“So, let’s go over a couple of things,” Joe said, in a serious tone. “The other guide is already here, and she is down on the other end waiting to meet you both after your first jump. I want you to hold the wire in the back, never in the front. You hold it up front, you could lose a finger. At the end down there, you’ll see a block. It will help slow you down so you don’t go speeding into poor Serenity.” He chuckled at his own joke. “She’s sturdy, but I think she’d move before she lets y’all run her over.”
I wasn’t laughing, but Turner found it humorous. I glared at him. When he caught my expression, he wiped his smirk away. He mouthed the word “sorry.” I just shook my head at him. He winked like it was going to get him out of hot water with me.
“Okay, who’s going first?”
“I think Annabelle needs to go.”
“I think you’re on crack, Dr. Turner,” I snapped.
Joe was now laughing at my joke, except it wasn’t one. “Okay you two. Annabelle, step up to the plate.”
I did as he asked. He took hold of my karabiner and hooked me in. He yanked it twice and released me.
“So quick question,” I said with a slight quiver to my voice. “Can this thing actually hold me? I mean, I haven’t gone jogging in a while, and I haven’t exactly been watching my figure.”
Turner’s hand brushed mine. He was trying not to laugh.
“These clips and cables are capable of holding over one thousand pounds. I promise, even if you didn’t hit the treadmill this morning, you’re very much in the clear.”
“Well, looks like I’m going whether I want to do this or not.”
“Put your faith in the free fall, Annabelle. You’re going to be fine. Just watch for Serenity’s signals at the bottom. She will let you know when you need to slow yourself down. I’ll meet y’all on the third platform.”
I nodded. Sitting down, I let all of the equipment hold my weight. I oddly felt very secure. But that could be deceiving. Joe said he was going to count down from three, after that I was supposed to step off.
“Annabelle,” Turner called my name.
I twisted, giving him an expectant look. “Hmmm.”
“Before you go, tell me something about yourself. I don’t care what it is, just tell me something.”
Slightly taken aback, I thought about what I wanted to say. Something about myself. I never really talked about myself, so thinking of something to share wasn’t the easiest task. Couldn’t he ask me another question? Joe started his count down.
“Three . . .”
Seriously, what did he want to know? I felt like everything was too personal.
“Two . . .”
We just played the question and answer game in the car. Didn’t we share enough? The man eats cereal for a snack for heaven sakes.
“One . . .”
Pressured, I blurted the first thing that came to mind.
“When I was a kid I always wore dresses so the boys could see my underwear when I hung upside down on the monkey bars.” And with that I jumped.
I didn’t wait for his response. I wanted to get away. The only option I had was down. I was fully expecting a free fall. The kind where your tummy drops and you feel like there’s no sense of gravity. That wasn’t the sensation at all. It was more like being on a roller coaster without the drop. The wind was in my hair and the tree line below me whizzed by. I briefly glanced back and saw Turner grinning ear to ear. And did he just fist bump the guide? I caught some serious speed and my mind told me it was time to slow down. I watched the bottom of the line where the next platform was in place. There was a woman there, waiting for me. She started giving me hand signals letting me know I needed to reach up and grip the wire. I did. Even though I wore a leather glove, I could still feel the heat through the material burning my hand. My momentum slowed and there was a wooden block that my harness hit making me slow faster than if I tried to do it on my own. Serenity hollered out to me to put my feet down when I got to the platform. It was all a matter of seconds that everything happened. I planted my feet, and stumbled forward, while Serenity grasped the top of my line and made me come to a complete stop.
Holy adrenaline.
“How was it?” she asked. Serenity was a tall brunette woman, I would guess to be in her early thirties.
“I haven’t decided just yet.” My hands were shaking and my heart was palpitating.
“Just wait ‘til you get to the third line. You’ll have some decisions to make.” She wagged her eye brows like what she said would impress me. All it did was freak me out.
Did she know I was terrified of this stuff? Surely not or she wouldn’t have said what she just did. I didn’t acknowledge her. Instead, I looked at the top of the hill where I’d just come and watched as Turner began his slide down. How did he make this look so graceful? He had his arms out wide and his head back like he was enjoying every second of the ride. I was slightly envious. What it must feel like to let go like that.
When he got to where I was, his smile looked like a permanent fixture on his handsome face.
“God, that felt good.” Serenity unclipped him. “What did you think?”
Did the man realize his harness snuggly fit him and I saw everything he was packing? I did my best not to look, but holy crap I could see where he would be slightly confident in the man whore department. Clearly he had a reason to strut his stuff. Focus Annabelle.
“Uh, I uh . . . ” Clearing my throat and closing my eyes for a brief moment to gather myself, I opened them and met his crystal blue eyes head on. “It was an interesting feeling.”
“Interesting good, or interesting bad?”
“Interesting, and I’ll leave it at that. There are how many more of these things? I’ll let you know when we are done.”
He chuckled. “Okay, fair enough.”
I nodded.
“So you wanted the little boys to see your underwear, huh?”
Oh God, I was so caught up in everything that I forgot I spit that little bit of knowledge out. My cheeks felt warm, and I bit my lip hard, trying to hold my composure. Why must he talk about embarrassing things when I have no place to escape too? Probably part of his plan, the asshole.
“I was under pressure. You asked and it was the first thing I could think of. Don’t judge.” I snapped, trying to hold back an embarrassed smirk.
He held his hands up in surrender. “Hey, I’m not judging. I am just shocked is all. Let me guess, you wore those cute little ‘days of the week’ underwear too.”
My eyes got wide. “What did I say about judging?”
Turner burst out laughing. “It was a wild shot in the dark. I had no clue you really did.”
I slapped at his arm. “Alright, sir, turnabout is fair play. Tell me something about you.”
“Let me think about this one.”
I shook my head. “Oh no. You don’t get to think about it. You made me answer under pressure. Well, here’s your pressure, Mr. Tell Me Something. Three . . . two . . . one.”
“You drive a hard bargain, Annabelle. Okay, I almost joined the Navy before I headed off to college. I wanted to become a Navy SEAL.”
Whoa, I was slightly impressed. “Why didn’t you?”
“Another question, another line. Let’s go, pretty girl, ask me at the bottom.”