by Tamie Dearen
For now, all she wanted to do was keep her mind on ziplining. Since broken bones seemed a likely alternative to paying attention to their guide, it shouldn’t be a problem.
She followed Andrew and their other guide, Sasha, around a winding path, climbing upward to the first ziplining platform. Sasha quickly climbed up the stairs and strapped herself onto the cable. Within seconds, she was zipping through the tree canopy at a speed guaranteed to make a person swallow their tongue.
Katie’s heart raced as she watched Sasha, wishing she’d never agreed to come. The line was as high as the treetops and as long as a football field. Miraculously, Sasha managed to stop herself and stood up on the opposite platform, unharmed.
No way I can do this.
“What’s going to keep me from crashing into the other end?” Katie asked.
“I’m going to show you exactly where to put your hands,” said Andrew. “Your right hand will be your brake, to slow you down. But don’t slow down too much, or you’ll get stuck in the middle.”
“Watch me,” said Steven, as he climbed the stairs and stepped onto the box to allow Andrew to lock his harness onto the zip line. Then he sat back and let his legs lift up, with Andrew holding onto his harness to keep him from sliding away.
“When you get to the end, Sasha will signal for you to start slowing down. Your right hand goes here and you put pressure on the cable.” Andrew pointed to Steven’s gloved hand. “Always keep it behind the roller so it can’t get pinched.”
“What if I don’t slow down enough?” Katie asked.
“We’ve got a brake system to stop you. It’ll just be more abrupt. But you’ll be fine, no matter what.”
“And during the ride, you can keep both hands on the harness, right here,” Steven said, demonstrating.
“What if I want to go a little slower the whole way?” Katie asked.
“You don’t want to slow down on the way, or you might not make it to the other side,” said Andrew. “Just let it go fast, and it’ll be fun.”
On the other end, Sasha raised her hand and whipped it in a circle.
“Ready?” Andrew asked Steven.
Seconds later, Steven was gone. With his knees drawn up into a tight ball, he flew at breakneck speed across to the other end.
“Your turn.” Gary urged her to climb the ladder.
Her arms and legs shaking with adrenaline, she made her way up to the platform. Andrew connected her harness, but she couldn’t get up the nerve to sit down.
“Why don’t you hold onto the line with your brake hand, so you feel more in control,” Andrew suggested.
“Okay.” She grabbed the line with an iron grip and sat down, letting her legs swing up.
“I’ve got you,” said Andrew. “Let me show you how to use your brake hand. You don’t squeeze the line. Put your palm over it, like this, and pull down, putting friction on top of the cable. Got it?”
“I think so.”
“For now, hold onto the harness, right here.”
“Okay,” she said, with her heart thumping hard enough to break her ribs. “I’m not sure I want to do this.”
“Have a great trip,” said Andrew.
Before she could protest again, she was flying through the air, both hands squeezing onto the harness for dear life. She was halfway across before she realized the eerie sound in her ear was coming from her own mouth—a cross between and moan and a scream. Then she saw the other platform approaching, and Sasha lifted her hands, giving her a signal. What was she supposed to do?
Oh my gosh! I need to slow down. But I can’t let go of the harness.
She was flying toward Sasha at what felt like 200 miles an hour, when she finally unfroze her fingers enough to move her right hand up to the cable. As Sasha’s gestures grew more frantic, Katie pulled down hard with her right hand, the cable whizzing past her glove at a speed that would’ve torn her hand to pieces without the protection of the heavy leather glove. She slowed as she reached the platform, but not quite enough. Sasha caught her harness and flung her weight back, slamming Katie to a rather abrupt stop, though she didn’t have any injury as a result. Her heart, however, would probably never recover. It still throbbed, like it was the size of an elephant, and she pressed her hand against her chest to slow it.
“Good job!” From the ground below the platform, Steven gave an enthusiastic yell. “You did it! How do you feel?”
