The Hating Game (35 page)

‘
Here we are
!’ Baz called out. The limo abruptly stopped. In the darkness Mattie could barely make out the line of the castle walls perched on a mound above the car park.

‘
Jesus,’ Mattie said as they climbed out into the rain
and whipping wind. ‘Do we have to walk up there?’

Baz
nodded. ‘Yes, but there’s supposed to be a guide . . . ah, here she is.’

A burly woman sporting a fluorescent orange vest ignored their greetings and gruffly handed them each a torch. ‘Come on. This way.’ She herded them through an arch, down a walled walkway and towards a yawning castle entrance up ahead. It looked about as romantic as a medieval torture chamber, Mattie thought as she pulled the sleeves of her shirt over her frozen hands.

‘
That’s where you’
ll be dining tonight,’ the guide said, pointing to a building across the courtyard with light streaming from the windows. Mattie picked up her pace, almost running towards it. By now she was so cold she couldn’t think of anything but getting inside and warming up.

She swung open the door and looked around, breathing in the stuffy warmth of the room. Flames from the massive fireplace cast flickering shadows on the hall’s lofty roof. A small table with candles was positioned directly in front of it. The scent of – Mattie sniffed – lamb? – drifted through the air and her stomach grumbled. It seemed ages since she’d had a proper meal, one that didn’t involve garlic or toxic trans fats.

A tuxedoed man appeared from
a side door. ‘Welcome to the Great Hall at Carisbrooke Castle! If madam and sir would like to have a seat?’ He went to pull out Mattie’s chair but Adam flashed around the table and beat him to it, glaring wildly at the maitre d’.

‘
Here you are
,’ Adam said, pushing her down on the wooden seat.

‘
Tonight you will have a medieval feast,’ the ma
itre d’ said as he poured red wine into Adam and Mattie’s goblets. ‘We will start with roast goose, then haunch of venison, finishing with custard for pudding.’ He placed a bell on the table. ‘In the meantime, if you desire anything, please do not hesitate to ring the bell.’ He smiled and backed away, disappearing into the shadows.

The lofty hall was silent except for the crackle of the fire and
the shuffle of Ram and his ever-present camera. Mattie squinted in the dim light. Where had Nate and Baz scuttled off to?

‘
So.’ Mattie cleared her throat awkwardly and tried to smile at Adam, who stared at her with a strange grin nailed to his face.

Adam raised his goblet
. ‘Cheers! Happy Valentine’s Day. Here’s to you and me . . . and what’s waiting for us at the end.’

Yeah, keep that in mind
,
Mattie told herself as she clinked his goblet. The stash of cash waiting for her at the end. Two hundred thousand pounds. Financial independence. She waited for the tiny thrill that always accompanied the thought of the money, but for some reason, it never came.

‘
Your roast goose.’ The maitre d’ appeared from nowhere and placed two delicious-smelling dishes in front of them, refilled Adam’s wine, then disappeared. Adam gulped it down.

‘
Take it easy on the alcohol
, Stumpy,’ Mattie said as he wiped his mouth. He was psycho enough – she didn’t even want to think about what he’d be like drunk.

‘
What did you say?’ Adam slowly lowered the goblet until it thumped onto the table.

Mattie cleared her throat again. ‘I said, maybe you should take it easy on the wine!’

Ada
m shook his head so forcefully he dislodged a piece of lacquered hair. ‘No, I mean . . . What. Did. You. Just. Call. Me?’ His voice rose with every word.

Mattie stared at the mu
scle jumping in his cheek. He really was mental! A finger of fear stabbed her gut and she forced a laugh.

‘
Sorry! It just came out.’ She shook her head. ‘Habit, you know?’

Ram was edging closer, as if anticipating conflict. For once, Mattie was happy to have him near – not that he’d help her, given what she’d seen yesterday on the rugby field. She pushed her chair as far from Adam as it would go.

Adam slammed his fist down on the table so hard the wine in Mattie’s goblet leaped up and splashed on her arm. ‘I’m
not
Stumpy!’ he roared. His voice echoed around the room.

