I watched Will lean back in his harness, sliding easily between the two platforms.
"Oh God," I breathed, feeling the panic claw up my throat. "I don't think I can do this."
Will landed, standing on the other platform and unclipping. He waved, offering me a giant grin.
"Come on, Karrie! You can do it!"
Karrie? That's… actually really cute. Why have I never thought of this before?
"Karen? You okay?" Drake asked beside me.
Oh, right. Giant drop. Riding on a zip-line. Terrified of heights. Gonna die. No biggie.
I sucked in a deep breath and tried to force myself to sit, to do as Drake had instructed, hands in place, legs up, leaning back.
Instead, I froze.
"Karen?"
I swallowed, looking up to see Will across the way.
"You got this, gorgeous. Keep your eyes on me. We'll do this together. Ready?"
I nodded, my body shaking as I kept my gaze locked on his.
"Okay, hands up, good. Now lean back, that's it, great job. Legs up, perfect and—"
I felt Drake's hand on the small of my back, giving me a small push.
"—here we go!"
I didn't scream. I could proudly say I didn't scream or faint or puke—we'll ignore the fact it was because my freeze response kicked in, and I was fairly sure I blacked out the entire ride.
One minute I was leaning back, feeling Drake push me, the next, I was in Will's arms, looking up into his piercing golden eyes.
"Well, hello there." His smile was devilishly gorgeous. "Well done, Karrie. You did it."
I looked down, finding my feet firmly planted on the second platform, Drake shooting me thumbs up from across the gap.
"I… well. Damn." I let go of Will, taking a step back. "I did it."
"Yeah, you did." He held up a hand. "Great job."
I slapped it, enjoying the sting of the high-five.
3
Karen
Over a lunch of delicious sandwiches and fresh cookies, I interviewed Drake and Dane, learning their background and why they'd chosen to start an adventure park in Capricorn Cove.
"This has always been home."
I took their picture, sighing a little when I caught them kissing as they started checking our gear, readying it for our afternoon session in the caves.
If I was completely honest, watching their easy, loving relationship stirred something in me. A large part of me, the part I'd long ago locked away, wanted what they had—companionship, laughter, and the spark. It showed in every movement, every glance, the loving touches. But another part of me doubted it would ever happen. Here I stood, a forty-something-year-old woman who'd never even had a relationship that lasted beyond ten dates.
Not that you want one. You're perfectly happy being alone. And the things technology does these days…
