Page 216 of The Silent Note

“I’m surprised you got here before me.” I stand behind her.

Her eyes meet mine, tired and tortured. “Zane.”

“I know.”

“You, your dad, andFinn, he’s… it’s all...”

“I know.” My heart wobbles like a snare stand without it’s legs. I slip an arm around her, suddenly fearful when—all my life, I feared nothing. “You shouldn’t sit on the edge.”

That brings out a tiny smile to her dark lips. “Seriously?”

“What if you fall?” I worry.

“What if I sit here and prove that I’m not afraid of falling?” Her eyes, fired up with determination, search mine. “What if I sit here and show you I’m not afraid of falling with you?”

My gaze snaps up to hers. I know what she’s saying, but it’s not enough to distract me from the very real threat of her slipping off the cliff.

“You’re too valuable to me, tiger. You’re too precious to fall. This stupid cliff can have me, but it can’t have you. So step away from the edge, please before I have a heart attack.”

Grey smiles. “Zane Cross is actually afraid of something?”

“Laugh all you want, but ‘safe’ is starting to feel really sexy to me.”

She allows me to help her stand. I lead her closer to my motorbike, far from the edge. There’s a blanket in my storage under the seat, stashed there from when I’d planned to take Grey for a picnic.

I kneel on the blanket first to make sure there aren’t any pointy rocks that’ll hurt Grey when she sits down. As I’m patting around, she laughs.

“What’s so funny?” I ask, leading her to sit beside me.

“You.”

“Me?”

“I was exhausted when I got here. I mean, a bone-deep, mind-numbing exhaustion. But it’s like you gave me all your energy and now I could run a mile.”

“You want to go for a run?” I slide my gaze down the length of her body to her heels. They’re black and sexy, wrapping around her ankles the way I want her legs wrapped around my waist.

She makes a face. “I meant that figuratively.”

I know, but the more I tease her, the less tired she seems.

“Go ahead. Take more of my energy.” I wave my arms like I’m gathering up the wind. “Is that enough?”

She leans over and frames my face with her small hands. My heart drums against my chest as her sweet scent envelops me. I’d missed the smell of her while she was gone. I even went hunting for the sweatshirt that she wore and threw a fit when I found out Martina washed it.

“I know what you’re doing,” she says.

“What am I doing?”

“You’re trying to make me smile.”

“Is it working?”

She looks at me, a solemn expression on her face.

“I guess not?—”

Her lips brush mine, cutting off my words. Her eyes flutter shut and they stay shut even when she pulls back. Our breaths mingle as the sun takes its last breath and sends brilliant colors surging across the sky.

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