Page 48 of Guarding The Phoenix: Vol. 1

Chase’s firm presence grounded me. He held my hand, letting me absorb some of his confidence. I focused on everything but what we were about to do. Otherwise, I risked hyperventilating.

“Easy. Take some deep breaths for me,” Chase murmured.

Shifting, I turned my attention his way. The moment our eyes met, the connection zapped through me. And as the plane continued its ascent, I focused on his handsome face, sucking air into my lungs, while attempting to ignore that in minutes we would fall through the air.

“It’s okay if you decide you don’t want to do this. No one will think less of you.”

“I will.” I admitted. After years of being mistreated, I needed a win.

A slow grin spread, transforming his face into an achingly handsome one. The man was so gorgeous he took my breath away. Those firm lips left me hungry and needy to feel them. I wanted his mouth on mine in the worst way. And because I was worried we might die, I grasped his face in my hands and kissed him—much to Chase’s surprise.

He growled and hauled me against him. I shivered at his ripcord body pressed against mine. I wished we were somewhere private and could surrender to the scorching chemistry. Because I was seconds from climbing onto his lap.

But the instructor announced we had reached the proper altitude and to prepare for our jump.

Chase ended the kiss, sucking on my bottom lip as he slowly released my mouth with a light nip. Pulse pounding lust illuminated his eyes. “Fuck, beautiful, I want to eat you up. And I will, the moment we reach the ground.”

“Then what are we waiting for?” The promise of pleasure in his arms had me shooting to my feet. It was enough to see me through the terrifying reality of jumping out of the plane with only a parachute to keep us alive.

Chase chuckled darkly as he rose beside me. The next ten minutes we spent attaching my harness to Chase’s, then double and triple checking the harness’s connection at my urging. We made sure our helmets and goggles were secure. Then the jump instructor went through the safety instructions one last time.

“Don’t worry, beautiful, I’ve got you.”

Then they opened the door. Wind blasted inside the plane. Tremors assailed me. My breaths heaved in and out of my lungs. We marched toward the door. I tried focusing on breathing and not the open doorway. But once we stood there with the wind whipping around us with nothing between us and the ground, I shook against Chase.

“Deep breaths for me. We’ll jump on a countdown from ten. Okay?”

I gulped. “Okay.”

“Ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two.”

And then Chase launched us out of the plane, cutting the countdown short. Suddenly airborne, I screamed bloody murder. My stomach went haywire, dipping and somersaulting like mad. For about the first twenty seconds I swore this was it, that my number was up, and we were going to die.

“Open your eyes, beautiful,” Chase shouted above the rushing wind.

With a small prayer, I lifted my lids and stared.

Oh my god! We dove through the air at hyper speed. But it was the stunning landscape view that struck my heart. Awe suffused every pore.

This was incredible, the most gorgeous experience of my life. Up here, all my problems seemed insignificant.

Chase’s solid presence, his body surrounding mine, made me feel like there was nothing I couldn’t do. It was a total head trip. Joy burst within my chest. I felt freer than I had in a long time. Up here, there was nothing that could harm me. And I knew with Chase at my back, he would protect me at all costs.

When Chase deployed the parachute, I watched it unfurl and spread. Our free fall jolted to a halt. And then we were floating.

“What do you think?”

“It’s amazing,” I shouted.

“I knew you’d like it.”

“I do. Thank you for bringing me.” Because I had not expected the surfeit of emotions. Nor the pulse pounding need that would besiege me. Who knew skydiving would be an aphrodisiac?

Although, anything and everything aroused me lately. It was a good thing that I wasn’t facing him. Because I would give in to the need riding my system. And then we really would go splat.

“It’s my pleasure, beautiful.”

The descent took us a while. But I loved floating through the air with Chase. He navigated the parachute, turning us with the wind so that we floated toward the vast field. We were a hundred feet up. Then fifty. Then ten.

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