Summer Fling Read Free

Northland of New Zealand, and the sparkling azure Pacific Ocean far off to
her right. It was amazing, better than Garth had promised, and joy swelled in
her that he’d talked her into jumping.
    Wait a minute—talked her into jumping? He’d
kissed her! She laughed then, a burst of pure happiness. He probably kissed
every woman who froze on the plane. Kind of an odd relaxation technique, but at
that moment she didn’t care. She’d done it. Screw you, Ethan . Silently,
she thanked her best friend Stella for booking her on the jump.
    Above her, Garth checked the altimeter on
his wrist and signaled to Andy, who let go of her hand. Five thousand feet.
Their ninety seconds of freefall had passed in a flash.
    Garth somehow turned them so they circled
in the air, the world spinning below them, then steadied them and tapped her
shoulder. She put her hand on the ripcord as he’d showed her and pulled hard.
The moment of truth.
    Above them, the parachute unfurled like a
silver fern, billowing out into a white mushroom. With a snap that jerked her
stomach into her throat, they came to an abrupt halt. Their legs dropped and
they hung vertically. Silence replaced the rushing in her ears.
    Garth rubbed her arm. “All good, honey?”
    Her heart swelled. “All good, thank you.
Wow, just...oh my God, wow.”
    “Told you.” His voice held an obvious
smile.
    They floated slowly, the panorama spread
out like an oil painting. Far below them, Andy’s parachute opened. He’d fallen
further so he’d be down first, ready to film her landing.
    She searched for words to express her
gratitude. “It’s just fantastic, Garth. Thank you so much.”
    “You’re very welcome.” He pulled the
toggles and adjusted their trajectory.
    “I can’t believe you’ve done this over a
thousand times. You are certifiable.”
    He chuckled. “It’s addictive. There’s
nothing else like that feeling when you leap out of a plane. Nothing matches up
to it.”
    “Nothing?”
    “Well, except really, really good sex,” he
teased.
    She giggled. “I’ve never had sex that made
me feel like that.”
    “Not even with the bastard?”
    “Especially with the bastard,” she said
vehemently. “He sucked in bed, and not in a good way.”
    Garth snorted. “What an idiot. Sounds like
you’re well shot of him.”
    “Absolutely I am. And hey, I didn’t throw
up either.”
    “Hallelujah!”
    She sighed, looking around her at the clear
blue sky. “I feel like an angel.”
    “I have to say you look it with your blonde
hair.”
    Her cheeks grew warm in spite of the cold
air. “Are you flirting with me, Mr. Rowland?”
    “It appears so, Ms. Jackson. I do
apologize. I don’t make a habit of it.”
    She looked at their feet swinging above the
green fields. “So you don’t always kiss women who get panic attacks?”
    “Ah... Not so much. I hope you won’t sue me
for sexual harassment.”
    She glanced over her shoulder. His mouth
was only inches from hers. Her lips curved. “I wasn’t complaining.”
    “I’m glad to hear it.” For a long, long
moment, his eyes bored into hers, and she got that tingly feeling again, unable
to stop her lips parting. He’d kissed her. Would he kiss her again?
    Oh God, please let him kiss her again.
    He tore his gaze away, however, and checked
his altimeter. “Nearly at a thousand feet. Time to think about the landing.”
    “Okay.” Eek . The landing. The other
bit she hadn’t looked forward to.
    “Remember to keep your feet up. Don’t let
them touch the ground before mine.”
    “All right.”
    The ground approached at an alarming rate.
She’d felt as if she’d been hanging in the sky, but now she understood how fast
they’d been falling.
    All the saliva disappeared from her mouth
and her knuckles whitened where she clutched hold of the straps. “Have you ever
had a bad landing?”
    “Nah.” He adjusted the toggles again,
aiming for the X on the ground in front of them. Andy had already landed and his
camera