Page 26 of Take Me Slowly, Part 1 (Aurora Hollow duet #1)

LEAH

"Okay, your turn." Riley beckoned me over. "Connor will be waiting for you at the other end." He was still smiling, even after dealing with a long line of people. Others would have hated it, but he was in his element.

Connor and Charlie left before the first person disappeared down the zip line. Riley explained they had to be there to help them out of the harness and give the signal for the next person to go.

I had to give it to them, they had a well oiled machine here. Everyone knew exactly where they needed to be and when. Seth and Riley were perfect at settling the nerves of anyone anxious about stepping off the platform and zipping down the mountain.

For guys in their mid-twenties, they certainly knew a lot of dad jokes. They trotted all of them out, soothing nerves and making us all laugh and groan. Who knew there were so many cow puns? Or goat puns. Especially mountain goat puns. Leave it to mountain men to know those.

When he wasn't being an asshole, Riley could be quite sweet. Not that I'd tell him that.

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" I peeked over the edge of the platform.

From here, I made out the river winding through the trees. A hint of sunlight sparkling off the water every so often, between the branches. I couldn't tell if that was the same section we'd rafted down, but I guessed it was close.

When the breeze blew, it carried to the sound of the nearby falls.

The white water started right below them.

As far as I knew, the men had no adventure tours involving going over the falls in a barrel.

Or without one. That might be too dangerous, even for them.

If that was possible. They didn't seem to have a filter where risk was concerned. If risk existed, they'd take it.

Somewhere up here, Josiah lived. Where, I still hadn't gotten out of anyone. That didn't stop me from being curious. Nothing would. I liked answers to my questions. When it came to him, I had plenty of them.

That wasn't a conversation I was going to have standing on a platform on the side of a mountain.

"It's an excellent idea." Riley held the harness up. "Step through here and there. I'll…strap you in."

His deliberate choice of words had my mouth going dry, but it took my mind off how high up we were. For a minute or two anyway.

"Have you done this before?" I teased, stepping where he told me to and standing still to let him adjust and keep everything into place.

"It was my first day, but you're my thirtieth person, so I think I've got this by now." He grinned and adjusted the harness around my hips a little more than could possibly have been necessary. I think he enjoyed having his hands there, his thumbs pressed against my belly.

"He's the work experience guy," Seth teased. "I'm not sure if we should keep him on after this. What do you think?" He gave me a wink.

"I'll let you know if I get to the other end alive," I said dryly.

Seth laughed. "Fair call."

"You're a dick," Riley told him. "Come on, sweetheart. All you need to do is step off the platform and fly."

I looked down again. "I don't know. This is…"

Fear and cold sweat replaced my arousal.

Did I really want to do this? To step off that platform and hope like hell the zip line held my weight all the way down?

A laundry list of what ifs scrolled through my mind.

All of them relying on the fact he knew what he was doing, and everything was set up correctly.

Hadn't I seen thirty people go down before me? Hadn't the zip line held? The only screams I heard were screams of enjoyment, right? Yes, but I was low-key terrified anyway.

Riley waited until Seth moved away, leaving the two of us alone on the platform. Everyone else had already gone before me, so we didn't have an audience. No one to see him tangle his fingers in my hair and pull my face closer to his.

"Would I bring you all the way here if I didn't know you could do this?" His voice was low, bordering on harsh. His breath was laced with coffee and the soda he'd taken sips of over the last hour or two. Keeping hydrated, but not enough to have to run off and relieve his bladder.

"You might," I said without flinching. I was more scared of heights than I was of him. "You might get off on seeing me back down from my fears."

He huffed a laugh, his exhale warm on my jaw.

"I get off on seeing people face their fears, sweetheart.

It's one of the best parts of this job. The more scared you are, the more I want you to turn around and step off this fucking platform.

I want you to enjoy every damn minute of it.

I want you to want to come right back and do it again. That's what gets me off."

"And if I don't step off?" I was surprised my voice didn't waver. "Are you going to push me?"

His grip loosened and he drew his face back so our gazes could meet. Hazel eyes intense, he said, "I'd never push you off. Seth, yes. Connor, probably. But you, never. You have to want to step off. You have to need this. You have to make that choice for yourself."

I didn't think we were talking about zip lining anymore.

"Otherwise," he continued, "we can take this off you and go to town and get drunk."

I twisted my face around to take a long look at the taut line that disappeared between the trees. It was nice and tight; stable. Carefully connected at both ends. Likely subject to regular inspection and maintenance. Nothing bad was going to happen to me if I took this leap of faith.

