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  “You went for a morning run. You can go out my back door. There is a pathway that leads to the beach and isn’t seen from the house. You can run back up to the house on the beach. No one would know!” He was getting super excited about this plan, except there was one major flaw.

  “Travis, I don’t run. You know this!” My arms were flailing wildly around, trying to make the point.

  “The old Riley Logan didn’t run. The new Riley Logan, who all these girls know, does.” He popped that damn cocky grin on his face.

  “I just want you to know, I hate you,” I mumbled, resigned to putting my shoes on. I really didn’t have an option and he knew it. He came up with the best plan we had, and I’d have to follow through.

  “If by hate, you mean love. Then yes, yes I know.” Travis led me to the back door of the house and opened it, making sure the coast was clear.

  I punched him in the arm before heading down the path to the beach.

  “If I die from this thing you call running, it’s all on you,” I yelled lowly over my shoulder. Travis’ laugh followed me as I made my way down to the beach.

  Okay, I guess running wasn’t too horrible. Or, in my case it was jogging. A very slow jog at that. But it wasn’t bad; it was actually kind of mind clearing. The cool morning air helped wake me up and calm my nerves. And you couldn’t really get any better with the view of Lake Michigan. In the distance you could just make out an island, but other than that, it was blue water for as far as the eye could see. The beach itself was a small strip of fine sand. Away from the water, the sand turned into tiny pebbles, then bigger boulders. The boulders sat at the bottom of a relatively small, semi-steep grassy cliff. Steep enough by the main house to need stairs to get to and from the beach, less steep by the guest house where Travis was at, where there was only a walking path. The cliff also blocked the beach from the backyard and main levels of the house, so no prying eyes.

  I didn’t have to run very far before I came into view of the house. I slowed my jog to a walk and quickly climbed the stairs leading to the backyard. Just as I had thought, there were two girls out on the patio. Taylor and Addison were laughing with each other when I approached.

  “Hey Riley! Out for a morning jog?” Addison asked catching sight of me.

  I smiled warmly at her and nodded. “No better way to start my day. It’s quite beautiful out there.”

  They both smiled at me as I walked past them, quietly sipping their coffee.

  “Would you like to join us?” Taylor asked, gesturing to the additional coffee cups and thermos in front of them.

  “Oh, um, thanks, but I should probably go shower and get ready. Don’t have much time before Travis is supposed to be here, right?” I grasped the door handle, ready to make a run for it.

  “Yeah, that’s right. He’ll be here in about 45 minutes.” Addison glanced at her watch.

  “Better get going then!” I smiled at them before opening the door and walking into the house. I rushed up the stairs to my room, closing it quickly behind me and leaning against it.

  I felt exhausted now that the adrenaline had worn off, but quickly pulled a pair of jeans and a t-shirt from my dresser before heading into the shower to wash off the sweat and sand from this morning’s impromptu run.

  Forty-five minutes later I was standing in the living room sipping my coffee watching the other women mill about, waiting on Travis.

  It was so different seeing everyone in the daylight, in their normal clothes. Some girls wore jeans and t-shirts, some wore sun dresses, and a few wore nice dress pants and blouses. This to me looked ridiculously out of place, but to each their own.

  “Good morning ladies, I hope you all slept well last night.” Travis stood before us wearing faded jeans that fell on his hips and a plain charcoal gray t-shirt, which fit so close to his body, you could clearly make out how muscular he actually was. On his feet, well foot, he wore his ever present gray converse sneakers. Other than not being in his pajamas anymore, he looked exactly like he did this morning—his brown hair was carelessly tousled.

  Damn him for being able to just run his hand through it and be on with his day.

  His greeting was met with a chorus of responses from the girls. All chipper and excited.

  Travis met my eyes and brought his smirk up a bit, knowing just how well I slept last night. I just smiled into my mug, averting my eyes from him.

  “I wanted to personally come by and tell you about today’s events. There will be two group dates today. One will start as soon as we are done here, the other will be later this evening.” The girls let out loud squeals, which caused me to jump and cringe.

