Faker - Sarah Smith Page 0,21
join?”
My giddiness has morphed into full-fledged joy. Jamie the hunky contractor just asked me out. Score.
“I’d love to.”
Just a few feet away, Tate has given up on slicing lumber and instead is chugging from his gigantic water bottle. He stares at Jamie and me with repulsion. I wonder what his problem is now.
“I was hoping you’d say that. Here, let’s exchange numbers, and I’ll text you later with the details.”
I nearly melt at the way he tilts his head to the side. I manage a nod. After we return our phones to each other, he flashes me another heart-melting smile. The scrape of plastic on concrete jerks my attention away. Tate’s hard hat tumbles to the concrete base of the foundation while he stomps off. One of the warehouse workers picks it up before hollering at Tate, “What gives?” But Tate doesn’t even acknowledge him while walking away. He’s probably angry Jamie and I interrupted his sawing session with our grotesque unprofessional flirting.
Jamie waves good-bye to me as he jogs back to his company’s worksite nearby while I jump back in with the others.
* * *
• • •
THE EXCITEMENT OF my rock climbing date propels me through the rest of the afternoon, but the moment I arrive at the gym, I’m petrified. It finally registers that I’ll have to scale some pretty serious heights on this date with Jamie. One problem: I have a numbing fear of heights.
Jamie greets me at the entrance. I try to zero in on his perfectly straight teeth to distract myself, but even that won’t do.
When I step inside, I immediately feel inadequate. Every single person sports a lean, muscular frame and impressive upper body. Climbers hang ten feet from the ground by their fingers, bent at the knuckles. I can’t even do a chin-up. I’m screwed. Thank God the floor is covered in inches-thick rubber mats. I’ll be cozying up to those face-first real soon.
When I stare up at the climbing walls, my stomach churns. Each one is dotted with multicolored knobs, denoting the various difficulty levels. The walls look like they have Muppet measles. My throat tightens until it’s sore.
“It’s something, isn’t it?” Jamie nudges me. I’m too terrified to speak. “Want to head up first? I’ll spot you.”
“Uh, no.”
“I know the climbing walls look intimidating, but I actually think it’s easier to get your feet wet doing this first. Then we can try out bouldering.”
“Okay,” I mumble. I look down at my hands. They’re trembling. I cross my arms to hide it.
“Here. I’ll go first and show you.”
I watch Jamie as he explains how to put on the harness and strap on the safety cord. His mouth moves, but I register no words. A faint ringing noise is all I hear while nerves crackle under my skin. He claps some chalk onto his hands and scales to the top in record time. He must be part mountain goat. An easy grin crosses his face when he gazes down at me, looking like he just graced the cover of Outside magazine.
Sweat pools under my arms, in my palms, on the inside of my elbows. I have a sinking feeling that I will die if I try to climb this wall. It’s a completely irrational thought, but I can’t help it. Heights bring out worst-case-scenario me.
Jamie is rappelling back down when I hear a familiar voice.
“You okay?” I turn to my left and see Tate.
“What are you doing here?” My fear is now tainted with annoyance. He is the last person I need to see.
“Working out. I’m here most Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays.”
“Oh.” Just speaking that single word leaves me out of breath. My nerves are officially shot.
“Hey, are you all right?” he asks.
I shake my head. “I don’t do heights.”
“Then why are you here?”
The urge to rebuff him overtakes my fear. Of course I would run into Tate at the rock climbing gym when I’m on the verge of having a panic attack, and of course he would be here to witness it.
“Jamie invited me,” I say defensively.
“If you don’t feel comfortable doing this, you shouldn’t.” I notice he’s wearing a gray tank top dotted with his sweat. His arms are encased in sculpted muscle and thick veins. I had no idea under all those hoodies he had the pipes of a Greek god.
I blink and shake my head. “I’m fine. I’ll be fine.”
Jamie drops to the ground. “Oh, hey, Tate. What’s up?” How he can be so cheery after scaling a forty-foot