Total pages in book: 59
Estimated words: 58211 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 291(@200wpm)___ 233(@250wpm)___ 194(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 58211 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 291(@200wpm)___ 233(@250wpm)___ 194(@300wpm)
Sitting through the safety briefing is boring, but soon, we’re in our harnesses, ready to climb the walls.
“I’ll get a video of you first,” she says, spots of red blooming on her cheeks.
“You’re not scared of heights, are you?”
She shakes her head. “Not heights.”
Something’s holding her back from thoroughly enjoying this experience. I walk up to the wall of fabric made to look like ice, clip myself in, and then turn to the camera, winking at Holly. “Wish me luck, Snowflake.”
She drops the camera. Luckily, it’s on a strap around her neck.
“Crap. Sorry,” I say. “I shouldn’t be calling you that on video.”
“It’s … fine.”
But it’s not. She’s lying to make me feel better. I turn toward the wall, scaling it quickly, looking down at her from the top, then abseiling down as the automatic system slows my descent. Unclipping myself, I offer my hand to Holly.
“Your turn. I’ll get some footage of you.”
“I don’t know. Maybe we should get some more of you first.”
“Holly, what’s going on? You were excited to come here.”
She lowers her voice, moving closer to me. Her Christmas sweater hugs tightly onto her curvy shape. That, combined with her perfume and closeness, almost makes me kiss her out of instinct. “What if I can’t do it?”
“You can. I promise. The slack is so tight that it almost lifts you up. It’s not real climbing. Just a bit of fun.” I lean forward, whispering. “Just remember how confident you were last night.”
“Asher …”
“I know. It never happened, but the fact is, that version of Holly didn’t give a crap. She knew how sexy she was. How capable she is. I bet you felt like you could do anything.”
“That’s true,” she admits. “But there’s a difference between seducing my brother’s best friend and this.”
She’s right. Seduction is far more dangerous.
“You can do it. I promise. If it makes you feel better, we don’t have to record this part.”
“Okay.” She hands me her camera.
“But—”
“But?”
“I think you’d regret it if you didn’t let me record. You’re nervous, but you’re going to do this. You’re going to kick ass. I think you’ll want that on video. If things get as bad as you think they will, you can delete the video later.”
She smiles shakily. “You’re making too much sense for my liking. Let’s do it, Asher.”
I aim the camera at her. As she straps herself in, I have to remember this isn’t a home video for my viewing later. If it were, I’d zoom in on the harness, biting into her curvy shape, squeezing her voluptuous body, highlighting her perfection.
Her hand trembles as she takes the first handhold.
“Go on, Snow—Holly,” I say. “You’ve got this.”
I can’t call her Snowflake on camera. I need to remember that. What if Dan sees and starts asking why I’m giving his sister cute nicknames?
One hand over the over, cautiously finding her footholds, she begins the ascent. The angle makes it difficult for me not to dwell on her shape. Instead, I zoom in on her smile when she reaches the top. She stares down at me, then slowly descends.
When she finishes, she unstraps herself, runs over, and throws her arms around me.
“I did it,” she yells, breathless.
“I’m proud of you,” I say, laughing as I spin her around.
She quickly steps away when I put her down. “Sorry, Asher. I didn’t mean to do that.”
The good vibes vanish as quickly as they appear. There’s something sad and unfair about her apologizing for hugging me. I understand why she might feel the need to do so. If the wrong person saw us …
I’m so tired of everything being so complicated.
“It’s fine. I got that on video. Your great ascent, you should be proud. You were visibly nervous, but you overcame your fears.”
She grins. “Thanks, Asher.”
CHAPTER 15
HOLLY
On the ride home, I quickly review the footage at triple speed. It’s like a dream sequence of warmth and happiness, all smiles, all good feelings. The only part I’ll have to delete is when he uses my nickname. What if Dan sees this video and hears his best friend call me that?
Putting my camera away, I ask, “Any update on your Secret Santa?”
We’re at a red light. We’ve hit weekend rush hour, catching the last-minute shoppers rushing to get gifts.
He glances at me with a smirk. I could get used to him in a bright Christmas sweater. He looks warm and cozy while retaining that strong and dominant look. “You’re obsessed with the Secret Santa thing.”
“I wouldn’t say obsessed. I’m just curious.”
I need to know if he’s the man I’ve been texting, sharing my thoughts and feelings and flirting with. It goes against my determination to pretend any steaminess between us never happened, but I can’t help it.
“I’m still deciding on a gift,” he mutters, staring at the road.
Why doesn’t he want to look at me? Am I being childish? I could outright ask him.