The Final Rose

Chapter Four: Group Date

Sixteen women in two white vans were driven into the New Mexico desert. Two members of the production crew sat in the front of the vehicle, one driving and the other filming our interactions. Beyond the van windows I stared at low-laying brush and stunted cactus that dotted the landscape, while impressive rock formations stood tall in the distance. We'd been driving for at least half an hour without seeing another car on the road or any similar signs of civilization. It better resembled the plotline of a horror story than a reality show about finding romance.

I idly ran my fingers back and forth across the top buttons of my shirt, thinking about my latest interaction with Lee. All around me the other contestants couldn't stop talking about our impending date with Jacob, while I, on the other hand, couldn't erase the feeling of Lee's fingers brushing the hollow of my throat. I knew I shouldn't read too much into it—some people were just naturally touchy-feely—but it felt foreign to me; that kind of tactility hadn't been common in my family where people only hugged at weddings and funerals.

My pensiveness didn't go unnoticed. Candace, who sat beside me, nudged the side of my thigh with her knee. "You okay? You've been awfully quiet."

"Yeah. Just thinking."

"Don't psyche yourself out," she said, misinterpreting my silence. "Just have fun today."

I smiled grimly. "I guess you're right; it's supposed to be a date."

"Which millions of people around the globe will get to see in a few months," she unnecessarily added.

Our van slowed and the driver made a hard right onto an unpaved road. The excited chatter around me quieted with the direction change. We drove along a red, dusty road for several hundred yards until stopping in front of a cinderblock windowless building.

The passengers in the van leaned toward the windows facing the building. With no parking lot and only an unmarked road leading to it, the warehouse-like construction looked as though it had been dropped from the sky. With the exception of the film crew who had arrived earlier to set up more cameras, our two cars were the only vehicles parked at the remote location.

Heidi, one of the women with whom I shared a room, voiced what we were all thinking: "Where are we?"

Candace was the first to move. She grabbed the door handle and slid open the van door. One-by-one, we carefully climbed out of the vans to assess our surroundings. The early afternoon sun was high in the sky, and I held my hand like a visor over my eyes.

"Are we sure this is a date?" Stephie vocalized as she stepped out of the van.

"It looks like they brought us out here to murder us," Heidi added.

"Do we go inside?" another of the women wondered aloud.

The sound of tires crunching over loose gravel alerted us to the arrival of another vehicle. The sixteen contestants crowded together and watched a black sports car approach on the desert road. The vehicle was moving quickly and its wheels kicked up a fine cloud of red dust.

"Who is that?" someone asked. "Is that Jacob?"

The black car stopped a few yards away from where we stood. With the early afternoon sun high in the sky, it was impossible to see even the driver's silhouette through the windshield.

The engine turned off and we waited, static. The driver side door opened, and Jacob climbed out of the low-riding car. His straight-legged jeans and fitted t-shirt showed off a fit frame that had been obscured by his suit on the first night. Excited, nervous energy rippled over the group with his appearance.

Jacob raked his fingers through his black hair and waved at us with the other hand. "Hey, ladies. It's great to see you all again."

A chorus of hellos boomeranged back.