Page 115 of Bottle Shock
“You know what? Never mind. I don’t know what I was thinking. Let’s just forget it.”
I start to walk past him, but he wraps a hand softly around my arm, stopping me.
“Let’s do it.”
My eyes widen. “Really?”
“Yeah.” He yanks off his shirt, putting all those juicy muscles on display. “But only if you jump with me.”
I shrug. “Well, I was already planning to jump, so that’s fine.”
“Together.”
“Together?”My forehead scrunches. “How does that work?”
He removes his glasses, putting them in a secure case before stepping out of his shorts. “You’ll see.” He winks.
Now I’m very curious.
Once our clothes and phones are safely bagged up, Gavin tosses them down to the beach below.
“You ready?” he asks.
I nod.
But my legs wobble—nerves and excitement twisting in my stomach.
We walk to the edge, him guiding me so my back is to the water and I’m facing him.
“Wrap your arms around me.”
I do as he says, snaking my arms around his neck until we’re chest to chest.
He hoists me up, grabbing beneath my thighs as my legs circle around him.
I feel a bit like a baby koala, and as ridiculous as it is, I love clinging to him like a helpless little creature.
“Eyes on me, okay? I won’t let anything happen to you. I won’t let you go.”
I know he’s talking about the jump, but my heart lurches like there’s more meaning behind his words than just this moment.
I nod, unable to speak.
His eyes lock with mine as he breathes in deeply. “Ready to fall with me, Starlet?”
“Yes,” I whisper.
Because I think I already have—and whatever this is now, it isn’t falling anymore.
It’s flying.
And just like that, we jump.
For one suspended second, time ceases to exist and gravity lets go, leaving us completely weightless.
Then we plunge—water cold and shocking. I gasp as we break the surface, sputtering laughter.
And he kept his word—his arms never left me, nor mine him. We stayed completely together, only our legs untangling to kick to the surface.
