Chapter 13 #2
She nodded quickly, her gaze once again returning to the wall before going back to him. “So, I know that this morning’s already been a lot, with my confession in bed and you and Colt firing Rhett, but I have another one for you.”
“You’ve never rock climbed before.”
Her jaw dropped. “How did you know?”
This time when he looked at her, humor played in his eyes. “You told me a story one time about how you went for a walk, ate a fly, then didn’t go outside for an entire week. And you once referred to this harness as ‘that safety thing.’ There have been other signs too.”
Of course he knew. “I’m sorry I lied.”
“I’m not. I’m glad you wanted the job. And I wanted you to have it.”
Her bottom lip disappeared between her teeth before she glanced down at Noah’s strong, capable fingers as he cinched the strap on the harness. The combination of his closeness and the way the muscles in his arms flexed almost had her forgetting about the climb.
“I’m sorry about Rhett too,” she said.
His smile dropped. “I’m not. He hurt you.”
“I hurt him back.”
Not even a small lift of the lips.
Once the harness was in place, Noah reached for her wrist, and just like he’d done that morning, he swiped his thumb over the bruises. “He shouldn’t have touched you. No man should ever touch you if you don’t want them too. Especially not like that.”
Her breath caught, the touch and his words feeling intimate and warm over her skin.
She swallowed hard. “Any tips on climbing this wall?”
He grabbed the rope and threaded it through the carabiner of the harness.
“At first it will feel unnatural to hang on the wall and trust the rope. But remember, you’re safe.
Your legs are strongest, so let them do the heavy lifting.
Your arms are more like poles than anchors.
Look before you move and keep your hips close to the wall. ”
She nodded, not sure how much of that she’d taken in, but hopefully she remembered at least part of it.
“And most importantly,” Noah added, stepping back. “Don’t panic if you slip. The rope’s got you—and so do I.”
“Don’t panic if I slip. Got it.”
If? Ha. Just last week she’d slipped on perfectly non-slippery asphalt for no reason at all. None. Slipping on a vertical wall was inevitable.
When she was all harnessed in, he looked at her, his smile almost calming her racing heart. “Ready?”
“It’s too late to say no, right?”
“It’s never too late to say no.”
She sighed and looked up. She wasn’t going to back out…even if her brain shouted at her that she was going to die. She worked at a freaking wilderness park. She needed to at least give rock climbing a try. “I’m ready.”
He touched her hips. “Remember, I’ve got you.”
She nodded and turned to the wall. Okay, this time it definitely looked bigger.
Beside her, Buck was already a few feet up. He seemed to be struggling a bit. Though, when she started climbing, Buck was going to look like a freaking professional.
She chalked her hands before reaching for the first hold. She took a step up, then looked behind her to see Noah’s eyes on her gear. Her harness. The rope.
Safe. She was safe. And her rope would catch her if she slipped.
She found an edge for her foot and stepped up again, the click of the rope sliding another reminder that Noah was there, holding her and making sure that she was okay.
She took another step up, then another.
She was doing it. She was actually rock climbing!
Yes, the rock bit into her fingers and the muscles in her thighs were already burning, but she was almost halfway up the wall.
She was doing a heck of a lot better than she’d expected.
She should have asked someone to take a photo so her parents believed her when she told them.
She reached up and found another hold with her left hand.
She was just pulling herself up when Buck grunted beside her.
Addie glanced over to see the rope catch him as he slipped off the rock. She was about to turn back to the wall when someone shouted. Her gaze shot back to Buck to see him drop to the ground, part of the snapped rope falling with him.
Everything narrowed to a single sharp point of disbelief.
The rope had snapped. How was that possible? Would hers snap?
She jerked her gaze up, but as she did, her foot skidded and she fell off the wall.
Chaos sounded from below, but she singled out one voice. Noah’s.
“Grab onto the wall, Addison. Quickly!”
Heart thundering, she reached for the wall, getting it with her fingertips before pulling herself toward it. It took a second to find her footing, but as soon as she did, she looked up again—and this time she saw the thinning of her own rope.
Oh, Jesus…it was almost at the snapping point. That hadn’t been like that at the start of the climb.
Her breathing shortened. One wrong step, one slip of the foot and she’d fall, and the rope wouldn’t hold her.
She looked down to see Colt and Flint working on Buck. He’d fallen onto crash pads but he wasn’t moving. Maybe he’d hit them at a bad angle. She had no idea.
Oh God, oh God, oh God.
She looked back at the rock and closed her eyes, fear making nausea swell in her belly.
“Addison, don’t move. I’m coming,” Noah called.
She barely heard him. His voice competed with the roaring of blood between her ears.
She tried to focus on her breathing, knowing if she focused too much on what could happen, her grip on the wall might loosen.
It was fine. She’d be fine. Noah said he was coming and she trusted him.
She wasn’t sure how long she waited, just breathing through the panic, but the shuffle of movement sounded beside her. She turned her head to see Noah. He was so close that the warmth of his side penetrated her own.
“I can’t move,” she whispered.
“You’re doing great. You’re doing exactly what I asked you to do.”
She inhaled a long shaky breath. “Is Buck okay?”
“Don’t worry about Buck. Colt and Flint are taking care of him.”
She nodded quickly, but the move was jerky. “I’m scared.”
“I’m not going anywhere, and I’m not going to let anything happen to you.”
She wasn’t alone. Noah was here. She was safe with him. She just had to keep reminding herself of that.
“I’m clipping us together, okay?” Noah reached across and clipped her harness into a locking carabiner on his belay loop so that they were tethered together. He also unclipped the rope she’d been attached to. “You’re riding with me, honey.”
He smiled, and the small action thawed just a bit of the panic that crawled through her belly.
“Now, I need you to do something for me,” he said gently.
She wasn’t sure if she could do anything, but still she nodded.
“I need you to slide between me and the wall, wrap your arms around my shoulders and your legs around my waist.”
Move? He wanted her to move? “I don’t know if I can.”
“You can. Trust me.” He curled an arm around her waist. “I won’t let you fall.”
“I trust you.” There was so much truth in her words. Despite the fear and the panic, something about Noah made her okay with putting her life in his hands. But also, she didn’t really have any other options.
Letting go of the wall was hard, but she forced her fingers to uncurl. Her right arm trembled as it locked around his neck.
“That’s good, Addison. Now the other.”
The other hand was harder. It was her last grasp on the wall. She took one deep breath before turning her body and wrapping her other arm around his shoulders.
“That’s good. Now wrap your legs nice and tight around my waist like this.” He gripped her right thigh and gently guided it around his waist. “Feel safe?”
It was crazy, but she did. “Yes.”
“Good. Let’s get the hell off this wall.”
He began to climb down, his moves slow and deliberate. She clung to him, feeling the muscles straining in his back. He wasn’t connected to anything, but he probably didn’t trust the equipment anymore. She certainly didn’t.
“Almost there,” he whispered. “I’ve got you.”
She closed her eyes and dug her head into the crook of his neck. Her eyes were still closed when there was a soft thud. She opened them to see that Noah stood on the ground.
They’d made it. They were safe.
But she didn’t release him, and he didn’t set her down. She just held him, letting the power in his body chase away that last bit of fear.