Chapter 11

Cheyenne

The scenery along the Sea to Sky Highway heading toward Whistler was breathtaking.

Towering pine trees with snow-capped mountains in the distance. Radiant blue lakes. Canada was truly a beautiful country.

But I couldn’t enjoy it. Not that day. My heart pounded in my ears, my stomach churning with a strange mixture of nerves and hunger. I didn’t eat breakfast. The last thing I wanted to do was puke.

“Are you okay?” Abe asked, glancing over at me, concern etched on his face.

“No. I’m scared shitless.”

“That’s normal. I was terrified the first time too.” He reached over and caressed my bare thigh, his fingers sliding under the edge of my shorts.

“If you’re trying to distract me, it’s not going to work. There’s nothing you could do with that hand right now that would take my mind off the fact that I’m going to jump off a bridge.”

He laughed, a loud rumble from deep in his chest. “Is that a challenge?”

“No,” I snapped. “This isn’t funny, Abe. I’m freaking out.”

“What if I told you we could jump together?”

“Really?”

“Yep. It’s called a tandem jump. We’d be tethered at our feet. And I’d hold you in my arms. Would that make it less scary?”

“Yes. Will they let us do that though?”

He pulled into the lot and parked the Jeep. “I called while you were in the shower. It’s a go. Our fans will love it.”

“Well, I wouldn’t want to disappoint the fans,” I said with a reluctant sigh.

“There you go. That’s the spirit.” He squeezed my knee before climbing out of the Jeep.

We walked up to the bridge hand in hand. By the time we reached the top, my body was covered in a thin layer of sweat. I swallowed hard, my throat like sandpaper as I clutched Abe’s hand tighter.

“I can’t do it,” I gasped, staring down at the Cheakamus River, some two hundred feet below.

“Yes, you can,” Abe whispered. “Just breathe.”

“You’ll be fine.” A guy around my age smiled at me as his gaze roamed my body. “I’m Scott. I’ll be looking after you today.”

“Hello,” Abe said, scowling at Scott. He hadn’t missed the guy checking me out.

I forgot about my fear for a minute, reveling in the fact that Abe was acting jealous and possessive. He put his hand on the small of my back as we followed Scott to a little log cabin.

“You need to sign a waiver before you can jump,” he informed us, handing a clipboard to Abe.

“Great,” I muttered. “You know you’re in trouble when you’re about to sign something acknowledging that you understand you might die.”

“Relax, sweetheart,” Abe said, handing me the clipboard. “You’ll be so happy you did this. Trust me. This will be my third jump.”

“Cool,” Scott said. “Where else have you jumped?”

“The Royal Gorge in Colorado and Mount Hood.”

“Both good jumps. Someday, I wanna go to New Zealand.”

“Oh, me too!” Abe exclaimed, his earlier annoyance with Scott forgotten.

“You ready?” Scott asked when I handed him the clipboard.

“Yeah. Ready as I’ll ever be.”

We walked back out to the bridge. I couldn’t believe I was going to bungee jump.

What the fuck had I been thinking? I should have looked at the itinerary before I agreed to come on this trip. There was no way Julie would’ve jumped. Not in a million years.

“You guys want pictures?” An older balding man stood off to the side with a camera. “People are gonna go wild over shots of ~The Golden Couple~ ~doing a tandem bungee jump.”

“Sure,” Abe said between clenched teeth.

He didn’t enjoy the spotlight, but I didn’t mind. It was temporary. As soon as the trip was over, people would forget about us and move on to something else. It was kind of neat to be famous.

“Okay,” Scott said. “Time to get suited up. I need you guys to stand face to face so I can tether your ankles together.”

Abe slid his arms around my waist, and I followed suit, wrapping my arms tightly around his torso.

“Are you scared?” he whispered.

I gazed up into his dreamy eyes. “Yes. But as long as you’re holding me, I’ll be fine.”

“I won’t let go, sweetheart. I promise.”

“Smile, kids,” the photographer said before snapping a series of shots.

