Reluctant Rescue

by Cami Checketts

  She sat there for a few minutes then started fidgeting because of the inactivity. She couldn’t see a canyon approaching and wondered how long they’d simply motor along.

  Levi’s blond head appeared at the top of the ladder and all boredom fled.

  “How is it?” he asked.

  “The first steps are murder.”

  He cocked his head at her and walked calmly over to her. He was in a t-shirt and board shorts. His eyes flickered over her then came to rest on her face.

  “No fair,” she said. “You’re wearing flip flops?”

  “Generally a good thing to have on in the summer.”

  She rolled her eyes at him. “Hey. I can’t sit here much longer. You want to do something fun?”

  “You’ve been up here for like five minutes.”

  “You’ve been timing me?”

  “Maybe.”

  Caylee liked that for some reason. He was keeping tabs on her. “Ready for something fun?” she asked again.

  “Depends what your idea of fun is.”

  She glanced around at the slow-moving boat and grinned when she had a spark of brilliance. “Can you get me a rope?”

  “Sure.”

  “Sweet.” She jumped to her feet, winced and muttered as she crossed the hot part, then looked back at him expectantly. “Well, come on.”

  Levi grinned at her and Caylee was lucky she was holding on to the railing or she would’ve fallen down the ladder. This boat was definitely not up to code for anyone with disabilities. She knew Sage had been disappointed her parents couldn’t come, but her dad’s fibromyalgia was getting worse and the extreme heat would’ve been miserable for him.

  She rushed down the ladder and waited for Levi. He brushed past her with another devastating grin and she knew Lake Powell was going to be much too hot for her if he kept being nice. Except for the one vomiting comment, he’d been nothing but pleasant today. She didn’t want to ask for the rude, sarcastic Levi back, but maybe it would keep her safe. She never went on more than a couple of dates with one man to keep from getting serious. If she had to spend a week with nice Levi, all her safety precautions to keep her heart guarded would be in serious trouble.

  Levi shimmied down the thin side walkway of the boat and came back with a thick rope.

  “Perfect! Let’s tie it off the back.”

  “Why?”

  “I’ll show you.” She opened the gate and they both stepped down to the platform that was at water level, and had a ladder that you could flip down to climb back on the boat from the water. Levi found a metal rung and quickly tied off the rope. The rope trailed out into the water. It looked nice and long. Perfect.

  “A trusted Boy Scout knot that will never come undone?” she asked.

  “I am actually an Eagle Scout.”

  “Of course you are. Not sure I should comment on how geeky Boy Scouts are.” Caylee winked.

  “Geeky? Boy Scouts are studs.”

  “Keep telling yourself that.” She dipped her feet in the water so they wouldn’t burn when she ran across the back of the upper deck again. “Okay. Stay here in case you need to play lifeguard, military man.”

  Levi’s eyes widened, but she didn’t give him time to respond. She hurried around him, climbed the ladder and rushed along the back of the top deck. Pushing open the back gate that had a little diving board on it, opposite of the slide, she ran and launched herself into the air. “Yeah baby!” she yelled.

  Her stomach plummeted as she flew through the air. What was probably half a second seemed to extend as the hot air rushed around her then she hit the water, stinging the balls of her feet and plunging down deep. She immediately started breast stroking toward the surface, the pressure of the water bearing down on her. Within seconds, she broke through and gasped for air. Beating at the water, she searched and saw their boat motoring away and Levi standing on the back deck staring at her like he was in shock.

  “Caylee!” he hollered then he leapt into the water. What was he doing? He was supposed to go off the top.

  She swam freestyle toward the rope stretching out behind the boat, catching onto it within seconds. Levi reached her and grabbed on to the rope too.

  “What were you thinking?” he yelled at her.

  Caylee laughed, laying her head back in the water and letting her hair trail behind her as the houseboat pulled them along. “That was awesome! You should try it. Jumping from the top deck is way more fun.”

  “You are nuts! You didn’t even have a lifejacket on.”

  Caylee clung to the rope and stared at him. He was right. She hadn’t even thought about a lifejacket, but she was a strong swimmer. “Water polo, remember?”