Sasha guided her to step up on the box, and she stood with trembling legs that seemed about to collapse at any moment, while Sasha disconnected the harness. “I feel like someone threw me out of an airplane without a parachute.”
Steven laughed. “I have to admit, I never thought you’d go through with it, Katie. I’m really impressed.”
She couldn’t help feeling proud with his praise. “Thanks. I decided to try as many new things as possible during this trip. But fair warning, when we get back to New York, I’m back to my old safe self.”
“That suits me just fine,” said Steven. “I like you just the way you are. Not everyone likes jumping out of airplanes, although I’ll be glad to take you if you ever change your mind.”
Still wobbling, Katie climbed down the ladder and waited on the ground for Gary to come zipping across. He flew fast and smooth, like Steven, his tight t-shirt accentuating his well-formed muscles. She watched him use his brake hand and come to a smooth stop, determined to copy his technique on the next one. The next one? Was she really going to do it again?
I guess I am.
Gary caught up with Katie on the hike to the last zip line tower.
“Slow down a minute.”
“Okay,” she said, letting him move beside her. “What’s up?”
“You keep racing ahead. Are you avoiding me?”
She hesitated, her eyes on the rocky trail. “Maybe a little.”
His stomach felt like he’d swallowed mud. “Why?”
She motioned ahead with her chin. “If Steven sees us together, he’ll get suspicious.”
Gary clamped his jaw tight. “So what?”
“He’s my boss. He has certain expectations, and I owe him a lot.”
“I owe Steven more than you do. He saved my life. Literally. But that doesn’t give him a say over my personal life. Or yours.”
They took a few steps in silence. “Maybe not, but I can’t help feeling uncomfortable. He’s giving me a weird vibe, like he doesn’t want us to be together.”
Gary battled with himself. How could he put her at ease?
“I’m sure Steven would be really happy if he found out we were together.”
Her lips twisted to one side. “Is that the truth?”
Heat suffused his face. “Not exactly.”
“Yes or no? That’s the deal.”
He kicked a rock off the trail, sending it flying down the hill. “Fine! The truth is he’s not keen on the idea. But that’s because he thinks I’m going to love you and leave you, like I usually do. But we’ve been really upfront with each other.”
“You mean, he’s trying to protect me?” At the wonder and adoration on her face, he kicked another rock, pretending it was Steven’s foot.
“Maybe he’s trying to protect his investment. He thinks you’re the best executive assistant he’s ever had.”
She made a grimace. “Not this week. I haven’t done a speck of work. In fact, I don’t even know why I’m here.”
“I think you’re here because Steven’s become dependent on you.” The moment the words left Gary’s lips, he realized they couldn’t be true. Steven had never been dependent on anyone his entire life. He could accomplish any goal he set his mind too. Hadn’t he proven that many times over? So why was he acting so dependent on Katie? Was it possible the man was truly in love with Katie, not recognizing his own feelings?
Of course! He doesn’t show his emotions because he doesn’t know what they are.
And hadn’t he said he might change his mind about his self-proclaimed bachelorhood if Katie w
ould consider getting married? If it was true, what should Gary do about it? After those two mind-blowing kisses last night, all he could think about was repeating the event.
“Should we tell him the truth?” Katie sucked her lower lip between her teeth, a gesture that made him want to pull her off the trail and kiss her, then and there. “That we’re only going to date while we’re here at Indigo Bay?”
“But that’s not exactly true,” Gary said. “We agreed we wouldn’t commit to date after Indigo Bay, but we didn’t say there was no possibility.”
“Don’t get your hopes up.”
Even Katie’s frown was adorable. How he wanted to hold her in his arms and smooth those furrows away.
“Too late. My hopes are a mile high. So are my dreams.” He snatched her gloved hand and kissed the back of the leathered fingers. Then he flipped her arm over and kissed his way up to her shoulder and onto her neck.
“Stop.” She giggled, slapping at his helmet. “Steven’s going to turn around and catch you doing that.”
