by Amy Sparling
I probably won’t be trying out that one.
The arcade games are included in our free wristbands, so we play some skee ball and ping pong and discover that we’re really bad at air hockey. After a while of having more fun than I’ve probably ever had, we head for the food area, the smell of deep fried goodness making our mouths water. There’s a line of carnival games to the right, and I watch a little boy try his hardest to knock over a pyramid of bottles with a baseball. Beside him, his dad cheers him on, while his mom claps at his attempts. A sharp pain flitters through my chest at the sight of this happy little family. I wonder what it would have been like to grow up with that kind of life. But then I shake the thoughts away and focus my attention straight ahead.
“I can’t even decide what I want first,” Riley says, tapping her food voucher card against her nails. “It all looks so good.”
“I’m thinking something small for now, otherwise we’ll puke on the rides,” I say, gazing up at the yellow marquee in front of a funnel cake stand.
“Hot dog?” she says.
I shake my head, because someone has just walked by me holding the most glorious looking snack food ever. “Soft pretzel.”
She laughs. “You get a pretzel, I’ll get a hot dog.”
The pretzel is huge, and warm and the softest thing I’ve ever bitten into. I take a bite while scanning the area to find where Riley went, since the hot dog stand was a few stands down from mine. I know it’s stupid, but in this moment, if a meteor hits me and kills me, I can die happy having experienced a fun night on the Sterling Pier.
“Hey!” Riley says, somehow appearing next to me, which makes me jump, nearly scaring the pretzel right out my hands. “This hot dog is so much better than the shit they serve at Good Grace.” She makes flirty eyes at the food in her hands and then takes a bite.
We find an empty bench and sit so we can finish our food, and even though it’s carnival food that has a reputation for being crappy and overpriced, it’s still amazing.
“Okay, so I’ve never been on a ride ever,” Riley confesses as we make our way back to the busiest part of the pier. “What should we do first?”
“Ferris wheel,” I say, nodding up at the huge wheel in front of us. “It looks easy enough.”
I’ve never been on a carnival ride either, but I’ve heard stories from people at school, about how certain rides are known to make you puke. The Ferris wheel isn’t one of them. It’s big and slow and perfect for old ladies, so it seems like a great first ride to me.
“Oh hey, there’s Chase!” Riley’s face lights up and she waves at someone to our right. I scan the crowd and find a guy dressed as an employee, his bright red hair shaggy and blowing all over his face from the breeze. He’s holding a broom and one of those scooper things that go with it. When he sees Riley waving at him, he smiles bashfully. She turns to me. “I’m going to go say hi and thank him again for the tickets. You want to wait in line for us?”
“Sure thing,” I say. Talking to strangers is awkward for me, and I’d only feel like a third wheel if I went with her. While she rushes over there, I step into line behind four other people. The Ferris wheel has only just started, so we’ve probably got a while to wait.
The two kids in front of me are clearly siblings, both with prominent brows, small noses, and the same golden hair. I watch them argue over who gets to sit in the spot closest to the ocean, and I feel like telling them to cherish the fact that they have a family who takes them out to do fun things instead of arguing over petty stuff. One of them stomps his foot and the other goes to hit him. He launches backward to avoid the hit. I step back, too, just to get out of the way.
And then I crush into some guy’s chest. I freeze, feeling the chill of his leather jacket on my bare shoulders.
“Crap, I’m sorry!” I say, turning around with apologetic eyes, hoping he’s not one of those douchebags who will yell at me in front of everyone. I mean, he is wearing a leather jacket in the middle of July.
“It’s not a problem.” His voice is like honey, smooth but with a deep rumble that makes my toes tingle.
I meet his gaze. And swallow.
His lips twist into a grin, a contrast from the sharp line of his jaw, which has just a hint of stubble. This guy is hot and he knows it. Dark brown hair, messy up top but swept back in a way that looks like it was meant to be messy.
