Chapter 17
seventeen
“Are you sure you have the address, right?” I asked Ava as she pulled into the driveway of a small ranch house in Crieve Hall, a neighborhood in South Nashville. The modest single-level home sat off the road and boasted a two-car garage and a carport. I could clearly see Tripp’s Jeep parked in the carport, but nothing about this house screamed that Tripp James lived there. It was simple and not at all modern. In other words, it was nothing like the Take the Leap office, and it definitely didn’t look anything like the sleek condo where his official CEO portraits had been taken.
“Yes, I’m sure,” Ava said, glancing at her phone to confirm the address.
I asked, “Is the usual gang going to be here today?”
During our weekly meeting, Tripp had insisted we have two practice sessions in the kayak before he’d let me in the water, and he’d offered up his house and pool. One day on dry land, getting used to the boat, and another day in his pool, learning how to get out of sticky situations. In other words, he wanted to make sure I didn’t drown while they were filming us. I appreciated his concern, but as with all the other challenges, I just wanted to get this one over with. I’d never been a strong swimmer, and wasn’t usually a fan of water activities. I loved going to the beach, but it was mostly so I could sit under an umbrella, drink a fruity cocktail, and read a book. But, I’d done what I could to get ready for this excursion. I had a helmet, a life jacket, and a new bathing suit and outfit. Thankfully, it had been a work expense, so I didn’t have to cover the ridiculous cost. I’m pretty sure the guy at the sporting goods store oversold me on a few things once he realized I had no clue what I was talking about.
“You ready to go kayak in the grass?” Ava asked.
“No, but at least I won’t be getting wet today.” It was spring in Nashville, which meant one day the weather would feel like summer was a promise away, and the next winter would be raging for a comeback. Today was somewhere in the middle. Definitely not the kind of weather that beckoned me to the pool.
We got out of the car and headed toward the backyard, as Tripp had instructed. We found Liam, Kyle, and Tripp set up in the backyard. There were two kayaks and the same camera setup we’d been using for each of the challenges. As soon as I saw the kayaks on the ground, I was immediately grateful that this adventure didn’t involve any extreme heights. Just me strapped into a plastic boat I had no idea how to steer or even get in. It did look easier to manage than the massive basket on the balloon.
“Hey, we made it,” Ava said, announcing our presence. The Take the Leap team all turned to look at us. I was certain I looked ridiculous carrying my helmet and lifejacket, but I’d been told to bring them.
“We’re just about ready,” Liam said, “We want to make sure to get plenty this time around.”
“Today, I’ll be handling your training. But weather permitting, we’ll have a trained kayak instructor assisting in the pool tomorrow,” Tripp said.
I shivered thinking about the pool. I glanced across his massive backyard. The pool was in the center and fenced in. At least it looked like a decent size. Big enough for one kayak.
“Don’t worry,” Tripp said, following my gaze, “it’s heated.”
“Thank goodness.” I breathed a sigh of relief. “Today, we’re just sticking to land, right?”
“That’s the plan. We’ll work on proper positions, getting comfortable in the kayak, and paddling. But first, did you decide if you want to attempt a solo trip? Or do you want to stick to the two-seater so we can go together?”
My desire to stay afloat and my heart answered before my protective brain could kick in. “Two-seater.” The smarter option would be to go solo and keep my distance from Tripp, but that wasn’t the safe choice. Sure, I’d have a few days of training under my belt before we got into the river this weekend, but the thought of floating down the Cumberland River by myself was far too terrifying even to consider.
Liam announced he was ready with the cameras and asked for my helmet. After not getting much footage of Tripp during the zoo outing, the entire team decided that I’d always have a camera on just in case the footage of me wasn’t good enough. Well, to be fair, they hadn’t said good . They’d just said it wasn’t enough. The good was inferred.
He handed the helmet to Tripp, who inched closer to me and helped me strap it on. He gently shook it to ensure my head didn’t wobble. “Good. Tight and safe. We should probably go ahead and practice with the life jackets.”
“Seriously?” I glanced down at the oversized Savie sweatshirt I’d worn for the occasion. Anytime I could get our brand out there, I would. I wasn’t sure the life jacket would fit comfortably over the sweatshirt.
“Do you have a t-shirt on under that?” Ava asked. I shook my head. “We could trade?”
