Sky High

by C. J. Lake

  Meanwhile, several moments passed—and Jamie didn’t mean to listen, but it was hard to avoid. Especially now that Thomas was shouting so Sky could hear him.

  “First and foremost,” he said loudly, “you have to tell me why you are single. What’s wrong with you?”

  “What do you mean?” came Sky’s humble reply.

  “Just that you’re a very attractive young lady,” Thomas clarified, his tone teasing. “I’m surprised no one’s grabbed you yet. How old are you, by the way?”

  “Twenty-two,” Sky replied.

  “Oh, just a kid,” Thomas said with a chuckle. “I’m twenty-nine.” Jamie almost sneered at that. Couldn’t this douche find a woman his own age? “So Alison tells me that you’re an expert skier?” he said. That drew Jamie’s attention immediately, especially as he heard her tentative reply.

  “Well, yes…”

  Suddenly the bumper sticker on Sky’s car made more sense. Beware of Snow Siren.

  “I’ll have to take you with me on my next trip to Aspen,” Thomas interrupted. “I have a corporate suite there.” Discreetly, Jamie rolled his eyes as he drank his beer. “You can show me what’s what,” Thomas went on. “I’d say I’m between intermediate and advanced skill level on the slopes.”

  “I really don’t ski much anymore,” Sky said. Jamie wasn’t sure, but he thought she sounded grateful for the interruption when the bartender came back over.

  “What do you mean?” Thomas pressed, after Sky ordered a Bloody Mary. “You don’t ski? But I thought…”

  Sky seemed to hesitate a few beats before answering. Jamie wanted to glance over and see her expression, but didn’t dare. The last thing he wanted was to make her self-conscious again about him sitting next to her, so he continued to half-watch the basketball game, letting Pellican do all the shouting, ranting, and raving at the screen for the two of them. “I guess Alison didn’t mention it,” Sky began, “but I was in a bad car accident last year. It happened right after graduation—literally. It was graduation weekend, in fact.”

  “Oh, my God, that’s awful! I was almost in a fender bender myself the other day. Not my fault, of course. But what happened to you?”

  “A drunk driver slammed into me,” Sky said simply. Stunned, Jamie absorbed his surprise, as she continued, “Practically shattered my leg—well, broke it in six places really.”

  Holy shit…

  Jamie swallowed down another gulp of beer, startled by his own feelings of concern, even sympathy, for Sky. He couldn’t believe she’d gone through something like that.

  “Wow, you’re lucky to be alive,” Thomas told her.

  “I know,” Sky agreed, though her tone seemed somewhat remote. “I try to look at it that way.”

  Jamie didn’t have time to reflect on that comment until later. To process that Sky didn’t sound like someone who was bowled over by how lucky she’d been. To realize that the accident had cost her more than she was saying.

  “But you’re all healed now, right?” Thomas asked, forcing a lighthearted, almost nervous laugh that sounded out of place. “No cane or…?” When his voice trailed off, Jamie angrily wondered: was he seriously trying to ask Sky if she walked with a limp or something? Who did that?

  “Yes. I’m healed.”

  “You don’t sound so sure,” he challenged.

  Jamie’s blood started to heat. What a dick. He felt like going over and shoving the guy off his bar stool.

  “No, I’m fine,” Sky insisted. “I’m totally back to normal. I walk fine.”

  “You just don’t ski,” Thomas threw in. To his credit, his tone was neutral and non-judgmental. But tone wasn’t everything. His words, his interrogation—it was all obviously making Sky feel defensive.

  And then Jamie had an epiphany. How could he blast Thomas for clueless insensitivity if Jamie himself continued to sit here, rather than give Sky privacy on her date?

  “Listen, let’s watch the game at my place,” he told Pellican as he rose from his seat. “You’re right; this small screen sucks.”

  “Okay—but I just ordered food. So I’ll meet you over there in a few.”

  “All right,” Jamie said and started to leave, stealing a glance over his shoulder at Sky. Surprisingly, she was already looking at him, watching him go.