Mattie wiped at the wine
and leaned back. This had gone too far. She wasn’t going to sit here and be battered to bits like Aussie. Before she could move, Adam reached out for her, brushing the cuff of her sleeve. She jerked away. No way was he getting his monster mitts on her! Suddenly she was on her feet, racing across the Great Hall and out into the dark of the courtyard.

‘
Ouf!’ she grunted as she
smacked into someone. ‘Baz, if that’s you, we really need to talk–‘

‘
It’s not Baz.’

Mattie looked up slowly, squinting through the dark and rain.

The blond
hair, the square jaw, the familiar cologne. . .

‘
Kyle?’

It couldn’t be?

Her heart picked up pace as her mind raced.
What was he doing here? Had he tracked her down to tell her it really wasn’t over? Maybe it wasn’t too late, maybe . . . In spite of what she told herself she felt about him, a rush of happiness flooded through her.

‘
Kyle
. . .’ She stretched out a hand.

He took a step back
.

‘
Don’t worry. I’m not here to harass you. This is the last place I want to be,’ he said quickly. ‘I was about to go away, clear my head. But then Baz rang and reminded me my contract said I had to be available for the duration of the show. I tried to get out of it but they threatened to sue. As much as I don’t want to be here, it wasn’t worth the hassle. So here I am.’

Mattie searched his face for
the usual warmth, but it was empty of emotion. Her heart sank. Right. He wasn’t here to get her back. He was here because he was legally obliged to be.

That’s okay. That’s fine. Great, even,
she told herself. For a second there, when she’d been so excited to see him, everything else – even her business – faded from her mind. All she could see was him.

But now it was clear they were over
; the door was closed. Her focus and ambition were safe. Mattie dropped her eyes from Kyle’s face and looked down at his grubby Converse trainers. A sense of longing stabbed her heart.

‘
Right,’ she said, turning away from him, trying to breathe through the weight on her chest. A million words jammed in her throat, but she couldn’t grab onto even one of them.

‘
Guys!’ She could hear Baz crunching across the courtyard. ‘Come on, you two,’ he said, sounding angry. ‘You’re not supposed to have met. Mattie, go inside with Adam. And act surprised when Kyle comes in.’

Mattie looked at Kyle over her shoulder as Baz frog-marched her
back towards the Great Hall. Kyle’s arms were crossed over his chest and his face was frozen into a cold mask she didn’t recognize.

She tore her arm away from Baz as they neared the hall’s entrance. ‘Listen, there’s no way I’m going back in there. Adam almost attacked me!’

Baz
pressed his thin lips together, looking anything but pleased his big surprise had been blown. ‘You’ll be fine. We’re watching at all times, you know. There’s no way we’d ever let any violence escalate between contestants.’ He gave her a big fake grin and grabbed her arm again. ‘Anyway, Kyle’s here now. I’m sure the three of you will get along great!’

‘
Yeah, right. That’s why you brought him back again,’ Mattie mumbled as they crossed the flagstones towards Adam. But the thought that Kyle was here – even if it wasn’t for her –
did
make her feel somewhat better about being around psycho Adam. No matter how Kyle felt, he wouldn’t let Adam hurt her – she hoped.

She sat
back down in her chair across from Adam and avoided meeting his bug-eyed stare.

‘
I’m sorry
, Mattie,’ Adam blurted. ‘I’m not sure what . . . I just got so angry . . .’ His voice trailed off in the annoying way it used to back in secondary school.

Mattie sighed. ‘Don’t worry, Adam. It’s fine.’ It was far from fine, but she was hardly going to poke him with a stick and rile him up again now, especially with Kyle about to enter.

‘
So what’s happening?’ Adam asked, looking around suspiciously.

‘
Serve the venison!’ Baz’s voice boomed through the Great Hall before Mattie could answer.

The maitre d’ came out with two silver-domed platters. Just as he was about to place them, the doors to the hall burst open and Kyle strode through them.

