Romancing the River (Survive the Romance #8) - Cami Checketts Page 0,1

darting to the edge of the building to see who was still there but mostly listening to the voices. She’d know Axel’s voice anywhere. She heard her parents, Brit, and Kelley talking excitedly and then their voices faded into the distance.

It seemed like everybody was gone. Had she somehow missed Axel? She might have to walk the two miles home. She could call her parents or Brit and they’d come for her, but how would she explain why she hadn’t gone with Ellie? She could call Ellie. Her friend would give her a lot of guff, but she’d come for her… probably.

Suddenly she heard Axel’s voice. She crept closer and darted a glance around the corner. Everybody else was gone, but Axel was talking to Jamison, the team’s defensive end who already had a verbal scholarship offer to Texas Tech, a university on the west side of the state. Jamison was a great guy, a huge redhead who was everybody’s friend.

“Jessica isn’t waiting for you?” Jamison asked.

“Nah. I think that’s over.”

Happy day! Kinsley did have a chance.

Kinsley waited for them to walk toward the parking lot, but instead, Jamison turned to Axel and asked, “Awkward question for you but I, um, noticed you looking at Brit’s little sister after the game.”

Kinsley’s heart was going to thump right out of her chest. Jamison had noticed too? She bit at her lip and prayed hard for a positive response from Axel.

Axel chuckled, but it sounded … uneasy. Had he not been looking at her after all?

“So are you interested in her? I was gonna ask her out, but I figured I’d need Brit’s permission and maybe yours before I asked.”

“You need Brit’s permission for sure. Kinsley’s incredible. I can never imagine taking her out this year. Never.”

Fat tears rolled down Kinsley’s cheeks. Axel never wanted to take her out?

Never.

Did he have to reemphasize it? Wasn’t one “never” enough to break her?

Her dreams of a relationship with Axel got smashed with a sledgehammer.

“Oh, that’s great.” Jamison walked toward the parking lot and Axel fell into step with him. “Thanks, man. I’m glad you’re not interested in her.”

“No,” Axel’s voice was sharp and that single word hurt. No he wasn’t interested in her. Weren’t the two nevers enough? “You don’t understand my intentions toward Kinsley …” Axel’s voice faded away.

Kinsley flattened against the building as they walked away. They were still talking, but she couldn’t make out what they were saying.

Not that it mattered.

She ached for what would never be.

When the stadium lights turned off, she forced herself to walk away and start the trek home. The tears kept coming despite her repeatedly swiping at her eyes and commanding herself to stop being an emotional wimp.

She had to let her dream die.

Axel Dexter was dead to her.

Chapter One

Twelve Years Later

Kinsley Grady waited next to her raft at the starting point for the river rafting launches near Buena Vista, Colorado. Emerald Taylor, Axel Dexter’s assistant, had contacted her over two months ago and asked to take a small group on an extreme river rafting trip. It was part of a reality TV show that Emerald and Axel were financing and spearheading. Kinsley was still unsure why she’d said yes. Emerald had offered to pay her ten times her normal five-day rate, so there was that. The TV exposure and subsequent marketing could only help the rafting company she worked for and hopefully her outdoor clothing business as well. The only drawback was the strong possibility of seeing Axel Dexter as he kicked off the show. The trepidation felt like being stuck at the top of some deadly falls with no way out but down.

She’d seen him occasionally over the past twelve years when they crossed paths at home near Dallas, or the few times he’d appeared at the ski resort in Vail where she spent her winter months. Every time she ran into him, he flirted with her, laying on the charm as if she would be his next conquest. Luckily, she’d stayed strong and shot him down every time he teasingly asked her out.

Life had given her many experiences over the past twelve years, most of them positive. In college at Colorado State, she’d been certain she’d found a man who could finally displace Axel Dexter from her mind. James Miller had been charming, handsome, fun, kind, and attentive. They’d gotten engaged their senior year of college and planned a June wedding. It had come as a complete shock to Kinsley that he was