House of Hearts by Amber Jakeman

Author:Amber Jakeman
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Women's fiction, Sweet romance, Clean and wholesome romance, Medical romance, International flavor
Publisher: Amber Jakeman
Published: 2021-05-05T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 14

It was his day of escape – out with Lisa – with big brother James in tow. Thank God for diversionary therapy. If he saw another white wall, he’d climb it.

Will met James at the clinic reception and took him to the carpark, as arranged, where Lisa transferred her running shoes from the back of her small car to one of the retreat’s white vans. He’d feared she or Dr Peters might cancel it, but here they were, about to head out. His heart was already on top of the world.

“We’ll drive north-west towards Mount Charleston and the Spring Mountain Range, in Toiyabe National Forest,” Lisa said.

Will couldn’t work out what excited him more; freedom from the confines of the retreat, or the fact they were barrelling along in the white van bound for the mountains, Lisa at the wheel.

She’d removed her white jacket. He was in the front passenger seat, with James in the back. Will looked across at Lisa and just drank her in, her beautiful profile, fine hands on the wheel, and those long legs. A little of her hair had escaped from the tight ponytail and danced in the slipstream in the morning sunshine.

She glanced across at him once, gave him a private smile, then focused back on the road.

Beside them, desert slid past while the range steadily approached.

She and James talked about skyrunning, discussing how it differed from cross country; how it emerged in the 1990s and became more and more popular.

“It’s essentially cross country across mountain ridges,” Lisa said. “Mont Blanc would be the most famous international comp. Then there’s ultra running and vertical running, in the stairwells of skyscrapers. Crazy, huh? That’s the only way some people can train.”

Lisa gestured at the peaks. “I’ve been doing it since grad school. I love to get out here as often as I can. I was born in the Midwest. I grew up on flat land, so all that high terrain still fascinates me. The views are spectacular. You’ll see. You’re practically flying.”

“Maybe I’ll take up skyrunning,” said James.

“It’s the perfect antidote to an office job,” Lisa said. “In one run, I burn up fat from a week of lethargy. Counselling’s sedentary. You sit there listening, day after day. And it can get pretty intense, with no easy way to let off steam.”

They turned off the main road and headed for higher ground.

“I try to go for a run in the evenings, around Boulder,” said Lisa. “I’m thinking of training with the local baseball team, but there’s nothing like the freedom of skyrunning. I absolutely adore it.”

“It’s so good to be back out in the world,” Will broke in. “Man. No joke. I feel like I’ve been indoors for weeks, not counting the night—”

“So you still run, James?” Lisa cut him off. Okay. She might not want James to know he’d spent a night at Lisa’s, even though it had been totally innocent.

Will vowed to be more careful. He wanted to get this right. Lisa was like no woman he’d ever met before.

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