Page 36 of The Upside of Falling
“Why?”
“Because”—he turns toward me—“I would have noticed you.” A crimson wave stains my cheeks as I look at the ground and kick a little pebble down the slope of the rock.
“What made you change your mind?” I ask, needing to see if what I’m feeling isn’t just a one-sided yearning.
“What made me change my mind about you?”
I nod.
Scratching the side of his jaw and staring at Pikes Peak, he says, “It was never about changing my mind about you. It was about giving in to something I couldn’t control anymore. Despite everything in me, no matter how hard I tried, you were everywhere. I couldn’t shake you out of my head. It was similar to how my decision to become a fighter pilot felt all over again. All I could think about; all I could dream about. I knew there had to be a reason.”
“And what’s the reason?” I ask, shyly, my voice barely audible above the light breeze.
He shrugs. “Hell if I know at this point. What I do know is that after those few weeks apart, I was aching for more of your letters. I couldn’t deny it anymore. Couldn’t deny you. I needed to feel your mouth on mine to see if it was everything I thought it would be.”Good Lord, this man is so beautiful.He was aching for my letters?For me.
“Was it?” I tilt my head to the side, catching his smirk as he squeezes my hand.
“So much fucking more.”
I nudge his shoulder. “You weren’t so bad yourself.”
He raises his brows at me, a disbelieving look in his eyes. “Not so bad? You have to give a guy more credit than that.”
I shake my head. “Where’s the fun in that?”
He chuckles. “So . . . do you spray all the letters you send with perfume?”
“No, that’s only special for you. Was it a nice touch?”
“A fucking fantastic touch,” he says. “And the lips on the bottom.” A small groan pops out of him. “I’ve had fantasies about that lipstick, and seeing it on the paper didn’t help.”
Oh God. I had fantasies when I kissed the letters, wishing I was kissing him all over his chiseled body.Over and over again.
I clear my throat and ask, “What kind of fantasies?”
“Not the kind you talk about in a sacred spot.”
“Ohhh, so very dirty fantasies.”
He stares out toward Pikes Peak. “You could say that.”
Turning completely toward him, I play with his Air Force sweatshirt, the Under Armour fabric smooth as silk, loving how our conversation feels so real.And a little dirty. Veryunlike the one-sided ones we had before. This is the real Colby. And I’m completely enamored.
I turn his head toward mine, allowing myself to get lost in his mysterious eyes that are hooded by his thick, sharp eyebrows. “Tell me one fantasy,” I whisper.
His gaze falls to my lips and then moves back to my eyes. His tongue peeks out, wetting his lips as he leans forward, capturing my cheek in his large hand. Talking evenly, he says, “One fantasy?” He shakes his head. “Nah, those are for me only. Come up with your own and see if we can meet in the middle.” Softly, his lips take mine, nipping and gliding but never pressing too hard, driving me crazy.
I moan in frustration, causing him to chuckle once again, and I doubt that sound will ever grow old to me. I wish he did it more often, because it’s beautiful, low and gritty. It rumbles over me like water down a rocky creek bed.
He pulls me in and holds me close to his chest, and we stare at the mountain range, a comfortable silence falling between us. The distant sound of visitors to the park sound off along with a few birds floating into their hollowed-out perches on the side of the gigantic rocks. It’s peaceful. Serene.
Breaking the silence, he clears his throat and says, “I got into flight school.”
Head whipping up, a huge smile across my face, I pull him into a hug, practically tackling him on the rock. He laughs and holds me in place as I squeeze him tightly. “Oh my God, Colby, that is so amazing. Congratulations. I can’t believe you didn’t tell me that right away.”
“Kind of still in shock.” When I pull away, he rubs the top of his head, his fingers sifting through his short brown strands. “I’ve been working so hard for this. Everything I’ve done leading up to this point has been to meet this one goal.” He takes a deep breath. “And now, there’s a shift in my focus. Now it’s all about graduating and proving to the instructors at flight school that I was made to fly a fighter.”
I shake my head in disbelief. “This is so awesome, Colby. You are incredible.”