Adam made a strangled noise and his face twisted. He gripped the side of th
e table so hard his fingers turned white.

Kyle approached them
. ‘Can you make that for three?’ he said stiffly, in what was clearly a scripted line courtesy of Baz. Kyle kept his eyes level, not even looking in Mattie’s direction. He nodded towards Adam, who stared unblinkingly at him.

‘
Of course, sir.’
The maitre d’ brought over another chair and scurried around setting an extra place. All three of them watched in silence.

‘
What are you doing here?’ Adam asked finally in a tight voice, eyes bulging.

Kyle shrugged. ‘You’ll have to ask the producers that one, mate. They didn’t tell me anything.’

Adam picked up his knife and fork and cut into the venison, his utensils shaking in his hands. He was tearing the meat apart as if it was about to attack him. Matti
e shot a glance at Kyle, who was watching Adam with raised eyebrows.

‘
All right there?’ Kyle said to Adam.

But Adam didn’t answer; he just shoved a forkful of food into his mouth and chewed it vigorously. The hall was so silent they could hear water dripping off the roof outside.

Mattie took a bite of her own venison, even though her stomach was churning.
If Adam behaved like a psycho before, Kyle’s presence now would have the same effect as a jumbo-sized taser – exactly what the TweedleDuo wanted. She hoped Kyle could handle Adam. She shivered, recalling again Adam pounding the rugby bloke, then stole a look at Kyle. He hadn’t glanced her way once since he’d entered the Great Hall.

She
sighed. Focus, Mattie told herself, trying to shove away the jumble of emotions. Just get the prize money. And get on with your life.

A few hours and several unexpected and torturous courses later, the limo pulled up to the caravan and Mattie fumbled for the door release, tumbling out into the clammy cold night air as fast as she could. Despite the car’s roomy interior, Adam had somehow managed to weasel his way closer and closer, pressing up next to her until she was smashed against the car’s rear airbag. Just like he had all through the painfully long dinner, Kyle had remained detached and distant, speaking only to Adam. At least Adam had managed to keep his lid on through the rest of the dinner – although judging by the way his jaw muscle was twitching, it wouldn’t be long before he exploded once again.

‘
So, Kyle, welcome to your home!’ Baz crowed, watching Kyle closely
as he approached the caravan. Baz opened the caravan door and motioned him in, Ram following every movement with the camera. ‘Come check it out. Guess you’ll all have to make new sleeping arrangements.
Ménage à trois
,
anyone?’ He leered at them.

Mattie noticed Adam stiffen but Kyle didn’t rise to Baz’s bait.

‘
Great, thanks,’ Kyle said easily, mounting the steps and joining Baz inside. Mattie followed, shrugging off Adam’s cold hand on her shoulder. Where would Kyle sleep? Surely he wouldn’t stay in the lounge with Adam. With all those murderous glares, there was no way Kyle could be oblivious to Adam’s antipathy. But what would she say when Kyle asked to sleep in her tiny room? She couldn’t stand to have him so close yet acting so cold.

‘
Can I crash here with you, mate?’ Kyle was saying. Adam nodded jerkily as Baz tossed a bundle of blankets at Kyle.

Mattie spun around and headed down the corridor to her room, ignoring the liquid pooling in her eyes. If Kyle preferred to bunk with a man who obviously hated him over her . . . well, it was a good thing, right? Now she wouldn’t have to listen to his even breathing as he slept, or remember the way his body was always warm next to hers . . .

She took a deep breath and sat down on the bed. God, she was tired. Sinking onto the saggy mattress, she closed her eyes and tried not to think about the man just a few feet away.

*

Jess’
s mouth fell open as Kyle entered a massive hall and sat down at the table with Mattie and Adam. So
that
was why he hadn’t answered her call!

‘
Oh my God,’ she said aloud as the camera cut to Adam’s face, his eyes practically boring holes through
Kyle. Completely oblivious, Kyle was eating his meal in silence and Mattie was sitting there chewing and staring off into space. The tension in the room was so strong it was almost like a ghostly presence.