by Maggie Fox
Zane strapped a local teenager into the safety harness for the climbing wall and thanked the powers-that-be that the sun was shining. The Centre was packed with people from the surrounding villages trying the various activities they had arranged for them at Carrdale.
The young lad gingerly started the climb and Zane guided him slowly from notch to notch along the wall, encouraging him when he faltered. He loved teaching people to climb. Thirty feet away he could see people queuing up to try the zip-wire. It was always a popular activity, giving people a taste of adventure. It was a quick fix when it came to people seeking adrenaline buzzes that weren’t too scary or dangerous. Though for some people the zip was a step too far, especially if they had a fear of heights. Matt was in charge, helping people, explaining what they needed to do.
Despite knowing he should have all his attention on his climbing student, Zane squinted into the sun at the zip-wire. Was that Faith up on the platform with Matt? He lifted his hand to shade his eyes. Yes, it was definitely Faith. And she didn’t look very happy.
“Where now?” the boy asked, pulling Zane’s attention back to the climbing wall.
“Try your foot on that bit just to your right,” Zane replied, pointing at the wall. “Yeah, that’s right. You’re doing great.”
Zane allowed himself a quick look at the zip-wire again. Faith and Matt looked as though they were having an argument. What was going on? Torn between ensuring the boy on the wall was safe and wondering what Faith was doing, Zane tried to keep his attention on two things at once.
“I did it!” the boy shouted out as he reached the top of the wall, clearly delighted with his efforts. “I did it!”
“Brilliant job!” Zane shouted back. “Now I want you to release the rope like I showed you. OK?”
The boy nodded, and within moments was safely back on the ground. As Zane helped him out of the harness, the next person in the queue stepped forward. Zane turned to the queue with an apologetic smile.
“Sorry, can you guys give me five minutes please? I just have to check something on the zip-wire, OK?”
Whatever was going on up on the zip-wire platform, Zane didn’t like the look of it. The discussion between Faith and Matt looked heated, and Matt appeared to be trying to persuade Faith to do something she clearly didn’t want to do.
“Sorry, folks, coming through!”
As politely as possible he pushed his way through the queue of people waiting to try the zip-wire. So that he didn’t alarm anyone waiting, he forced himself to take the steps up to the platform one at a time rather than two at a time like he wanted to. He eventually reached the wooden stand high in the trees where Matt and Faith were.
“What’s going on?” he asked quietly so that people couldn’t overhear.
Faith, he thought, looked noticeably relieved to see him.
“Zane, it’s just a bit of a misunderstanding,” she started to explain. “Matt was saying how the best way to deal with your fears is to face up to them. He thought it would be good for me to give the zip-wire a go. But when I got up here, well, I suppose I didn’t realise quite how high it is and then—”
“And then you wanted to change your mind?” Zane finished for her, glaring at Matt.
“Matt was just trying to get me to stop being a chicken and do it anyway.”
Zane stepped closer to Matt. “What do you think you’re playing at? This isn’t like you. You know the way it works, and you’ve enough knowledge to be able to tell the difference between when a customer just needs a bit of encouragement and they really want to do something, and when they’re totally terrified and want to get out of there!”
“OK, maybe I misjudged it,” Matt shrugged. “I’m sorry, Faith. I didn’t mean to scare you.”
Grabbing Faith’s hand Zane threw one more look at Matt. “Don’t misjudge it again, OK? This is an important day and I don’t want any mistakes or bad publicity, right? Come on, Faith let’s get you back on the ground.”
Guiding Faith down the steps Zane smiled at the people still waiting to try the activity. One man frowned and asked if there was a problem. Zane assured him everything was fine, and ushered Faith towards the rec room so she could sit down. Up on the platform she’d looked so pale he’d worried she might even faint. Now they were on the ground he was relieved to see some of the colour had returned to her cheeks.
“Have a seat for a minute,” he ordered. “How are you feeling now?”