  Nobody should be that chipper this early in the morning. I don’t care if there is a prospect of going on a date with Travis. Being overly chipper is utterly ridiculous. I needed at least two more cups of coffee before I could deal with this.

  I took the last sip of coffee in my cup and groaned. I couldn’t just leave the room when Travis was up there talking to get a refill from the kitchen, but I also knew I couldn’t deal with this whole show unless I had more coffee.

  I just hoped Travis knew me well enough to not put me in the group date for this morning. I’d be forced to hurt him if that was the case.

  “The girls going on the first date are: Taylor, Nicki, Kara, Holly and Riley.” I whipped my head up to give Travis an evil glare.

  He laughed.

  That bastard laughed at my reaction.

  He knows how I am in the morning. He knows! And to make matters worse, he put me in a group with Nicki.

  I wondered if I could get away with kneeing him. He deserved it.

  Travis was saying something to the other group of girls, probably something about the time he’d come and pick them up or whatever. But I was too busy plotting his demise to listen, or care.

  “So, the ladies going on the first date, if you want to gather your things, say goodbye or get a refill on coffee.” He winked. “We’ll be leaving in ten minutes.” He said his goodbye’s to the other girls and then disappeared.

  I ran up the stairs to quickly grab my purse from my room. Then took the stairs two at a time to get the refill I desperately needed.

  I stopped at the bottom step, staring into a smirking Travis’ face.

  “Thought you would need this.” He handed me a to-go cup filled with coffee.

  I grabbed it from him, took a drink and sighed. Just the way I liked it, with a good amount of cream and a dash of sugar. He knew me well. Then I punched him in the shoulder and pushed him out of the way.

  “What was that for?” He glared at me as he rubbed his shoulder.

  “You should know better than to put me in the morning date. And you should know better than to put me with Nicki!” I hissed, keeping it low so the girls wouldn’t overhear us, and punched him again.

  “Okay, okay!” He backed up with his hands in the air. “I’m sorry I put your date in the morning. But I don’t have a say right now as to who is in each group, so for that, you’ll have to take it up with Jim.” He continued to rub his arm, making sure there was plenty of distance between us.

  Jim. Mr. Producer who thought it would make ratings soar to have me on this show in the first place. I didn’t like him—not one single bit.

  “I’m not apologizing.” I walked past him to head into the living room.

  “I never dreamed you would.” He grabbed his own coffee and waited a few seconds before following behind me.

  A few minutes later we were heading out to the awaiting SUV. Travis hopped in the front seat, leaving the girls scrambling to get into the seat right behind him, so they could chat with him. I held back, happily sipping my coffee, waiting for the claws to retract so I could safely get into the backseat. I ended up in the back squeezed between Taylor and Kara.

  “Where do you think we’re going?” Taylor asked excitedly.

  “I honestly have no idea. Who knows what Travis has in store for us.” I was afraid though for what he was going t
o have us do. Or what the producers would have us do. I’ve figured one thing out for sure since I’ve gotten here yesterday: the producers would do anything for ratings.

  “Ladies, I hope you are up for something adventurous today.” Travis turned in his seat to talk to us. “Because today you’re going to get an inside look at what I do for a living.”

  I couldn’t help my chuckle when I heard Nicki gasp in front of me.

  “But we’re not dressed for riding bikes,” Nicki cried.

  I choked on my coffee at her statement. I quickly looked at Travis who paled noticeably and had a hard look on his face. He did not like it when someone referred to his beloved profession as just riding a bike. There was so much more to it, and I knew exactly where we were going. We were heading to the indoor BMX park. Huge foam pits, big ramps, long rails—so much to do, so many ways to fall. But luckily for Nicki, there was no dirt, so chances of her getting dirty were pretty slim.

  “Don’t worry Nicki, there are new outfits there for you all to change into.” Travis composed himself and smiled at her.

  “Is this going to be safe?” Holly sounded worried.

