Gemma

Once Jake is on solid ground, most of the colour returns to his face and his knees stop shaking. The only problem is, is that we've got five more zip lines to go – and the whole crew hasn't even made it across yet. I really do admire Jake for pushing past his fear of heights and coming with us, but how long is it going to take before the fear overloads his senses and he refuses to move? Something similar happened to this when we were young. Before his parents died, we went on a trip to Enderby and visited the natural waterslides. There's some type of mineral in the water that erodes the rocks beneath and smooths them out, making them soft enough to slide down. Of course, to get to the top, you have to climb up a steady incline, and then slide down these natural slides with the water from the creek, which is ice-cold and a little steep. Not terrifyingly steep, but a little steep. Jake was just as headstrong and competitive then as he is now, and claimed he could do it no problem. But when he got to the third waterslide, he began to freak out. The third one is the steepest of all and also has the fastest flow, mostly because the slide is a little thinner and the water builds up. Jake stood there for a good ten minutes, his bare feet almost blue against the cold, slippery rocks, before his dad had to climb up and pull him back up to the trail.

I would carry him – but he's too heavy for me and, more importantly, I wouldn't be able to carry him back because the only way we can actually get back is by riding the last zip line. From there, we climb a substantial set of stairs back up to the parking lot.

"Still can't believe you actually made it," Cassian says, shaking his head as he stares at Jake. Ever since Cassian arrived, he's been needling Jake. Honestly, it's funny to see the two of them go at it like they are, but I also feel a little sorry for my fiancé. "Do you know how many feet the drop is? Imagine if something were to snap – you'd be dead as soon as you hit the rocks."

I bite my bottom lip, trying not to chuckle at the smug smirk on his face. It's a good thing Jake loves Cassian like a brother or else he might just end up pushing him over the cliff.

With his jaw set in concrete, Jake crosses his arms and glares at Cassian. "While you keep handing out facts to everyone, let's not forget that you were the one who bawled his eyes out during Hanna's high school graduation."

The smirk on Cassian's lips fades. "Jacob Adam Swift," he growls. "You promised me you'd never speak of that again."

Knowing that he's got Cassian hooked, Jake continues to poke at him, but so does Cassian. The two of them are like five-year-olds bickering about who gets the next turn on the red bike. I roll my eyes and turn to Nolan. He's become a good friend of ours since the camping trip when Jake and I were pretending to be a couple, and once he got to know us a little more, we told him the full story. When he found out I was the cause of the 'food poisoning,' I think he wanted to kill me, but he eventually got over it, laughing and saying how cliché but effective it was. "Do you ever regret becoming friends with them?"

"Do you ever regret becoming engaged to one of them?" he counters, cocking an eyebrow.

"Touché," I reply, bowing my head in his direction. A confident smirk appears on his face, but then quickly dissipates as Morgane comes racing across the gorge, slowing down when she gets close to our side. One of the employees helps unbuckle her from the line, and then she comes bounding over to us, removing the elastic band from her hair and fixing her ponytail. Now that Nolan isn't the next victim of Olive Garcia, he's finally had a chance to relax and get to know some of my friends – including Morgane. And it isn't very hard to tell that he's crushing on her. I feel bad for the guy because Morgane is recovering from a broken heart, but there's always the chance he might be able to take a shot at having a relationship with Morgane someday. You never know how a relationship will go. I'm not being pessimistic and nor am I doubting the unconditional love between Jake and I. I'm just stating the facts. You don't know what the future holds. All that matters is that you put in the effort to keep that relationship going.

"Holy fuck," Morgane says, a big smile on her face. Her cheeks are a little flushed from the wind and sun. "That was riveting. I'm so glad you decided to do this, Gemma."

"I agree," Nolan replies a little too quickly. "This is a lot of fun."

I don't fail to notice the look of confusion on Morgane's face because after she directs it at the ground, she directs it at me. All I do is shrug and try to appear innocent in this situation. The last thing I'm going to do is reveal Nolan's crush on her. The poor guy has had it rough enough dealing with Olive, and I don't plan on making another experience with a woman horrible for him. I'm not saying Morgane is a bad person, but if she knew Nolan liked her, she'd definitely play with his emotions. It's just something she does – be it a man or a woman.

"Jake," I hear Cassian say, "do you remember when I asked for you opinion? No? Oh, me neither."

I avert my gaze from Morgane's and shift my attention to Jake and Cassian, who are heading in our direction. They're both glistening in a sheen coat of sweat, as the rest of us are, but there's something about Jake that's makes my heart flip. Maybe I'm a little biased, considering we're going to be married in less than two weeks, but bias aside, I can't tell whether or not his summer-kissed skin is messing with my head or if it's the smile on his face. Jake's changed a lot over the years, trying to pick up the broken pieces that were his life. And you can tell he's done just that. Unlike the day we met at the restaurant, him hiring me to be his fake girlfriend, there's a sparkle in his blue eyes again. A content, fulfilled sparkle that makes my heart want to burst. Despite everything that happened in high school that was associated with me, I've come to realize that Jake deserves to be happy just as much as I do, and I'm happy that we're finding a way to achieve that together.

"You're going to hell, Cass," Jake mutters, running a hand through his hair. "I swear, there's a special place for you down there."

Cassian, with a smug grin on his face, claps Jake on the back. "Yes, I know there is a real special place in hell for me, Jake. It's called the throne."

"For the love of fucking God..." Jake trails off, shaking his head.

I snort, and Jake looks at me, smiles, and then turns his head down and begins fiddling with the lanyard around his neck. It's the same one the rest of us have; it holds our passes so that employees can see them and guide us in the right direction. It's an ironically bashful expression for the somewhat cheeky and overly confident, but also sweet and charming man who, barely five minutes ago couldn't handle the thought of zip lining.

"Are you two done now?" Morgane asks, resting her hand on her hip. "You sound like children."

Cassian holds up one finger. "Correction, my dear friend, I sound like the devil, according to Jake." He jerks his thumb in Jake's direction. "This bonehead is the one who sounds like a child."

Jake's gaze flicks back up to mine, and I note just how much he's changed since Hanna graduated. When he finally got used to the fact that Hanna needed to be off on her own, he mellowed out. I admire him for being able to take on such drastic responsibilities after his parents passed away, but I'm also happy he doesn't have as much responsibility weighing on his shoulders.

All he does is smile and shake his head, reminding me how close he and Cassian are. If I didn't respect Cassian enough in high school, then I sure as hell do now. Without him, I don't know where Jake and Hanna would have ended up.

"God," Morgane says, rolling her eyes. "The testosterone and immaturity is giving me a headache." She loops her arm through mine and tugs me down the trail, beneath a canopy of pine trees and blue sky. The trail is skinny, reminding me more of a goat trail, but it is compact and lined with a fence. To say I trust the trail would be a long-shot, but I do feel safer than I would if it lacked a fence. "Let's get out of here, Gemma."

As Morgane is leading me away from the guys,  I glance back, making eye contact withe Jake. He's grinning, shaking his head because of how stupid this all is. I smile back at him, hoping he can tell that I love everything right now. From the playful banter between him and Cassian to the bright blue sky above us.

I wish this day would never end.