Page 6 of Latham
Her laughter was a relief to him. “Duly noted. Will you go first?”
He studied her face, trying to decide if she thought she could talk the guide into taking her back if he was gone.
Jutting her chin and getting an even more annoyed expression on her face, she said, “I’m not trying to pull a fast one on you, I promise. I give you my word I’ll come across on the zipline once I’ve seen you do it and you’re waiting to catch me.”
He decided to trust her so he gave her a quick hug and headed for the tower. “Let’s get this done,” he said to the guide.
Donning the harness and the bright yellow safety helmet only took a few minutes while the guide ran through a standard set of instructions which he didn’t need but didn’t interrupt either. While Helaine watched white-faced, arms wrapped around herself, he stepped off the edge of the platform and zoomed out over the gorge. It was a breathtaking view of a river far below. Ziplines weren’t his favorite mode of travel but he didn’t mind them either. He stripped off the helmet and the harness as soon as he landed, frowning a bit over the lack of another staff person to help as there ideally should have been and sent them back across in a basket on the other zipline.
Then he stood and waited, hoping Helaine would keep her word.
Chapter Three
A piercing scream which echoed off the rocky walls of the gorge told him she had and he watched as the tiny dot of yellow that was her helmet moved closer to him, Helaine clinging to the straps for dear life. She did have her eyes open, at least by the time she reached the platform where he waited.
Latham caught her, swinging her in a big circle and hugging her. “I’m so proud of you. That’s my girl.” In his exuberance he gave her a smacking kiss, which startled both of them and then to cover his confusion he focused on undoing her buckles while she wrestled with the helmet. Helaine staggered out of the platform area and sank to the grass with her back against the flimsy wall.
“I need a drink,” she said. “There better be feelgoods at the bungalow.”
“Mindy said the place was fully stocked for a week’s stay,” he reminded her as he sent her gear back across on the other line. “You should probably have water or a nutrient drink before we finish the hike.”
“Good idea.” She took the container he dug out of his backpack and guzzled half the contents before wiping her lips and fixing him with a serious look. “Tell me the truth—what else are we going to come across before we get to the cove? I know you know, because none of this has come as a surprise to you so far.”
“I read up on the Corleon Cove ‘experience’ back at the hotel while you finished packing,” he said. “I like to be prepared.”
“And I like to wing it but I’m thinking this trip might have cured me of that tendency.” Her tone was wry and he was relieved she seemed to be in good spirits. “Answer my question, please.”
“There’s a cliff. But we’ll be descending, not climbing and it’s not a high difficulty level at all. No ropes needed or anything. A steep incline to navigate but nothing you can’t handle. I can link us together using climbing straps I have in my bag and you’ll be fine.”
“And then the bungalow and the beach?”
“Yes.”
“Good.” She leaned her head against the wall and closed her eyes. “I guess I can manage one more of the items on my antibucket list, which would be rock climbing.”
“Antibucket?” He suppressed a laugh.
“You know, the list of things you’ll absolutely, positively never be caught doing in this lifetime. It’s the opposite of those lists of stuff a person wants to do, needs to do, before they die.”
He held out his hand. “We should head out. If you sit too long you’ll stiffen up. How are the boots? Any sore spots?”
She took his hand and he felt a tingle when her fingers folded over his. This woman had the power to do things to him if he’d let her. Oh, not in the sense of a long term relationship, certainly not fated mates or permanent, but his body was definitely paying attention to her proximity and her scent. He admired her for getting through the trials of the day so far and keeping herself upbeat.
They hiked along a well marked trail for about an hour and came out of the forest onto a cliff overlooking the ocean. Latham declared a rest break and they sat together gazing off into the horizon, admiring the shimmering waters and the bright blue sky. “It’s peaceful,” she said. “Worth all the stuff I had to do to get here.”
He had to admit he was feeling better than he usually did, moodwise. The day’s activities had been things he enjoyed, he’d helped her to enjoy them or at least surmount the challenges and the vista they were contemplating together was the reward. “I suppose we should make our way down to the cove and find our bungalow.”
He got up and helped her to her feet, adjusting her backpack to sit more smoothly across her back. “Let me check out this cliff we have to descend.”
She came to the edge of the cliff with him, leaning dangerously far over to catch a glimpse of the cove below. Latham caught her arm before she would have gone toppling over and yanked her back to safety. Helaine gave a gasp and clung to his arm for a moment.
“You okay?” he asked.
“A little shook but ready to descend this hill,” she said.
“Stay back from the edge while I see what’s what.” He waited for her to take two giant steps back, a mischievous smile on her face and then he proceeded to examine the descent ahead of them. He was puzzled by his reaction to Helaine. At home in the park where he was a ranger, he had to work hard to ignore his annoyance and frustration with clueless tourists. He was used to the military environment where orders were obeyed without question and the people he worked with understood how the world worked. Helaine was certainly no outdoorswoman, much less a soldier, but his overwhelming instinct with her was protectiveness, to keep her safe. Nothing she did or said caused him to be irritated with her and he was grateful she’d arranged this excursion for his benefit.
He was relieved to report to her about the cliff. “It’s steep but doable. The resort management has installed handrails in fact, so we should be good. You ready?”
