Resisting Her Rescue Doc

by Alison Roberts

  She was going to push Cooper Sinclair’s boundaries—enough to put him out of his comfort zone. Enough to challenge his preference to keep people physically safe. And to keep himself emotionally safe.

  ‘So...what’s it going to be? The famous jet boat experience in the gorge? Skipper’s canyon? Skydiving or bungee jumping?’

  ‘This cruise on the TSS Earnslaw looks great.’ There was a twinkle in Cooper’s eyes that told her he was teasing her. ‘What a beautiful old ship.’

  ‘You can do a cruise on Lake Wakatipu when you’re old and grey and want to eat cake with a fork.’

  Fizz looked away to reach for a different brochure. Or was it that she didn’t want to reveal the odd frisson that that teasing glance had given her? A delicious ripple of sensation that had nothing to do with how physically attractive this guy was, or how much she respected his intelligence, for that matter. It was simply about how much she enjoyed his company. How good it felt to be around him.

  ‘How about mountain biking?’ she suggested. ‘Look...you can take the gondola up to the top of that peak and then ride all these trails down.’

  ‘I’ll bet the view is amazing from that restaurant at the top of the gondola. Maybe we could aim to go there for dinner.’

  ‘Okay...but only if we go and do something really exciting first. Choose something, Coop.’

  ‘I choose that.’

  Fizz followed the direction of his gaze to the large poster on the wall. Climbers on a sheer cliff face with a waterfall right beside them and the view of the valley beyond that made it clear they were a very long way up the side of a mountain.

  ‘I’m not that experienced at climbing.’

  ‘You don’t have to be.’ A young man came out from behind the desk. ‘Even children can do the easier runs. You’re clipped in at all times. Every hold is a rung that’s secured into the rock. Every bridge has cables so you’re never in danger of falling. I’ve done it myself and...’ He blew out a breath. ‘It’s wild, man...you really should do it.’

  Cooper was grinning at her. ‘What do you reckon? Want to give it a go?’

  ‘Do you want to give it a go?’ It might be safe but Fizz was sure that it would be an adrenaline-producing activity. Probably downright terrifying at times. And how would Cooper feel about rock climbing on a mountain, anyway? Wouldn’t that bring back potentially overwhelming memories of the way his brother had died?

  But he was holding her gaze now and there was something in it that Fizz didn’t recognise. Something that was nothing like as light as his usual glint of mischief but not as heavy or serious as when they were working together in some emergency situation, either. It looked almost like a question. Or a promise?

  ‘I’ll give anything a go,’ he said. ‘If it’s something you want to do.’

  ‘Really?’ Fizz gave up trying to process what seemed different about that gaze.

  This was perfect—exactly what she’d been hoping to encourage Cooper to do, and if it did push him a bit further than she had intended by being an activity with powerful associations with his past, maybe that was even better. She could help him through it. Show him that there were no barriers that could prevent him having the kind of future he deserved, and that he would have a friend for life who would always encourage him to chase any dreams.

  She turned to the young man beside them. ‘Sign us up.’ She smiled. ‘Can we do it this afternoon?’

  * * *

  What had he done?

  Cooper stared at the countryside in front of him. He was sitting in the front passenger seat of a four-wheel-drive vehicle. Fizz was in the back alongside a pile of gear and their guide was driving them closer and closer to what should have been simply a picture-postcard scene of a waterfall cascading down a ravine between rocky cliffs.

  He could have chosen anything that would have been enough of an adrenaline rush to impress Fizz with his risk taking and would have taken no time at all—like a jet boat ride or a rafting trip through a stretch of churning white water, perhaps. Or a bungee jump that would have been over in a matter of seconds. But no...he’d picked an adventure that was going to take hours and present challenge after challenge that would probably be emotional as much as physical.

