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“Worse,” I gasped. “I’m having an epiphany.”
Tamilee released me with a chuckle. “All right. Wherever your head is, it’s not in the room with us. We’ll try again tomorrow. Get some water and a snack, okay?”
I nodded and gathered my things. I checked my phone. No message from Seb, which wasn’t surprising, since he’d told me he was going for a hike. My thumb hovered over the keyboard, but I hesitated, chewing my lip. I wasn’t sure exactly what I wanted to say to him, but I knew it needed to be in person. I exited out of our messages and shoved my phone in my bag.
“Hey, Lila.”
I glanced up. Mateo leaned in the doorway, circling his keys on his index finger. “Hey,” I said.
“Want to go for a ride?”
“Where to?” I asked curiously. Then I shook my head. “You know what, never mind. Seb went hiking. I’m not sure when he’ll be back, but I want to be here when he does.”
“Hiking, huh? Is that what he told you?”
Apprehension fluttered in my stomach. “Yes. Why? What’s going on?”
He jerked his head toward the door. “Come on. I’ll tell you on the way.”
Five minutes later, we were bumping along a dirt road that stretched between Mercy River Ranch and the neighboring ranch, Silver Pines.
“Seb didn’t lie, exactly. The only way up to Raven’s Roost is a four-mile trail. He might still be hiking, actually. He always texts me when he lands, but I haven’t heard from him since he told me where he was going. The flight itself is barely sixty seconds, so he probably hasn’t jumped yet. If we’re lucky, we might be able to see him. Look for a giant red flying squirrel. That’s probably him.”
Unless he hasn’t texted because he’s dead. That was another possibility, but I didn’t say it out loud. I wasn’t putting that kind of negative energy into the universe. My man was getting only good vibes from me.
“Why didn’t he tell me?” I asked, more to myself than Mateo.
Mateo answered anyway. “Probably because he didn’t want you to talk him out of it.”
My lips flattened. “I wouldn’t have.”
“Hmm.” Mateo pulled off the road. “This is as close as we can get. See that tree about a mile across the field? That’s where he’ll land.”
“In the tree?” I asked stupidly.
“Well, no. About twenty feet from it. It makes a good marker. He can see it from Raven’s Roost, and I can see it from the road. So it’s easy for us to find each other.”
“How does he know where he’s going to land?”
“Wingsuiting is all math and science. He plotted this course two years ago, and he’s done it at least a hundred times since. He knows the exact square foot of space he’ll land on. Trust me.”
That made me feel a little better. Seb had always been into extreme sports, although I hadn’t realized he’d taken it this far. He was an adrenaline junkie, but he was meticulous when it came to safety.
And then I saw it. Far in the distance, like a red handkerchief floating against the blue sky. “That’s him! Oh, my god, he’s actually flying.”
Fear made me want to slam my eyes shut, but awe and love kept me locked in. If these were going to be Seb’s last moments on earth, I wasn’t going to waste them. But I gripped the frame of the ATV for moral support.
“He’s not going to die, Lila. Wingsuit BASE jumping is dangerous, but the way he does it is safer than some people drive cars. He chose this flight in particular to make sure he didn’t, because you need him alive. He’s not leaving this earth until you’re safe.”
“He told you that?” I asked.
“He didn’t have to.”
The red handkerchief moved closer and closer to earth, and then I couldn’t see it anymore. A moment later, Mateo’s phone buzzed. He glanced at it, then smiled.
“He landed safely. It will take him twenty minutes or so to get to us, and then we’ll drive him to the trailhead to get his truck.”
“It’s going to take twenty minutes for him to walk a mile across the field?”
