Page 15 of Chasing Forever

She also liked building the anticipation before the characters became intimate, so she needed to write scenes with them interacting. In the past, she’d had daily interactions with Adam to draw from, but now…

“That’s it! I’m doing it!”

She slid her feet into the flip-flops she’d left by the patio door, ran her fingers through her hair, and went out the door. This time, she didn’t bother grabbing a notebook, because it would be too obvious.

She’d pretend she’d been out for a walk and had accidentally run into him. And Quinn doesn’t think I can be subtle. Ha!

It was the hottest point of the day, and beads of sweat broke out on her back. She was wearing white shorts and a blue tank top with an anchor on it, and her hair whipped around in the breeze. Her skin was starting to brown, and she’d happily stopped wearing foundation since she’d lost her winter pallor.

It was amazing what one week in Hawaii could do for a person. She looked and felt better than she had in months. Feeling bolstered by her conversation with Quinn, she was glad she’d decided to track Chase down.

But when she got to the beach, he wasn’t there. After scanning the sand, she looked out at the people swimming in the ocean, but he wasn’t there either.

Then a giant splash made her turn to the left, where the sound had come from. There were ripples in the water, and then a man’s head emerged, but it wasn’t Chase. Her eyes traveled up to the cliff that he had apparently jumped from. There was Chase, standing at the edge, clapping along with a handful of other people who’d watched the man jump.

Her eyes bulged when she realized that he was in line to jump too. She was a writer, not a mathematician, so she had no idea how high the cliff was. However, it was high enough to make her stomach clench and to worry about his safety.

She spotted the path from the beach up to the clifftop and noticed a group of teens was currently traversing it. Her feet propelled her in that direction even though she had no idea what she’d do once she reached the top. All she knew was she wanted to get closer and watch the brave souls who were attempting it.

She took off her flip-flops and hurried across the sand. When she reached the dirt path, she stopped briefly to put them on again and wished she’d been wearing sneakers instead.

The path looked innocuous enough from the ground, but the more she climbed, the more she realized how high it was.

Don’t look down, she chanted. Keeping her eyes straight ahead, she concentrated on placing one flip-flop in front of the other. The things I do in the name of research!

Once she reached the top, she paused to catch her breath and looked out at the magnificent view before her. If she’d thought the ocean was beautiful from the beach, this view was a thousand times better! Even if she hadn’t been out of breath, the scene would have taken her breath away. Various shades of blue and green spread out as far as the eye could see, broken up by a few white puffy clouds and the whitecaps beating against the cliffs.

Just then, someone else jumped, and the onlookers cheered and clapped as the next person stepped up to take his turn. Chase.

“Chase!” It might not have been the best timing, but his name flew out of her mouth before she could stop it.

He jerked his head around and saw her, his expression a mix of surprise and pleasure.

“Hey, dude? It’s your turn,” said a teenage boy behind him.

“You go ahead,” Chase said and stepped out of line.

He walked over to where she was standing slightly apart from the crowd and gave her a curious smile. “Hi.”

“Aloha.”

He chuckled. “I was surprised to hear my name. You almost missed me.”

“Were you really going to jump?”

“Yeah. I’ve wanted to since I got here.”

“But it looks so dangerous.”

She assumed he’d already read the warning signs posted along the trail and at the top, though they’d obviously gone unheeded.

“I think it looks like a blast. You should try it.”

She shook her head. “Risking my life for a quick rush isn’t really my thing.”

“But it could be the experience of a lifetime.”

Just then, the teenager gave a loud victory shout as he disappeared over the edge.