Reality Check - Page 41/53

Brian walked McKenna out. After meeting her family, he was not convinced he could handle the responsibility of her disability. He didn't want to let her know that, so he kept that to himself. He explained to her that he did have a connection with her, just not as strong as the others.

McKenna was in tears, and so was Brian. They hugged, and then Brian helped her into the limo.

After he wiped away his tears, he went back inside. Chris then told everyone that they were leaving for Australia. Brian had always wanted to visit Australia, but never had the means.

They left shortly after the celebration. The flight was fifteen hours nonstop.

They checked into separate suites upon landing. They got a good night's sleep. Brian had a date the next morning.

At dawn, Brian and Julie arrived at Broken Hill in New South Wales. Once there, they were given a tour of the Outback. They saw kangaroos, emus, and dingoes.

From there, they traveled to a nearby national park famous for its aboriginal wall paintings. At the park, a picnic was set up.

The more Brian talked to Julie, the more lost he got in her gaze. Perhaps it was the environment, but when he kissed her, he got a feeling like none before.

Julie saw the opportunity to put the next phase of her plan into motion. She planted a seed of doubt in Brian about Alison. Was she really as wholesome as she lets on? As a bartender, she had to hang around with some men who openly flirted with her. Could he really trust her?

Late that evening, they returned to the hotel. That seed had been planted and began sprouting leaves. He would test out that theory on his date with Alison tomorrow.

Brian had yet to see Alison in a bikini. She never hung out by the pool. He figured he'd take her somewhere where a bikini was required.

They went on a tour of the Great Barrier Reef. Alison didn't look like Naveena in her bikini, but it was nothing to be ashamed of. Brian liked it.

They went snorkeling. Alison saw all the beautiful coral in the blue ocean. The only beautiful thing Brian saw was Alison.

After an hour of snorkeling, they had lunch onboard the boat. Brian tried to confirm if what Julie had told him was true. He asked her if any patrons flirted with her.

"Sure. They flirt with me all the time. Sometimes I flirt back, but I never date anyone from the Swing Club."

He kept asking her questions, trying to pry a bit more information about it. While he was able to get some satisfaction from her responses, he still couldn't completely erase the doubt from his mind.