Free Freefall (Santa Cruz Skydivers Book 1) by Joanne Efendi

comforter and get back to sleep. Then a little trigger in my brain went off, reminding me that I had a date with Levi today. Levi and skydiving. Crap.
    I flung my bedcovers off and sat bolt upright. The warm and fuzzy content feeling hadn’t lasted long. In fact, my stomach was now churning. Why did I have to agree to jump out of plane last night just to get to see Levi again? Was he really worth dying for? Yes. Yes, he was. Regardless, I totally blamed the tequila and my raging hormones for my decision.
    Running my hands through my out of control curls, I massaged my scalp with my fingertips and tried to calm my nerves. I wasn’t a morning person at the best of times, and now I was expected to operate before eight a.m. on my day off. Looking at my cell phone messages again, I had to check that Levi was actually real and had invited me skydiving today, and this wasn’t just one of my fantastical dreams. Yep, there it was, his text message, in black and white. There was also another he had sent early this morning.
    Perfect day for a jump. Not a cloud in the sky. Can’t wait to see you. Wear something warm. It can get cold up there.
    Quickly, I replied, unsure if he would even see it before I arrived. By my calculations, he would already be well into his morning jumps.
    Thanks for the heads up. See you in an hour.
    Just when I thought my stomach had settled down, it started churning again. I needed to get busy to take my mind off the fact I was literally going to jump from a plane. Plus, to further exacerbate my nerves, I was going to see Levi again, and he said he couldn’t wait to see me. I had an hour to get myself showered, breakfast, and to the airport. No time to waste.
    Despite my haste, I decided to take an extra long hot shower to help calm my nerves, and ended up washing my hair and shaving my legs, deciding to skip breakfast for a protein bar en route in lieu of the pampering. And even though I knew nothing would happen between Levi and me, it was best to be prepared. I had even chosen to wear a matching push up bra and lace panties set I had bought once for a failed date, just in case. Optimistic wasn’t a word I usually associated with myself, but that was exactly how I felt about today. That and hopeful. Optimistic that something amazing might happen between us, and hopeful that I wouldn’t die in just over an hour. Today wasn’t one of those days when I wanted to check out. Far from it. In fact, despite my nerves, today was a good day. I hadn’t even felt the need to take a med.
    I towel-dried my hair and styled it in a simple braid. There was no point in even trying to do anything other than plait it today. After all, I didn’t want my hair whipping around in Levi’s face. I applied the smallest amount of makeup—eye liner and lip-gloss only—making sure I used an SPF moisturizer. The one positive thing about my appearance was my clear complexion. Big tits and curvy ass weren’t traits I considered positive, no matter how much Kim Kardashian flaunted it. In fact, my complexion was the only good trait I had inherited from my mom. That and my blue eyes. Mom was of Northern Italian heritage, so she didn’t have the typical Italian olive complexion.
    I gave my appearance a last look-over in my full-length mirror, making sure I looked at myself from all angles. Once I was somewhat happy with my appearance—such a shame makeup couldn’t conceal ass cellulite—I threw on a pair of too-tight jeans, on account of all my regular jeans that fit were dirty and at Mom’s getting laundered, a long sleeve t-shirt, and slipped on a pair of Converse sneakers before leaving the apartment.
    As I left, I noticed that Lili’s bedroom door was closed. She had still been out when I arrived home last night. I presumed she had stayed until the end of the function and had come home late with Scotty. One thing was certain, she and I needed to talk. Clear the air between us. I still had no idea what had made her flip out