  Chapter Seven

  The early morning shift at K9 Love Park was always Sky’s favorite. Mornings like this were quiet and peaceful—the sunlight beaming into the large front window, coating the white tiles like snow. K9’s phones didn’t start ringing until after 8:30, which was also when additional staff came in to manage the daily activities of the twenty-plus dogs that were staying there. So, for those first two hours, it was just Sky in the spacious front office, updating the daily logs and filing paperwork, while the dogs snoozed in their crates.

  Today she’d caught up with her work quickly, and was leaving her desk to make a second cup of coffee when her phone chimed. Her first thought was that it might be Thomas, texting to say he had a good time on their date last night. Leaning back, she picked it up and saw it was actually a message from her friend, Katie. It was a slideshow with the header: “Check me out!”

  Katie was in Park City, Utah right now for Downhill Speedfest, a bi-annual race that came with a slew of cash prizes—and a mountain of street cred. Sky had competed in it when she was twenty and had almost placed. She vowed to get back there and win it, but then never got the chance…

  Now Sky’s heart sank as she scrolled through Katie’s photos. It wasn’t fair, Sky thought immaturely. Katie was where she wanted to be, doing what she wanted to do. Ugh, I sound like a brat, even in my own head.

  Shaking it off, Sky set the phone back down.

  She had to move past this; she had to get her life started. Her new life. Whatever that meant—whatever it was going to mean, she had to figure it out. She’d tried to ski on two separate occasions since the accident. This was after multiple surgeries on her leg and months of intensive physical therapy on the leg—after she was declared “healed.” But both times had been a profound disappointment.

  Her control was nothing like it had been. Her sharpness, her accuracy… Saddened, she shut her eyes for a second and tried to push away the memories of who she used to be—fast and fearless. She used to glide. Now with the pins in her leg, she felt like she had hinges.

  She reminded herself: all goals expired eventually. Things changed, dreams got replaced. The big problem for her, though, was that nothing had replaced hers yet.

  Twenty minutes later, Sky was sitting on thickly padded window seat with her newest BFF, a Dalmatian named Betty, whose owners were on a Scandinavian cruise, nuzzling up against her. Sky smiled as she gently pet Betty’s back and crooned to her about what a sweet dog she was. The first two nights she’d been there, Betty had whimpered nervously in her crate and so Sky had given her some extra attention. Since then, whenever Sky came on duty and started letting the dogs into the playroom, she found Betty already waiting for her—standing at full attention in her crate, with her tail wagging eagerly, wanting to hang with Sky rather than play with the other dogs.

  Oddly, Betty reminded Sky of the Dachshund mix she’d grown up with, Cherry. While Betty was elegant and dignified, Cherry, was a scrappy, hyper little thing. But what they had in common was the simple, unconditional affection they gave Sky and the joy they brought to her heart.

  Suddenly her phone buzzed. Reluctantly, she broke the serenity of her window-gazing with Betty, and climbed off the window seat.

  “Hey, Mom,” Sky said, grabbing her cell off the desk.

  “Hi. I wanted to check in. Have you heard from Cody?” her mother asked, referring to Sky’s twin brother.

  “Not for about a week,” Sky said. “Why?”

  “Hmm, he seems to have disappeared on me again.”

  “You know Cody sort of does his own thing.”

  “Well, can you tell him to call me?”

  “Uh, sure,” Sky reluctantly agreed. She d
idn’t particularly enjoy being the liaison between her parents and her somewhat rebellious, incommunicative brother—but she supposed somebody had to these days. “I’ll text him later.”

  “Thank you. How are you feeling?” her mom asked.

  “I’m fine,” Sky said, feeling irrationally annoyed by the question. “You don’t always have to ask how I’m feeling like I have something wrong with me.” Immediately, she winced at her overreaction. She knew it was a simple question; she knew that her mom asked because she cared. Maybe Sky’s date with Thomas last night had touched a nerve, especially when he was questioning how “healed” she really was from her accident..

  “I take it by your immediately angry response you’re not feeling well, then,” her mother stated calmly.

  “Sorry—I’m not angry—but I said I was fine,” Sky maintained. Let’s face it: it really didn’t matter what Sky said anyway, because her mother could always see through her. Not only had she known Sky since birth, but she was also a clinical psychologist.

