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What could she do to make things work? She texted back a heart and praying emoji. She didn’t want to get either of their hopes up and wanted to have some answers before she booked a flight back to Colorado. Could she afford that? If she sold her condo, she could. But maybe she could just pack up her old Nissan Maxima and make a long drive. Would he really hire her? Would his parents really want her to stay at their house until she found a place?
She bit at her thumbnail. It was all big and scary. Especially for a woman who’d failed horribly at her first marriage and hadn’t trusted a man or herself in a romantic relationship since.
She brushed her teeth and laid down on her bed, picturing Jace and remembering their kisses, the flirtatious conversations, the hope and joy he brought to her.
Could love really happen for her?
Or was she setting herself up for a worse heartbreak than last time?
* * *
A pounding on her door tugged Ayla from a deep sleep. She blinked but could only see darkness. The pounding came again.
She rolled out of bed, picking up her cell phone from the dresser. Four-thirty a.m. She woke up a little more. She’d slept for almost twelve hours? She was supposed to do something at four-thirty.
Oh, crap. Taryn!
Hurrying to the door, she flung it open. “Sorry,” she told her friend. “I fell asleep yesterday afternoon and didn’t wake up.”
“Oh, my.” Taryn hurried into the apartment and shut the door. “Get dressed. Let’s go run and chat this out.” She gave her a hug. “Hurry. I’m dying for info here.”
Ayla laughed and got dressed. Within minutes, they were out on the dark pavement. It was almost fifty degrees, balmy compared to Summit Valley.
They ran and chatted and Taryn pried for every detail. By seven, Taryn had vivid descriptions of every kiss and flirtation and she was ready to move to Summit Valley herself. She was convinced Jace was the most heroic man in history and deserved her trust and devotion. “The hunk dove on a criminal aiming an assault rifle at him … for you. I’m in love!”
Her friend convinced her that selling the condo was the move. Taryn found a number and dialed while they kept up a jog. It was six a.m. by that point, but they still woke their friend Andrea, an accomplished realtor. Andrea agreed to be to Ayla’s condo by nine to take pictures and list it. Even groggy from being woken up, she was positive it would sell quick and for top dollar.
Taryn then counseled Ayla through what she could do to still be there for her parents and grandma. Some of the money from the condo sale could be set aside to help with her grandma’s care and for Ayla to come visit her family. Taryn would pitch in to buy Grandma and her parents Echo Shows or Kindle Fires for Christmas. They could do video calls easily on either.
After sweaty hugs, thanking Taryn for the help, and a long shower, Ayla enjoyed breakfast and was ready to meet with her realtor friend. The meeting went well, and she was optimistic her condo would sell as fast as her friend thought it would.
She checked her phone after the meeting, but no word from Jace. She bit at her thumbnail. Should she start packing? No, that would be presumptuous. But she was going insane waiting already, and it hadn’t even been twenty-four hours.
Driving into town, she found herself parked in front of the stupid insurance office. She was glad Bryan hadn’t been killed and those men had been arrested. She unlocked the office, turned on her computer, and listened to a string of voicemails on the office phone.
Five hours later, her stomach grumbled, but she still had emails to respond to. State Farm was trying to sort everything out, but they were in a mess and lots of clients needed her help. The State Farm people promised they’d pay her generously for her time and pay her all the bonuses she’d earned if she’d help them work with Bryan’s clients and transition them. She would’ve helped her clients transition regardless, but she appreciated the executive office being fair with her.
What else did she have to do? Jace hadn’t texted her today. But she didn’t want to look for jobs here if she was moving to Summit Valley. Moving to Summit Valley. Her stomach hopped happily at the very thought and her heart thudded faster simply thinking of Jace.
She picked up lunch from the deli a few doors down and then went back to work. It was demanding, and she was happy to help. It also helped pass the time and kept her from dwelling on Jace.
Every hour that passed, she inadvertently slid back into her old life—no hopes, no dreams, just run with Taryn in the morning, keep the office running, visit her parents and grandma and sometimes go to activities with the church group. Basic, boring … her life.
No! The dream of her and Jace couldn’t slide away. But why hadn’t Jace texted or called? Should she reach out? She hated that she was like an infant with relationships and suddenly lacking confidence.
She remembered something about Tuesday, the famed Hudson Delta, and parachutes. That’s right. How had she forgotten about his event? What if he’d done some crazy trick with Death Wish Delta and he’d been killed?
She gasped. Yanking out her phone, she realized she’d worked two hours after closing time. What else was new? She shut down her computer, turned off the lights, and locked up the office. She walked out onto the street and down to a park a few blocks down. It was chilly as the sun had set two hours ago, but she didn’t want to go home to her condo. If something had happened to Jace, she didn’t know where she’d want to be. That had to be why he hadn’t called. Her stomach clenched with apprehension.
Clicking on Instagram, she typed in Hudson Delta. A picture of a handsome guy with the Delta blue eyes, a devil-may-care smile, and a beautiful wife and son cuddled in his arms came up. #bravedelta had replaced #deathwishdelta.
She saw the first video on the feed was a helicopter and lots of snow. She clicked on it. It was seven hours old. Her fingers were stiff and slick as she clung to the phone and watched as Hudson introduced Jace, Ammon, Klein, and some tough-looking guy named Lieutenant Van Udy.
Ayla’s breath caught just seeing Jace’s handsome face, those deep-brown soulful eyes, and his grin. He looked so happy, so healthy, so great. So without her.
Then they were spilling out of the helicopter, landing in the fluffy white snow on their skis, and somehow the cameraman followed them. The camera must’ve been in the helicopter, but she didn’t hear helicopter rotors. They overlaid upbeat music on the video.
Watching those five men ski was absolutely insane and terrifying. Her eyes were always focused on the lean frame and the grayish-blue coat with the black helmet that she knew was Jace. In her mind, he did the best tricks, but they were all fabulous. They skimmed down steep mountainsides like they were floating, then they’d launch off of sheer cliffs—flipping and twisting their bodies in aerial stunts she’d never seen the likes of.
