Page 12 of Hero Mine

Dorian and Ray had basically helped raise her, taking over when she’d run her own parents ragged, which was most of the time. More than once, Ray had picked Joy up after school, inviting her to come hang with them. It had only been later that Joy had realized it had been at her much-older parents’ request.

“Not as good as it is to see you, sweetheart,” Ray said, patting her back. “You’ve been keeping too scarce lately.”

“Trying to stay busy,” she deflected, shooting Amari a quick look.

Before Ray could pry further, Amari’s brother Theo and his wife Eva waved to Joy from where they were standing over to the side. The familiar comfort of all the Lindstroms was a balm to Joy’s frayed nerves.

Then Theo shifted, and she saw him.

Bear stood a few feet away, talking with Theo, his deep laugh carrying over the crowd. Her pulse quickened as his gaze flicked toward her, his expression softening. He said something to Theo and made his way over.

“Glad you made it,” Bear said, his brown eyes steady on hers.

She shrugged, suddenly self-conscious. “Had to do something to get out of my own head.”

Someone on a megaphone announced that it was time to jump. Cheers erupted as kids jumped off the lower ledge into the cold water. Once they cleared out of the water, everyone held their breath as Colton and a couple other crazy people jumped from the high ledge.

She looked over at Bear. “Don’t forget to take off your shirt before you jump. You’ll regret it if it gets soaked.”

“I’ll keep it on,” he said simply, his voice steady but a little too casual. “You nervous?”

Joy’s brow furrowed at his response about the shirt, but she let it go, focusing on his question.

She thought about it, surprised by the answer. “No, not really. This is easy.”

Being alone in her house scared the hell out of her, but this? A leap into icy water from a cliff? That felt like nothing.

The megaphone came back on, announcing it was clear for the middle ledge to jump at their leisure.

Bear looked like he was going to ask her one of his soul-searching questions, so she grinned and said, “See you at the bottom.”

She sprinted to the edge and took a flying leap off the rocks.

She flipped herself as she fell, the world whirling by in a spin, then cold hit her like a wall as she entered the water, shocking and exhilarating all at once.

For a few blissful seconds, all the weight in her chest disappeared. She wished she could stay under here forever.

Chapter4

The need for oxygen eventually sent her back up. She broke through the surface, gasping for air, a rush of euphoria coursing through her.

For the first time in weeks, she felt something close to alive. The crazy free fall had left her breathless in the best way, sparking a flicker of the girl she used to be—the one who laughed at danger and lived for moments like this.

Grinning despite the cold, she swam toward the shore, shivering as the frigid air hit her skin. Everyone around her was doing the same, scrambling out of the water and rushing toward the warmth of the bonfires. Joy grabbed her towel and wrapped it tightly around herself, her teeth chattering as she took in the scene.

Parents bundled their kids into dry clothes, and families began heading home as the sun dipped below the horizon. For everyone else, the party was just getting started. Bonfires crackled, casting warm light over clusters of people who were laughing, eating, and passing around thermoses that no doubt held something stronger than coffee.

Normally, Joy would be right in the middle of it all, joking and soaking up the energy. But now, she wasn’t sure what she should do. Her earlier rush of giddiness was fading fast, leaving her raw and uncertain.

The last thing she wanted was to draw attention to herself, to make everything go quiet and awkward the way her presence tended to do now, as people wondered if she was okay.

So she edged backward, moving toward the shadows, away from the fires and the laughter. She’d just get back to her car and make her exit without anyone being any the wiser.

But as she took another step back, she collided with something solid—someonesolid.

A warm, steady hand settled lightly on her hip. She turned, already knowing who it was, and found herself face-to-face with Bear.

His hand stayed on her hip, grounding her, his warmth cutting through the cold. “Leaving already?” he teased, his voice low and playful. “The fun’s just getting started, Bug.”

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