  “I don’t care if you’re Michael Phelps. You don’t endanger yourself like that.”

  A small part of her liked that he was concerned. He’d jumped off the houseboat to come after her, in his t-shirt and shorts. But the rest of her didn’t need anybody telling her what to do. “Get over yourself, Mr. Live by the Rules, and have a little fun.”

  “Trying to drown is not my idea of fun.”

  Caylee ignored him and started pulling herself hand over hand back to the houseboat. Had Cam sped up? The current from the houseboat threatened to yank her off the rope and her arms quivered. She could honestly feel Levi breathing down her neck. She would not show him she was tired. Giving it her all, she finally reached the back step. Sage was there, watching them both with concern.

  “Put the steps down, will you, sis?” Caylee asked, liking the idea of a sister, even if she was also a sister to the stick in the mud behind her.

  Sage complied and Caylee climbed out of the water, much too conscious that Levi was right behind her. The water rushed off of her with the warm breeze. The water had been the perfect temperature, probably eight degrees, and Caylee loved how she felt right now—cooled off and still hyped from the adrenaline rush. She’d do it again, if she didn’t have to pull herself back along the rope. Her arms were toasted.

  Levi climbed up onto the patio and Caylee’s breath caught. His t-shirt was clinging to muscles she knew she’d dream about tonight. He caught her staring at him, but she was pretty powerless to look away at this point. Yanking his wet shirt off, he hung it over the railing to dry. Now Caylee couldn’t breathe or look away. Did all military men look like they spent every free minute pounding weights?

  “You two need towels?” Sage interrupted.

  “I’m okay. It’s warm enough out here,” Levi said. He gestured with his chin to Caylee. “You?”

  She shook her head, still unable to speak.

  “I want to try that,” Sage said.

  Levi’s head whipped around to focus on his sister. “No!”

  She grabbed a lifejacket off a hook above her head and smirked at him. “Come on, Levi. You know you want to have fun.” She snapped the lifejacket on and grinned. “I’ll be right back.” Then she dashed back through the main part of the boat to Cam.

  Caylee let out a whoop, dodging around Levi. He caught her arm. “Lifejacket. Now.”

  “Why are you ordering me around like I’m one of your recruits?” she snapped, ignoring the fact that his fingers were searing into her flesh. Holy cow they had chemistry, but who cared when he was a grump with no clue how to have fun?

  He pulled a lifejacket down and wrapped it around her back. His fingers brushed the bare skin that the side of her suit didn’t cover, and a fire started in the pit of her stomach. Studying her, he snapped the buckles shut, seeming to deliberately slow down the action. Caylee could barely hear the houseboat’s motor churning over the heartbeat thundering in her ears.

  Levi grasped the sides of her lifejacket in both hands and tugged her closer. Caylee’s eyes widened as his head lowered toward hers. He stopped a few inches away and murmured, “Please. I can’t handle watching you get hurt.”

  Caylee stared at him. Was he concerned because he cared, or because he’d seen so much blood and sadness he couldn’t deal with anymore? He did
n’t know her well enough to care.

  Sage burst back through the open rear door. Caylee and Levi pulled apart. Sage looked from one to the other. “Everything okay?”

  “Yeah.” Levi grabbed a large lifejacket and strapped it on himself. “Let’s do this.”

  Sage grinned. “Cam says somebody has to drive after we jump so he can have a chance to try it.”

  Caylee loved what Sage brought out in her brother. He’d always been the best guy, but mostly protective and tough. Caylee hated to admit it, but he’d acted a lot like Levi before he met Sage. His fiancé brought out his soft, fun side.

  Sage climbed the ladder and Caylee followed her, acutely aware of Levi right behind her. Thank heavens her suit covered the essentials, but he still could see far more of her than she was comfortable with. At least she worked out hard every day and was semi-confident in her own skin.

  They crossed to the back and opened the gate. Sage scurried along the outside of the painted iron railing. Caylee came next then Levi stood on the diving board.

