they’d forced me into just before we rappelled down a building in Manhattan.
“Actually”—Josh closed his book and stood, the picture of calm—“I think Eve should go with me.”
I looked between them. Did Josh have more skydiving experience? Alec said he had a license, whatever that meant.
“One minute!” Nina called.
“Good thinking!” Tyler slapped him on the back. “I still want you strapped together though.”
Josh nodded, already putting his harness on. It didn’t seem to be attached to a large backpack containing a parachute though . . .
“See you down there.” Tyler gave me a brief kiss on the lips and moved toward the door, taking his position in line to jump out of a fucking plane.
I couldn’t believe we were doing this.
“Nina’s about to open the door.” Josh pulled me to him. “It’s going to be windy and loud.” As I tied my hair back, he explained the best way to skydive, what to expect, how to hold my arms and legs out.
He flashed me his perfect teeth in a grin just as Nina turned the lever and the door went flying.
Frigid wind whipped all around us with a deafening roar.
I gripped the back of the seat. Nina waved and flashed me a smile as if she were popping out to grab us some coffee, then she stepped out and disappeared. My stomach dropped.
Alec and Ethan shuffled forward, Ethan’s back strapped to Alec’s front. They leaned forward in the door, and Ethan whooped as they went plummeting.
Tyler checked his straps one last time and stepped out without hesitation.
Josh nudged me to face the aisle, and I felt him attach my harness to his. “It’s our turn,” he yelled over the noise. “Now, juice me up, babe!”
I turned my wide eyes over my shoulder, and he caught my lips in a kiss. I pushed Light to him as if my life depended on it, focusing on the feeling of his perfect lips on mine, the tingling, warm sensation of the Light transferring.
As he kissed me, Josh walked us forward, down the aisle and toward the open door.
He broke the kiss and smiled. “Ready?”
I faced forward. We were already at the door, Josh’s hands gripping the sides of the opening, bright sunshine and a few fluffy clouds visible beyond.
I dared not look down.
“No.” I shook my head. Every instinct I had, every scrap of self-preservation in me, screamed to step the fuck back!
But Josh shoved forward, and we were officially jumping out of a plane.
My heart lodged in my throat and stopped beating.
I tried to scream, but the intense rush of air whipping at my face took my breath away.
We don’t have a parachute!
My mind reminded me of this little fact now that we were already free-falling.
Somehow, some part of my brain was with it enough to follow Josh’s instruction. I held my arms out loosely at my sides, my knees bent slightly, and tucked my chin against my chest, creating a little pocket of air so I could breathe before I passed out.
My eyes watered, and my face felt numb from the frigid air.
Josh’s arms banded around my middle, and he reminded me why jumping without a parachute wasn’t a fatal mistake.
Our plummet toward certain death slowed. After a few moments, I felt the unmistakable nudge of Josh’s ability.
He was using his telekinesis to fly.
In a moment of panic, I slammed more Light into him. I had to make sure he had enough! I knew how draining it was for him to do the flying thing, how hard he’d had to train to get it, how much Light and concentration he needed to do it for any length of time.
He grunted, and his arms tightened around me. Then he chuckled. “Ease up, Eve. I’ve got plenty. I won’t drop us.”
He didn’t have to shout at all for me to hear him. Actually, all the overwhelming noise had ended. I stopped the Light flow, leaving the connection open in case he needed more, and looked around.
We’d come to a complete stop and were floating among fluffy white clouds.
My shoulders relaxed just a fraction, and I took a deep breath of the fresh air. I hugged Josh’s arms around myself, feeling the muscles and tendons in his forearms as I craned my neck to look at him.
He smiled, relaxed, confident in his ability and my Light needed to fuel it. I smiled back, some of the fear finally dissipating. I couldn’t even feel the harness tugging me or cutting into my legs; Josh held