Chapter 9 #3
Life happened. Equipment failed. Rock gave way under weight it should have held.
She couldn’t control any of that.
But she could trust the true Rock.
Unmovable. Unshakable. Strong enough to bear any weight, answer any question, hold any doubt.
She’d anchored herself into the sand for too long. Worse—she’d tried to be the anchor herself.
But that wasn’t her job.
God was the anchor.
She just had to trust Him to hold.
Teague pulled himself over the edge, breathing hard but grinning despite the obvious pain in his ribs. He settled beside her—close enough that their shoulders touched. “Not bad.”
“Says the guy who just climbed fifty feet with bruised ribs.”
“I’ve had worse.” He stretched his legs out, wincing. “One time in Red Rock, I fell on this 5.11 and cracked my tibia.”
“Let me guess. You still finished the route.”
“Seemed important at the time. And I could maneuver most of it on one leg.”
“You’re insane.”
“Determined. There’s a difference.” He glanced at her, his green eyes warm. “How are you feeling?”
Eden considered the question.
That tight knot of fear and guilt had loosened enough that she could almost breathe around it.
“Better.”
Teague turned toward her, his expression shifting. More serious. More intent. His eyes searched her face. “I know you nodded the other night. But I don’t want to read too much into that. A lot has happened, and if—”
“I’m okay if you kiss me.”
He bit the corner of his lip. “Okay then.”
“Oh.” Heat flooded her cheeks. “Maybe that isn’t where you were going with this. I mean, you obviously didn’t want to kiss me down below, and—”
“First of all, I absolutely wanted to kiss you down below.” His voice dropped, roughened.
“The only reason I didn’t was because I was afraid if I did, I’d give up my quest to get you up here.
That, and I wanted you in a good headspace.
” His eyes held hers. “I wanted to give you the chance to walk away if that’s what you wanted. I’ll still be here either way.”
He reached out and tucked a strand of blonde hair behind her ear. “Like I said—you can trust me. No matter what. I won’t leave you.”
Eden’s heart squeezed. “I don’t want to walk away.”
“Good.” A slow smile spread across his face. “Because I really didn’t want to have to chase you down this cliff.”
She unclipped her helmet and set it aside. The evening breeze caught her hair.
Teague stared at her for a moment. Then he removed his helmet and leaned in.
Slowly. Giving her plenty of time to pull away.
She didn’t.
His lips met hers—soft and careful. His hand came up to cup her face, his thumb brushing along her cheekbone.
Eden closed her eyes.
She leaned into the kiss. Into him. The tight fear in her chest finally released its grip.
His other hand slid to the small of her back, drawing her closer, and she melted against him. The kiss deepened. Her fingers curled into the fabric of his shirt—anchoring herself to this moment, to him.
A promise that she didn’t have to carry everything alone anymore.
When they finally pulled apart, Teague rested his forehead against hers.
“We should head back,” he said quietly. “Before Xander and Marcus send out a search party.”
“Probably.”
Neither of them moved.
They just sat there on that small plateau, the canyon glowing around them.
Finally, Teague stood and pulled the radio from his pack. “We should try and connect with Noah from up here. Might have better luck with less interference.” He tried multiple frequencies but got only static. “Still nothing.”
“Try Liam’s team,” Eden suggested. “They’re closer.”
Teague switched frequencies. “Liam, this is Teague. Do you copy?”
Static crackled. Then Liam’s voice came through—distorted and breaking up. “—eague. Copy. Barely—you—Over.”
“We made the first climb. Found the cave but no chest. How about you? Over.”
“—thing at first marker. Cave was—ty. Moving to—cond location tomorrow. —ver”
“Copy that. We had some—” Teague glanced at Eden.
She knew he was about to mention his fall. The route choice that had nearly killed him.
“We had a great first climb. Over,” Teague said instead.
Eden stared at him.
“—eat. Check in tom—row. Something—fecting signal. Over.”
“Understood. Stay safe. Over.”
He clipped the radio back onto his pack and offered Eden his hand. “Come on. Let’s get down before we lose the light.”
Eden took his hand and let him pull her to her feet. “You didn’t have to do that.”
“Do what?”
“Cover for me.”
“I didn’t.” His green eyes held hers. “One hold failed. Everyone lived. It was a good climb.”
“Teague—”
“We’re not doing this again.” His voice was gentle but firm. “Come on.”
The descent was easier than the climb up. And as they started down together, Eden realized something had changed. Not just in how she thought about climbing, or about Teague, or even about herself.
But in how she thought about being here.
She’d come to the North Rim to hide away.
But for the first time since she’d arrived, maybe—just maybe—she wasn’t hiding anymore. Maybe she was exactly where she was supposed to be.
Anchored into the Rock.
And finally, blessedly, not alone.