Chapter 42 “Jump Then Fall” - Taylor Swift
“Jump Then Fall” - Taylor Swift
Pierce
I couldn’t have asked for a better day. The sun is shining, and there’s a perfect amount of cloud coverage. A gentle breeze is blowing just enough to keep it from feeling hot.
When Lux issued this month’s challenge, I knew immediately what I wanted to do. Maeve is terrified of heights, but this isn’t about scaring her and claiming victory for myself. I don’t give a fuck about the game anymore. All I care about is ensuring that she remains mine for the rest of eternity.
Ever since the party at her family’s estate, she’s been pulling back. I’m guessing it has to do with what she told me about her teacher, but I’m terrified it has to do with Preston, terrified that she’s thinking about breaking things off between us in order to be with him.
Her dark green Bentley convertible pulls up on the tarmac with the top down. My heart ricochets around my chest as I wait for her to get out. When she finally does, I can’t help the grin that spreads over my face.
“I thought you didn’t own pants,” I say.
She stops just short of me, wearing a dark red sports bra and black leggings that hug her figure in all the right places, tempting me to ditch my plans for the morning and run my hands all over her. Huge sunglasses cover her eyes. “I do yoga, dumbass.”
I shake my head and lower my aviators. Today will be fun. Maybe not as fun as her making me the nude model for a bunch of horny women, but fun in a different way.
“You could have told me we were flying today.” She points at the small plane parked behind us. “I definitely don’t need spandex for that.”
I stride over to the gear piled on the asphalt and return with a jumpsuit. “Actually,” I say, handing it to her, “you need it for this.”
Maeve fingers the nylon material with disdain. “This is synthetic.”
“Precisely. It will protect you from the wind.” I slip my feet into the legs of my own suit and pull it up.
“It’s hardly windy out here, and I’m fine,” she says. As if on cue, the breeze lifts her hair and gently blows it across her face.
I squint up at the sky. “You’re fine here, but you won’t be thirteen thousand feet up there.”
Her entire body freezes, her alarm bells clearly ringing. “You’ve got to be fucking kidding me.”
“I’m not kidding, but I’m happy to fuck you first.” Flashing her a grin, I pull up my zipper.
“Pierce, I’m serious.” She shoves her black suit at me. “I’m not doing this.”
“You sure? That’s an automatic forfeit.”
Her face turns ten shades of red as I waggle my eyebrows at her. I knew she’d never agree to this any other way. The only thing that will get her into that plane is the competition. She hates losing more than she hates heights.
At least that’s what I’m banking on.
“I cannot jump from a plane,” she says, her voice small.
“That’s okay. I’ll do the jumping for both of us.”
She doesn’t seem to take much comfort from the thought.
“Hey,” I say, placing my hands on her shoulders so she’ll look up at me. “I wouldn’t take you up if it wasn’t safe. Do you trust me?”
She pushes her sunglasses onto her head, revealing eyes wide with fear. I can read the hesitation there, her questioning how to respond, and I know that whatever she says next will be the truth. Her swallow is audible. “Yes,” she says quietly.
My heart soars like a plane on the jump run. “Good.” I lean down and drop a kiss on her lips. “Then let’s get you suited up.”
She reluctantly dons the jumpsuit. “I look like an idiot,” she mutters as she yanks up the zipper.
“A very hot idiot.” I pull her hair back and gather it into a quick braid, tying the end with a rubber band I grabbed for this reason.
She smooths her hand over it and gives me a questioning look. “How do you know how to do that?”
Instead of answering, I toss her a wink and grab her hand. “Come on, let’s go.”
It’s been months since I’ve been up, and I can’t wait. Having Maeve with me will only make the experience that much better. At least that’s my thinking until we take off and I see her face lose all of its color the higher the plane ascends. She looks terrified out of her mind.
“Hey.” I cup her face in my palms. “We don’t have to do this.”
She drops her eyes down to her lap. “And then you’ll tell everyone I forfeited.”
“I won’t. I swear. No one has to know you didn’t jump.”
I can see the wheels turning in her head. She’s probably wondering what I stand to gain by lying for her. The truth is, nothing. I would give up this whole game if I thought I’d still have her after it ended. But I’m too scared she’ll cut me out afterward to risk it.
“No, I’ll do it,” she says softly, even though her hands are trembling.
I wrap both of them between mine. “All you have to do is trust me. I’ll be with you the entire time, okay?”
“Believe me, the fact that if I die, you die is the only thing giving me hope.” She gives me a coy look, and my heart pounds with the need to make her mine.
When the altitude is right, the private instructor I hired helps strap us together. As the door opens, I place my hands on Maeve’s hips. “I’ve got you,” I murmur into her neck.
And then we’re free-falling.
Maeve screams, and I laugh, not at her but from the sheer exhilaration of plummeting thousands of feet to the ground. It’s one of the most incredible experiences I’ve ever had, and sharing it with her is absolute bliss.
After a few seconds, she quiets. I can sense her body relaxing beneath mine as we continue falling. Then it’s time to deploy the canopy, and there’s a slight tug as it slows our descent.
“Are you good?” I yell over the rush of the wind.
She nods, her hands clutching the straps of the harness.
Within minutes we’re landing, the parachute collapsing behind us in the drop zone. I release the buckles, and she stumbles away from me, resting her hands on her knees.
I detach my gear and drop it onto the ground before approaching her. Stroking her back, I wait for her heart rate to decrease. When she finally realizes I’m there, she collapses into my arms.
“Hey,” I say, catching her. “You were amazing.”
Her heart is still pounding furiously—I can feel it—and her body is trembling.
She doesn’t say anything, so I tuck her in close, resting my chin on top of her head, where it belongs.
I squeeze her tight, wishing I could weld her to me and never let go.
In the space of a few short months, she’s become the most important thing in the world to me.
Sensing her pulling back, I slide my hands down to her waist and wait for her to meet my eyes. We’ve both removed our goggles, and her cheeks are slightly windburned. She looks like a dream.
Maeve lets out a shaky breath. “That was the most terrifying thing I’ve ever done.”
“Worse than letting Rhett drive your car?”
Making a conciliatory face, she says, “Okay, second most terrifying.”
“Was it at least a little bit fun?” I ask, scrunching up my nose.
She blows a tiny raspberry. “Fun might be a stretch. I can’t believe I’m still alive.”
Tucking a strand of hair behind her ear, I gaze down at her. She’s the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen. “I don’t know,” I murmur. “I think this might be heaven.”