  “You two can’t jump from there,” Levi said. “What if you don’t clear the back platform?”

  Sage rolled her eyes and said, “Watch me.” She flung herself out away from the boat, hitting the water with a big splash. Caylee grinned and jumped after her. The air whooshed around her and before she knew it, she hit the water. She didn’t sink as far this time, popping up to the surface quickly with the lifejacket. Maybe Levi knew what he was talking about. Swimming quickly, she grabbed the rope and pulled herself a few lengths along it. The warm water swirled around her. Sage was just ahead of her. Levi was still on the platform.

  “Jump!” Sage hollered at her brother.

  He nodded and leapt into the air. He hit with a terrific splash and surfaced quickly. Caylee held out her hand as he floated past them. “Grab it!”

  Levi grasped her hand and she barely held on to the rope with her other hand. Clinging with everything in her, she gritted her teeth. Levi pulled himself toward her then let go of her hand and grabbed the rope. “Thanks.”

  “Wasn’t that fun?” Sage called back to them.

  “I just came to make sure you two were safe,” Levi grunted out in reply.

  Caylee rolled her eyes as she pulled herself hand over hand toward the boat. It was harder this time with the life jacket creating more drag, but her frustration with Levi distracted her from the tough workout. She couldn’t believe this guy. He didn’t seem to know how to have fun. She wasn’t going to let him ruin the trip, but it was going to be hard when one second he was giving her these smoky looks and the other he was muttering about being safe.

  Chapter Six

  Levi endured everyone acting like this was some fun adrenaline rush, but that didn’t mean he had to enjoy it. Was Caylee stuck in high school with her students or what? So maybe jumping off the houseboat was exhilarating, but he had to act stern so Caylee wouldn’t go doing things like that without a lifejacket. He hadn’t come on vacation to watch someone be in pain. Did she even know what it was like to have to doctor someone and hurt for them? Probably not, she was a carefree, crazy girl. Her personality matched her wild hair with all those curls and different colors. He liked seeing it smooth out when it got wet, trailing down her back. Then a little bit later he’d notice that it was drying and had sprung up into those curls again.

  They found a spot to park the boat on a small spot of sand that turned quickly into smooth red stone up Annie’s Canyon. As soon as everything was secured, Caylee slipped into some Keens’ trail shoes and said, “I’m going to explore.”

  Levi glanced at Sage and Cam, who were in their own world cuddled up on the couch. He found that the more he was around Sage and Cam, the more he realized how much they genuinely loved each other and he was happy for them, but it was interesting how they were all over each other every minute of the day. He’d think the heat would dissuade some physical contact.

  “You going with her or do I have to?” he asked Cam.

  Cam glanced up. “I think she’ll be okay. She’s twenty-six.”

  Twenty-six? Hmm. So she wasn’t that much younger than him. Cam was probably right that she was fine, but it was either follow Caylee or sit here and feel like a third wheel around these two.

  “I’ll go.” Levi grunted and stomped out the sliding glass door. The heat hit him like a wall. He couldn’t help but think of Afghanistan—hot, miserable, and heavy. The natural depression that had settled over him the past eighteen months came rushing back and he suddenly wanted to find Caylee quick. Her quick tongue and beautiful smile were a happy tonic.

  He spotted Caylee’s bright blue and yellow suit at the top of the second sandstone rise. His eyes had been drawn to that suit all day long. Or rather to the fit, tan body in that suit. Caylee wasn’t showing off a bunch of skin, but she looked more appealing than any woman he’d ever seen in a swimsuit.

  Kicking into a jog, he pounded up the incline and was within feet of her when she turned around.

  “Wow, military man. You’re in some kind of shape. You even out of breath?”

  Levi couldn’t help but feel a surge of pride. Hiking in a hundred degrees was nothing, especially in shorts instead of fatigues with a seventy-pound pack. “I didn’t want you to get lost or hurt.”

  She inclined her head to him, hopefully an invitation to keep up, and started walking. “Why am I suddenly your responsibility?”

  “Because Cam’s too busy kissing my sister to take care of his own.”

