Page 160 of Stupid Matchmaking Love

I flash Rhett a grin and show my card.

“She wrote, failing someone! And Rhett and Cristina get fifty points!”

Rhett pulls me into a quick hug and murmurs in my hair, “That’s my girl.”

My heart convulses as I feel his strong arms around me, ready to keep me safe.

“Moving on. Next question,” Mina announces. “Gentlemen, what is the one thing your partner can’t live without? Write down your answers.”

Rhett doesn’t hesitate. My stomach flips because he’s writing so fast. Fingers crossed that he’s right.

When it’s our turn, I say, “My family. I can’t live without them.”

Rhett flips his card. It reads: Her family. Mina congratulates us. Rhett winks at me, and I think, You know me. You really, truly know me.

As he threads his fingers through mine, our eyes meet. I see it in his expression—the same realization hitting him.

We started this competition trying to lose spectacularly. Now we’re fighting to win. Together. And honestly? I wouldn’t have it any other way.

The questions go like that for the next four rounds. Clarice and Beau nail every single one. Maya and Logan also do well, and Callie and Jeff are pretty strong, too.

When Jace and Holly miss another question, I feel a small, petty surge of satisfaction. After everything—the gaslighting, the sabotage, the lies—watching them fail feels like justice. Rhett squeezes my hand like he knows exactly what I’m thinking.

Halfway through, my chest tightens slightly—not an attack, just nerves. I reach for my purse, fingering the inhaler inside.

Rhett notices. “You okay?” he murmurs.

“I’m perfect,” I whisper back. And I mean it, and let my hand lift back to my side. I don’t need my inhaler—not today.

“Next question! Gentlemen, what’s your partner’s favorite way to be comforted?”

Rhett scribbles down an answer, and for a moment, I’m nervous. Does he know this about me? As Mina sweeps through the other couples, most of them get it right.

“Holly, how do you like to be comforted?”

“With foot rubs.”

“Jace?” He flips his card, and Mina says, “With foot rubs! That’s a win.”

I look over and Jace shoots me a smug look of victory. My stomach hardens. I do not want them to win.

“Cristina,” Mina says sharply, snapping me from my thoughts. “How do you like to be comforted?”

“Um, hugs. I like hugs.”

Her eyes slash to Rhett. “And what did your partner write?”

He flips his card. “He wrote hugs,” Mina says.

I exhale a sigh of relief.

As the questions go on, getting harder, more and more couples begin to get answers wrong.

Except Holly and Jace. They may have stumbled in the beginning, but halfway into the challenge, we wind up neck and neck with them, which is one thing I didn’t see coming, and honestly it makes my stomach sour. Those two don’t deserve to win, but every time they get a question right, one of them looks over at me and smirks like, You’re not the best, see? We can win, too.

And all I can think is, Holy shit, we might lose this. Rhett and I might lose this competition to them. Let me be frank—this isn’t about the money. Yes, I would love to win it, but this is about standards, integrity, emotional honestly—all things Holly and Jace both lack.

“Ladies, what does your partner consider a perfect date?”