She even hadn’t been able to use her sketchpad, which was worrying. She needed to find something to do, to take her mind off him.
She made her way to the kitchen and poured herself a cup of orange juice while she waited for the two slices of bread she’d placed in the toaster. When the machine dinged and they popped up, she removed them to a plate and slathered them with jam. She reached for the entertainment section of the newspaper lying on the counter. She read over the first article as she bit into her toast. Something in the top corner of the paper caught her eye then.
“Paragliding classes Tuesdays and Thursdays,” she read out loud.
“Hey, Sissy. What’re you reading?” Jules asked, waltzing into the kitchen.
Erin looked from the paper to her sister. “Do you wanna go paragliding with me?” she asked.
“Me?” Jules asked, her index finger turned to point at herself. “Are you crazy? That’s a dangerous sport, Erin,” she finished.
“Oh come on. It’s not that dangerous,” Erin played off.
Jules fixed her with a pointed stare. “Have you ever been?”
“No,” she replied.
“Then how do you know it’s not?”
“It just looks fun,” Erin said with a shrug.
Jules turned with her hands on her hips as her eyes narrowed at her sister. “Okay, who are you, and what have you done with my sister? You’ve always been the logical one, the cautious one, Erin. What’s going on?”
“Nothing’s going on,” Erin refuted. “I just wanted to have a little fun, and I thought it would be a good activity for us to do, you know? Throw caution to the wind.”
“I’m a mother now, so that’s entirely written off my bucket list. The most dangerous thing I’m allowed to do is stay up past midnight,” Jules murmured.
“Ah, you’re no fun,” Erin playfully pouted.
“And you’re a little too fun. Are you sure you’re fine?” Jules worriedly asked.
“I am.” Erin nodded.
“Okay,” Jules replied hesitantly. “Just be careful,” she cautioned.
“I will.” Erin smiled gratefully.
“What are we being careful about?” Cora asked, appearing just then.
“Erin wants to go paragliding,” Jules rushed to say.
Cora’s brows furrowed in concern. “I don’t think that’s something that you should be doing unless you’re someone who likes taking risks. Are you sure about this, sweetie?” she asked Erin.
“It’s a beginner class, Mom. They’ll teach me everything I need to know about paragliding before I’m air-bound,” Erin reasoned.
Cora stared at her daughter for some time, her blue eyes swimming with worry, but she finally said, “Please be careful.”
“I will,” Erin promised, planting a kiss against her cheek. After finishing her toast and orange juice, she left to go get ready.She downloaded and printed the application form for a paragliding permit, filled it out, and left to go file it at the state park. She returned home. The next day she was able to pick up her permit. She found herself headed to Ebey’s Landing. After parking her car at the pickup spot, she waited for the truck that would take her up to Fort Ebey, where she would start her practice.
“Hi, are you Erin?” a gentleman with a long mane of blond hair with bleached streaks greeted her as he got out of his monster truck.
“I’m Erin,” she confirmed, shaking his hand.
“Great. I’m Josh, your instructor. Are you ready to have some fun this afternoon?”
“I am.” Erin grinned enthusiastically.
“Wonderful,” the man expressed with a clap. “You’ll find that Fort Ebey is a very picturesque place with a spectacular view of Puget Sound and the Olympic Mountain Range. When you’re up in the air, you’ll appreciate it even more,” Josh informed her as they came to a stop at the top of the hill.
