Wilder

“You’re doing this?” I asked her.

“Hell yes. This is Navagio Beach—one of the most epic sites ever. I’ll never get an opportunity to try this again. Besides, I’ll pull the cord so fast that there won’t be much free fall, just the view.”

“Insane. You’re all insane.”

“I told you this was a bad idea, that it wasn’t fair to make her do this,” Penna said quietly enough that only Paxton and I could hear. “Leah, if you want to walk down, I’m with you all the way.”

Paxton shot her a look. “Point noted. I’d never make her jump.”

I shook my head. “This feels like a death wish.”

“I’ll second that,” Little John said as he brought our harnesses over. “Bobby is going to kill you when he realizes you ditched the cameras on this one.”

“Why would you do that?” I asked. “This is exactly the kind of epic stuff you need for the documentary.”

His features softened, and he kissed me. “Because a beautiful girl once told me that not everything epic was meant for a worldwide audience.”

Okay, that was good. “Well, an insanely hot guy argued that.”

His heart-stopping smile stole my breath. “He still does. Epic stunts are meant to be seen by the world.”

“Then why leave the cameras?”

His knuckles brushed the underside of my jaw. “Because my whole world is already right here, watching.”

Excuse me while I reform from the puddle I melted into. I sighed and looked around at everyone snapping on their helmets.

“Okay, if I were to agree to this absolute lunacy, what would happen?”

I swore to God that I nearly saw him fist-pump.

“I packed our parachute and put together our harnesses, so everything is as safe as can be.”

“When did you have time to do that?”

“Last night after you fell asleep. You know…after round two.”

Landon snorted next to us, and I smacked Paxton’s chest with the back of my hand. “Seriously?”

He shrugged. “Hey, you asked. Anyway, you’ll be strapped to my chest, and we’ll jump off. As soon as we’re clear of the rocks, I’ll pull the chute. The winds are great today, so they’ll carry us straight down to the beach.”

I peeked over the side of the cliff. “And that giant shipwreck down there?”

“We’ll miss it. Trust me, Leah. I’m really good at this. Ridiculously good at this, as a matter of fact.”

“Well, you don’t need your ego stroked,” I said, my nerves kicking into high gear.

“I can think of other things that like to be stroked,” he whispered into my ear.

“Not funny,” I spat back. “Parasailing is one thing, but you’re asking me to jump off a cliff, Pax. Think about it.”

He led me away from the group. “I know. This is what runs through your nightmares, right? Because I’ve seen a couple of them now.”

I stiffened. Shit, I guess the one last night hadn’t been as quiet as I’d hoped. “I’m s—”

“Don’t you dare apologize. We’re in this together now, you and I. You asked me to help you get over your fear, and that’s what I’m trying to do. That’s why the cameras aren’t here.”

My heart jumped, then pounded, beating an obnoxious rhythm in my temples. “What if I can’t do this?”

He pulled me against his chest, one arm wrapped around my back and the other stroking my face. “I’ll be with you. All you have to do is find the courage to say yes. I’ll do the rest. And if you can’t do it, then we’ll walk back down and meet the others on the boat.”

“But you’d miss your chance to do it.”

“For this trip, sure. But the beach isn’t going anywhere. You have to know that you’re more important to me than this. Whatever you decide, I’ll be okay with.”

“We wouldn’t fall for long?” Was I actually considering this? Crap, I guess I was. After all, hadn’t I asked him to help me? The whole purpose of this trip had been to step outside my comfort zone—to live—and this was definitely living…if it didn’t kill me.

“No, just long enough to clear the rocks.”

“One in twenty BASE jumpers dies. That’s according to a 2014 study by—”

His mouth stopped my rambling, kissing me soundly. It wasn’t overly passionate or sexual, it was more comforting, reassuring, but it still set a deep vibration running through me.

“That won’t be us,” he promised. “I will never let anything hurt you. Not if it’s within my power. Do you believe me?”

I nodded slowly, pulled into the force of his words, the expression in his Mediterranean-blue eyes. “I do.”

“Do you trust me enough to do this?”

Wasn’t that what this was all about? Did I trust Paxton enough to push my fear to the side? Logically, I knew his history with jumps, knew that if I was going to do this, there was literally no one on the planet better to do it with.

Emotionally…the guy wanted me to hurl myself off a cliff.

Laughter bubbled up, shaking my shoulders and bringing out an embarrassing snort.

“Leah?”

“I was thinking that jumping off a cliff is one way to fall for someone.” Ludicrous, but so fitting.

“You falling for me, Firecracker?” he asked softly, an unnamable emotion passing over his face.