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Quickly, she had to put both hands back on the trellis or risk falling. This wasn’t as easy as tackling the climbing wall at the gym.
She was trying to be quiet. Waking the neighbors was not the way to keep a low profile. Even worse would be having someone call the police.
At last, she reached the window on the second floor. Not for a thousand dollars would she risk looking down. Though she wasn’t particularly afraid of heights, no point in courting danger.
The muscles in her arms trembled and ached. Supporting her own weight was no easy task. She was tired and out of breath. So much for thinking she was in great shape.
She clung to the trellis, giving her heartbeat a chance to slow down. When she thought she could handle the one-arm thing again, she reached up and shoved at the base of the window.
Amazingly, it budged. Not a lot. But enough to let her know it wasn’t locked. Hallelujah.
Unfortunately, this was going to be a slow process. She clung to the trellis yet again to catch her breath. After a few moments, she tried to get her fingertips under the bottom edge of the window frame.
The house was old. The windows were old. The tracks weren’t smooth. Cate panted now. The window moved upward maybe half an inch.
She needed to be able to push harder, but from her precarious position, she didn’t have enough leverage.
All the pain and the disappointment of the last week came crashing down over her. Just as she felt a twinge ofwhy meself-pity, another part of her pushed back.She could do this.
But everything changed in an instant when a loud scraping noise startled her so badly, she nearly lost her balance and tumbled to the ground.
Harry opened the window and stuck his head out, his expression incredulous. “What in the hell are you doing?”
Busted. Cate’s first instinct was to laugh hysterically. But she wasn’t out of danger yet.
“I locked myself out of the house,” she said.
“And you didn’t think to call me?” His annoyingly superior tone questioned her intelligence.
“I did call.Threetimes. I assumed you were either asleep or in the shower. But since you seem to be fully dressed and wide-awake, I guess you were screening your calls?”
He winced at her sarcasm, and his expression changed. “Had my headphones on with ‘do not disturb,’” he said gruffly. “I was listening to a podcast. How long have you been hanging out here? Give me your hand.”
It was a bad time for Cate to discover a fear of falling. “I don’t know if I can,” she said, still breathless. The combination of adrenaline and exertion left her feeling woozy. Her knuckles ached from gripping the trellis so tightly.
Harry smiled down at her. “Trust me, Catie-girl. I’ve picked up heavier things than you.”
“I don’t want to tear my rotator cuff. Or dislocate my shoulder.”
He chuckled. “Obviously you’ve been out here awhile if you’re analyzing all the possible outcomes. What if we do a slow and gentle up and over?”
Cate blinked the sweat out of her eyes. Why did his words sound like a description of sex? She must be losing it.
“Okay,” she grumbled. “I’ll try. But swear you won’t drop me.”
“I swear.”
She let go with her right hand and changed her mind at the last minute. That was backward. Clearly, she needed to give Harry herlefthand and use her stronger arm to hang on.
With both hands clutching the trellis, she gave herself a pep talk. If she could do this, she could take a shower and go to bed.
“Here goes,” she mumbled.
“Wait,” Harry said urgently. “Can you climb up one more rung? That would make what we’re about to do easier.”
Her legs were wobbly. She was pretty sure she was bleeding in at least a dozen different places. “I’ll try.”
Though nothing in her body wanted to move, she made herself bend a knee, lift a leg, find a foothold and heft herself upward. Now at least her head was above the windowsill.
