Once, he’d gone so far as to enter the directory where his images were stored, even dared to open a folder.
The hardest one, the one containing the picture of Jaime grinning at him only minutes before he would die. Cade closed his eyes, bowed his head. God, Jaime, I am so sorry .
Jaime and he had shared amazing experiences that couldn’t be explained in words. Jaime was, in many ways, as much a brother to him as his own siblings were.
As soon as he’d been conscious enough to think clearly, he’d asked his dad to ensure the climber’s insurance he’d bought for Jaime would pay out, and he’d sent money to the family himself to tide them over in the meantime.
But no amount of money made up for the love of a father and a husband, or the memories his family would miss out on for the rest of their lives, all because Cade had wanted adventure.
Every trip Cade had taken, reveling in the risks and the exploration…had stolen Jaime from his family. For short periods at first, and then, permanently....
He hadn’t been reckless, no—Jaime wouldn’t have let him be—but his definition of reckless was not like others’. He’d told himself that his purpose was important, that he was bringing the world’s mysteries and beauty to those who would otherwise be denied them and that was worth the risks.
For the first time in his life, Cade questioned what he’d previously been so certain about. He’d expected to spend his days wandering, searching…and alone. He’d even been prepared for the number of those days to be less than most—only a fool would ignore the dangers inherent in the wild locales he traversed.
He should have been the one to die, not Jaime. His own family would have been devastated to lose him, but if one of the two of them had to be taken, it should have been Cade who would leave behind no children, no mate.
He nearly closed his laptop before it had even powered up. Confronting the one-dimensional nature of his life, considering how few people would miss him if he were gone, was damn near as painful as dealing with the loss of his friend.
And then there was the need to think about what kind of life he could make, robbed of its one essential element. His fingers tightened on the lid. To still them from shutting it took everything he had.
But this time, there was another reason to face his demons. Sophie. Admirable, fierce, exhausted Sophie, who touched more than his libido. Who stirred things in him that didn’t bear considering. So he wouldn’t. He’d focus instead on the crackling heat between them. He had always been a man of action, a physical man more than a cerebral one. She touched him at a very primal level. An intensely physical one.
And she reacted strongly to him, too.
Cade was surprised to find a faint grin spreading across his face even as he watched the program he dreaded begin to load.
He’d be more than happy to lose his non-bet with Sophie. Getting his hands on her would more than compensate for his damaged ego. It would also distract him from the ticking clock of his deadline with his publisher.
He and Sophie could have some fun, and Sophie needed fun more than anyone he’d met in a long time. She was so serious, so driven....
His chest tightened.
He had been the same, once. His work had been everything to him, too, once upon a time.
His gut twisted as he contemplated a life without his work. He couldn’t look at any more shots, couldn’t stand on the outside looking, a has-been with his nose pressed to the glass....
But he’d promised her. Grimly, Cade stilled his hands, closed his eyes, willed the fear away.
Oddly enough, what helped most was picturing Sophie asleep, the lines of exhaustion easing from her body.
She needed his help. Cade shoveled everything else in a mental closet and slammed the door. Then he began sorting through shots in search of two he’d known would be perfect when he’d stood in the grand old house and listened to Sophie lay out her
The hardest one, the one containing the picture of Jaime grinning at him only minutes before he would die. Cade closed his eyes, bowed his head. God, Jaime, I am so sorry .
Jaime and he had shared amazing experiences that couldn’t be explained in words. Jaime was, in many ways, as much a brother to him as his own siblings were.
As soon as he’d been conscious enough to think clearly, he’d asked his dad to ensure the climber’s insurance he’d bought for Jaime would pay out, and he’d sent money to the family himself to tide them over in the meantime.
But no amount of money made up for the love of a father and a husband, or the memories his family would miss out on for the rest of their lives, all because Cade had wanted adventure.
Every trip Cade had taken, reveling in the risks and the exploration…had stolen Jaime from his family. For short periods at first, and then, permanently....
He hadn’t been reckless, no—Jaime wouldn’t have let him be—but his definition of reckless was not like others’. He’d told himself that his purpose was important, that he was bringing the world’s mysteries and beauty to those who would otherwise be denied them and that was worth the risks.
For the first time in his life, Cade questioned what he’d previously been so certain about. He’d expected to spend his days wandering, searching…and alone. He’d even been prepared for the number of those days to be less than most—only a fool would ignore the dangers inherent in the wild locales he traversed.
He should have been the one to die, not Jaime. His own family would have been devastated to lose him, but if one of the two of them had to be taken, it should have been Cade who would leave behind no children, no mate.
He nearly closed his laptop before it had even powered up. Confronting the one-dimensional nature of his life, considering how few people would miss him if he were gone, was damn near as painful as dealing with the loss of his friend.
And then there was the need to think about what kind of life he could make, robbed of its one essential element. His fingers tightened on the lid. To still them from shutting it took everything he had.
But this time, there was another reason to face his demons. Sophie. Admirable, fierce, exhausted Sophie, who touched more than his libido. Who stirred things in him that didn’t bear considering. So he wouldn’t. He’d focus instead on the crackling heat between them. He had always been a man of action, a physical man more than a cerebral one. She touched him at a very primal level. An intensely physical one.
And she reacted strongly to him, too.
Cade was surprised to find a faint grin spreading across his face even as he watched the program he dreaded begin to load.
He’d be more than happy to lose his non-bet with Sophie. Getting his hands on her would more than compensate for his damaged ego. It would also distract him from the ticking clock of his deadline with his publisher.
He and Sophie could have some fun, and Sophie needed fun more than anyone he’d met in a long time. She was so serious, so driven....
His chest tightened.
He had been the same, once. His work had been everything to him, too, once upon a time.
His gut twisted as he contemplated a life without his work. He couldn’t look at any more shots, couldn’t stand on the outside looking, a has-been with his nose pressed to the glass....
But he’d promised her. Grimly, Cade stilled his hands, closed his eyes, willed the fear away.
Oddly enough, what helped most was picturing Sophie asleep, the lines of exhaustion easing from her body.
She needed his help. Cade shoveled everything else in a mental closet and slammed the door. Then he began sorting through shots in search of two he’d known would be perfect when he’d stood in the grand old house and listened to Sophie lay out her
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