His amber eyes meet mine, thick eyebrows pulling together. “You okay?”
Snap out of it, Cara!
I blink and gasp for air. Heat rushes to my cheeks as I mentally yell at myself for being so stupidly obvious that I was checking him out.
I nod, again, stupidly, and then inch backward to put some distance between me and this perfect, perfect man. Even in all of the romantic movies I’ve watched with Riley, I’ve never in my life seen anyone so gorgeous. There’s a hint of mystery in his features and that only makes him hotter. And now I can’t look away.
“I’m fine,” I say quickly, my voice so high they might as well call me Mickey Mouse, and then I spin back around, my heart pounding louder than the melodies from the carnival rides.
Right when I catch my breath, the delicious woodsy scent of his cologne brushes past my shoulder. A shadow falls over my right.
“You don’t seem okay,” he whispers, that voice of his sending a chill up my spine. And then he straightens, and I’m suddenly missing having him hover next to my ear.
I turn around on shaky knees and look him dead in the eyes with as much confidence as I can summon up.
“I’m sorry again that I bumped into you,” I say, offering him a smile but I’m not sure if it looks right because I’m suddenly so nervous. “If I don’t seem okay it’s probably because I hate the idea of bothering random people.”
“Like I said, not a problem.” He gazes at me thoughtfully. “Is that really why you’re nervous?”
“I’m not nervous,” I stammer. I take a deep breath—hoping to convince him and myself—and say it again. “I’m not.”
His lips are the perfect shade of dark pink as they stretch into a grin. “Liar.”
Chapter 4
“Wha—I’m not—” I put a hand on my hip, but he just smiles.
There are hundreds of people around us but he’s only looking at me. “Are you always this easy to mess with?”
Exhaling, I glance over and see Riley standing with Chase. They’re both staring at me. I’d blush if I wasn’t already pinker than cotton candy. Riley’s eyes widen and she gives me a thumbs up. I turn back to the guy.
“I’m not nervous. And you’re not messing with me. I’m totally normal.”
“Mmhmm,” he says, scratching his neck. I’m not used to standing next to someone so much taller than I am. Uncle Will is short for a guy, and Riley is positively tiny and they’re the only two people I see besides customers who are on the other side of the counter at work. So the way he has to look down at me does make me a little nervous. “I’m Theo, by the way.”
“Cara.”
He doesn’t make any motion to shake my hand, which is good because my palms are sweaty.
“Next up!” The voice sounds a little annoyed, or maybe overworked. We glance at the ride, where an older man wearing a faded Sterling Pier shirt is letting people off the carriages one by one. The first two people step into a carriage, and then he moves the wheel slightly so the two bratty kids in front of me can get on the next one.
Theo steps up beside me. “Looks like we’re next.”
“Oh, um, I’m riding with my friend,” I say, turning back to Riley, waving to get her attention. She gives me this demure look and then turns back to Chase with a renewed look of interest in whatever he’s saying.
“Looks like she abandoned you,” Theo says, his voice low.
I let out a huff. “Riley!” I call out, cupping my hands to my mouth.
“You getting’ on or what?” the ride operator says.
Riley blows me a kiss and then shoos me away with the back
of her hand. “Go!” she calls back. There’s a subtlety in her eyes, something only I would understand.
Ride with the hot guy.
My heart slams around in my chest. “Ready?” Theo says, and it really bothers me how calm and relaxed he is at the idea of riding next to a total stranger for five minutes.
“Sure,” I say, if only to spite Riley. She probably thinks I’m too chicken, and I am. Which is exactly why I need to prove her wrong.
“After you,” Theo says, extending his hand toward the carriage.
I walk up the rickety metal steps onto the platform. The ride operator holds open the chain that goes across the carriage. “First one in gets the ocean view,” he says.
