Total pages in book: 108
Estimated words: 103159 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 516(@200wpm)___ 413(@250wpm)___ 344(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 103159 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 516(@200wpm)___ 413(@250wpm)___ 344(@300wpm)
At her words, it felt like someone had stabbed me in the chest with a knife, and a wave of sadness swept over me. Honestly, the last thing I truly wanted was a girlfriend. Most of these women didn’t even live in Montana, so if I did fall for one of them, it would likely be a long-distance relationship, which was something I wasn’t interested in at all.
It wasn’t like I never dated. I did. Just not long term. Or even close. My first year of college, I dated a girl named Sam for about a month, but every girl since—including Sam, herself—wanted something from me. To be seen on the arm of a championship roper. To get closer to my brother. Even my family’s money. None of them really took the time to get to know me. And Sam, the one girl I’d dated more than a couple of times, did nothing but complain that I was more interested in roping than her.
This was my last semester of college, and I hadn’t made up my mind if I was going to keep team roping or make my way back to the ranch. I’d know the answer when it was time for me to decide. Until then, rodeos were a part of this cowboy’s life, and there was no room for a woman.
Except, at Kipton’s words about meeting someone…that feeling of sadness? That was new to me.
“Kipton! Kipton! We need you in place!”
Kipton winked at me. “Good luck.”
“You too. You’re going to do great.”
“So will you. And…well…do me a favor.”
I smiled at her. “Okay.”
Kipton looked away for a moment before she turned back, staring at my chest for about thirty seconds before finally meeting my gaze. “Just…don’t let them fool you, okay? Women are very…catty. Don’t get sucked in by how pretty they all are—because they are beautiful. I got to meet them all yesterday.”
“You did?” I asked in surprise.
She nodded. “Yeah. So…” Chewing on her lower lip, she forced a smile. “Have fun.”
Kipton leaned in and kissed me on the cheek before she turned and walked toward a young girl wearing a headset, who quickly grabbed her hand and led her toward the entrance of the country club.
My hand gingerly touched the side of my face, where my skin felt like it was on fire from Kipton’s brief kiss.
I laughed and shook my head. “Nonsense,” I mumbled.
“Mr. Shaw? Mr. Shaw!”
I spun around to find Larry, the guy who’d been assigned as my assistant during the duration of filming, looking nervous. “Hey, Larry. Remember what I told you…call me Hunter.”
He nodded. “Right, sorry, Mr.…er…Hunter. I was told to bring you to your mark.”
I clapped my hands together and smiled. “Let’s do this!”
Chapter Five
KIPTON
The nerves I’d been feeling for the past few weeks suddenly slipped away last night. I wasn’t sure if it was from the practice with Georgiana, Morgan, Rose, and Lily, or if I was feeling like I could do this. Whatever it was, I was grateful.
“We’re live in two minutes!” someone shouted.
I glanced over to see Georgiana smoothing down Hunter’s suit jacket while Winnie, the woman in charge of his wardrobe, nodded and looked on. Hunter smiled at Georgiana, then kissed her on the cheek, which made her blush. Winnie, an older woman, divorced with three adult kids, was the sweetest person I’d met on the crew so far, and had quickly become a friend. She’d previously worked on some of Hollywood’s biggest movies as a costume designer. Overseeing wardrobe on a TV show was her way of “retiring.”
“One minute!” someone yelled out.
I pulled my gaze away from Hunter and looked at the camera in front of me. A prompter would be used, and I had spent a few hours this morning with Jack, practicing. It was kind of cool. It moved at the speed of my voice. So if I spoke slow, it would scroll slowly. If I spoke fast, it would speed up.
Tricia, one of the makeup artists, rushed over, pinched my cheeks, put a bit more lip gloss on my lips, then was gone before I even had time to blink.
“And we’re live in ten, nine, eight…”
I drew in a deep breath, put on my pageant smile, and prayed like hell I didn’t forget how to read.
“Four, three…”
The production assistant used his fingers to finish the countdown, then pointed to me when the camera light went red.
“Hello from Hamilton, Montana! I’m Kipton Howse, the host of Swipe Right. We’re so excited that you’ll be coming along with us on our social dating experiment. Starting later this week, you lucky viewers will get to see dates broadcast live every Wednesday and Friday. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, you’ll get prerecorded, behind-the-scenes footage of the competing ladies, of our bachelor, Hunter Shaw, and more!”
I paused a few beats, then went on.