The Bachelor

Chapter 19

“What were you two talking about?” he asked, his brows in a line.

“Nothing,” Julianne answered, standing up, and walking to the door. She didn’t have time to entertain his jealous rages. She had enough trouble with the girls already, what with them treating her like she was invisible. And though Pauline was still acting like a real friend, she couldn’t anymore look at her the same way as before.

Really, the world was just full of nasty things.

“You were laughing with him,” he pointed out behind her it almost startled her that he was able to dash that fast towards her.

“And?” she asked, irritated now. What the hell was his problem?

“Jules, what’s really going on between you two?” he asked, grabbing her by the arm.

“Do you know you’re acting like a child?” she hissed at him.

“I can’t help it. I’m starting not to like seeing you around him,” he said with a frown. Julianne wanted to scratch at his handsome face because he was acting like a stupid child.

“What? I can’t have fun with other people now?”

“No, it’s not that,” he said in haste. “I’m just curious. You seem close to him and I’m wondering why,” he said with as much patience.

“He’s good to me and he makes me comfortable,” she answered in a whisper. She knew some of the girls were in the kitchen. “Look, Zach, we might have shared some stuff but it doesn’t mean that you can intrude in everything that I do,” she said it while looking straight in his eyes.  With that, she left him there standing in the middle of the room.

He could date more than one woman and he expected her to be exclusive? This was what she had feared. Zach had the tendency to be so childish and possessive. He was proving to her she was right.

 *****

Zach paced around his room like a lost puppy. He knew what he did wasn’t right, but Jack Carter was just the man who could scratch the wrong nerve.

“Zach?” a knock came on his door.

“Yes?” he answered unconsciously, still in a jealous rage.

“It’s Fatima, can I come in?”

He sighed and closed his eyes. Fatima always talked to him to plan the next activities. “Yes?” he asked as he opened the door and found her standing outside with her clipboard.

Does she sleep with it too? A part of his mind asked.

“There’s a little rage on the internet about your date with Pauline,” she said, handing out a piece of paper.

He frowned, “I’m sure they didn’t like her after everything she said about Jules?”

Fatima cringed, “As a matter of fact, they do like her.”

“What?” he scanned the paper and his eyes widened in disbelief. “Why the hell do they think Pauline’s the most honest person in the competition?”

“They believe that her courage and honesty to tell you about her friend’s…uh…wrong side…is…uh…something to be praised for…”

“Wrong side? Jules got no wrong side,” he snapped, “people don’t know what they are talking about.”

“Well, actually, Julianne’s reputation outside the show is not really good. She doesn’t really make that much effort to make people like her.”

“It’s because this show is not her thing,” he said with disgust. “You’re just here to tell me that?” he asked.

“No,” she shook her head. “I also came here to tell you that the producers want Pauline to stay. They know you favor Julianne more and they must have thought you would send Pauline home because of what she said about Julianne.”