“Better, I think. I’m sorry, this is so embarrassing. I feel like a right wimp. I honestly thought it would be fine. I didn’t realise it was that high. Then when I got up there and it was time to jump off the platform my nerve went.”
Zane shook his head. “No need to apologise. It’s Matt who was in the wrong. He should have recognised the signs and got you out of there. He should know better.”
“I’m as much to blame as him though. I should have known.”
“You wouldn’t be the first person to change their mind about the zip-wire, and you won’t be the last. Just sit and relax for a minute, you might be in mild shock.”
“I’m not in shock. I’m OK,” Faith insisted.
“Fine, if you say so. But it’s probably best if you go home and take it easy for a while. I’d drive you, but I’ve left people waiting at the climbing wall. I need to get back…”
“Honestly, I can get home by myself,” Faith protested.
“No. Definitely not,” Zane insisted. “I’ll get one of the others to cover for me then I can run you home.”
As Zane pulled his walkie-talkie radio from the harness on his belt it crackled into life.
“Zane, where are you? The press have just arrived and want to take some photos. We need you down here for the pics and interview.”
“OK, Matt. Be there in a minute.”
Zane frowned and then spoke into the radio again.
“Dave, where are you?”
“Activity trail in the woods.”
“Anyone else with you?”
Zane glanced at Faith. She was definitely looking better now, thank goodness.
“Yeah, Ian and Mike are here. What’s up?”
“Can Ian manage on his own for while? I need you to do me a favour for half an hour. One of our guests isn’t feeling very well I need you to run her home to Carleton. Can you send Mike to supervise the climbing wall for me? The press have just turned up and I need to meet up with them for photos and interviews.”
“Sure thing. Where shall I pick up this guest?”
“Rec room.”
“Be there in five.”
“Cheers, Dave.”
Faith sighed. “I’m really sorry. You can do without this today.”
Zane knelt before her, wrapping his hands around her own. “Forget it. Not a problem. I’ll stay with you until Dave arrives to run you home. He won’t be long.”
“No, you shouldn’t keep the journalists waiting. You go.”
“I’m staying put until Dave gets here.”
The door opened. They both turned, to see Tony Ferguson standing in the doorway.
“What happened? Faith, are you OK?”
“There was a bit of an incident with the zip-wire, but she’s all right,” Zane explained. “I’m just waiting for Dave to come down and give her a lift home. She’s a bit shaky.”
“I can do that.”
Zane shook his head. “No! I mean, no, I need you here to help on the assault course.”
Tony shrugged. “OK. If you’re sure.”
The door pushed open again and Dave appeared.
“Thanks for this, Dave. Can you run Faith home for me? It’s only Carleton so not far. You know the coffee shop, right? Faith lives in the flat above.” Zane got to his feet and pulled a set of keys from his pocket. “Here, take my car.”
“Will do.” He nodded towards Faith. “Right then, Faith, let’s get you home.”
“I’ll call you later,” Zane said as Faith got to her feet. “Things are pretty full-on today.
We’ve got a more formal gathering with the local mayor and her husband tonight, but it shouldn’t finish late.”
“Thanks for this,” Zane added to Dave, before disappearing through the door to meet up with the local press.
The mayor and her husband had another function to attend so they didn’t stay too long at the Centre, much to Zane’s relief. Making small talk with dignitaries wasn’t his scene at all, but hosting dos like this went with the territory when you were launching a business in a community. By quarter past eight, Zane, Matt, Dave and the others were starting with the clearing up.
“Let’s leave all this until tomorrow shall we?” Zane announced. “It’s been a long day for everyone. Why don’t you all get off home?”
Well, Matt obviously isn’t going to say it, so I will.
“And thanks for all your hard work today, guys. It went well and we’ve already got some firm bookings from it.”
“OK, the pub is calling to me,” Ian said. “Anyone fancy joining me?”
“Yeah, sounds good,” Matt replied. “Zane?”
Zane shook his head. “No thanks. I’ve got something I need to sort.”
