I wanted to say, but it couldn’t seem to coordinate with my tongue.

“Are you okay?” Aaron asked.

“Yeah,” I replied, though I was concerned that the room had begun to appear hazy. “Maybe I’m having…a stoke.”

“Stoke? Mikey, you drank too much. You’re not used to it.” Aaron took hold of my arm. “Do you want to find a place to sit down?”

I believe I nodded yes, but the room had gone quiet after the show’s host, Emilio Nunez, clinked a utensil against a glass to get everyone’s attention.

“Good evening, studs!” he greeted too noisily, followed by the men cheering even louder. “As you know, tonight’s episode is being brought to viewers live! Starting tomorrow, we do a mix of same-day filming to air later in the evening, as well as some parts live. Either way, there’s always a camera around, so be on your best behavior…or not!”

Some of the other guys laughed, but Aaron rubbed my back instead. “Just hang back this evening. You can be the man of mystery,” he whispered.

“Cliff just shared some first impressions with me,” Emilio continued. “And I’ll bet you’d love to know what he said!”

He communicated that they need to get rid of the stuttering boy from White Pines, I imagined. I leaned against Aaron, suddenly feeling I might stumble without his support. “Dude, straighten up. You need to get through this,” he warned.

I blinked a few times, hoping it would make me more alert.

“I’ll remind you that you’ll have no access to media devices while you’re on the show, so you’ll never be privy to what Cliff is saying…or hear what your fellow contestants confess during one-on-one testimonials. You won’t know until our finale who is…his choice!”

People clapped. Even in my diminished capacity, I thought the attempt to work the title of the program into his speech was cheesy. “Tacky,” I blurted, apparently louder than I should have. Aaron pinched my arm. “Ow. Stop it.”