I slide my eyes over to my sister.
‘I’m sure I am.’
And I’m sure my sister did a much better job of enthralling him during her interview. She will have flicked her long shiny hair, licked her plump, glossy lips and batted her lashes. Men find her kind of energy enticing. I’m what you might call borderline unkempt. Like most committed workaholics. The opposite of what LoveIt TV are looking for.
‘I’m sure if I go in there and be kind and courteous, people will connect with my vibe.’I have no idea what I’m saying.‘After all, at the end of the day they are the qualities that matter. We can’t all be glamorous super models.’
Cam is giving me a curious look. ‘I agree. And sure, while you’re stunningly gorgeous and beautiful, it’s great to see that you also have a naturally wicked sense of humour. And I love that you’re so self-deprecating, and you aren’t afraid to tell your truth. I think you’ll do extremely well on the show. I can see you getting a lot of airtime.’
Wait. What? He thinks I’m gorgeous.
And stunningly beautiful.
He literally just said gorgeous and stunningly beautiful in the same sentence.
Professionally, I should correct his semantics, the wasteful use of cumulative adjectives that mean the same thing. But unfortunately for me, I respond depressingly well to praise of any kind. I sit up tall and give him a bashful smile. ‘Really?’
‘Yes. Really.’ Cam has incredibly thick lashes for a guy. They’re very appealing. He blinks slowly as if to show them off, making my heart flutter. His eyes have flecks of gold in them. And that accent of his is mesmerising.
‘Okay. That’s great. So, I have questions,’ he looks briefly down at his notes. ‘How are you in relationships?’ he asks gently.
I take a second to swallow the hurt of Josh’s very recent rejection.
‘Unbearable,’ I say, causing him to laugh.
‘Any relationship complications to declare before going into the villa?’ he asks grinning. ‘It’s the sort of thing the press love. Disgruntled ex-boyfriends coming out of the woodwork.’
I hardly want to admit I’ve just been dumped by a ‘put a pin in it’ text. Besides, Josh has probably forgotten about my very existence by now.
‘Erm, I guess the only complicated relationship I have at the moment is…’ I say, my mind blank. ‘… is with bread.’
‘Bread?’ Cam throws his head back and roars with laughter. ‘Huh. I did not expect that. You are full of surprises.’
Full of surprises? No one has ever said that about me.
‘Sorry,’ he says eventually calming. ‘That must be a pain. Are you allergic to it?’ He sounds so invested, so attentive.
‘It’s the wheat. It bloats me,’ I announce in a sudden knee-jerk reaction to the question.
For the love of God why? Why?
‘Okay. I’ll put no wheat products down on the form,’ Cam says kindly.
‘And you?’ I ask, my adrenaline levels are sky high right now. ‘What’s your most complicated relationship, Cameron from Canada?’
‘Meat,’ he explains, grinning. ‘Specifically, cheeseburgers and fried bacon. Because I’m supposed to be vegan.’
Who doesn’t like a quick-witted, mostly vegan, fast-food loving TV producer? And now we have something in common. Our dietary struggles. I start giggling. He finds me funny and gorgeous. He has a very nice smile and kind eyes. And he’s obviously a man of good taste because he thinks I’m gorgeous.Gorgeous, even with my complicated relationship and sensitive bowel.
I suddenly feel shy in front of him. I can feel a heat rising from my neck as I become unusually tongue-tied. I watch him scribbling down notes. He looks back up expectantly. We lock eyes, unsure of who should talk next.
‘Anything else that disagrees with you?’ His voice is so warm and caring, rather like a friendly GP lulling you to offload. I am spellbound. I'll say anything.
‘Dairy,’ I say, my voice almost a whisper. ‘It runs straight through me.’
My sister is shaking her head in disbelief. I’ve gone too far.
‘Right, right,’ Cam says in a concerned voice. I have instantly turned the atmosphere awkward. ‘Well, I have about twenty other potential contestants to get through today so, how about I send you the schedules now,’ Cam says quickly, keen to get me off the call before I reveal any other bowel-related mishaps. ‘And a guide to our allergens policy. You look them over, and we’ll talk in a couple of days, okay? I’m sure you have questions.’
