The Secrets of Their Souls by Brooke Sivendra

the ground, standing by the net. They were higher up than he realized and one look at Zahra’s face told him she was thinking the same thing. Miss Bravado wasn’t looking quite so confident anymore.
    “Okay, who is going first?” Boriss asked, already hooking the safety attachments to Jayce’s belt. He had intended to go first and didn’t need Boriss to make the decision for him, but he brushed aside his irritation for the sake of not ruining their night.
    Zahra bit her lip when Jayce gripped onto the bar and he winked at her before he jumped off, flying through the air, back and forth. It was so exhilarating, it was intoxicating. He let go and bounced onto the safety net, looking up at Zahra. Her hands were clasped under her chin as she nodded at Boriss. The spotter unhooked Jayce and he jumped down, ready to see her take flight.
    For a moment, Zahra hesitated but then her feet left the platform and she sailed through the air, squealing like a little girl. Jayce chuckled alongside the spotter, who also couldn’t take his eyes off of her.
    When Zahra let go, Jayce was beside the net, ready to help her down. He had never seen her smile so brilliantly.
    “Oh, my gosh!” She climbed into his arms and he kissed her, his body still rushing with adrenaline.
    “Ready to go again?”
    She nodded, not a doubt in her mind.
    By the fifth fly, they had their knees up and on the sixth fly they mastered a knee hang catch. Jayce didn’t let her fall, holding on to her with everything he had.
    Back on the ground again, he sweetly kissed her forehead. “I like you.”
    Surprise flooded her face. “I like you too, Jayce Tohmatsu.”

    After an hour on the trapeze, they were ready for dinner. They changed into dinner-wear and then walked the three blocks to the restaurant with a table waiting for Tohmatsu.
    Sitting opposite at the table, Jayce enjoyed the view in front of him. “Have you decided?” he asked, gesturing to the menu.
    “I will have the watermelon salad and the Risotto del Giorno, please.”
    Jayce blinked. “No meat. You’re vegetarian?”
    “Yes. You seem surprised?”
    Jayce shook his head. “I just didn’t realize. When did you go vegetarian?”
    “When I was seventeen… I think it’s inhumane to eat anything with a face,” Zahra said, looking at him squarely, “but that’s a personal decision. You order whatever you want. I’m accustomed to eating with carnivores. Jemma likes her meat still bleeding.”
    He scrunched his nose up, smiling. “That’s kinda gross.”
    “I completely agree,” Zahra said with a laugh.
    The waiter came and took their order. Jayce ordered steak, medium-well. A few minutes later the same waiter came back with a bottle of wine, and they toasted their glasses. ‘To flying.’
    He watched her lips as she drank the champagne; she was so tempting. “I didn’t see you in the office today?”
    “No, I dialed in from home… less distractions,” she responded, shrugging her shoulders casually.
    Jayce looked at her for a moment. There was something about the way she said it, almost too casually, and it made him question it but he couldn’t put his finger on what it was. Pushing the thought aside, he continued. “What else did you do today?”
    “I went for a run, Jemma came over this afternoon, and then I worked for a bit. What did you do today?”
    He smiled. “I worked, I went to a business lunch, and then I worked some more… speaking of—” He paused, reaching into his pocket and pulling out his vibrating cell phone. “I have to take this call.”
    Zahra nodded and her face transformed when he began to speak in Japanese. He ended the call as quickly as possible.
    “Sorry—that was my father. He likes daily progress updates and he does not like it when I don’t answer.”
    “I see. Was he impressed by your update?”
    His lips turned up at the corners. “No, actually, he wasn’t. I told him I was at dinner with a girl, but he thinks I should be in the office