And I said, "Well, that's the one thing we've got"

To say Nick was surprised to see Vivian saunter into the Master’s Suite would be an understatement. She had a playful grin on her face, and her eyes flashed with a delighted expression as she approached the table where everyone was finishing up their breakfast.

Mary responded first.

“Oh! Vivian! Good morning!” She greeted the other woman with a wave and moving to stand.

“Oh, don’t get up on my account,” Vivian urged her, coming over and sitting down across from the redhead. “I just came here to say good morning.”

She leaned her head forward and rested it on her steepled fingers, then turned her cheek to gaze dotingly at Nick. If not for his prior experiences with women he might have gotten flustered by the beautiful woman’s presence, but being around Rose and her flirting had inoculated him to a degree- plus, he knew that she was playing games with him, and he was a little more prepared than that.

“Good morning, Vivian,” he greeted her politely. “It seems the Master’s Suite is the place to be today, what, with you and Rose both stopping by.”

“I was meaning to ask about that,” Vivian giggled, glancing at the blonde out of the corner of her eye. “A maid costume, eh? That’s a rather bold choice.”

She leaned back in her seat and stretched her bare arms over her head, arcing her back to show off just how tightly her hoodie clung to her slender figure.

“Is that how you like your girls, Nick?” She teased. “Dressed up and ready to service your every need?”

Her voice dripped with sexual undertones, but Nick knew better. He could see from the playful smile on her face that she wasn’t serious. And more importantly, she was making sure that he knew she wasn’t serious, as well.

This was another game for her.

Nick wasn’t going to play along.

“She came dressed like that herself,” he said, matching her playful tone. “It was a little jarring, actually. Normally, I like when she’s wearing fancier clothes. Or something more casual, like a nice sweater.”

“Eh!?” Rose’s face blossomed with surprise and delight as her cheeks turned a lovely shade of red.

“Ooh, a classy gal, huh?” Vivian stroked her chin thoughtfully. “I can see it. That blue dress from yesterday did look pretty nice.”

Rose nearly fainted with joy. Compliments levied from both sides were overwhelming her, even if neither one of them was actually looking her way while giving them.

Vivian was just getting started though, and kept analyzing Nick’s preferences as they talked. “So you prefer your women with a bit of elegance to them? Makes me wonder about the style of your current paramours.”

She glanced around the table. Mary and Marley were wearing matching outfits. And while Vivian wasn’t American herself, she had a lot of knowledge of modern fashion in Nick’s country, and was fairly confident their current garb constituted “white trash”.

But it looked rather appealing.

“You know…” She tapped her chin thoughtfully. “If you’d like, I could wear that outfit too,” she pointed out, glancing at Mary. “I believe you’re wearing those clothes because of a transformation? Well, one of my transformations, New Style, works every day, and I’ve been looking for the perfect test subject to experiment with… What do you say, missy? Would you like me to pick out something positively fetching for you?”

Mary’s eyes grew wider than the pancakes on Nick’s plate. “You… huh?!”

“I can alter any clothing transformation I want, remember?” The heiress leaned back in her chair and snapped her fingers. “Like that. So just say the word, and I’ll have you dressed up as nice as could be, love.”

“Um, w-wow,” Mary stammered, a little intrigued.

“And what are you gonna get out of it?”

Vivian craned her head to look at Marley, who had been stuffing her face for most of the conversation but was now giving the other girl her full attention. She looked at Vivian with suspicious eyes, and Vivian licked her lips playfully in response.

“Whatever do you mean?” She batted her eyelashes innocently.

“What I mean is that you’re really laying it on thick for your first day here,” Marley said, studying the other woman suspiciously. “In fact, if I didn’t know any better, I’d say you’re trying to make a good impression in order to get ahead.”

Marley hadn’t been around when Rose was the Auditionee. Maybe if she had been, she would have picked up on how Vivian’s behavior was a lot like Rose’s. But even without that prior experience, she was still savvy enough to tell that something was definitely up with the heiress.

Vivian laughed.

“Wow, nothing gets past you, huh?” The brunette rolled her eyes and smirked. “Of course I’m trying to make a good impression and get ahead. That’s the name of the game, right?”

She shrugged her bare shoulders. “I’m an honest sort. If I want something, I honestly make an effort to obtain it.” She leaned forward and rested her cheek on her hand to gaze adoringly up at Nick. “And if I’m interested in someone… I honestly make an effort to entice them.”

