Page 250 of Daddy, Take Me Away
“And you just tied the knot?”
“She pushed for marriage. Her family was on her case, and it was the usual next step in a relationship at our age. It was expected.”
“But you didn’t want to be married?”
Again she hones in on my unspoken words and my chest feels tight. Luckily, as I pull back a palm frond, the waterfall comes into view and Zoë gasps.
“Oh my God, Amadeo, it’s stunning.”
Chapter Nine
Zoë
The waterfall is more than double the height of the cliff, but the beauty of it draws me close despite the nerves wreaking havoc in my belly. Not all of those nerves come from the impending jump either.
There were some unspoken messages, or maybe warnings, in Amadeo’s words and I’m not sure how I feel about them. I already had a crush from our emails and chats, but now I think I’m starting to catch real feelings. Not just vacation-Daddy feelings.
Watching Amadeo cool off in the spray of water near the falls, I chew my lip. The water droplets forming on the planes of his spectacular chest and the damp curl to his hair, make my heart skip. I want this man. More than I’ve wanted anyone.
I never felt this way about Mark. Oh, I got caught up in our romance, sure, but maybe that’s because he was all about making our budding romance into some epic show, but I don’t think it was for me.I think it was for the world watching us.
But had we ever almost ripped each other’s clothes off on one of our dates? Nope. We’d never even ripped each other’s clothes off in desperation in private.
That’s exactly what I want to do now. I want to peel Amadeo’s shorts off and drag him away to make his eyes roll back in his head.
Looking at the people standing around, also enjoying the cool spray, I try to think of something else. I don’t know the laws in the country pertaining to public sex and I don’t want to learn them the hard way.
Looking over the edge of the falls, I gauge the jump. The bottom seems clear, not a rock in sight and there are a few people lined up near an outcropping, waiting to take their turn at jumping.
I head there and take my place behind the others. Nervous flutters dance inside me, as I watch people take the leap, plunging down with whoops, and hollers.
While I wait, I take out my iPhone, snapping pictures of the natural beauty. One catches the spray and sunlight perfectly giving it a rainbow effect. As I admire the shot, I notice Amadeo is at the end of the colorful arc like my own personal pot of gold.
“Hey, you’re Zoë Wayz!” someone says, and my heart starts pounding in my chest. I swallow and nod when the dude starts telling the others.
“This is Zoë Wayz, the adventure chick from Youtube.”
There’s sudden chatter all around me and people shuffle, sending me to the front of the line, cameras up and ready. My heart is no longer in my chest, it’s in my throat.
Amadeo waves as he notices me, and then holds a finger up as I take my place on the outcropping.
A helmet in his hand, Amadeo passes the line of people waiting to jump. “Here. This goes on your head.” He pops the helmet on and smiles as he straps it up. I feel like a five-year-old but I don’t care. He’s buying me time.
“Did you have this the whole time?”
“In my bag, yes. And there’s no way I’m letting you jump without it. I like this melon as it is, yeah?”
He kisses me and someone in the line aws. I frown. After Mark, public displays make me uncomfortable. I’ve never valued privacy more than I do now. Besides, no one knows Mark and I broke up, so it looks like I’m cheating.
“Good luck.”
I glance down, making sure the previous jumper has made it to land. A thousand butterflies flap their wings frantically in my belly, but I ignore them. I have no choice. Not with all these people and their cameras rolling.
My stomach drops as soon as I leap, but damn, it’s a feeling nothing can duplicate.
Smiling, I squeal in delight until I hit the cool water like a torpedo. Popping up, I wave to Amadeo and the others who’re looking over the edge.
Amadeo dons his own helmet, standing in the queue. He pumps his arms in excitement for me and my smile goes so wide, my cheeks hurt.
