Lifting her chin, Sadie gave him a mischievous grin. “No time like the present to change that.”
They pulled into what was normally a large field and piled out, the first rays of the sun shining over the horizon. Evan knew where to go on instinct, as the Pearson booth hadn’t changed once in his lifetime. It looked as though his parents had gotten it to stand up, the several shelves and hooks in the back already holding several of his mother’s crafts.
“You brought the whole gang,” his mother said with a tired smile. “Okay, Aubrey, I’ll need you to stay here with me. We’ll be making trips to get more inventory out throughout the day. Aiden, I’ll need you to help your father with the tractor train. Just help the kids get in and out, take tickets, etc.” She paused, looking between Evan and Sadie before saying, “It’s our year to be in charge of the kiddie games. Let’s send the two of you over there.”
Evan’s insides jumped, excited at the chance for a little more one-on-one time with Sadie.
“Best to head over to Kiddieland right now, you two. I was able to set up some of the games, but there’s still a lot to get ready, and we have less than an hour before the festival opens.” Dolores smiled at them, and Evan took a step forward, Sadie following as they walked to the end of the festival.
“Do you know what they had planned for the kiddie games?” Sadie asked.
Evan shook his head. “I’m not sure, but probably the same thing they have every year. Bean bag toss, bobbing for apples, some kind of ring toss game.”
As they made it to the area with the large wooden board painted to look like the candy house from Hansel and Gretel, he paused and waved Sadie through the shorter opening. Stepping through, Evan was surprised to find that someone had created a small village out of the usually open grassy field. Looking at all the options set up, he wondered why they hadn’t had all this when he was a kid.
To the right, a section with small Nerf guns sat a few feet away from three large targets. To their left, the typical fishing pond was set up, with surprising detail on the curtain that hid the workers behind. In the back were the few games his mother had mentioned, and even farther back, they found a small race course and several small go-karts lined up and ready to ride.
“When did they start doing go-karts?” Evan grinned at the track, his eyes wide at the thought of what fun the go-karts would have been as a kid.
“I think Aubrey said Will has been working on them for the past few years,” Sadie said. “I think this is the first time they’ve actually allowed them into the festival, though.”
“Will Kennedy from high school? Wasn’t he a couple years younger than us?” Evan pointed first at Sadie and then back at himself.
Sadie nodded. “He’s taking over the mechanic shop now, I think. Dave was ready to retire.”
Evan turned to look at her, his hand on his hip. “How do you know all of that? You haven’t set foot in this town in years. I’ve been here for every festival since I was born, and I didn’t even know all that.”
With a sly grin, Sadie said, “It pays to listen. Your mom was talking about it last night, and I got curious about what people were up to.”
“I’m guessing not that much has changed. Half of the people we went to high school with are still around, I’d wager.”
“Oh yeah?” Sadie took a step forward, her head tilted up so she could see him. With the challenging look on her face, Evan was tempted to lean forward and kiss her, the temptation growing stronger as they spent more time together. This Sadie, so different from the girl in high school, had many more layers than he could have imagined, and that’s what drew him to her.
“What if we take the go-karts for a ride? Just to make sure they’re safe.” Evan grinned at her and could see the indecision on her face.
She finally nodded. “Okay, but we need to drive for something. Loser buys ice cream from Kimball Farms.”
“I thought they closed for the winter already.”
“Nope. They’re still open for the festival. But we’d have to get it by tomorrow.” She held out her hand and looked him in the eye.
He reached his hand forward and shook hers, tempted to pull her closer, but she pulled away, heading for one of the karts.
Looking around, Evan saw they were in the clear. After pulling the cord behind the seat of Sadie’s and then his own to start them, he jumped into his kart, buckled his seat belt, and tested some of the controls. Sadie drove up next to him, trying to give him an intimidating look before it turned into a wide smile.
“Are you ready for this, Gibson?” he asked.
“If you mean ready to beat you, then, yes, I am, Goose.” She paused a moment and said, “Two laps around the track in one, two, hey—”
Evan punched the gas and took off around the first corner, going all of five miles per hour. The straightaway wasn’t bad, but then came another curve, and Sadie came up on the outside and moved past him, her auburn hair flying behind her. The determination he saw on her face made him laugh, and he pushed the pedal down until it wouldn’t go any further.
Moving up behind her, he tapped the back of her kart before moving over to the side. He hadn’t realized there was another turn coming up as he’d only been focused on moving around Sadie. Swerving the best he could, the kart slid out and into the pile of tires stacked up for a barrier. The smell of rubber permeated his nose, and he realized there probably wasn’t a reverse on these things.
He unbuckled his seat belt and moved his legs out, trying to get out of the smaller space. Once his feet hit the ground, he pushed up, inspecting the damage to the kart and the tires.
The sound of another kart pulled up behind him.
“Goose, what did you do?” Sadie asked in mock horror.
“Just come help me fix this, will you?” Evan glanced at his watch and saw they only had about fifteen minutes to get everything back to normal before the festival officially opened.
They picked up tire after tire, layering them so they would be more firm than just tall stacks of tires. By the time they’d finished, Evan could feel the sweat beading up on his forehead.
