Adrenaline by Sunniva Dee
Publication date: April 30th 2015
Genres: New Adult, Romance
CAMERON
Life’s the shit!
Chicks squeal over how wild and yummy I am, play their silly games trying to tie me down. But I’m free as a bird, doing what makes life life: kicking extreme-sport-ass!
I base jump, snowboard, bungee jump. I do anything for the rush.
Then, Ingela blows into town for college—a cool Swedish blast of trouble. Foulmouthed and runway-gorgeous, the girl seeps in like poison and melts the freaking brain.
To Ingela I am what chicks were to me: pastime, leisure, entertainment, pleasure. She’s killing me, and I’m digging it. There’s a new rush in town! Yeah, I hunt down my highs, and now the chase is on. I’ll catch her soon enough, just, what’s the deal with her ex?
BO
With Ingela, sex is a dance. A slow tango where skin flows over skin. It is slick readiness, a quiet welcome. It’s smooth, warm, right, and all wrong.
On and off. On and off. Again, she’s wrecked with grief. It’s a reminder of how I destroy her, how crushed relationships shouldn’t be revived.
We’ve done this for years, now, but clearly we’re in for more.
Life’s the shit!
Chicks squeal over how wild and yummy I am, play their silly games trying to tie me down. But I’m free as a bird, doing what makes life life: kicking extreme-sport-ass!
I base jump, snowboard, bungee jump. I do anything for the rush.
Then, Ingela blows into town for college—a cool Swedish blast of trouble. Foulmouthed and runway-gorgeous, the girl seeps in like poison and melts the freaking brain.
To Ingela I am what chicks were to me: pastime, leisure, entertainment, pleasure. She’s killing me, and I’m digging it. There’s a new rush in town! Yeah, I hunt down my highs, and now the chase is on. I’ll catch her soon enough, just, what’s the deal with her ex?
BO
With Ingela, sex is a dance. A slow tango where skin flows over skin. It is slick readiness, a quiet welcome. It’s smooth, warm, right, and all wrong.
On and off. On and off. Again, she’s wrecked with grief. It’s a reminder of how I destroy her, how crushed relationships shouldn’t be revived.
We’ve done this for years, now, but clearly we’re in for more.
CAMERON
The chase is over. Right here, right now,
this is it. Even if it only lasts
thirty seconds, the rush of what I’m about to do floods me and makes me feel. It’s so intense, every muscle in
my body goes rigid with anticipation.
The air is sharp and early-morning raw. I
stare out from my post on an overhang off Firam Peak. Let my eyes judge the
steep drop into the ravine on the backside of the mountain. Jagged granite
walls form unpredictable patterns that crash to the bottom the way I will soon, and a light dusting of snow
contrasts starkly with the somber stone.
I shake my arms. Not to relieve the
tension but to make sure I’m nimble and ready. I didn’t invite my friends, Dan
and Marek, along today. I’d be better off with someone else around, of course,
but nothing compares to the thrill I experience as I step forward alone. I’m on
the edge now, in every sense of the word.
I draw in a breath of icy oxygen. Crack
my fingers inside my gloves and adjust the strap on my helmet. I’m ready.
It’s so easy to plunge off the cliff. All
I do is heave up on my toes and extend my arms. A light bend at the knees and
I’m off, flying.
Ah, yes. I fly.
So good.
The wind howls around me. I’m fast—I’ve
jumped a dozen times into this ravine so the speed doesn’t surprise me. When we
started base jumping, Dan and I would heave ourselves as far out as we could to
stay clear of the rock walls during the free-fall. With the velocity you take
on, the smallest miscalculation will throw you against the ragged stone, toss
you around, and beat you about like a rag doll. It’d be hard to survive.
It gets boring, though, to be careful
every time. Which is why, at this point, to get that rush—the woozy bliss
inundating my brain for hours afterward—I simply tip off the edge.
The wingsuit I wear is advanced
technology. I stretch my arms out to the side, the fabric spanning open at my
sides. A familiar sting of disappointment sings through me as I realize I’ll
never fly without the squirrel suit. I can’t even begin to imagine the drug it
would be to base jump with no security equipment. Straight to death, of course.
I chuckle to myself at the thought.
I’m reaching the white ravine floor too
quickly. Fuck, I’m lightning fast. The parachute on my back is a click away,
but I postpone it, postpone it—
I’m
on top of the world!
I’m so fucking alive while I plunge to
what could be my last moment on Earth. I curl my body into a somersault and
shout my rush out in an echo against the surrounding rock.
“Wooh-hooh!”
INGELA
Troy or Roy is the last one to get off
his barstool. Dude’s been on his ass the entire night. It’s three a.m., I’ve
grabbed a broom, and I’m sweeping beneath his chair.