Nick blushed a little, but kept his cool. Because he did remember what Rose had been like, and he could definitely see the parallels in their behavior.

As for Rose herself, well, she was quickly becoming useless, fawning over Vivian incessantly after a few compliments.

“I appreciate your honesty,” Nick said sincerely. It was a breath of fresh air to deal with someone who was upfront about what they wanted. “And seeing as how we’re bound together now thanks to this show, I’m not going to lie and pretend that there’s nothing between the two of us. But out of respect for your own position of honesty, I need to tell you, Vivian, that you’re moving rather fast.”

Vivian batted her eyelashes innocently. “Oh, are you the sort of guy who doesn’t have breakfast with a girl until after she’s spent the night?”

Marley nearly choked on her hash browns.

“H-hey!” She sputtered, turning red.

“I think what my husband means to say,” Mary interjected, emphasizing her own relationship with Nick, “is that while he has no qualms about getting to know you better, he would prefer to do that before anything more serious develops between the two of you. Is that right?”

She gazed adoringly at Nick, who smiled back and nodded.

“Ah, I think I get it,” Vivian purred, picking up on the energy between the two of them. “So Nicky here is the kind of guy who wants to fall in love first, eh?”

“Please don’t call me that,” Nick sighed, while pointedly not denying the heiress’s claims.

“Sorry, sorry…” She held up her hands in surrender and stood up from the table. “Anyway. I didn’t come here to start any beef, and certainly not with you, Mary.” She playfully winked at the redhead. “I just came by this morning as a greeting, that’s all. Just a friendly little hello~”

Mary jumped in her seat slightly. She realized that she’d never actually answered the question Vivian had posed for her. “V-Vivian…”

“Mm?” Vivian looked down at her with a calm, understanding smile, and Mary blushed.

“About… what you said before… about my outfit…”

“Oh, would you like a change?” Vivian licked her lips as she imagined all the different clothes she could fit the big-titted redhead with. Mary might not have been a mother just yet, but her body was very matronly, and Vivian could picture herself having a lot of fun playing dress-up with her. The girl certainly wasn’t a model, but she could still pull off a few… seductive pieces.

Mary blushed. “Um… you’re right,” she admitted, looking shyly over at Marley. The brunette’s sexy figure crammed into her clothes made her feel even more self-conscious. “This isn’t really my style… it’s way too… um…”

She couldn’t even get the words out. “But… I don’t think it’s the right time to change it, either,” she admitted.

“Oh?” Vivian raised her eyebrow.

“Maybe… some other time?” Mary asked hopefully. “Like, the next time I spend the night alone with Nick…”

She looked at her husband with adoring eyes that made Vivian feel just a tiny bit envious. It was clear how much Mary loved her husband, and Vivian had to admit that the connection between the two of them was as sweet as honey.

So Mary wanted to dress up in something nice for the man she loved? Vivian could get behind that. Of course, Nick’s night with Mary would be at the start of the next round, so in theory, Vivian could still experiment all she liked with the redhead seeing as how the transformation would recharge by then.

Still, though, the best thing to do was listen to Mary’s request, so she temporarily abandoned her plans for the other woman’s wardrobe and nodded.

“I think that would be just lovely,” she purred. “Now, if you don’t mind, I think I should take my leave. Enjoy your breakfast!”

She turned to Rose next, and gave the blonde a smile built just for her. “Walk me to the door?” She suggested, and Rose couldn’t move fast enough.

“Of-of course!” The flustered blonde was tripping over herself to guide Vivian over to the door, and Vivian had to admit- the look of adoration Rose gave her sure was addicting.

But before she left, she had a thought to consider.

“…You know, Rose, I remember you have quite a lot of BP, isn’t that right?”

“Hm? Oh, uh, yeah,” Rose nodded, flattered that Vivian remembered her name, and even more flattered that she remembered how much BP she had accumulated. “I have a ton of it. I’m surprised you remember!”

“Of course I do!” Vivian batted her eyelashes. “You don’t get to be the head of a massive brand like mine without having a good sense for numbers. On a game like this, knowing what resources everyone has at their disposal? Why, that’s an indispensible skill!”

“Fair enough,” Rose nodded. “But you could just look that stuff up, I think…”

Vivian shrugged. It wasn’t that big of a deal anyway.

“My point is, you have what, 8200 BP? Assuming you haven’t gotten any more, of course,” Vivian noted. “That’s the highest of anyone right now.”

