Of course it wasn’t a good idea. That was why we were doing it.
I signaled the crane operator and gripped the rope handle, ready for the yank I knew was coming. It didn’t disappoint. The speed with which the crane instantly pulled me gave the needed velocity to start from dry land instead of the water, and I hit the smooth surface with a measured impact, heading for the first jump. I adjusted my grip, bent my knees, and took the ramp, pulling an immediate airborne 360.
It felt glorious.
Next ramp I hit a flip, my body falling back into effortless rhythm. The angle of the rope from the crane gave me better lift, higher jumps, and the speed didn’t hurt on the air time for inverts and grabs. Somewhere in my head I recognized that the speed was dangerous, that if I hit the dock I’d end up with more than a few stitches in my arm. But I was in complete control, and it was exactly what I needed.
I’d had one disastrous, shitty stunt, but I was still a Renegade, still capable of pushing my body to the very limit in the name of epic stunts. Just for fun, I hit the next ramp—the highest one in the park—at the fastest speed I could pull and then flipped my body once, and then again, my board smacking against the water just after I brought myself back vertical. Even Pax couldn’t pull that one off.
I went through the gamut on my run, savoring the movement, the speed, the adrenaline rush. As I cruised to a stop, I mock bowed to the applause. Once I hauled myself up onto the dock and unstrapped my board, I looked up to see Rachel grinning down at me.
“Super?” I asked after the cameraman scored his shot and went to his next location.
Her grin faltered momentarily before she shrugged. “Almost.”
“What’s it going to take?”
“Not sure this time. I’ll let you know when I see it.”
“Yeah, yeah. Get your butt down here. You’re up first for bowling.”
I finished inspecting the tow rope attached to the crane and then double-checked the boot sizing on Rachel’s wakeboard. Once that was done, I tested out the latches and nodded to myself. It was safe for her to ride.
I gave her the nod, and she disengaged from the four guys who had flanked her, none of them realizing they didn’t have a chance in hell with her. I almost felt bad for them. Almost.
“All safe?” she asked.
I gave the cable another tug. “You’ll be okay.”
“So the idea is that I knock over those foam barrels,” she clarified.
“You got it. The more you take out, the more points you get.”
She looped her arms around my neck. “What do I get if I win?”
I glanced over her shoulder, where Bobby was smacking the cameraman on the shoulder. “Anything you want,” I promised her.
“Oh yeah?” She came up on her tiptoes, and I backed off.
“Cameras,” I explained. “Look, I’ll go public with you any second you want, but I’m not going to push you there.”
Her arms slid from around my neck. “Yeah. Cameras. Of course. What was I thinking?”
“That this was easier the first time we tried it?”
She laughed. “Ha. Then we were just sneaking around from Wilder. Now we’re hiding it from an entire documentary.”
“Hiding what?” I prompted her.
She rolled her eyes. “See you on the flip side.”
I retreated as she strapped on her wakeboard. Once she gave the signal, she was off without another glance back. It was one of the things I’d always loved about her—she had the same drive, the identical need for the adrenaline rush that I did. I never had to explain myself or the stupid shit I pulled, because she was right there with me.
I held my breath when she hit the ramp. Knowing she was more than capable didn’t mean my stomach didn’t clench when she went airborne, or when she let go of the rope from the crane and spun in midair, flinging out her arms to topple as many barrels as possible. She brought them all tumbling down and then came back to the surface laughing.
Once the scores were tallied between the newer Renegades, I wasn’t surprised in the least to see who topped the leaderboard.
One by one the guys fell away, and even Zoe shook her head.
Rachel just looked at the list with a shit-eating grin and then blew me a kiss.
Damn, that woman was irresistible.
And mine.
I rolled my neck, stretching the sore muscles as I leaned on my deck railing. This was one of my favorite parts of the ship, and the only place that was only mine. Not that I was against sharing, but in the last four months that we’d been on board, private space was the only luxury the ship didn’t really provide.
There was a knock on my door, and I sighed. No alone time for you.
“Come in,” I said from the deck, turning to lean against the sturdy metal rail.
“Hey,” Bobby said, putting his head inside the door. “I just wanted to tell you that we got some great footage of you today. You were really back on your game.”
Tension filled my muscles. “You were worried?”
“After Nepal? You bet your ass. A lot of guys can’t come back from something like that, and you just bounced right back. Says a lot about your professionalism. How is Gabe?”
“Good,” I answered. “His parents flew him home today, so I’ll check on him in a few weeks when I get home for Christmas.”
“I’m glad to hear it.” His forehead puckered. “Look, we got some other footage today…”
“Don’t use it. What’s going on with Rachel and me isn’t for public consumption.”
“It’s a hell of a story between you guys, from what I hear. You two…well, the history between you three has been the talk since she showed up.” He had that speculative look in his eyes, but I didn’t give a fuck. Rachel wasn’t some trick for ratings.
“No. If she wants to go public, that’s one thing, but you’re not pressuring her into anything for this goddamned movie. That’s where I draw the line, Bobby.” I would do anything for Nick, who was the primary reason we were making the documentary in the first place, and I knew he’d back me on this choice.
Rachel came first.
“Fine, fine,” Bobby said, putting up his hand. “I’ll kill the footage. Just let me know if that changes.”
“I have a feeling Rachel will make her feelings pretty well-known.”
“Fair enough. She looks like she’s always belonged with you guys.”
“She has. She’s always belonged with me.”
“Man, what I wouldn’t give to have footage of some of that drama going down back then. You’re sure you don’t want to include any of that history…”
“No, Bobby.”
He sighed. “Okay. Anyway. Good stunt today.”
“Yeah, the crew really pulled it off.”
“You all did. Later.”