“Ingela…” he slurs out, blinking slowly.
“You know I like you, right? You must’ve noticed.”
“Uh-huh—you need a cab, honey?” I
inquire.
“Naw, I was thinking… do you want to, um,
go on a date with me?” He’s so drunk I don’t think he had to work up the courage
to ask. Unless you count the months he’s been sitting on that stool without
broaching the subject.
“Nope, I don’t,” I say and pat his cheek.
He instantly turns whiny. “Whyyy?” He
drags the word out like Lyric does. “You’re such a hottie and shit.”
I try to lift one of his stool legs high
enough to pull out the wadded-up napkin stuck underneath it. “Whatevs, and you
need to go home. We’re closed.”
“Oh yeah, but you’ll be open again
tomorrow anyway. Or hey, today,” the smartass says. Stupid me buys into the
conversation.
“I’m off to bed, dude. We all have to
sleep at some point.”
As I stand, he snatches my hand in a
drunken plea. “Oh, Inga—pretty Inga—say ‘yes’ to a date? You’re my… uh. Number
ten.”
Whatever that means. “Nope, don’t want
to,” I tell him. “Go home or I’m calling Jason to butt you out of here. See ya
later, buddy.”
He whimpers and stands. Wobbles. Then, he
narrows his eyes at me. “You Swedes are different, huh? Okay, how about no
date, just—I’ll take you straight to bed?”
From his expression, he thinks he’s onto
something. Sure, I could be in that mood. Tonight, for instance, as tired as I
am, I still don’t feel like going home alone. I’d love to wake up with
company—only the concept doesn’t involve overly drunk guys I’ve never felt an
inkling of attraction to.
I jump when a strong hand curls around my
upper arm. “Troy,” Cam says behind me. “Leave Inga alone. We’ll get you a taxi
home, okay?”
Troy’s face slowly morphs to offended as
he plops down on the stool again. “Oh, so he
can touch you? I’ve seen you two—you let him frenchie you, even. What does he
have, huh?”
A single snicker hits my ear from
Cameron. “You think she should be fair? If she kisses me, she should kiss you
too?”
I grin. That is a funny concept. Fairness
in kisses.
The guy huffs, mad. “Don’t get what’s so
special about…” He tilts his chin to Cameron but tries to focus on my face as
he speaks.
Cam interrupts, though, letting go of me
and moving over to Troy. “It’s time, cuddle-bun. We’ll find you someone nice
tonight if you’re not too hung over, all right? Inga’s busy.”
“I am?” I say, catching Cam’s gaze as he
stacks Troy on his feet and accommodates his arm around his neck to haul him
off.
“Ass,” Troy mumbles but doesn’t resist.
“I’m going home with you,” Cam explains
to me.
I get butterflies at that. At how sure he
sounds when he tells me. He winks over Troy’s lolling head and mouths, Stay put.
Originally from Norway, I moved to the United States twelve years ago. I hold a Master’s degree in languages and taught Spanish at college level before settling in at the Savannah College of Art and Design as an adviser.
I write New Adult fiction, sometimes with a paranormal twist—like in “Shattering Halos,” published by The Wild Rose Press in February 24th 2014 and in “Stargazer,” released November 2014. The first book I’ve self-published was the New Adult Contemporary novel “Pandora Wild Child,” which made me a proud indie author in October 28th 2014.
I specialize in impulsive heroines, bad-boys, and good-boys running amok. Then, there’s the intense love, physical and emotional attraction beyond reason—sensory overload for the reader as well as for the characters. Like in real life, I hope you’re unable to predict what comes next in my stories.
Yes, so I write what I love to read, and depending on the reader, you’ll find my books to be a fast-paced emotional rollercoaster—or disturbing because the struggles of love aren’t your thing. Here’s to hoping you have the same reading vice as me!
I write New Adult fiction, sometimes with a paranormal twist—like in “Shattering Halos,” published by The Wild Rose Press in February 24th 2014 and in “Stargazer,” released November 2014. The first book I’ve self-published was the New Adult Contemporary novel “Pandora Wild Child,” which made me a proud indie author in October 28th 2014.
I specialize in impulsive heroines, bad-boys, and good-boys running amok. Then, there’s the intense love, physical and emotional attraction beyond reason—sensory overload for the reader as well as for the characters. Like in real life, I hope you’re unable to predict what comes next in my stories.
Yes, so I write what I love to read, and depending on the reader, you’ll find my books to be a fast-paced emotional rollercoaster—or disturbing because the struggles of love aren’t your thing. Here’s to hoping you have the same reading vice as me!
Website : http://www.sunnivadee.com/
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/sunnivaD
Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/sunnivadee/
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