Rose nodded.

“How about you give some of that to me?” Vivian suggested.

Rose’s jaw dropped. Everybody else took note of that as well, and looked over at the conversation between the girls curiously.

“Huh? Uh… what?” Rose’s mouth flopped open and closed as she tried to process what Vivian was saying.

“Well, I did just come here to say hello, but then you happened to be here! That was a bit of a surprise, but I can’t pass up such a great opportunity!” Vivian giggled, shaking her head. “No… I’ve got to seize opportunities as they arise, if I want to get ahead! And right now, I only have 3100 BP myself. Not exactly a stellar amount. And I’m not used to being the poor one… So with that in mind, could you give me a bit of your stash? Just enough to get me into first?”

She twirled a lock of her brunette hair and batted her eyelashes at the other woman.

Rose could recognize a seduction when she saw one. She’d been cast as the seductress in enough parts, including on this very show itself. So she knew what Vivian was doing. And as much as she admired the fashionista, she had pride of her own, as well.

She shook her head. “I’m not just going to give my BP away,” she rebuffed the other girl. “I worked hard for that!”

Vivian’s eyes widened and her mouth twisted into a surprised “O” shape.

“Wait, you thought I meant just give it away for free?” She shook her head quickly. “Oh, no, absolutely not!”

“Wait, really?” Rose blinked, surprised. “You weren’t planning to…”

“No, not at all! I was offering a trade,” Vivian said, shaking her head. “You give me, say, about 5000 BP, and in exchange, I’ll give you… I don’t know, does 20 million work?”

Rose blinked. “…Eh?”

“20 million? In dollars, I mean, American. 5000 BP, and I’ll write you a check right now! You can cash it when this show lets out.”

Rose felt the room spin out from underneath her. When she’d first come to the island, it had been for the express purpose of making money. Sylvia and the producers had promised her a million dollar bounty for every contestant that she managed to outlast. And while she’d only managed to claw a single million away from them before having a crisis of conscience and realizing how horrible it was to betray other women for money, here was Vivian offering her more than she ever could have gotten from the producers, without having to hurt anyone.

All it would cost was 5000 BP. And while BP was nice, she could win it back easily… If she aced her bounty sheet this round, she’d have even more!

Her mind raced as she tried to figure out what to do.

“Hey, wait,” Nick interjected. “You can’t just do that!”

Vivian raised her eyebrow. “Hmm?”

“I-I think Nick’s right,” Mary nodded. “There’s no way you’re allowed to trade real money for BP! That’s gotta be against the rules, right?”

Vivian shrugged. “Why would it be?”

A somewhat valid question.

“It’s an amusing idea, so I’d be willing to allow it.”

Everyone jumped as Dakota appeared in the room. She wore a pleasant smile on her face, which was a bit unusual for her.

“You’re seriously okay with this?” Nick asked, turning to Dakota. “Doesn’t being able to bribe people for their BP kind of throw the whole integrity of the game out of balance?”

“Oh, come now, Nick, you can’t really be that naïve!” Dakota chortled. “…What integrity?”

Another valid question.

“So… I can take the deal, then?” Rose asked, unable to hide the hope in her voice. “I can really trade my BP for that much money!?”

“And there’s a lot more where that comes from,” Vivian winked at her. “Nick, think of it like a win-win. This way, we’re all happy!”

“BP can be traded or given away for any reason or no reason at all,” Dakota informed everyone. “If Rose wants to trade hers away for a promise of financial remuneration in the real world, I see no reason to stop that.”

She glanced at Vivian and nodded approvingly. “It’s one of the reasons we brought her onto the show, after all. To make things more interesting.”

Nick wasn’t sure how Vivian bribing everyone with ridiculous sums of money would make things more interesting, but it wasn’t like he could just tell Rose to not take the deal. Not when he knew how much the money meant to her, and what she was fighting for back home.

Rose glanced his way, and their eyes met. For a moment, he didn’t know what to think, and it didn’t seem like she did, either. The two looked at each other, and then the blonde girl nodded in renewed understanding.

“Um… sorry.”

“Oh?” Vivian’s eyes widened slightly. She clearly hadn’t expected that. “Excuse me?”

“I-I don’t want the money,” Rose said, shaking her head. The lie was an obvious one; anybody with eyes could see how much Rose wanted that money.

But she wasn’t going to take it.