“Which pub are we going to?” Matt asked, looking at Ian.
“The Wild Boar over at Yelterton I thought.”
Matt nodded. “Great but that’s a few miles away isn’t it? I don’t fancy driving back, how about I crash on your sofa?”
“Yeah, sure,” Ian replied.
“Have a good night all,” Zane said as people grabbed their coats and headed for the door.
“Will do,” Matt said as he pulled on his jacket. “Catch you tomorrow then. I’ll come straight to the Centre from Ian’s.”
Zane nodded. He knew exactly what Matt was doing. He was staying out of his way for a while. Avoiding the row he knew they were going to have at some point about Faith and the zip-wire. That was fine by him. He’d been furious with Matt for pulling that stunt, but he had to admit that sending Faith home like that was probably an overreaction. She was no delicate little flower and he knew that. All the talk about mild shock and insisting she went home had partly been because he was a bit worried about her, but mainly because he’d wanted to get her away from the Centre and away from Matt.
Now, on the way back to Carleton, Zane couldn’t make up his mind whether he should go straight home and ring Faith or whether he should head straight round to her flat and see how she was doing. Would it be fair to turn up at her door unannounced? But then, if he stopped the car and rang her first to ask if it was OK, wouldn’t he look and sound a bit silly, speaking to her one minute and then knocking on her door the next?
At the edge of village he still hadn’t decided. Right, he told himself: make a decision. OK. Rather than turning right, up the hill and home, he indicated left and turned down the high street, towards the café and Faith’s flat.
“Come in,” Faith smiled, stepping back to let him walk past. “How did the rest of the day go?”
“Really well. People seem to like the Centre and the new activities we’ve lined up. And we’ve had several bookings. One of them for a lad’s birthday party on the family activity trail, another for a corporate team-building event from a local company, and quite a few people asking if they can buy activity day gift tokens as presents for relatives.”
“That’s brilliant news. Are you going to be selling gift vouchers?”
“Yeah. They should be on sale soon. Matt is finalising the designs with the printer this week. We even had an enquiry about weddings,” Zane laughed.
Faith frowned. “What, for wedding receptions you mean? You’ve only got the rec room for that, haven’t you? Though you could possibly hire a marquee and put that up in the grounds.”
“Not just for the reception, but for the actual ceremony as well. The couple were looking for an outdoor venue where they could have the service in the woods or near a waterfall.”
“That actually sounds quite romantic,” Faith said, handing him a drink.
“Yeah, I suppose it does. I’ve got to admit I hadn’t even thought about organising something like that for the Centre. It’s definitely something worth considering though. I’ll look into it with the registrar in town and see if they might be prepared to grant us a licence.” Zane leaned against a cupboard as Faith busied herself in the kitchen. “Anyway, how are you feeling now?”
“I’m fine, honestly. It was just silly. I’m sorry I caused a scene at the Centre.”
“It’s not you who should be sorry, it’s Matt. Goodness only knows what he was playing at.” Zane peered at Faith before adding, “What did he say to you up there?”
Faith took some plates from a cupboard. “Nothing. Let’s just forget about it, shall we?”
“It was him wasn’t it? That time we went on the hill walk and you said you didn’t like heights. You said an old boyfriend had an accident messing around on a cliff and it had freaked you out. The old boyfriend was Matt, wasn’t it?”
Faith nodded miserably.
“And that’s what all that stuff was about on the zip-wire platform. Him saying the best way to deal with a fear is to face it.”
“Yes.” Faith’s voice was very quiet. “Yes, it was. Look, let’s just forget all about it. No harm done. I was just about to watch a DVD. Do you fancy joining me for something to eat? I was going to have some cheese and biscuits. Would that be OK?”
“Yeah, thanks. I’ve only eaten a few nibbles all day; been too busy for much else.” Reaching for the plate she offered him he added, “But are you sure? I don’t want to gatecrash your evening. I was just on my way back and thought I’d see how you were.”
