Page 37 of Bastard Bartender

After we finish our meal, we all stand, and the four guys head straight for the Skywalk as I stop mid-step. Nic notices and comes up behind me, placing his hands on my hips and leaning into me.

“Are you really that afraid?”

“I don’t see what the big deal is about walking on a piece of glass when I can get the same view right here.”

He comes around to the front to face me. His eyes shift to the side and then back at me as he slides his hands in his pockets and rests back on his heels. “You’re full of shit.” The jerk has a smile on his face. “You want to walk on there, and you know it. No girl who had that much of a thrill from driving in a car the way you just did would look at that awesome experience over there and say it wasn’t a big deal. It’s awesome, and you know it. Deep down, you are dying to drum up the nerve to get up there.”

I bite the inside of my cheek as he stares at me with raised brows and a dare to his eyes. I scrunch my nose at him because it’s beyond annoying how right he is.

He holds an arm out to me. “Come on, Evette. I’ll be right there with you.”

“Don’t leave my side.” My voice is stern.

“Never.”

He nudges me forward, and I push back a bit even though my feet are moving forward. There’s a family with three small children in front of us, and it makes me feel silly. The tykes are cool with walking onto the platform while I’m shaking in my shoes.

Probably because they’re too young to know that if this thing gives way, we’ll all plunge to our death.

We make our way to the clear pathway that sits thousands of feet above the Grand Canyon below. I keep my eyes forward and squeeze Nic’s hand. Fear ripples through me as my chest tightens.

“Just breathe. If you can’t look down, look at the people around you. See how happy they are to be here. Let their confidence in the situation feed yours.”

I take a deep breath and check out the people in front of us. Their expressions are nothing but pure awe, and it does soothe me slightly. I don’t see anyone in fear or scared in any way. The exact opposite actually.

After I take another cleansing breath, I take a few more steps forward, keeping my vision locked straight ahead.

When we get to the middle, Nic wraps his arms around my waist from behind and guides me to the edge.

“Wait. No. What are you doing?” I say in a panic.

He stops mid-step. “Do you trust me?”

I take a deep breath, remembering him sleeping on my couch and then driving a very expensive, potentially very dangerous car. At every point, I have trusted him. Why should this be any different?

I nod, and he continues to move us forward to the edge. With his body fully encasing mine, he holds on to the railing and takes a deep inhale.

“Open your eyes,” he whispers, and I gasp.

“How do you know they’re closed?” I whisper back.

“Because you’re still too tense. If they were open, you would see how amazing this is and let go of the fear. Come on, Evette. Take the chance. Make your grandfather proud. Live your life to the absolute peak.”

I rub my lips together and finally open my eyes.

My heart is pounding a million miles an hour. My back is stiff, my palms are a pool of anxiousness, and my brain is … calm.

Nic was right.

The most majestic, beautiful, amazing view I’ve ever seen is splashed in front of me like a magnificent painting, but it’s not. This is real life, and I lean back against him, taking it all in.

“Pretty unreal, huh?” he says, and I nod. “Now, look down.”

“Nope.” I chuckle under my breath, keeping my eyes glued straight ahead, enjoying the warmth and safety of him around me.

“Okay, baby steps and all.” I feel his smile against my face. “How does it feel?”

“Frightening,” I answer honestly. “And exhilarating. It’s like nothing I ever pictured. And the sense that this glass could shatter into a million pieces—”