I laughed. Her extra small shirt would not fit over anything but my extra small chest. “We can try to make it work.”
Right as I said that Tripp said, “Here, take my shirt.” Before I could protest, he peeled off his shirt and handed it to me. I couldn’t look away. My gaze locked on the tattoos on his chest and arms, where it lingered for way too long before following the tiny trail of chest hair down to his very well-defined abs. When I reached the button of his jeans, I blinked and tried to act like I hadn’t just ogled my client. We were in work mode today, not get to know each other with our clothes off mode.
Taking the shirt, I turned to face away from the group to hide the embarrassment that had crept over my face. I felt Ava move to stand behind me. “Wipe the drool off your mouth,” she whispered into my ear. I nudged her back with my elbow.
I removed my helmet and quickly swapped my sweatshirt for Tripp’s t-shirt. It smelled just like him, and I had to resist the urge to keep my face buried inside of it. While I changed, I dug deep into my consciousness and tried to conjure up the most unappealing images I could think of. Snakes, bears, clowns. Snakes, bears, clowns. I repeated the words over and over until I felt my body and face cool. When I turned around, I met Tripp’s stare. If I didn’t know better, I might think he was looking at me just as I’d looked at him. I glanced down to make sure I’d put on the shirt correctly. I had.
“Why is he staring at me?” I asked Ava in a hushed whisper.
“Sadie, you’re wearing his shirt. And you’re wearing it pretty darn well.”
“Either that or I look ridiculous.”
“Nope, definitely not that.” She gave me a gentle shove toward him. He held out the life jacket, and I put it on.
“Don’t let me forget to change before I leave so I can give this back to you.”
“Keep it,” he said, his voice thick. He stood closer to me as he put the helmet on again. I could feel his breath on my face. “It looks better on you.”
“All right, now that everyone is comfortable, except those of us watching this, can we get moving before we run out of daylight? You guys can make swoony eyes at each other later,” Liam said with a laugh.
I started to protest. I wasn’t making swoony eyes, whatever that meant, and neither was Tripp. But Liam was ready to move on. He turned on both of our cameras and got into position beside Kyle while he reminded him to hold his phone steady while filming.
Tripp led us to the two-seater kayak. I climbed into the rear seat.
“You’ll sit in the front,” he said. I turned back to him, confused. There was absolutely no way I’d be leading us anywhere. “I’ll sit behind you and follow your paddle strokes. I’ll also steer.”
“Got it.” I pivoted and moved into the front seat. Liam handed me a paddle.
I waited for Tripp to climb in behind me, but he stood in front of the boat. “I’m going to show you how to hold the paddle, okay?” When I nodded, he carefully placed his hands on mine. He paused and waited to make sure I was comfortable with the contact. I ignored my instinct to move away from him and held still. He positioned my hands facing out and slid my right hand further away.
“You want to have your hands about shoulder-width apart. Loosen your grip a bit,” he said, “Your knuckles should line up with the blade here. See this curved part? That’s the back. When you paddle, you want this long edge to face up.” He ran his hand over the longer edge of the paddle to show me.
I rotated the paddle in my hands and held steady, determined not to drop the paddle or lean away from him. “Like this?”
He smiled and released my hands. “Just like that.” He moved to the rear of the kayak, leaned over me, and wrapped his hands around my wrist. “You’ll start the stroke by dipping your right arm like this.” I tried to relax my arms as he guided them through the fluid motion of a paddle stroke. He did this a few more times before releasing me. “Your turn.”
I attempted to move my arms in the same motion he had, but it felt clumsy. Rather than step in and move my arms for me, he slid into the kayak in front of me and moved his arms and shoulders in the proper motion. The muscles along his back flexed. I held my breath and watched him move his arms up and down. The flow of his arms had a soothing rhythm to it. I copied his movements. After a few minutes, he stood and moved to the rear of the boat. He asked Liam to hand him his paddle.
“If you fall out of rhythm, don’t worry. I’ll follow your lead.”
We spent the next hour going over the different paddle strokes and how he’d control the direction and speed of the boat. We’d be at the mercy of the wind and the current, but he’d be the one guiding us down the river. He didn’t have to say the words, but I could hear them in every sentence he spoke to me.
I’ve got you.