  They were going to climb right up to the top of this spectacular waterfall, climbing sheer cliffs, crossing the ravine over multiple bridges and even going behind the rushing water at some point. Mountain climbing. Something Cooper hadn’t been remotely tempted to try since his brother’s death.

  What had he been thinking?

  He glanced over his shoulder, wondering if Fizz was having any second thoughts about his choice of activity, but she was staring ahead through the windscreen and the expression on her face was anything but doubtful. She had that glow, like she’d had when they’d been bouncing through that turbulence, coming in to land earlier today. Like she’d had that first day he’d met her. When she’d emerged from underwater where she’d been trying to free the woman trapped in that car and she’d been braiding her hair to get it under control, and she’d looked as if putting herself into danger to save someone else had been so exciting she’d do it all over again in a heartbeat.

  And he’d found something inspirational in that kind of passion. Because...because she’d reminded him of Connor, hadn’t she? The person he had loved the most in all the world. The more reckless twin who had always thrown himself at life with such determination and had got so much joy out of his exploits. The one who’d always pushed Cooper to be the best—and bravest—version of himself that he could be.

  Maybe the choice of this challenge had been subconscious. Confused, perhaps, because he would be doing it with the person who had so quickly become what he’d never thought he’d have in his life again—someone he loved so much that their safety and happiness seemed more important than his own.

  The beat of fear that Cooper was aware of as he turned back to see that the mountain was even closer didn’t have anything to do with the challenge they were about to face. It was more about how he would cope if he lost Fizz. Or if he could never tell her how he really felt about her—that she was the one person he wanted to be with for the rest of his life. And, even if he didn’t say anything out loud, was it possible to feel like this about someone and not let it show?

  There was no time to think about anything other than what lay immediately ahead of them when the jeep stopped a few minutes later. There was gear to put on, including a helmet, gloves and a nappy type of harness that had two lengths of synthetic rope attached with heavy-duty carabiners on the ends.

  ‘You’ll be attached at all times,’ their guide told them. ‘You’ll only unclip and move one line at a time. We’ll go and do a bit of training on a low set of rungs and cables. You’re both good with heights, yeah?’

  ‘No problem for me,’ Fizz assured him. ‘And my friend, Cooper, here dangles out of helicopters often enough so I’m sure it’ll be a walk in the park for him.’

  She smiled up at Cooper but he was finding it difficult to smile back.

  He was only her ‘friend’?

  An echo of that beat of fear returned. How hard would it be to spend time with this woman if this stopped being fun for Fizz and it was over? Would she have any regrets?

  Probably not. There was another echo in the back of his mind now. Fizz’s voice saying something about living for the moment and enjoying something while it lasted. Moving on with no regrets when it stopped being fun.

  Cooper saw the flash of concern in Fizz’s dark eyes. She stood on tiptoe to plant a swift kiss on his lips.

  ‘Don’t worry,’ she murmured. ‘It’ll be as safe as houses. Just like climbing a ladder.’

  Finally, Cooper could find his smile. Fizz thought he was simply concerned about how safe this was going to be. Maybe it was going to be possible to hide how he felt about her and keep things going a whole lot longer.


  With the faint tingle of the touch of her lips still on his own, Cooper set off, lengthening his stride enough to catch up with Fizz and walk by her side.

  * * *

  This adventurous afternoon had been an inspired choice for something exciting to do in a very beautiful place.

  Fizz was having the time of her life. This might be a very safe thing to do but it didn’t actually feel like that when you were halfway up a completely sheer cliff or crossing a bridge that was no more than a single cable to put your feet on, with extra cables for both hands and an overhead one that your carabiner clipped onto. With a drop of hundreds of feet below and the rush of water almost close enough to touch, the sense of doing something intrepid and brave was...well, it was just perfect.

  It wasn’t the sort of thing that she would have expected safety-conscious Cooper Sinclair to be enjoying. It wasn’t that he didn’t do dangerous things in his job but he did them to help others, not purely for the personal enjoyment of an adrenaline rush.

