Side Trip(28)

“Tell him ‘hey’ for me.” The man looked at Joy and introduced himself. “I’m Griff.”

“Joy.” She shook his calloused hand.

“That’s Ben and Matt,” Griff said as the other two men came over and shook their hands. Joy glanced warily at Dylan, wondering what was going on that required three men to meet them at a bridge in the middle of nowhere.

Griff planted his hands on his hips. “You guys ready to jump the bridge?”

“What?” Joy exclaimed, her voice shrill. She looked at Dylan.

He held out his hands. “Surprise!”

Was he serious?

Joy’s gaze shot to the truck where Ben and Matt were unloading harnesses and a monstrous-size bungee cord.

“No. Not happening.” Joy waved her hands in front of her, backing away.

Dylan grasped her shoulders, making eye contact.

“You got this, Joy.”

“Are you kidding me? This is what you had in mind?” She looked at the bridge bracing the Colorado River that flowed five hundred feet below. Five. Hundred. Feet. The last time she’d plunged that depth she’d woken up without a sister. Joy freaked. She tried to shake off Dylan’s grip.

“Look at me,” Dylan said. He had to repeat the request before Joy did. He nodded slowly. “That’s it. Breathe.”

She was breathing. She sucked in big gulps of air.

“Slowly or you’ll pass out.” He kept a hard lock on her eyes. She couldn’t look away if she tried. “Breathe with me. Inhale. Exhale.”

Her lungs inflated with his. A slight smile touched his mouth. He nodded gently and they exhaled together. Inhale, exhale, repeat. He kept her anchored and, gradually, Joy felt her sanity return. She was still scared, though. Petrified, to be precise.

He rubbed her arms. “That’s it. You can do this, Joy. We can do this.”

“Do you even know these guys? Does he know what he’s doing?” She pointed at Griff. “What if the cord snaps? We’re dead. We. Are. Dead. I don’t want to die.” She felt tears coming on.

Joy used to be a daredevil on both types of boards, surf and skate. The tricks she used to do stole her breath. But once she faced death head-on and watched her beloved sister die, something inside of Joy died. She lost her nerve and started playing by the rules. She didn’t do spontaneous.

“You’re not going to die. And yes, I know Griff. Chase and I met him a few years back. Chase has jumped this bridge with him several times. I’ve been meaning to but the timing never seemed right. But we’re here. Let’s do this.”

“Are you nuts? Why now? Why with me?”

“We both want to skydive. I couldn’t arrange a trip within the time we have together. This is the next best thing. Same type of rush.”

“Bungee jumping is dangerous,” Joy argued.

“Ex-act-ly,” he said, stretching the word. He held her gaze and his meaning sank in.

“The list.”

“The list,” he echoed.

“You arranged this for me? Because of Judy’s list?” she asked, in awe at the extent he’d gone out of his way on her behalf. Why was he making it so easy for her to like him more than she should?

“Yes, for that reason and another.” He let go of her and retreated a space. He raked a hand over his head. “I’m angrier at Jack now than I was when he was alive. Some days I want to chuck myself over a ledge and tell him to go fuck himself. I want to feel that rush you get from teasing death because I am so goddamn angry. I want to be free of him. He never took the time to understand what I needed. He’s messing with my life. I want to be free of that.”

Joy bit into her lower lip. She really wanted to ask what was going on with his dad, but the bridge was looming. She eyed the side rail, then Dylan.

“Judy made me swear never to tell anyone what happened. I want to be angry with her, but it’s me I’m mad at.” Joy whispered the confession. More than she’d ever revealed to anyone, ever.

Dylan cupped her face. “Let’s have some fun and shed this shit. Jump with me.”

Joy’s knees knocked. She wanted to jump, desperately so, but she was scared.

“I’ll go first. Watch me, then decide?”

Joy nodded. “All right,” she heard herself say.

“Daylight’s fading. What’s the verdict, Dylan?” Griff asked.

Dylan grasped Joy’s hand, tucking it into his side. “We’re ready.”

“Awesome.”

After a quick safety protocol overview, they signed waivers, and then they walked to the middle of the original Navajo Bridge that was now used as a pedestrian walkway. Griff and his crew carried the equipment, a contraption of metal poles, pulleys, and cords. He and Ben attached it to the side railing while Matt helped Dylan and Joy into their harnesses. Joy shook uncontrollably. It took three attempts to step into the straps.

“Joy.”

She looked up at Dylan.

He fit his hand to her cheek. “You got this.”

“I got this,” she repeated.

“You’re up, Dylan,” Griff announced. He attached the bungee to Dylan’s harness.

Dylan held up a fist for her. “Bump for luck.” She gave him that and a hug.

Ben and Matt assisted Dylan up onto the side rail. Standing upright, his feet balancing on the narrow rail, Dylan gripped their hands tightly for balance. There was nothing below him but a river five hundred feet down. It looked like a piece of gray-green thread.