Sadie threw the last tire on the pile and dusted off her hands. As Evan looked down, he found they were both covered in streaks of black, and his hands were completely black.
“We look quite the sight, huh?” Sadie said, pulling her hair back and wrapping it in a band. As Evan looked closer, he saw a long black stripe across her cheek.
After wiping his thumb clean on his jeans, Evan reached up and rubbed it across the streak, the color wiping away. His first thought was the surprise at how soft her skin was, and then he was mesmerized in the bright green of her eyes. Something caught in his chest as he lowered his eyes to her lips, wondering what they would feel like on his.
Seconds passed, and just as he was about to lean in and kiss her, a voice behind him caused her to jump, as if they’d been caught doing something illegal. Which, looking down at the karts, they kind of had.
“Mrs. Dolores told us to come find you two over here. We’re supposed to be helping with the games.” He turned to find the owner of the voice, a girl about seventeen. With lips pursed and a hand on her hip, her expression told him she’d seen him try to kiss Sadie. Behind her were ten young men and women, their ages varying. “Where do you want us?” the tallest kid asked.
Sadie brushed back a loose strand of hair and said, “Okay, let’s do two of you at each station. Who wants to be in charge of the go-karts?”
All eleven hands shot into the air, and Evan grinned. Sadie pointed to a young man in the back and a young girl on the other side. It took a few minutes, but she divided up all the kids, promising that they would rotate stations every so often to make it less boring.
“Are you ready? We are in charge of the fishing pond.” She gave Evan a smile, and he nodded.
“That was very efficient of you.”
“I’ve learned that in order to get everything ready for a wedding, you have to give clear instructi
ons to get things just the way you want them in a short time frame. You’re the big businessman. Is that not how you do things?”
Evan considered that for a moment. “I’ve never really thought about it. But I’ll definitely start doing that now. Maybe my remodels won’t take forever and a day.”
Sadie moved in the direction of the fishing pond, and Evan followed, his hand falling to the small of her back as they walked. It seemed like the most natural thing in the world, even though he hadn’t escorted a woman to any event, even a fishing pond, in years.
The way she’d helped the kids get to where they needed to be was impressive. It felt as though another strand of rope had been cinched between the two of them, pulling him even closer to her. He just hoped it wasn’t one-sided. He’d been through that before, and if he opened his heart again, it wouldn’t survive much more heartache.
Chapter 12
They’d made it through the morning at the fishing pond, but Sadie still couldn’t get the image out of her mind of Evan looking at her as he wiped away the black smudge. How many times had she imagined and daydreamed that he would finally notice her as a love interest instead of Aubrey’s best friend? She couldn’t even remember.
She’d thought she was over him, had moved on and locked her heart after college. And yet, it felt like those feelings had never really gone away and now were only getting stronger. Which meant she was just setting herself up for heartbreak.
A single life had been just fine, especially since she was able to make other people’s wedding dreams come true. But seeing him, his carefree attitude and excitement for life, made her wonder what it would be like to have a relationship with him. Not that anything had changed from one lingering look, but she couldn’t stop her mind from spinning it over and over.
Evan stood outside the sheet and would peek in every so often, telling her if the child participating in the fishing pond was a boy or a girl and about what age. They’d tried to switch at one point, but it seemed the age never made it through Evan’s brain, as he usually gave kids either something too complex or too easy for their age.
“Girl, six years old,” he said with a wink.
The line flew over the top of the sheet, and the clothespin came down enough for Sadie to clip on a small notebook set, which included a notebook, eraser, pencil, and pencil sharpener, all with the design of a unicorn. Whoever had thought of these gifts and toys must have blown the budget out of the water, because they were definitely nicer than anything she’d ever received in her years of coming to the festival.
The curtain on the other end opened, and Dolores came through, a bright smile on her face. “Aubrey and I came to give you a little break. You and Evan go get some food over at one of the stands.”
“You don’t want to eat? I think we’ll be okay here,” Sadie said, suddenly not wanting to leave her station. Things were going so well, and she worried that any change would suddenly burst that connection she felt between the two of them.
Dolores touched her arm, her eyes boring through Sadie’s. “We’ve already eaten, dear. Go ahead and get something. We’ve still got a long day ahead, and I don’t want you to get dehydrated or anything.” There was something in her expression that Sadie couldn’t put her finger on.
Shrugging, she moved past the curtain and saw Aubrey already taking over for Evan. He had his hands stuffed into his jeans and looked like he was waiting for her to come with him. The baseball cap on his head made him even more attractive at that moment, and she stared forward, willing her heart and brain to chill out a bit.
“What do you feel like?” Evan asked as they walked past the section of booths selling crafts and décor.
Sadie squinted a bit, trying to read all the signs along the row of food booths. The signs hadn’t changed much, most of the same food being sold as in years past.
“Navajo taco,” she finally said. “And a gallon of water.” She hadn’t realized how thirsty she’d become, but she was now glad Dolores had come over when she did.
Evan chuckled. “Yeah, water does sound good. Go find us a table, and I’ll get the food.”