That still left me with a question.

"Has anyone ever gotten here and changed their minds?"

Riley smoothed my hair down, back into place. "Absolutely. Some of them regret it and come back for a second try. Others spend the night at the Frosty Brew telling everyone they wished they'd done it."

"There must be some who are okay with changing their minds," I reasoned.

"I guess, but their regret comes later. When they get their credit card bill." He grinned.

I laughed. "Yeah, I can see that."

I wouldn't want to spend money on an adventure tour and not do everything I paid for.

Especially if I let fear get in the way.

I wouldn't judge anyone else for changing their minds, but I'd judge myself.

I'd spend the rest of my life wondering what would have happened if I'd trusted that I could do this.

Hadn't I already proven I could stay on a raft on the rapids? Didn't I already know I enjoyed riding on a quad bike? This was another calculated risk. One that, when I thought about it, was a lot safer than the other two.

"So, I just step off and fly, hmmm?"

"Yep." He took my hands and placed them on the harness, in front of me. "Hang on here and enjoy the ride." He kissed my cheek before stepping back to give me room.

"That's what he said," I said as I stepped off the platform into nothingness.

Riley's laugh followed me as I started to zip down the line, dangling like a fish on a hook.

I let out a squeal, which turned into a whoop as I gained speed, flying down the side of the mountain. Past the trees. Over the river. Through the wind.

The pace was alarming but exhilarating at the same time.

I tipped my head back and shouted out my excitement, probably scaring the animals in the forest, in the process.

I couldn't stop myself from vocalising the adrenaline which surged through every centimetre of me.

I didn't want to. I couldn't remember a time when I felt more alive.

The quad bikes were fun. So was the white water rafting, but this was something else. This was pure freedom. Something I craved for so long and never knew how to find.

Right when I thought the speed was too much, I started to slow. The angle of the zip line flattened out, drawing me closer to the lower platform and Connor's waiting arms.

He looked smug, like he was absolutely certain I wouldn't back down from this challenge.

He caught me when I was close enough and pulled me to him, bringing my ride to an end. Wrapping an arm around me and letting me feel the heat of his body.

"Hey, there." He held me until I got my footing. "For a while, I thought you weren't coming." He clearly didn't think that at all, but he couldn't help shit-disturbing.

"I almost wasn't," I said. "Then I thought, why not take a chance? That was incredible."

"It always is." He started to undo my harness and help me out of it. "It's even more fun in the rain. You should try it in the middle of a thunderstorm."

"Isn't that dangerous?" One hand on his shoulder, I stepped out of the harness.

He smiled. "Very. That's why we don't run tours during storms. Doesn't stop me and Riley though."

"You two are out of your minds," I told him.

He chuckled. "Nah, we like to live a little harder than most. Keeps things interesting."

"It's all fun and games until you get struck by lightning," I said.

He started folding the harness. "Gotta die of something."

I straightened my clothes. "Yes, but you don't need to tempt fate that badly, do you?"

"Always." He placed the harness into a box and clicked it shut. "I think of it as making fate my bitch on a daily basis. Someday, I'll be hers."

"That's a dark way to think about it," I said.

"I'm a realist. Charlie, let's get this box into the truck.

" He grabbed one handle and waited for her to take the one on the other side before they carried it off the platform and over to one of the trucks parked a few metres away.

On the other side of that, the weekend adventurers were climbing onto the two buses and heading down to town.

Laughing, talking and sounding as exhilarated as I felt.

"I can see why you like this job." I followed Connor over to the truck. "Fresh air, sunshine and excitement."

"Yeah, that's my tagline," he said sarcastically. "Fits my personality, don't you think?" He offered a sideways smile.

"I was going to suggest Sunshine was your middle name," I teased. "Connor Sunshine Ferguson."

He barked a laugh. "That would be the fucking day."

"It's perfect," I insisted. "Sunshine."

He scowled at me. "If you think that's a nickname you can use…"

I grinned.

He ran a hand over the back of his neck and shook his head. "Fuck me."

Charlie was laughing as she headed over to the other truck and climbed in.

"Your ass is going to be pink by the time I’m finished punishing you for that," Connor growled.

My arousal was back, this time with interest. I slid into the passenger seat of his truck and clicked my seatbelt.

"You talk the talk, Sunshine."

"Honey, I can spank the spank too. And I don't mean spank bank." He climbed into the driver's seat and started the engine before following Charlie back toward Aurora Hollow.