Page 39 of The Best Wild Idea
What will that purple look like when splattered out across the ground?
Could I possibly push Silas from the plane once the door slides open?
“First time?” Jett asks, pulling me out of my head.
He grins at me as he jumps up and down a few times to stretch himself out, looking more like an Olympic athlete or Roman statue cut from a solid hunk of marble than a skydiving partner. His navy-blue eyes match his own vinyl jumpsuit, and they’re shining at me like a kid in a candy store. He’s cute. Okay, he’s well-beyond cute. And, unlike most of the men I’ve talked to in the last year, he’s not a client. Or an annoying old friend.
“Yes, first and probably only time.” I nod, reluctantly stepping into my purple jumpsuit before pulling it up past my hips. The vinyl hangs loosely over my spandex leggings — courtesy of Katie for this particular adventure.
“Nervous?” he asks. His grin grows wider. His accent is cute and I wish we could make less stilted conversation before I trust him with my actual life.
My fingers shake as I pull the sleeves over my arms and I try my best to zip the whole thing up. It takes a few tries, before he grabs the clasp from my hands and slowly pulls it clear up to my neck.
He’s grinning at me when I look up, holding on to the zipper a beat longer than necessary, and I realize, with a start, that this guy might actually be attempting to flirt with me.
Oh. Oh, okay.
It’s been a minute, and I feel a bit rusty, but this guy doesn’t know a thing about me, or my past. Why not give it a momentary go?
“Do you remember your first time?” I ask, squinting at Jett, wishing so badly that I spoke better German. OranyGerman, really.
“First time? Me?” He puts his hand over his thick chest and I nod.
He gets a funny look on his face then throws his arms out to the side, pretending to fly toward the ground with a terrified look on his face. He stops and breaks into a smile, nodding sheepishly.
“I remember,” he adds. “Soscary.”
I wish I hadn’t asked. My stomach doubles the knot that’s already there.
“But so fun!” He scrunches his face and gently grabs my arm, like he wishes he hadn’t added any fuel to my ever-growingnerves. “You’ll need to hang on tight.” He pats his shoulders, which makes his biceps flex enormously.
“I can do that,” I tell him, feeling a hint of blush creep across my cheeks.
God, I’m so awkward at this.
I glance across the room at Silas, who has already selected a cherry-red jumpsuit from another rack holding his size options. His hair is still mussed from last night since he worked from his laptop right up until our car arrived this morning and he didn’t have time to shower.
He’s not watching Jett and I, but instead he’s talking with the tandem diver assigned to him — a guy named Ethan, who looks older and much more experienced than Jett. Silas’ green eyes are giddy and glowing, without a hint of nervousness, right above his white grin. Ethan looks to be twice the age of Jett, and I’m more than a little envious that they’ve been assigned to jump together. Instead I’ve been assigned to jump with someone who could pass as my much younger, meathead brother.
I smile at Jett, who’s still jumping around, full of as much nervous energy on the outside as I’m feeling on the inside.
“You want Ethan?” Jett asks, apparently noticing the wistfulness in my eyes while I stare at the other diver.
“No.” I brush him off quickly, wishing I could stop a deeper blush from seeping into my cheeks. The last thing I need to do is piss off the guy in charge of securely strapping me to him.
He grins until I relent.
“Okay, I mean, he just looks much older. More experienced?” I say, nervously laughing, then add a shrug like it’s a question. “Can’t blame me for wanting someone who has loads of experience.”
“I’m experienced,” he tells me, nudging my arm. Then he hops back and forth like a track star heading into a big race. “Experienced ineverythingthat matters.”
He winks. Like, actually winks.
“Oh!” I don’t know what else to say.Jesus, take the wheel.
He has the guts to wink at me, the look on his face saying more than his words, and I give Silas a withering glance. My heart starts to pound.
“Don’t be nervous,” Silas says, saddling up next to me.