“You’re all set,” Scott announced.

“You ready, Cheyenne?” Abe asked, smiling down at me.

“Yeah. Let’s do it.”

“Don’t look down,” Scott said. “Look straight ahead.”

Of course, I didn’t listen. If you tell someone not to look down, they’re gonna look down. It’s just an instinct.

I glanced down at the white caps and rushing waves below as I imagined crashing into the rocks. That would hurt. My luck, I wouldn’t die instantly.

What if I peed my pants?

Or barfed all over Abe?

I was vaguely aware of someone counting down as my body went numb with fear.

“Bungee!” Scott’s voice boomed across the platform.

Abe stepped off the platform, taking me with him.

~Holy shit.~

We were falling.

Someone screamed.

Me, of course.

Abe laughed.

We fell toward the raging river below. The wind rushed through my ears like I had my head stuck out the car window on a freeway.

I kept my eyes open, watching the water get closer and closer, the wind getting louder as we picked up speed.

We reached the end of our rope and bounced back up. I buried my face in Abe’s chest as we rode out the recoil. And then we were hanging upside down, laughing uncontrollably.

“Oh my God!” I yelled. “That was amazing!”

“I’m glad you enjoyed it!” Abe shouted. “I knew you could do it!”

I tightened my arms around him. “Thank you so much for not letting me chicken out.”

He caressed my back, his fingers tracing slow circles just above my waist. “No problem,” he murmured, his eyes dropping to my lips.

I took a deep breath, willing my racing heart to slow down. He leaned in, brushing his lips against mine.

My heart took off in a wild gallop as he slid his tongue along the seam of my lips, pressing firmly until I opened my mouth.

His tongue darted inside, tasting and exploring, leaving the flavor of spearmint gum in its wake.

I forgot I was hanging upside down, losing myself in the amazing feel of his soft lips and demanding tongue. He angled his head, deepening the kiss as a hungry groan emerged from his throat.

I didn’t care that people were watching, probably snapping pictures to post on the internet. The only thing that mattered at that moment was Abe and me and our mind-blowing first kiss.

***

My knees trembled as we walked back to the Jeep. Abe had kissed me. Never mind the fact that I bungee jumped off a bridge. My dream guy had kissed the hell out of me.

I was still flying high, even though my feet were firmly planted on the ground. The euphoria was like nothing I’d ever experienced. I never wanted it to end.

“What’s going on in that pretty little head?” Abe asked, opening the passenger door for me.

I wrapped my arms around his neck and tilted my chin up, giving him my best attempt at a seductive gaze.

“I was thinking about our kiss. And wondering what it would be like to kiss you when I wasn’t hanging upside down from a bridge.”

“Oh yeah?” He grabbed my hips, pulling me in close before crushing his lips against mine. I parted my lips, and he pushed his tongue in, sweeping it over mine.

He pressed me against the side of the Jeep, grinding his growing erection into my stomach.

“Fuck, you’re hot,” he growled into my mouth before he gave me a little nip on my lip. The brief pain morphed into pleasure when he ran his tongue over the spot where he bit me.

His hands dropped to my ass, cupping my cheeks through the thin material of my athletic shorts as I arched my back, trying to get some friction against my aching pussy.

I whimpered when he tore his lips away and released me. “Why did you stop?”

“Because we’re in public,” he chuckled, running his finger over my cheek. “And I want to take things slow.”

“I’m sorry, what?” I must have heard him wrong. Guys never wanted to go slow when it came to sex. Not in my experience. Except for Simon.

“We have five more weeks together. I don’t see any reason to rush things. Anticipation builds excitement. Good things come to those who wait.”

“I guess I’ve waited seven years. What’s a few more days?”

He leaned in, running his tongue over my earlobe. “It will be worth the wait. Trust me, sweetheart. I’m gonna rock your world.”

My pussy clenched, moisture collecting between my legs. Abe got my juices flowing with a PG-rated make out session and a dirty promise. I hoped that was a sign of good things to come.