Page 19 of Crazy for You

“The water’s not deep. Sure would be cold, though.” He stepped onto the trunk and walked out over the rushing water.

The trunk was wide, the bark worn smooth across the top where countless other people had crossed. Spreading her arms for balance, she followed Ryan across to the other side.

“You still come here a lot?” she asked as they hiked up a steep incline, headed she presumed for the top of the bluffs, where he and Derek used to cliff jump.

“Not since Derek left.” He extended a hand to help her over a large rock in their path.

“And how many times did I beg you to let me tag along?”

“A lot,” he admitted with a laugh. “You were persistent.”

“Not persistent enough.”

“No offense, but this was kind of a ‘no chicks allowed’ zone for us. Maybe the right girl could have convinced one of us to come up here and fool around under the stars, but…” He drifted off with a shrug.

“Derek’s dorky little sister didn’t stand a chance,” she finished for him.

He chuckled. “Pretty much.”

But she sure as hell stood a chance today. Now that she’d kissed him, she wanted to do it again. If she got into the University of Georgia, she’d be leaving town in the fall anyway so who cared if it didn’t work out between them? She wouldn’t have to stick around to face the fallout.

They hiked in silence for the next few minutes. The terrain had gotten steeper, and although she was an experienced hiker, she let Ryan boost her up and over a few large rocks in their path.

“So what’s the deal with this dare?” he asked.

“Oh, that. Well, my friends were trying to help me shake things up a little at girls’ night, but I had so much fun, and it kind of got me thinking. If Derek had known he’d die so young, would he have done anything differently? If something happened to me, would I be happy with the way I’ve lived my life so far?” She shook her head. “I’ve been holding back, doing what’s expected of me, just going through the motions.”

“So what is it that you want?” he asked, his cocoa eyes locked on hers.

“Excitement.” Her voice sounded breathless…maybe because the trail had steepened again. “Like…whoa.” She paused as they came out at a little overlook, the cliffs dropping straight down below them to where the lake twinkled like a beautiful sapphire. “Like this.”

“Just wait,” Ryan said, nudging her on. “You ain’t seen nothin’ yet.”

“Did you guys really jump from here?” Because the very thought made her light-headed.

“A few times,” he said. “But usually we jumped from up there.” He pointed to another spot above them, and holy shit, that was absolute insanity.

“That is crazy.”

“It’s an adrenaline rush like no other.” He gave her another wicked smile.

Her heart thumped hard against her ribs. “Take me.”

Ryan’s eyes darkened, and oops, yeah, she should have worded that better.

“Up there,” she said as her cheeks warmed. “Take me up there.”

“Planning on it.”

Okay, now everything sounded dirty, but maybe that was just because her hormones were still dangerously out of control from their kiss. She fell into step behind him, panting from the climb.

He led her up what might have been considered a path or could have just been a scrape of dirt between some rocks. Together, they scrambled toward the summit of the bluffs. Her blood was pumping, her adrenaline flowing. Hiking was fun, but heading for the one place that had been off limits throughout her childhood with the man who’d occupied her teenage fantasies? Now, that was exciting.

Ryan took her hand, hoisting her up beside him. They stood on a big rock as the world fell away in every direction. It was dizzying and thrilling and amazing.

“Wow,” she whispered.

“Forgot how much I dig this place.” Ryan had a blissed-out look on his face as he took in their surroundings.

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