Sadie reached into her pocket where she’d stashed some cash that morning, knowing she didn’t want to carry her wallet around everywhere. Pulling out a ten-dollar bill, she said, “Here. This should cover my portion.”
Evan shook his head and pushed her hand back. “I’ve got it. I’ll be right back.”
He moved away before she could protest, and as she watched him walk to the stand, she knew she was in big trouble.
Chapter 13
The picnic tables set up in the shade were packed with people, all trying to get food while listening to the band playing on the other side. Sadie could only find a small section on one end of the back tables, and she sat down, watching the people around her. It was something she’d done as a young girl, watching body language and facial expressions. She’d learned how to do that when she was really little, making her more sensitive to the feelings of the people around her.
A young mother sat just down the table from her, and Sadie smiled as the infant cooed and tried to attack the small toy sitting on the table in front of her. Sadie had always loved kids, had wanted a whole gaggle of them someday, but that was before she saw what her parents’ marriage had dissolved into. Now that she wasn’t planning to marry, ever, she didn’t want to try to bring a child into the world without the help of someone she could depend on.
Her life would change considerably if she ever had children, but she was willing to do that—in dreams, that is. As much pull as she felt toward Evan right now, she knew it was probably all in her head, or even if it was real, it would fizzle out by the time they both had to go back to work and reality.
A plate of food slid in front of her, and Sadie scooted a little closer to an older woman she didn’t recognize. Evan sat next to Sadie, and she realized just how little room they had.
“Sorry, there weren’t many open seats.” She gave him a sheepish look, and he only grinned.
“No worries. Do you want me to sit on the ground to give you more room?”
Sadie blinked a few times, surprised at his offer. The Evan she’d always known wouldn’t have noticed or wouldn’t have cared about something like that.
Part of her wanted him to, just so she could have the room to move her arms since she’d have to cut the scone with a fork and a knife. The other part of her caught the woodsy smell of his cologne, and with his arm right next to her, she didn’t want him to move.
Shaking her head, she said, “You’re good. I think these people next to us are almost done anyway.” Seeing the warmth in his smile, Sadie averted her eyes to her plate, focusing on cutting into the fried dough. Her insides felt like they’d been shocked and were trying to recover.
She felt like a love-sick teenager around him, but she wished she could just push the feelings aside and move on. She had Taryn’s wedding to finish preparing for and another four weeks after that. If she looked at her calendar, she’d be all over the country in the first few months of the next year, and how would that work with a relationship?
“How’s the food?” Evan asked, stuffing a large bite of bratwurst and sauerkraut into his mouth.
“Delicious as always. I really need to pay you for it.” She moved to reach into her pocket again, but he stopped her, placing his hand lightly on her arm and sending tingles throughout. She wished she could curse her nervous system for being so sensitive to his touch.
“Please, it’s on me.”
“But our bet was for ice cream, not a taco.” Sadie tilted her head to the side and raised an eyebrow, challenging him to defy her.
Evan looked like he was trying to keep back a smile, and then he chuckled. “What if I want to buy you a taco and ice cream? I think that’s allowed, don’t you?”
“I do have a job. I can buy things.”
“Why are you being so difficult about it? It was my treat for putting up with me all morning at the fishing pond. And
for driving here with me. I know it was hard, but you seem to be having a lot of fun.”
Sadie looked back to her food, thinking about that. “I am. Thank you. So far, no corn dogs have been needed. Speaking of corn dogs, how can you eat that,” she asked, pointing to his bratwurst, “and not corn dogs?”
“I’m not really sure,” he said, staring at the piece of meat on his fork. “One of the guys from the IBC is from Germany, and he knew how to cook them really well.”
Lifting one side of her mouth, Sadie said, “I think it’s from when we were in junior high. Remember, someone dared you to eat five of the lunchroom corn dogs?”
Evan’s eyes widened, and he laughed. “I didn’t even remember that until you said something. You know what? I think you’re right about that. I went home feeling sick and ended up throwing them up. But I made twenty bucks, so I’d say it was worth it.”
Sadie raised an eyebrow, not sure she’d feel the same. “Throwing up is not worth a hundred bucks.”
They paused a few moments as the couple next to them moved. Sadie shifted over a few more inches, allowing Evan to scoot all the way onto the bench but close enough that she could still inhale his heavenly cologne.
“Do you have a boyfriend?” he asked, right as she took a sip of water.
Half spitting it out, half choking on it, Sadie felt her eyes water as she pounded her fist against her chest, trying to get everything to clear out. Evan patted her back a few times and moved his hand in circles, causing her to relax and focus on that rather than the tickle in her throat.
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you.” Evan looked concerned, as though he were the one fully responsible for the burn in her chest. Which he kind of was.
“You’re good,” Sadie said, waving it off. “I, um, no. I don’t have a boyfriend.” She kept her eyes on her plate and breathed in slowly before letting it out in segments. Armed with the plastic fork and knife, she cut the scone, making sure the meat, lettuce, and other toppings were still atop it as she raised it to her mouth.
The Vegas Billionaire: An International Billionaire Club Series Page 7