“Let him.” Gary reached for her hand, again. “I don’t care.”
“I do.” She wrenched it from his grasp and started up the hill. “Let’s catch up with Steven and the others.”
Why was she so anxious to end their stolen alone-time?
“Are you excited about the last zip line? It’s a really long one.”
Her chin pointed up. “As a matter of fact, I’m not very nervous anymore.”
“You mean you’re actually enjoying yourself?”
“I hate to admit it, but yes, I’m having a good time. The adrenaline rush kind of makes you high. I see why you like it.”
“Hurry up!” Steven called from up the hill. “We’re waiting on you!”
“Coming!” Katie called as she trotted ahead, once again intent on pleasing Steven.
In a flash, Gary saw the truth, as clearly as if it were written on a piece of paper. Katie and Steven had feelings for each other—deep feelings they would never admit. No wonder she’d been so adamant that she and Gary couldn’t date when they got back to New York.
Both Katie and Steven were the kind of people who would deny their emotional attachments as impractical, simply because he was her employer. If Gary really cared about his friends, it was up to him to help them get together.
Good thing I haven’t actually fallen for Katie.
He ignored the swamp creatures stirring around inside his stomach.
12
“It’s about time you called me again,” said Nicole over video chat. “Last time we talked, you’d just been ziplining. I haven’t heard from you in two days, so I figure by now you’ve probably taken up scuba or skydiving.”
“Not hardly.” Katie propped the phone up, so she could rinse out her swimsuit. “I haven’t called you because I didn’t have anything to report.”
“No new adventures?”
“Not for me. I’ve mostly been hanging around on the beach and reading.”
“What about Gary?” Nicole asked in a voice that said she expected a juicy report. “I want to know everything. Are his kisses still rocking your world?”
“No more kisses, either.”
“Seriously? You cut him off?”
“There hasn’t been any opportunity. He was kind of quiet after we went ziplining, but I didn’t think anything about it. Then the past two days, it seems like he’s avoiding being alone with me. He’s still super sweet, but he’s definitely withdrawn.”
“Why? Did you guys have a fight?”
“No. But I’m afraid I might’ve hurt his feelings.” Katie squeezed the excess water out of her swimsuit and hung it over the shower rod to dry. “I reminded him we aren’t dating after we leave Indigo Bay. Now I wonder if he thinks I’m holding back because he had leukemia.”
“And what’s the real reason you can’t date him?” Nicole counted off on her fingers. “You’re both single. You both live in New York. You like each other. And evidently you have chemistry out the wazoo.”
Katie giggled. “Out the wazoo?”
Nicole always knew how to make her laugh, which was one of many reasons she loved her.
“Check your wazoo. I guarantee there’s chemistry there.”
“Yes, but I used to have chemistry with Joseph, too. And look how that turned out.”
“From the way you described kissing Gary, that’s like comparing a tea kettle to a volcano. Try dating Gary, for real. What do you have to lose?”
“It wouldn’t be fair to him.” Katie flopped onto her bed and stared at the ceiling. “You still don’t get it… I loved Joseph with my whole heart, and he crushed it and left my head screwed up. Gary deserves better.”
Nicole sported her schoolmarm look. “You could be throwing away something really special.”
“Even if I had the courage to try, I could never be with someone as reckless as Gary. I’d be worried sick about him every time he was off doing some daredevil stunt.”
“Maybe he’d be willing to tone down his adventures a little bit.”
“But he shouldn’t have to. He doesn’t know how much time he has left, so he wants to make the most of every moment,” said Katie.
“That’s true for everyone. None of us should take our time on earth for granted. Seems to me, Gary could be really good for you. You said he was super encouraging when you told him about Joseph.”
“I’ve already admitted he’s amazing. It would be easy to fall in love with him. And that’s exactly why we can’t date after we leave here. Honestly, it’s probably better that he’s backing off already. If we’d spent the entire week dating, it would’ve been a lot harder to stop at the end.”
