Wilder

“Not as ancient as you might think,” I said with a grimace, then pushed Penna away before he could ask what I meant.

All three of us made our way along the plywood path that had been set down for Penna until we reached the ramp that led to the raised dais. I glanced up at the Jumbotron. We were still a hundred or so views away from a million. So incredibly close, but not close enough.

“No regrets,” Landon said.

“None,” Penna agreed, squeezing my hand. I glanced down at her, but she already had her Rebel smile in place, and I hated that while we might be at the end of our crucible, hers was just beginning.

I found where Leah sat next to Brandon in the VIP box. No regrets. Well, unless she still didn’t want me after this trailer played. Then I would have basically laid my heart out on top of mortgaging my ship. Yeah.

The announcer did his thing, but I wasn’t listening. I only had eyes for Leah, and the way she fidgeted with the skirt of her dress that bared her legs.

Then I found the microphone in my face and slipped into being Wilder. “What’s going on?” I asked the crowd, and they roared.

“We’re the Renegades, and we thought we’d put on a show for you guys! I’m Wilder, this is Nova, and Rebel, of course, had a little mishap, so she’ll literally be sitting things out until her bones can catch up to the level of badass that she is.”

The crowd booed, but cheered when Penna took the mic. “Sorry, guys, I said go, and the bike disagreed. Don’t worry, it’s three months, tops. And if you’re nice, I’ll let you sign my cast,” she added with the flirtatious grin she was known for.

Then she handed the mic back. Damn, I was proud of her.

“Right, so how many of you have seen the trailer about what we’ve been up to these last three months?” I asked. The crowd went wild.

“At least they like it,” Landon said quietly.

True, but there was only one reaction I was interested in. I met Leah’s gaze and spoke only to her…well, and the fourteen thousand other people here. “We were asked to cut a trailer that would give you guys a glimpse at the crazy stunts we’ve been pulling, and I realized something. If you hang around the Renegades long enough, chances are you’re going to see one of us fall.”

The crowd booed, and Penna did a mock salute that turned the crowd to soft laughter.

“The truth is that I fell. Hard.” Leah’s lips parted. “And I didn’t realize just how hard until I was already on my knees, begging for mercy. Love does that to you—breaks you down and then builds you back up into something even better. I can tell you that it’s an extreme sport of its own, but it’s more dangerous, because the outcome isn’t solely in your hands, and there’s no parachute once you jump.”

Her eyes widened, and it took every ounce of my willpower to stand on that stage instead of going to her.

“So in case you missed it, here’s the first glimpse of our new project, International Waters.”

The arena darkened as the trailer began. Fuck, I couldn’t see her face, or watch her reaction. This sucked.

The music started, and I knew by heart what she was watching. It wasn’t just the stunts…it was me falling in love with her. It was the moment she’d agreed to zip-line, then when she’d called me an asshole and climbed out of the pool. It was me absorbed in her smile in Bermuda, and the moment I’d pulled her onto my lap when she fell off the ramp while we were at sea. It was me calling her baby, trying to get her to wake up, cradling her to my chest. It was her face watching me skateboard in Barcelona, and the far shot of when she’d kissed me on the beach. It was our kiss in Rome, on the bleachers, and the shots Bobby had snuck through the window as we studied, neither of us able to concentrate much on the books. It was the Mykonos sunlight in her hair, and the GoPro footage I hadn’t even realized Penna had taken when we BASE jumped at the shipwreck. It was the slow dance in the club, the way I watched her walk away when I was supposed to be practicing, all interwoven with the Renegades commentary about what experiences they were having on our trip. It went to me begging Leah to let go, and her jumping in Morocco, and landing in the water, and her flying into my arms after the landing in Madagascar.

I’d never in my life been as thankful for Bobby’s snooping cameras, or the masterful way he knew how to cut tape. He’d taken three minutes and, instead of putting out an extreme sports trailer, produced a love story punctuated with the adventure of a lifetime.

The crowd cheered as the lights lifted, but I kept my eyes on Leah, who had tears streaming from hers. “So what do you say, Firecracker?” I asked into the microphone. “Are you ready for the adventure of a lifetime? Because I know you’re the only rush I need.”

I stood paralyzed until my play-by-the-rules girl vaulted over the divider and bolted for me. Then I dropped the mic, uncaring as it hit the ground, and jumped from the dais to meet her halfway.

My arms wrapped around her at the same moment her mouth found mine. I angled for a deeper kiss, knowing that I was claiming her not just in front of fourteen thousand fans, but everyone watching live on ESPN—realizing that she was marking me as hers, too, and loving every second.

I broke the kiss before we went to an NC-17 rating, and simply rested my forehead against hers as the crowd went berserk around us, taking in every single nuance of the moment. “I love you,” I said to her.

“You’re everything,” she said, using my own line on me. “Oh, and I love you, too, which is something I don’t see changing anytime soon…or ever.”