  “You only have to do what you want. Though, I would recommend at least jumping into the foam pit. It’s such a thrill.” Travis was getting more and more excited about this date. I wondered if he forgot he wasn’t going to be able to do anything due to his leg.

  “But you won’t be able to play with us.” I smirked at him, glancing down at his leg.

  His face quickly fell, remembering his leg. I could see him thinking, trying to come up with something he could do. As quickly as his face fell, he broke into a smile.

  “I can still ride around on my bike, just no tricks. Unfortunately, I can’t do the foam pit either, but I’ll enjoy watching you all do tricks into it.” He winked at me, happy he came up with a plan.

  “This kind of sounds like fun,” Taylor whispered to me, as Nicki and Holly were asking Travis more questions about ‘riding bikes’.

  “Jumping in the foam pit is fun. Riding a bike into it while doing any sort of trick is terrifying.” I thought back to all the times Travis would drag me along when we were teens. He always wanted me to try doing a trick, and before I could even take my foot off the pedal I would freak out and push the bike away from me. There is just something about flying off the ramp and being suspended midair that makes your heart beat too quickly and all logical thought fly out of your head.

  “You’ve done this before?” Taylor asked curiously.

  “What? Oh, yeah. My brothers play around with it and I went with them a few times when I was younger.”

  Jeez Riley, keep on top of the game here.

  “Wow. Well, you’ll be ahead of all of us.” Taylor sighed. “Maybe you could teach me a few things.”

  “Of course I can. I’m not any good at it, and even with Travis out of commission, he’d still probably be better at showing you things. But I’ll teach you what I know.”

  “Thanks, it would be so great to get into what Travis does for a living.” Taylor stared dreamily out the window. “Look at me, I’ve only known him for a day and I’m already acting all creepy stalker girl.”

  I laughed at her comment. “You are by far one of the best girls here. Travis would be lucky to have you.”

  “Thanks Riley. He would be lucky to have you too.” She smiled sincerely at me.

  Twenty minutes is a long time to ride in a car when you’re cramped between two full grown women. Finally we pulled into the parking lot of the indoor park and I scrambled out of the SUV as quickly as possible.

  I set my empty cup on the ground while I stretched my legs and back out. I was mid twist when Nicki walked by.

  “Don’t try and pretend you’re warming up for this. We can all see right through you. I can’t wait for you to fall flat on your face,” she whispered as she walked by.

  Oh, it was so on. I was planning on just standing off to the side watching the other girls do their thing. But after her comment, I was ready to show her what exactly I can do. What exactly Travis had taught me years ago.

  “Are you ladies excited?” Travis clapped his hands as he walked toward the building.

  He held the door open for all of us. After I walked in, disposing my cup in the nearest trash can, I noticed how incredibly quiet it was in the place.

  It is never this quiet.

  Of course the show would rent out the building. They wouldn’t want people to start gossiping about the girls who were still on the show before the first episode even aired. And if the public were allowed in, Travis would be bombarded and this whole date would be worthless.

  “Hello Travis, ladies.” An older man appeared from behind the desk. “I’m Dave, the owner of this little joint. Welcome, welcome.” He was so cheerful it was hard not to smile at him. He was a tall fit man, with silver gray hair and just the hint of a five o’clock shadow. He still had the look of a rider, muscular legs and arms and a boyish grin.

  “Let’s get you ladies outfitted, and then Travis can show you the ropes.” He clapped Travis on the back, then ushered us into a small locker room.

  We each had a gift bag with our names attached. Inside we found a pair of jeans, a black t-shirt with a bright pink Dave’s Bike Shop & Park logo, and a pair of sneakers.

  “Oh my god, could these clothes get any gaudier?” Nicki complained, holding up the t-shirt pinched between her index finger and thumb, like it was a smelly old sock.

  “I love this shirt! It’s so comfy and the colors are great!” Taylor pulled the shirt over her head. It fell to just below her hips, but the fit was perfect on her.