  He was doing this for her, wasn’t he? Because he knew how much of a thrill she got from successfully challenging herself like this. Because he wanted to impress her, perhaps?

  Not that he needed to. He was impressive enough just the way he was, even with that annoying over-protective edge that he had. Cooper was a clever, very skilled, warm and caring person. He was mischievous enough to be great fun to be with and he was certainly the best lover Fizz had ever had.

  Right now, he had taken his first step onto the cable bridge and, with his extra height and weight, he was swaying a lot more than Fizz had. She saw him try to control the sway by going still and she saw the deep breath he took when he turned from looking sideways, at the panoramic view of green flat land with a lake and snow-capped mountains in the distance, to the drop beneath that slim cable he was trying to stand on.

  ‘You’re doing great,’ their guide encouraged him. ‘Just take it slowly. One step at a time.’

  Cooper nodded and then looked directly ahead, to where Fizz had reached the other side of the ravine and was waiting for him before tackling the next upward ladder of rungs.

  Steadier now, Cooper took a careful step forward. And then another. He was holding Fizz’s gaze and she could feel her smile widen into a grin. She was proud of him, she realised. He was really stepping out of his comfort zone here and he was doing it with style. That he was probably doing it only because she was with him made her feel curiously protective. She wanted him to enjoy this. To want to push his boundaries. To believe that he could do anything and be anything he wanted to be in life.

  That he could have everything he deserved.

  Like a family who would adore him.

  Not that there was any hurry for him to go and find the person he could create that family with. Fizz didn’t want this adventure to end any time soon. Being with Cooper was more than fun. It was kind of like that space you got when you’d done something incredibly exciting and then arrived at safety. The time when adrenaline levels had lowered enough to make you feel tired but happy.

  When you got the heightened feeling of how great it was to be alive but you only appreciated it that much because there’d been a chance that you might not be alive now. It was about being totally in the moment and taking a deep breath to revel in it but also knowing that it would be possible to experience that thrill again sometime soon. A feeling of being safe but with no limits on what could happen next. Safety laced with pure excitement.

  How much more fun was it going to be sharing her spare time with Cooper if they could both go out and pursue adventure together? She could take him on four-wheel-drive outings that were a lot less tame than Ocean Beach had been. Or maybe they could both get involved with a mountain rescue team after the course this weekend and get deployed on missions that would take them into countryside like this. Challenges that might not have a guide and so many points of safety to clip onto.

  Fizz would still feel safe. Who wouldn’t with someone like Cooper watching out for you? She could feel the solid shape of his body as it came closer to her end of this bridge. Solid and warm and totally trustworthy.

  Oh, yeah...she didn’t want times like this to end anytime soon.

  * * *

  They rode the gondola—advertised as being the steepest cable car lift in the southern hemisphere—up to the restaurant perched high above Queenstown. It was the perfect place to watch daylight fade over the stunning view of the lakeside town with its backdrop of the dramatic skyline of the Remarkables mountain range. The twinkle of lights coming on bit by bit sprinkled a note of celebration to their evening. They were drinking a local, Central Otago wine that was delicious and the food they were sharing was equally good.

  ‘I think this has been one of the best days of my life,’ Fizz sighed happily. ‘How amazing was that climb?’

  ‘It was extraordinary,’ Cooper agreed. ‘I knew it was safe enough but I have to admit it had its moments.’

  ‘I know... Like when we were halfway up that longest set of rungs on that totally smooth rock face. I got a bit of vertigo when I looked down.’

  ‘And I thought of what might happen if one of the rungs came loose from the rock.’

  ‘It would have been okay. We were clipped onto the cable as well.’

  ‘And those bridges. The plank was hard enough but tightrope walking on that single cable felt impossible.’

  ‘But you did it.’ The slow way that the corners of Fizz’s mouth were curling was the most gorgeous smile Cooper had ever seen. ‘I’m so proud of you, Coop.’