“Don’t be daft. You’re welcome here any time. Now, what flavour crisps do you want? I have a wide selection.” She stood on tiptoe, reaching for a wall cupboard.
Zane noticed her sweatshirt ride up, revealing bare skin at the small of her back. He swallowed and looked away. Faith had a worrying effect on him. One glimpse of her bare skin and his thoughts reverted back to “adolescent teenager” mode.
Get a grip, he chided himself.
“Crisps?” she prompted, standing in front of him, her arms overflowing with different packets.
He raised an eyebrow. “You weren’t kidding when you said you had a wide selection were you?”
“I should probably warn you: these are all ex-café stock and are slightly out of date,” she grinned. “I’m not a crispaholic, honestly. So, are you willing to take a risk on slightly-out-of-date crisps?”
Zane nodded. Just lately he’d realised that when it came to Faith, he was willing to risk a lot more than that. “And I’ll go for the salt and vinegar please.”
“What film are you watching?” he asked as they settled on the sofa.
“It’s a mystery thriller. Sophie lent it to me.”
Two hours later, the film finished, Faith got to her feet to eject the DVD from the machine. As she scrambled around on her hands and knees on the floor in front of the TV unit Zane couldn’t help notice how her pyjama bottoms were slipping down a little, revealing yet more bare skin. OK. Look away, he told himself. But his eyes refused to move, they were enjoying the view far too much.
He thought back to earlier in the day at the Centre when Faith had admitted that she was turned on by watching him climb. Things were definitely hotting up between the two of them, and whilst part of him was pleased and more than keen to move things on, he knew that another part of him still wasn’t sure. Was he really ready for this? Most of the time he was with Faith he felt differently from how he used to feel, and he actually believed he could handle being involved with her.
At other times, though, he still had doubts.
And what about her past with Matt? He didn’t know the full story there, and couldn’t make up his mind if he should push things or not. He might end up regretting it if he did.
“It’s late. I should be going.”
“OK,” she said.
“Night, Faith.”
In h
is car Zane slammed his hand against the steering wheel in frustration and confusion. Whether or not he knew the full details about her past with Matt, and whatever possible feelings she might have for him now, this was becoming, to some extent, irrelevant. He could no longer hide behind that excuse, and if he thought he had any chance of holding back much longer from a proper relationship with Faith, then he was kidding himself. No matter what his own issues were, or how many doubts he had, he knew he had fallen for her. Big time.
“Faith, hi, I couldn’t leave Carleton without calling in for one your cakes. Everyone has told me they’re the best for miles around.”
“Tony.” Faith smiled. “Lovely to see you again. You’re not heading back to Scotland already are you?”
“I’m afraid so. I have to get back to work. We’re on our way now. Helene’s in the car. Can I get a whole cake to take with us or do you only sell it by the slice?”
Faith laughed. “Usually by the slice, but for you I’m sure we can sort a whole cake. What do you fancy? The carrot cake is fresh out so we haven’t cut into that yet. The coffee and walnut is still whole as well.”
“Helene loves coffee so I’ll go for that one please.”
Faith reached under the counter and pulled out one of the cardboard boxes they used for take-out orders. She quickly assembled it and slipped the cake inside. He paid and took the box. “Thanks. I hope I’ll see you again soon!”
As the café door closed behind him, Sophie strolled over to the counter.
“I don’t usually go for older guys, but I’ve gotta say, who was that? He was sexy.”
Faith burst out laughing.
“What?” Sophie asked, looking offended.
“That was Zane’s dad.”
“No! You’ve got to be kidding me. He didn’t look much more than forty.” Sophie frowned. “And how old is Zane again?”
“He’s twenty-nine.”
“Right. Curiouser and curiouser. What’s his mum like then? Does she look all glam and about thirty?”
“No idea,” Faith shrugged. “She’s not here for the launch. They don’t get on apparently. He hasn’t spoken to her in years.”
“Mmm, well, it’s easy to see where Zane gets his good looks from now I’ve met his dad. What’s he like?”