  Nicki just scowled at Taylor and turned to complain to Holly who was looking at the clothes with equal disgust.

  What was it with these girls? Jeans and a t-shirt are staple clothing in Travis’ life. Did they think if they started to date him, they would never once go to one of his events? Or stand next to him when he won an event?

  I chuckled at the mental image I had of their heels sinking into the dirt. I couldn’t contain the laughter when I imagined Nicki toppling over in the dirt when her heels got stuck. Oh, that would be priceless. Nicki glared in my direction, huffed and grabbed her bag before heading into the corner to change. Obviously she wasn’t going to end up by Travis’ side, so I would never be able to see it happen in real life. But the mental images were still fun.

  We headed out of the locker room once we were all dressed in our new clothes and found Travis sitting on a bike near the foam pit. Dave stood just off to his right chatting with him, and they both looked up as we walked toward them, looking like a unified girl band.

  “Ladies, I’m glad the clothes fit. If you’ll follow me, we’ll get you on some bikes so you can start to have some fun!” Dave announced as he led our group over to a back room with rows of bikes. Once we found bikes that fit us, with the help of Dave, and were outfitted with some helmets. Which Nicki complained non-stop about. Then we headed back out to Travis.

  “Oh, this is going to be fun.” Travis grinned when he saw us rolling our bikes out. He had us start with a few warm up laps around the building to get used to the bikes.

  “I haven’t ridden a bike in years!” Taylor exclaimed riding up beside me.

  I smiled over at her. She was having the best day it seemed and she was game for anything. That is something Travis needed in a girl.

  “I know. This is such a fun date!” I giggled next to her. I was having a great day too, regardless of the camera crew around us, and the fact Nicki and Holly were being Debbie Downers. We were only about a half hour into the date and they had complained about everything we’d done. I couldn’t wait to see what they had to say when Travis made them jump into the foam pit.

  After a few more laps, Travis led the group over to the pit.

  “I know you guys are probably not very excited about this. But I promise you, you will have a blast.” He got off his bike and walked to the edge of the pit and looked in. He backed
up a smidgen, turned and grinned at us, then turned and did a somersault into the pit.

  I heard a few of the girls squeal as I stood with a grin on my face. Seeing Travis doing what he loved made my heart soar, though I hoped he didn’t land awkwardly and mess up his ankle even more. Travis popped up from the foam with the biggest smile on his face—he looked like a little boy on Christmas morning. He found his way to the ladder and pulled himself out.

  “See, nothing to it.” He bowed as the girls clapped for him.

  “Can I try?” Taylor asked staring wide-eyed at the pit.

  Travis grinned, “It’s all yours.”

  “Should I just jump in or do something else?” She was starting to get nervous.

  “You can run and just jump in. Once you do that, you can try other things if you want.” Travis stood to the side and held his arm out allowing her to go.

  Taylor walked back a little ways from the pit and glanced around at us.

  “You can do it, Taylor!” I cheered, giving her a thumbs up.

  She smiled, took a breath and broke into a run. She ran to the edge of the pit and leaped in squealing the whole way. She landed with a bounce and lay in the pit giggling hysterically.

  “That was so much fun!” she said breathlessly as she rolled and made her way to the ladder where Travis was waiting for her. He helped her out and scooped her into a hug.

  “You were amazing!” He squeezed her tight.

  “Okay, I’ll do it,” Nicki huffed, breaking Travis and Taylor apart. Nicki backed up to a line drawn on the floor and took off running. She forgot to jump and did a belly flop into the pit.

  I couldn’t help it, I laughed, along with Taylor and Kara. Travis had the look of holding his laugh back while Holly ran over to the edge of the pit, got on her knees and peered over the edge.

  “Nicki, are you okay?” Holly said on the verge of tears.

  “I hate this! This is so dumb!” Nicki sounded from inside the pit.

  Travis went to the ladder to help a flailing Nicki out. She clung to Travis when she got steady on both feet.

  “You were supposed to jump.” Travis smiled while patting her lightly on the back.