His lips twitch. "You can try."
The next half-hour passes in a rush. We pull off the highway, driving for another fifteen minutes and then stop in a parking lot where there are three cars. The place around us is deserted, except for closed stores and a gas station. From somewhere in the distance, the ripple of a river reaches my ears, barely audible. Damon takes my hand without hesitation, leading the way. I let him guide me without a shadow of a doubt. His hand feels smoother than I remember—there are no recent marks from fights. They've healed nicely, just as Damon has. We trudge through the open field for several minutes. I suspect our destination is the hill rising in front of us, though I can't imagine why. I bite back the temptation of asking if he has a plan, but then we reach the hill, walking around it. When we stop, all I can do is stare.
"I knew you wanted to go bungee jumping for your birthday, but someone told me you didn't."
"Hazel." I take in the giant platform rising high, very high up in the air, squinting to see the few people milling around at the top of the platform.
"James, actually."
"Right. You’re working for him...You and my brother are getting a little too cozy already. I’m not sure if I like that."
"Why not?"
"You are both strong-willed and very smart. If you two put your heads together, you'll be unstoppable."
"Why's that bad?" His green eyes bore into mine with an intensity that makes the air ripple with a wave of hot tension. It's so thick and palpable that I could bite into it.
"It's not. Let's go up."
"I'm actually going to wait for you here. I'll bring the bike around; didn’t realize there was space for it here.”
“Aren’t you jumping?”
“No way in hell. I’d pee my pants on the way down.”
“Hohoho, you ride a death machine on two wheels and fought for a living, and you’re afraid of bungee jumping?”
“Hey, everybody is afraid of something. I have a fear of heights."
"The fearless Damon Cooper is afraid of something."
"I always thought people misunderstood the word fearless. If you think about it, it means fear less. Doesn't mean no fear at all."
"Okay," I say, fighting to keep a straight face. "Wait for me here."
"You'll kick ass. Go."
As I make my way up the platform, a pang of fear sprouts inside me. Eventually, I reach the top, and a guy my age greets me. "I'm Max. Dani Cohen, is it?"
"Yes. How do you know my name?"
"Your boyfriend mentioned it when he made the reservation," he says. Warmth travels all over my body at the word boyfriend. I pinch myself to make sure I'm not dreaming, and then grit my teeth to stop a yelp. I overdid the pinching, and it hurts like a bitch. Max wastes no time getting the gear ready.
I look up in the distance while he gets me prepped, trying to find Damon. From up here, I have a direct view of the parking lot beneath. He already brought the bike here, but he isn't next to it like I expected.
"Ready? Your boyfriend seems eager for you to get back down."
"What?"
"He's down there, possibly thinking he can catch you if the rope breaks."
"No, he doesn't." I giggle. "That would be silly." I approach the edge of the platform, looking down. So that's why he wasn't near the bike. He holds a poster-sized paper above his head. I'll catch you if you fall is written with huge letters on it.
Excitement bubbles up in my chest, getting out in a roar-like laughter attack. Max laughs with me, too, shaking his head. Deep inside my belly, butterflies wake up to life. Damon might not be able to catch me now if the rope breaks, but I know he'll be there if anything else goes awry. Another staff member appears next to Max as he nods, indicating everything's set, but I don't move, fear suddenly gripping me. This is insane. I eye the ground again, trying to calculate the distance. Why did I ever think this was a good idea? I try to remember what twisted logic led me to want to be up here. Oh, yeah, I wanted to get out of my comfort zone. Bad, bad idea. People flirt with strangers or have a Brazilian wax when they try to get out of their comfort zone
. They don't decide to jump from God knows how many feet up, possibly to their death.
"Is there any chance of the rope breaking?"