Nicole held her breath and puffed out her cheeks, like a pressure cooker about to blow up. “Your crazy almost-logic drives me nuts.”
A knock at the door made Katie jump. “Oh! I’ve got to go. Mr. Gherring’s at the door. He’s bringing a work assignment, and then we’re all going into town for lunch.”
“Okay, but this conversation isn’t finished.”
“Talk to you later.” Relieved to escape Nicole’s pressure, Katie hung up and ran to the door to let Steven inside.
“Gary went ahead to the restaurant to save us a lunch spot.” Steven wasted no time, pulling up a chair at her kitchen table and opening his laptop. “I told him we’d be right behind him, as soon as we go over this.”
“Sounds good.” She grabbed her computer from the counter.
“I’m sending you the agenda, plus the list of everyone involved. I’ll let you take care of all the details of the meeting. I’d like all the players to be there in person, if possible, though our Japanese partners could attend remotely, if they need to.”
Katie brought up her emails. “Do you want to meet in the most central location, or fly everyone over here?”
“If we could line this meeting up with my Germany trip, we could hold the meeting in France.”
“So basically, we’ll do this just like the Milan deal. A meeting room at the hotel?” She clicked to download Steven’s list from her email.
They spent the next ten minutes hammering out the details, until Katie felt confident she knew what he wanted.
“I’m so glad I’ve finally got some work to do. I’ve been feeling so guilty.”
Steven shook his head. “We’re way too much alike, Katie. Take my advice and pace yourself. Vacations are good for you.”
“I’ll admit I’m shocked you haven’t worked all week.”
“Yes, until today. My phone has hardly stopped ringing. But I think I have everything under control. And I know you’ll take care of this meeting for me.”
“It’s already five p.m. in Paris, so I’ll call the European parties tomorrow morning.”
“Sounds perfect.” Steven slammed his laptop closed.
“By the way,” Katie added, “thanks for sending breakfast over the last couple of days.”
“Breakfast?” Steven mumbled, as he scrolled through a lengthy
message on his phone. “I don’t know anything about that.”
“Biscuits and gravy yesterday. Bacon, egg, and cheese sandwiches today. Gary said you sent him to fetch it for me.”
“I’d love to say that was my idea, but it wasn’t.” Steven tucked his phone away.
“Why would he lie about something like that?”
Steven threw his hands up in the air. “I have no idea what’s going on with him. Today, he chewed me out for giving you an assignment to work on while we’re here. Then, a few seconds later, he did a one-eighty and encouraged me to come over here and talk to you about it.”
Katie went to the kitchen counter and grabbed her purse, throwing the strap over her shoulder. “I can’t figure him out.”
“Sorry he’s acting so flaky. He’s usually not this moody.”
Steven stood and stretched, which only served to emphasize the well-developed shoulder muscles, flexing under his t-shirt. She forced her eyes away.
I can’t think about my boss like that.
“He’s only been acting weird the past few days.” This proved it. She’d carelessly hurt Gary’s feelings, and now he was withdrawing.
“Aside from Gary, are you enjoying the trip?” Steven followed her out the door.
“Way more than I expected.” She locked the cottage door behind them and tucked the key in her purse. “I’ve done quite a few things outside my comfort zone, and I have to admit, it’s been fun. Like ziplining the other day. I still can’t believe I did it.”
“I’m surprised you’ve overcome so many fears.” Steven’s hand steadied her elbow as they descended the steps, but his touch didn’t have any effect on her. If Gary had done the same thing, there would’ve been sparks flying out of her arm.
“You know, I’m really only afraid of one thing, and that’s death,” Katie said. “So once I convinced myself death had a low probability, it wasn’t that difficult.”
“You should’ve gone parasailing with us yesterday. Statistically, it’s really safe.”
They turned on the sidewalk that led to downtown Indigo Bay.
“Yes, but that’s like flying in an airplane. It’s safe when everything’s working, but if anything goes wrong, your chances of surviving are pretty much zero.”