  ‘You know what?’ Cooper smiled back at her. ‘I think I’m quite proud of me, too. I learned something about myself today—thanks to you. And I would never have thought of doing something like that by myself.’

  Fizz’s eyes darkened with empathy as her smile faded. ‘Because of Connor?’

  Cooper’s breath caught in his chest. Or maybe it was something else catching his heart. The feeling that Fizz saw parts of him that nobody else ever would? That she cared about the things in his life that had shaped who he was today and who he would be in the future? That she understood, so well, what it was like to lose someone so important in your life?

  He found himself nodding slowly. ‘I was thinking about him a lot. He would have loved to do that climb so much. He was an adrenaline junkie, I guess. Like you.’ But Cooper was smiling, to let Fizz know that wasn’t a criticism. ‘That look on your face when you let go in the middle of that bridge and you were just sitting in space with your weight in your harness and your arms out wide and you had that...glow... It’s what I remember about Connor whenever he was doing something that excited him. It always made me happy to see him so happy. So...alive... If only I’d...’

  Fizz reached out to touch Cooper’s hand. ‘Don’t do that,’ she said softly. ‘No more “if onlys”. It wasn’t your fault. Maybe he wouldn’t have even listened to you if you’d tried stopping him because he was chasing that feeling of being so alive that nothing else mattered in that moment.’

  ‘I kind of get that now. But I still feel that I should have stopped him. I knew it wasn’t safe enough. It had been raining. The rocks were slippery.’

  ‘It was an accident,’ Fizz said. ‘They happen. And sometimes you can be too careful and you’ll miss out on a lot of good stuff that way. The only way you could ever make yourself totally safe would be to shut yourself inside an empty room and never do anything, and what kind of life would that be?’ Her smile was wry. ‘You could still get sick, too. Or fall over and break your neck. Things happen, Coop. You lose people. You lose people that you love very much, but if you let that hold you back, you may as well be shut in that room, don’t you think?’

  Was she talking about herself as well as him? Was this, in fact, an invitation to a different kind of future? The vision of a future Cooper wanted more than anything he’d ever dreamed of was filling his
head. And his heart. A future with this woman he was loving more with every day that passed. A future that didn’t have a ‘use-by’ date for when the ‘fun’ stopped. A real relationship? After those passionate words Fizz had just uttered, the hope surrounding that dream was so real he was convinced that they were on the same page. Thinking the same thing. That they were both prepared to take the risk of truly loving someone and committing to spending their lives together.

  ‘I love you very much, Felicity Wilson,’ he said quietly. He turned his hand that she was still touching so that he could catch hold of hers. ‘And I never, ever want to lose you. To be honest, I’m starting to have trouble imagining my future without you.’

  Time seemed to stop in that instant. He could almost see the moment his words reached her brain and she understood what he was saying. Precisely the same moment that the colour began to leach from her face.

  ‘No...’ The sound was no more than a whisper.

  He could feel her hand dragging itself free of his.

  ‘Excuse me.’ Fizz pushed her chair back and got to her feet. ‘I need to...um...go to the loo.’

  Really? Cooper wondered. Or was it that she needed time to find the words she needed to let him know that she didn’t feel the same way?

  He could see the way her chin tilted before she shook her head sadly. ‘Oh, Coop,’ she said quietly. ‘Why did you have to go and say something like that?’

  ‘Because it’s true.’ Cooper wasn’t going to apologise. He felt sick at having clearly misjudged the moment so badly but he couldn’t feel sorry for being honest. He didn’t want to have to hide how he felt. It was far too big to be able to hide, anyway. ‘And it’s not something that’s going to change.’

  For a long, long moment, Fizz stood there staring at him. So long that Cooper actually felt a beat of that hope again. That she might tell him that she felt the same way. That, maybe, there was hope that she could get past the trauma of losing the man she had planned to spend the rest of her life with and that she was ready to try again.