I turn to Theo, lifting an eyebrow questioningly. “You first,” he says. I climb in, grabbing onto the railing as the carriage rocks under my weight. Theo’s cologne hits me in a whoosh as he slides in next to me, his body taking up more than half of the carriage. My heart pounds, and I keep my knees together, my hands in my lap, trying to stay as small and unbothersome as possible.
The ride lurches forward for a few seconds and then stops abruptly for the next people to get on. I look around wildly, amazed at how high we are and we’ve only just moved a little bit. Soon, everyone is loaded and the ride begins.
This thing is supposed to be fun and not scary, but here I am, a little terrified. “Whoa,” I say, looking out over the ocean as we reach the very top of the wheel. I hold onto the railing in front of me. We’re so high it’s getting a little unsettling.
“You seem a little scared,” Theo says. I turn to him, just as we swoop back down and begin another trip around the wheel. The lights of the surrounding rides bounce off his chiseled face, making shadows and rainbows of color spill over his hair.
“It is a little scary,” I admit, gazing back out at the ocean. “It’s beautiful, but scary. I’ve never been on a Ferris wheel before.”
“Really?” There’s a surprise in his voice, and when I look over I find him studying me, confusion knitted in his eyebrows. “Are you not from around here?”
“I was born and raised here,” I say with a sarcastic chuckle.
“And you’ve never been on the Ferris wheel?”
I shrug. “It’s a long story.”
“I have time.”
I look over at him. Growing up in foster care isn’t exactly a long story. I could say it in two sentences, maybe even one, but I have no desire to let this stranger into that part of my life. My phone buzzes from my front pocket. I lean back to pull it out and I hold on tightly out of fear of losing it at the top of this thing. There is definitely no money to buy a new phone right now.
I have a text from Riley.
Chase is showing me the hilarious security footage of this drunk guy from earlier. Take your time with the Ferris wheel hottie.
There’s a winking emoji at the end of it. I want to reply, but I can’t risk letting Theo see her text, so I shove the phone back in my pocket.
“Looks like my best friend has ditched me,” I say, frowning.
“That seems a little weird,” Theo says, his gaze focused on the ocean. “Especially since she didn’t like that guy.”
“What makes you think that?” I ask.
His shoulders lift. “I could just tell. Seems like she was talking to him out of obligation.”
I gnaw on the inside of my lip. If he could tell that much from a few seconds of looking at Riley, what can he tell about me?
“She probably won’t be long,” I say. “He gave us free tickets tonight, so she’s just being nice.”
“I’m happy to be your companion until she’s back,” Theo says.
I narrow my eyes at him. This guy is probably in his early twenties, and he’s entirely too hot for someone like me. “Why?”
There’s a twinkle in his eyes and I’m not sure if it’s from the lights anymore. “Why not?”
When the ride is over, I expect Theo to go his own way, but he stays at my side. “So, if you’ve never been on a Ferris wheel before, have you been on anything else?”
I shake my head. “I’ve never been here before. It took me eighteen years to get to a kid place,” I say with a snort.
“You’re eighteen?” I don’t know why it sounds weird when he says it, like maybe he’s surprised in a bad way.
“As of today,” I say, looking at my feet.
He stops right in the middle of a group of people who are all trying to get to the next ride. “Well then,” he says, grinning at me until my knees go weak. “Happy Birthday, Cara.”
“Thank you,” I say in this silly way.
“What’s next?” Theo gazes around. “The swing?”
“No way in hell am I getting on that thing.”
He laughs and motions for us to walk again. I follow along next to him, my whole right side hot from being so close. “What’s your favorite animal?”
“Umm, elephants,” I say after a moment of thought.
He frowns. “That’s not very cuddly.”
“You didn’t ask me my favorite cuddly animal.”
“What’s your favorite cuddly animal?”
“Puppies.”
He looks at me, not like he’s trying to figure me out, but more like he already knows. And in a way, I know this is crazy, but it almost feels like maybe he does know me. Maybe we were friends in a past life. Maybe I’m just delusional from all the fun in the air.
