Page 114 of Nothing But Air

“We leave in ten minutes, everyone.” Teague’s voice was all business. “Be ready.”

“We will be.” Kyle still looked too smug.

Teague appeared at Eden’s elbow, solid and protective despite the distance between them. Despite everything she’d said. Everything she’d broken.

He lowered his voice. Just for her. “Stay close. All day. No matter what.”

It wasn’t a request.

And it definitely wasn’t gentle—not the way he would have asked before everything between them had fallen apart, with warmth in his eyes and that crooked smile playing at his lips.

But nothing had ever made her feel so safe.

“I will,” Eden promised.

She turned to say more—to apologize, to explain, to somehow find words for the tangled mess of fear and love and regret knotted in her chest.

But he was already walking away.

Whatever had started between them was now officially dead.

And Eden had killed it.

Thirteen

Teague had sworn he wouldn’t let Eden talk him into another climb. Apparently his promises meant nothing when she looked at him like that.

He placed another cam in the crack system and tested it with a sharp tug. Below him, Eden moved smoothly up the route, blonde braid swinging with each placement of hand and foot. Farther below, Kyle and Marcus waited at the base—two men he didn’t trust watching the woman who still held his heart.

Whether she wanted it or not.

This climb was a mistake. Every instinct screamed it. But Eden had made a compelling case—they had the supplies, they were already here, and leaving now just meant coming back later. Better to check another location off the list while keeping everyone where he could see them.

The fact was, the person who’d sabotaged the radios might not even be with them. Not that he planned on turning his back on these two.

He’d changed up the plan the moment they started gearing up. Him and Eden on one rope. Marcus and Kyle on the other. No mixing, no switching.

Kyle had put up a fight. “Doesn’t make sense. You say you’re the better climber—you take Marcus with you, I’ll take Eden with me.”

“No.”

“Very dictator-like. That’s not very team-oriented?—”

“My climb. My rules.” Teague had stepped closer, using his broader build. “Eden’s with me. End of discussion.”

“Possessive much?” Kyle’s smile hadn’t reached his eyes.

“Protective. There’s a difference.”

“Is there?”

“Take it or we hike out right now.”

Kyle had backed down. But the look in his eyes had been hard. Calculating.

The guy definitely had a thing for Eden. But was it more than that? That was hard to tell.

Now Teague pulled himself onto a ledge about forty feet up, his ribs protesting the movement. Eden arrived moments later, barely winded.