Page 72 of Cougar Chronicles

Like she’d remember anything about piloting a canopy when she was plummeting to the earth at a gazillion miles per hour.

“You’ve secured the extra parachute, right?” she said loudly but timidly.

“Yes, baby. It’s all secure.”

“’Kay.” Her heart slammed into her sternum. Why was she doing this again?

“We’re going to be strapped together, your back to my front. That’s kind of a turn on, don’t you think?” Michael’s low voice carried across the noise.

“Michael, if you wanted to be strapped to me, we don’t have to jump out of a plane to do it.”

His buoyant laugh filled the small aircraft. “I’ll hold you to that.Afterour jump.” He tightened another buckle. “You’re all secure, Stace. Now, let me just hook us together, okay?”

“No hurry.”

The loud roar of the small aircraft engine buzzed in her ear.Calm down, she told herself. You’re an intelligent woman. You know what to do. And Michael’s an experienced sky diver…Just words. Words that weren’t helping her nerves one bit.

“We’re about ready, Oliver!” Michael yelled to the pilot.

The small plane swerved. Stacy nearly lost her balance, but Michael’s arms steadied her as he fastened the straps of their equipment together.

“We just hit 13,000 feet!” Oliver’s voice rumbled from the cockpit.

“Perfect!” Michael said. “It’s a great day, too. So clear and warm.”

Yeah, just perfect. Perfectly nauseating. Stacy’s stomach churned. “Michael,” she said shakily. “I can’t do this. I just can’t.”

“You’ll be fine, beautiful.”

His breath caressed her neck. And was that his erection? Couldn’t be, not through all their gear.

“I promise you’ll be fine.”

A jolt of turbulence hit the plane, and Stacy’s feet nearly left the floor of the aircraft.

“I promise our ride will be smoother than this,” Michael said. “Ready?”

Stacy squeezed her eyes shut and took a deep breath. “What if I can’t steer?”

“Don’t worry about that. I’ll steer, okay? You just enjoy yourself. Ready now?”

“Ready as I’ll ever be.”

“Okay, baby.” He edged her to the opening. “Let’s go.”

Once airborne, Stacy couldn’t remember Michael’s exit count or actually leaving the plane. For a moment, she had the feeling of jetting forward as well as down. Michael had told her about that. Physics. It was the momentum created by the plane’s speed. The “forward throw” he had called it. She was surprised she remembered.

He’d also explained that she wouldn’t feel like she was falling, but no words had prepared her for the buoyancy that enveloped her. Was she truly dropping? The ground didn’t seem to be getting any nearer. Free fall is what Michael called this portion of the jump. A rush of adrenaline hit her gut, spiked through her like a massive dose of endorphins. The sensation resembled floating in water, yet was more pure, less dense. Freedom. Total freedom. She was truly flying. Flying in Michael’s arms. The feeling of security surprised her, and she savored it, letting herself take in the beauty of the sky and the earth so far below. Wisps of clouds whirled around her head. The crisp azure of the heavens, so beautiful in their totality.

Too soon, Michael yelled that he was releasing the chute.

Steering. She should be steering. She tensed.

Michael must have sensed her unease, because he shouted, “Just enjoy yourself. I’ve got the canopy!”

So enjoy herself she did.

She’d thought she’d been flying before. No, that had been mere floating. Now, she and Michael jutted forward at what seemed like a ferocious speed. This part of the jump would last about five minutes, Michael had said.

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