  Her eyes filled with an ache, but she brushed it away quickly and glared at him. “My brother takes great care of me, but he also trusts me and knows I’m not some teenager who’s going to throw herself off a cliff.”

  Levi lifted his eyebrows in a question. “I bet if we found a cliff you’d jump off it just to prove you are nuts. I thought you said you were afraid of heights.”

  She eyed him, seeming to be confused.

  “When you hurt your ankle and I picked you up.”

  Understanding lit her deep blue eyes up. “No. I was lying to you so you’d put me down.”

  Levi arched an eyebrow. Holding her in his arms after she’d twisted her ankle had been almost as much fun as buckling her life jacket today, but he doubted she felt the same pull he was feeling.

  “And I’m not nuts, I’m fun. There’s a difference, but seeing as you don’t know what fun is, I’ll forgive you for being crippled by a lack of happy endorphins.”

  She had no clue how much he lacked happy endorphins. “I don’t know what fun is?”

  “You, military man, are the exact opposite of fun. You are what I would call a fun-sucker.”

  “What does that mean?” Now she was just trying to tick him off. He wasn’t some stick in the mud. He’d simply seen enough death and suffering to not be willing to initiate either in the name of “fun”.

  “It’s not enough for you to be miserable yourself, you have to suck the fun out of the air for everybody and make sure they’re all feeling as lame and boring as you.”

  Levi pulled in a quick breath. Her accusations were unfair and wrong. Well, maybe they weren’t wrong, but unfair. She didn’t understand. How could she? How could any civilian who had never been there understand the concussion of an explosion, dropping to the ground and wondering if you or your friends were going to die? The anguish and depression that never lifted?

  They hiked in silence for a few minutes along the crest of a bluff. They were rounding back to another canyon filled with water, but it wasn’t the canyon they were camped in. Levi waited, giving her a chance to apologize for her harsh words, but she didn’t.

  As they reached the edge of the cliff, Levi glanced down. They were probably forty feet up and the water was so deep below it was a dark bluish-green, like a nasty bruise. The darkness of that water felt ominous to him. It could swallow them whole and no one would ever find their bodies.

  “You know what, you were right.” Caylee looked to him with an impertinent smirk on her l
ips. “I would jump off a cliff just to prove I was fun.”

  Levi’s eyes widened. He reached out for her, “Caylee, no!”

  She was laughing as she pushed off and flung herself into the air. Levi didn’t hesitate as he propelled himself away from the edge and launched into nothingness. The fall took his breath away and his stomach jumped into his throat. One second he was hearing Caylee’s laughter then the next he hit the water. The surface slapped against the bottom of his feet then he was underwater and all sound cut off. He quickly plunged down, down into the unfathomably deep water. They had no life jackets on. Caylee was completely insane. What if she didn’t surface? What would he do? He’d drown trying to find her.

  The pressure on his ears and sinuses was becoming excruciating. Levi kicked and breast stroked toward what he hoped was the surface. The dark, dank water pressed against him, making his sinuses ache and forcing his eyes closed. What if his directions were all messed up and he was swimming down to his death? To survive Afghanistan then die in a vacation spot. Would that be ironic or just pitiful?

  The water became brighter around him and then his head mercifully broke the surface. He gasped for air and treaded water to stay afloat. His flip flops were gone, but he didn’t care. Where was Caylee?

  He heard her laughing and spun in a circle. She was on a spot of rock, watching him.

  “You came after me.” Her voice was incredulous, warm, and unfortunately appealing to him. She was safe and the sight of her all wet, reclining on the rock in only a swimming suit was even more enticing than her voice.

  He swam toward the rock and pulled himself out of the water. The rock was burning hot, but being wet made it bearable. “I wouldn’t have to come after you if you weren’t so insane.”

  “Come on.” She shook her head. “You’re telling me that wasn’t fun? No fun at all?”

  He paused, thinking. Maybe while he’d been in the air it had been a crazy fun kind of feeling, the kind of fun he used to have before he got so bogged down with life, but he’d been too worried about Caylee to think about it too much.