“Really? Why not?” Vivian asked. “If it’s a matter of the size of the sum, then-”

“No! No, no, no, 20 million, that’s, well… that’s more than I ever could have dreamed!” Rose shook her head. “You’re really generous, offering me that. But… I don’t think I should take it. Even if I really, really, really want it.”

Nick thought there should be another five “really”s in there, judging by the gleam in her eyes. But he didn’t say anything. This was up to Rose to decide.

“…I earned that BP through hard work,” Rose said, holding her hand over her chest. “It’s not like I’m saving it up for anything in particular… but it’s my money. Money I can use here… for Nick and I, you know?”

She glanced shyly over at him.

“20 million… that’s a lot. But with 5000 BP, I could buy another date… and that might be even better, if it’s like our last one…”

Rose’s proud face was red with affection and she kept her gaze steady and focused on Vivian, even when she really wanted to be looking over at Nick.

“I appreciate it, I really do,” the blonde repeated. “But I don’t think I can take you up on your trade. 20 million would change my life, but… I love Nick and I want to spend more time with him. And that BP… that’s a way I can do it.”

“Rose, you don’t need to pay 5000 BP for a date with me, though,” Nick interjected. At first he’d been glad to hear that Rose wouldn’t take the deal, because he thought it was a pretty dirty deal that would have given Vivian an unfair edge. But once he heard the reason why she didn’t want to take the offer, he changed his mind.

He didn’t want Rose sacrificing herself for his sake, or anybody else’s.

“Yeah, but it’s not the same,” Rose said, shaking her head. “A whole day on a dream date… like I said, that’s worth a lot. So… sorry, Vivian, I can’t do it. Even if I admire you, this and that are two separate things!”

Defiance crept into her voice as she stood up straight and placed her hand over her chest. “I’m not going to back down!” She insisted. “I’m a woman who fights for what she wants, and I’m not going to lie back and give up!”

As greedy as she might have been, Rose was greedier for more things than just money. She also wanted Nick’s love, and she wasn’t about to sacrifice that just for some quick cash. Spending time with the man of her dreams mattered more to her than anything, and she’d say the same thing even if Vivian had offered her 200 million!

…Well, probably.

“…Hm.” Vivian nodded thoughtfully. She didn’t seem all that upset that her offer had been so directly rebuffed.

In fact, she was smiling.

“I like your spirit, Rose!” She giggled, clapping her hand on the other woman’s shoulder and making Rose twitch in surprise. “Seeing you stand up so boldly and profess your love! Well… that just makes me so jealous, I gotta admit!”

“R-really?” Rose stammered in surprise. “Jealous? Of… me?”

“Yep. Someone who can be so firm about their feelings, so passionate… it makes me wish I had that kind of love myself,” Vivian admitted, scratching her head. “But my feelings haven’t reached that point… not yet, at least.”

She winked coyly at Nick who rolled his eyes.

“…Anyway, I’ll back off here,” Vivian said, taking a step away and holding up her hands in defeat. “I didn’t think about BP being a sign of your love and determination, so it looks like I made a pretty insulting offer without realizing it. I’m sorry about that. I wasn’t trying to sabotage you or try to put a price on your feelings or anything.”

“Oh, um, it’s not like I was accusing you or anything!” Rose stammered. “I was just trying to clarify things, that’s all! And to make it clear that my feelings can’t be bought! I, uh… look, Vivian, you’re really cool and amazing, I’m a huge fan, I am, but… I’m not going to give away my position as the one Nick loves most, not even for money! Understood? I’m not that kind of gal!”

Vivian looked a little surprised and confused.

“Ahem.”

Mary cleared her throat, and glanced up from the table to look pointedly at the blonde.

Rose rolled her eyes. “Yeah, whatever. Fine. Once I win myself the position of Nick’s number one, THEN I’m not going to negotiate on it. Satisfied?”

Vivian giggled. “I sure am,” she nodded, patting Rose on the shoulder. “Okay. I’ll head out then. You all enjoy yourselves!”

She sauntered over to the elevator and hummed to herself. Today was going pretty good so far. She’d sized up her rivals well, and even though she might have made a bad impression on Nick due to misunderstanding the nature of her deal with Rose, she doubted that she’d done any critical damage to their future relationship. She was confident that she could make the best case out of anyone for him choosing her, even factoring in his obvious feelings for Mary and Rose.

Vivian wasn’t about to let him escape, not when she’d finally found someone she could adore and treasure and spoil to her heart’s content! Even if he had other women who felt the same way.