  “Have you given thought to that job I told you about? At the Academic Grant Society?” Automatically, Sky stuck her tongue out and rolled her eyes to the ceiling. “Sky…?”

  “Uh, no,” she managed, “not really.”

  “It’s a wonderful opportunity. Margaret said she could get you something in the Public Relations Department. It would be a chance for you to start over, Sky—to finally bring closure to some fanciful notions that still cause you pain.”

  “Fanciful notions,” Sky muttered cynically under her breath. “Sure.”

  “What’s that?” her mom asked.

  Impatiently, Sky said, “It’s not ‘fanciful notions’ that cause me pain, Mom. It’s the damn pins in my leg that do that.” Before her mother could respond, Sky plowed on: “And I know you probably think that it’s just as well that I can’t ski competitively anymore. You probably think that the accident was a blessing in disguise!”

  “You seem to be fixating on what I think. Let’s try reflecting back—and taking possession of your own thoughts.”

  Ignoring the psychobabble, Sky said, “C’mon, admit it, Mom. You’re glad that I’m not skiing anymore. I know you don’t think that going from competition to competition, always chasing sponsors and prize money, is a responsible way to make a living. I’m sure you think it’s immature and unreliable, and that only a tiny percentage of downhill skiers ever hit the big time anyway, so I should just happily accept my newfound mediocrity and go become an accountant—right?”

  “The only thing I think is that you’re projecting your concerns on to me. As well as snapping out of anger.”

  Frustrated, Sky rolled her eyes. “Yeah, that’s usually when people do snap.”

  “Sweetheart, take a breath. Have you done your yoga today?”

  “No,” Sky grumbled, then took a breath, as instructed. In truth, Elle was much better at yoga than her.

  “Why don’t you meditate and we’ll talk later?”

  Because I suck at meditating; because I can’t turn my mind off, because positive thinking never seems to change the facts.

  “I have a patient coming in anyway.”

  “In other words: our time is up.”

  Ignoring her sarcasm, Sky’s mom said a pleasant goodbye and disconnected. She must have known how much worse that would make Sky feel for losing her temper and being a brat. Her mom was a diabolical genius like that.

  Just then another picture message from Katie popped up on Sky’s phone. “Blech,” Sky mumbled jealously and hit delete.

  ~

  When Sky came home later that afternoon, she found Elle at the stove. The smell of homemade pasta sauce filled their apartment. “Hey, girl,” Elle beamed. “Guess what? I met the new guy!”

  “Jamie?” Sky said, slipping off her jacket.

  “Yes. He stopped down here this morning on his way to work.”

  Curiously, Sky asked, “What for?”

  Elle didn’t seem to hear her; she was busy tearing leaves from the herb box in the window. As she turned back around and returned to the stove, she tore the basil leaves once more before tossing them into the pot. Sky was about to repeat her question about Jamie—had he come to see her?—when Elle spoke up again.

  “Sky—he’s cute!” she said, her tone almost chastising.

  “I told you he was cute,” she replied, kicking off her shoes. As she went to hang up her jacket she saw that the back was netted with dog hair, so she reached for a lint brush from inside the closet.

  “No, you said, ‘Sort of, I guess.’ But he’s legitimately cute!”

  With the lint brush in hand, Sky paused to give Elle a sideways glance. “Okay, once again—don’t you have Brett?”

  Elle’s response was casual and matter-of-fact. “Yes. Brett’s right here.”

  Confused, Sky looked around. “Where?”

  “Hey, Sky,” she heard Brett call from the direction of the breakfast bar, where Elle had her ipad propped up against some cookbooks.

  “Oh, hi,” Sky called back.

  “He’s Skyping from the conference room at work,” Elle explained.

  “Your bosses don’t mind?” Sky asked, coming closer.

  “Enh, they don’t know,” Brett replied. “I’m stuck in here working on this huge project.”

  By now, Elle’s boyfriend was like a brother to Sky. Blond and scruffy, Brett seemed like a cross between a teddy bear and a friendly lion. He and Elle had been dating since their freshman year of college, and as far as Sky could tell, Brett had never let her down.

