We all laugh as she lurches forward and jumps off. I count to five in my head before she hits the water.
It’ssohigh up.
“Coming, baby?” Mason takes my waist and pulls me to him.
He knows I’m nervous. Should I jump? What if…
“Nina, I don’t think you should be doing that. This is so dangerous.” Lucy stands and moves to the edge. “Jesus, it makes me feel sick just looking that far—” Elliot’s hand shoots out, pushing her from the edge. She screams, her arms and legs flailing ungracefully as she flies through the air.
He turns, grinning at us then dives in after her.
“Motherfucker!” Lucy shouts as she surfaces.
She starts to splash water at Elliot, but he only laughs harder than he already was as he tries to grasp her wrists.
“Your turn,” Mase whispers into my neck, his hands braced on my back.
Bollocks. How am I going to do this?
Is there a safe way to jump off a cliff when you know you’re not pregnant, but you might be?
“I’ve got you,” he tells me, probably sensing my hesitation.
Lifting me, he wraps my legs around his waist, locking them together behind his back.
“No frolicking on the rocks, thank you,” Lance shouts in a stupid voice.
I smile down at them all as they look up at us. Lucy looks pissed as hell, and it makes me chuckle.
“Ready?” I can feel Mason’s muscles tense as he steps up to the edge. His shoulders are strained from my weight, his muscles popping in all the right places.
“No. But do it anyway.” I screw up my face and hide my head in his chest. He turns, putting his back to the sea, and then we are free-falling. I hear the slap on his back, and then I’m submerged in cold water.
The temperature shocks me, and I fight to reach the surface.
Mason grabs onto me, and I cling to him, wrapping myself around him like a koala. “Oh my god! That was incredible!”
He beams at me with his megawatt smile, and it’s the most honest smile I’ve seen from him in weeks.
I lean in to kiss him, grinning back against his lips.
“What?” he asks in wonder.
“Seeing you happy makes me happy,” I tell him, not being able to take my eyes off him.
He shakes his head, fanning his hair across his face and spraying me with the water droplets and making me giggle.
“I am so fucking happy, angel.”
I’m sitting on my suitcase trying to get it closed when my phone starts ringing. Looking over at the screen I see that it’s my mum. She hasn’t called in weeks, and I can imagine the only reason she’s calling now is for more money.
A smart person wouldn’t answer. I ignored it last time, and she eventually gave up, but in the time that she didn’t call, I found myself a little lost. It was as if she had given up. I’m not sure what on exactly because she only ever called for more money, but it hurt nonetheless. She’s my mum, so to see her name flash on the screen now—even if it is for more money—it has hope blooming in my chest.
“Hi, Mum.”
“Nina. I haven’t heard from you in so long.”
My shoulders sag, and I slide from the bed. I never call her. My crappy childhood is on her—she wasn’t there for me, but maybe the way we treat each other now that I’m older is on me too. It’s a two-way street and right now it’s a ghost town.
