Page 154 of One Last Chance

He walked over to the rappel stations, where London wore a harness and carabiner rig, ready to belay the rappelers. Shep wore the same, and they stood, drinking coffee from their thermoses.

Boo was stationed at the bottom, and Axel walked over to the edge and waved to her. She seemed especially happy today, what with her boyfriend, Oaken, showing up a few days ago for his appearance at tonight’s bonfire and country music show.

“That’s quite a fall,” Wilson said as he came over to Axel. He too carried a thermos.

Sixty feet down onto a rocky beach.Yeah, that would hurt. “No one is dying today.”

“Hopefully not,” Wilson said. “But if they try, you’re here to save them, right?”

Something about his voice?—

Then he clamped Axel on the back. Hard—so hard that Axel jerked. His foot reached out to stop himself and found air?—

Wilson grabbed his vest, yanked him back from the edge, and Axel backed up onto safe ground. “Oops.”

Axel stared at him, his heart hammering against his ribs. “Sheesh, Wilson, are you trying to kill me?”

Wilson gave a snort. Then shook his head and walked away.

Okay, that was weird.

Axel walked over to Shep and London, who broke away from their conversation to greet him.

“All set on belay?”

“Just another Tuesday,” London said.

He looked at her. “It’s Saturday.”

Shep laughed. Clearly Axel had missed out on something.

“We’re good,” Shep said. “Don’t worry, Axel. We got this. Maybe you should go down to the bottom, help out Boo.”

“I think she’s got it, Shep,” London said. She wore her hair back, her blonde ponytail out of the back of her cap, a pair of sunglasses. She put her hand on Axel’s shoulder. “Take a breath.”

He hadn’t realized he’d been holding it. “I’m fine.”

“You’re barely two weeks out from a near-death experience. I’m not sure why you’re even here,” Shep said.

Because he couldn’t not be?

But for some reason Alicia tiptoed back into his head.“You’re not in control. The rest—all if it, actually—is in God’s hands. Any other thinking is just pride.”

Huh.

London took a sip of her coffee. Then, “Any word from Flynn?”

“London—” Shep started, but she silenced him with a look and then turned back to Axel.

“Nope,” Axel said. “She got what she wanted here.” Oh, that sounded more irked than he felt. Maybe.

Maybe not, because with the words came a rush of pain in his chest. She hadn’t been here for him but for her sister. And she’d given him no promises.

He’d simply made them for both of them.Maybe she was just the holiday-romance girl.

“She doesn’t belong in Alaska. She has a different life.” And again that didn’t come out right at all. But she’d been the one to say it—“Let’s just say that there is a part of me that belongs here with you, Axel. Just not the part that is real life.”

But maybe that was the problem. He didn’t want real life.

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