  “Actually, Brett and I thought that Jamie might be good for you,” Elle remarked, lifting her eyebrows encouragingly.

  Surprised, Sky countered, “I thought you wanted your sister to find someone for me. Remember? Isn’t that the reason you signed me up for her matchmaking service? Something about restoring her confidence?”

  Elle smacked her palm to her forehead. “Oh my gosh, you’re totally right! I can’t believe I completely forgot about that for a second! Okay, forget everything I just said about the guy upstairs. Stick with Alison’s picks. I’m sure she knows what she’s doing.”

  “Okay,” Sky agreed, though Alison was 0 for 1 so far.

  “Jamie probably has a girlfriend already anyway,” Elle remarked. Yet Sky had a feeling that he didn’t. Not just because of the weight bench, hideously placed in the living room, but also there had been no girl with him at Grendel’s last night. “Especially if he’s that cool and considerate,” Elle added, giving a nod to Brett.

  “What are you talking about?” Sky asked, getting more curious, as she took a seat at the breakfast bar.

  With a bright smile, Elle replied, “I have some news for you, girl.”

  “You do?”

  “Yes. So prepare to be surprised…”

  Chapter Eight

  That evening, Sky’s walk through Back Bay ended after only half a mile. She made it as far as Cross Street before the dull soreness in her knee started to annoy her, and she gave up and headed home. It was just getting dark, twilight fading as night slowly emerged and streetlights began flickering on.

  Now Sky turned onto Hamilton. She stopped short for a second when she spotted Jamie about fifty feet away, leaving Grendel’s with a takeout bag. Based on his khakis, she’d guess he was just getting back from work. She needed to talk to him anyway, so why wait?

  Impulsively, she forgot her knee for a second and jogged down the street to catch up to him. She called out his name when she was close enough to be heard.

  Surprised, he whipped his head over his shoulder, and when their eyes caught, he gave her a sweet, crooked sort of smile. There was something about his smile that made her chest flutter for a second. Her stomach tightened as she approached.

  “Hey,” she said again once she’d closed the gap between them on the sidewalk and they were standing face-to-face. “Are you just getting home from work?”

  He nodded then held up his bag. “Stopped to get dinner
first.”

  “Yeah, Grendel’s is awesome,” Sky agreed conversationally. “It’s my go-to place, too.” Feeling a bit awkward, Sky cleared her throat—then realized that she did that a lot around him. “Listen, I wanted to thank you. Elle told me about the parking spot.” Though she wasn’t going to grovel, she certainly wanted to show sufficient appreciation. After all, according to Elle, Jamie stopped by this morning to say that Sky could have the spot—just like that.

  “No worries,” Jamie said amiably as they waited for the traffic to clear, before crossing the street to their building.

  As they crossed, Sky asked, “So, what are you going to do for parking?”

  “Oh, no problem there,” Jamie said. “I found a spot a couple of blocks down. I already made the arrangements. We’re good.”

  Maybe she should just leave it at that and not push her luck. But she felt indebted to him now and wanted to even things out. “Okay, well, how much is the monthly rent on the new spot?” she asked. “Because I’d like to cover the cost for you.”

  Jamie shook his head, dismissing the idea. “Nah, don’t worry about it.”

  “No, really,” she insisted.

  “Really,” he insisted back. “Don’t worry about it.”

  When they reached their building, Jamie pulled his keys out of his pocket and unlocked the main door. “Jamie, come on,” Sky said, as he held it open for her and she stepped through. “Why should you have to pay for a spot two blocks away just so I can have the space close to the building? That’s craziness.”

  Admittedly, she wasn’t a saint. If she were, she’d decline his offer altogether. But she couldn’t resist taking advantage of it. At the same time, she wasn’t looking to take advantage of him. “Why would you want to do that?”

  “Um, because I’m a nice guy?” he suggested.

  Sky scrunched her face at that. “That doesn’t make sense.”

  “Ha. Not sure if I should be insulted. It doesn’t make sense because you don’t think I am a nice guy? Or are you one of those girls with slight anger issues who doesn’t believe nice guys exist?”