Page 47 of Bear In A Bookstore
He shook his head and they stood there in silence for a long time. His body was so strong and warm next to her. Nature all around them. The waterfall. He was her prince in the magic forest, and the waterfall was hiding the treasure at the end of their quest.
It was perfect.
“All right, we should go.”
With a last look at the water, she turned and followed him the way they’d came. Soon the roar died away, replaced by bird song as they went past the truck again and down a different path. A range of peaks and valleys came into view. Desi pointed at what appeared to be a gaping hole near the tip of one of the peaks.
It looked terrifying.
“That’s not—”
He grinned like a kid at Christmas. “Oh yes. That is most definitely the Angel’s Mouth.”
Chapter Sixteen
“Desi,thisiscrazy.We can’t do this.”
It was crazy, but he’d caught the treasure hunting bug. Okay, mostly he just wanted to poke his head inside that gaping hole and see if he’d been right. He didn’t expect to find the pot of gold, and really, he was itching to harness up and dig his fingers and toes into some rock. But the clue had a purpose and he wanted to know what it was.
“Wearen’t going to do anything. I’m going in. You’ll stay up top and cheer me on.”
She shook her head stubbornly as she came to stand beside him. “No. No way. I was a terrible cheerleader in high school and I’m not about to relive that teenage nightmare while watching you fall to your death.”
“I’ve been rock climbing since I was ten.”
“I don’t know CPR, Desi. Or, how to make a splint out of sticks or any of that.”
He opened his door and jumped out.
“Just give me mouth to mouth. That’s all I’ll need.”
She scrambled after him, her expression bordering on distraught. “That’s not funny.”
Kora was starting to panic. Pushing pause on his excitement, Desi reminded himself to take this slow. She’d revealed a lot about herself the other night and it created a bigger picture that he needed to pay attention to.
“You’re right, it’s not funny. I’m sorry. I can see you’re getting anxious.”
Her brow furrowed. “You—you can?”
“Uh-huh. I want you to take some deep breaths and trust me. My cousin Fox and I took professional lessons starting as kids and we’ve never stopped. I’ll be careful. I promise.”
Her body heat heightened. He could feel it sparking on his skin. She wanted to trust him, but she didn’t. She couldn’t. Her mind flashed with what-ifs and images of him plummeting to his death. He studied her face, riveted by how clearly he saw the images from her point of view. Almost like he was inside her head.
But he wasn’t going to fall. Desi took her hands in his and lightly squeezed. Palm-to-palm, he held onto her while willing her to relax.
“Feel my hands. Feel the heat from my palms seeping into yours.”
Sparks ignited between their hands, shocking him like a muted electrical current. Her eyelids fluttered, her lips parting as she drew in a deep, cleansing breath and letting it out.
“We’ve got this, okay? And when I’m done, I’ll have treasure in my pocket, we’ll be millionaires and you can still give me mouth-to-mouth for a job well done.”
Kora smiled and pulled away from him with a little slap. She wiped her palms on her thighs and shook out her hands. “Fine, fine. Tell me what you want me to do.”
He carried his gear over his shoulder and led her up a deer trail that ended almost to their destination. They continued until they reached the side of the peak where the mouth was. He’d have to hook up and rappel at an angle to reach the opening.
She nibbled her thumbnail while watching him get into his harness. Then he secured his rigging and triple checked that everything was adjusted and connected properly. Kora watched his every move as if trying to figure out how it all worked.
“Okay, so what do I do if you fall?”
