“Don’t look down.”
He tugs his brows together. “But how will I know where to put my feet?”
“Feel your way. Look at me.”
He stares into my eyes.
I move backwards, one slow step at a time. “You’re doing great.”
“I was never any good at this stuff. My parents signed me up for gymnastics. The balance beam was my nemesis.”
“How long did you do gymnastics?”
“Two years. I wanted to quit long before that, but Dad said I should stick it out and that quitting was a sign of weakness.”
My stomach rolls. “Wow.”
“Then I fell off the balance beam and broke my wrist, and Mum told Dad it was far too dangerous a hobby, and that was that.”
I hook my top lip. “It shouldn’t have taken a broken wrist for him to let you quit.”
Jacob shrugs. “I’m not sporty.”
“Not everyone is.”
My foot slips. I yelp. Jacob grabs me and holds me tight.
“Aww, my hero.” I hug him. His heart thrashes faster than mine.
“I saved you from falling half a foot.”
“Into water.”
“Shallow water.”
“I’d have got soaked. I might have ended up on my arse, and that would have been embarrassing. You are my hero.”
He blushes fiercely.
I stroke his cheek. It wouldn’t matter if the drop were half a foot or ten. He put my safety above his fear and unease. My heart swells and goes all fluttery, and I swoon like an actress in a nineteen-twenties movie. This is the best non-date ever.
Chapter 17
Jacob
Archer’s smile takes my breath away. I wobble on the log, but he’s there, steadying me this time.
“Why don’t we get off this thing?” he asks.
“Yes, please.”
We take a few more cautious steps and jump off the log onto the opposite bank.
“I told you my balance wasn’t good,” I say.
Archer laughs. “I was the one who slipped.”
“You were walking backwards.”