Before I realize it, we’ve walked clear across the pier. We’re right in the middle of the games area that Riley and I avoided earlier because it costs money for these games. Carnies heckle to the crowds of people trying to win prizes. Little kids try and fail at winning a goldfish by tossing a ring over a bottle. Two teenage girls flirt with a younger carnie who has abandoned his dart throwing game for their attention.
“Let’s see…” Theo says, gazing around at the selections. “There we go!”
He leads me to a game booth just like Riley and I saw earlier. You have to throw a baseball at a stack of bottles in order to win.
Theo hands some cash to the guy, who hands over three baseballs. “You want to play?” Theo asks me.
I shake my head. “I’ll cheer you on instead.”
Theo doesn’t need all three baseballs. After one throw, the entire stack of bottles collapses. The carnie lets out a low whistle.
“Damn, son,” he says, rubbing a hand across his forehead, a lit cigarette dangling from his lips. “That’s never happened before. Any prize you want, it’s yours.”
“The elephant,” Theo says, pointing up at the very top of the booth. My stomach flips over and twists inside out, leaving me feeling like I’m floating. Is this really happening?
Apparently, it is. Because soon Theo hands me the elephant, a soft well-crafted plush toy that’s clearly better than all of the other cheaper toys. It came from the highest shelf, the best prizes for the best scores.
“Thank you,” I mumble, smiling at the elephant’s adorable face, with its long trunk made of grey fuzzy fabric. Panic rises up in my chest as I hold the prize in my hands. A cool breeze blows over the pier, but it does nothing to cool down the fire in my cheeks. The truth is, no one’s ever won me a prize before. No guy has ever given me anything. I don’t know how to act, what to say, what to do.
“You should probably get back to your friends,” I find myself saying instead of all the things I want to say. “They probably miss you.”
“No friends to get back to,” he says, shoving his hands in his jean pockets. “I’m all yours until you tell me to leave.”
My toes tingle. All mine?
I blink. I have to get out of here, away from this guy. The more time I spend with him, the more I’ll let myself daydream about the kind of life I’ll never have. Girls like me don’t get guys like him.
“I’m sure you have better things to do than win strange girls stuffed elephants.”
“You aren’t that strange,” he says, bumping into me with his shoulder. “
And I can’t think of anything else I’d rather be doing.”
Chapter 5
My skin still tingles from where Theo’s arm brushed against mine. The tension in my shoulders seems to lessen a little with each minute that passes. I try to tell myself it’s no big deal to casually hang out with some guy you just met. It’s not like I’m going to get drunk and sleep with him or anything.
My stomach does a flip flop at the idea.
“You’re a little strange yourself,” I say, recalling what he’d just said a moment ago. I fold my arms over my chest and peer at him. “It’s July, and you’re wearing a leather jacket.”
He chuckles. “And I’m hot as hell in it.”
“Yes, yes you are.”
The words are out before my common decency can kick in and tell me to keep that thought to myself. Theo’s grin turns flirty, his amber eyes crinkling at the corners.
I roll my eyes, pretending like that smirk of his isn’t totally doing it for me. Then, because all the sweat from my palms is going to ruin my elephant, I open my purse and shove him inside. “So why the jacket? If you’re trying to pull off some handsome mysterious dark stranger vibe, you’re doing a killer job.”
He smooths his hands over the leather. “I rode a motorcycle here. The wind from the beach stings like hell, so the jacket is necessary. Although now it just makes me look like a douche.”
If I were bold, I’d ask him for a motorcycle ride. I’ve never been on one before and tonight seems like a night of firsts. But I am decidedly not bold, so instead I say, “You don’t look like a douche.”
We reach the end of the pier and Theo puts a hand on the railing that looks out at the Gulf of Mexico. Waves crash against the concrete pillars below us, bringing the salty smell of the ocean with them. “What do I look like?”
