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“You too. Is this your balloon?”
“Yes, ma’am. We all have our hobbies. Mine doesn’t come with a plane and a parachute though.”
Max chuckles with a shake of his head. “Breck, the invitation is always open.”
“I’ll take you up on that someday,” he says, walking backward. “Don’t go anywhere. We have to catch up.” The smile remains on his handsome yet rugged face as he returns to work.
Standing there with Max’s arms wrapped around me, we watch the blue and red balloon pop up. Brecken jumps into the wicker basket and yells at Max. “Ready?” My body tenses as Max pushes me toward the basket.
“Wait. What?” I say in shock. Max doesn’t give me time to think as he pushes me forward. “Max!” I try to dig my heels into the grass, but Max has a firm grip on my waist and he lifts me an inch off the ground.
“You didn’t tell her?” Brecken laughs.
I give up the fight because we’re causing a scene. Rather, I wait till we’re at the basket and turn around, slapping his chest. “Max Shaw,” I grind out through clenched teeth. “What are you doing?”
His smile widens. “We’re going for a ride. I thought you’d be excited.”
“You haven’t given me time to feel anything but surprise, you dominant ass.” I pull in a deep breath, adjusting my clothes that went askew from being forced forward. His eyes stay planted on me as he shoves his hands in his pockets, waiting for me to gather my wits. My eyes dart from the balloon back to Max. “Are we really doing this?” My voice comes out an octave higher than I expected.
He nods, flashing me a lopsided grin. I shake my hands out, a thrill of frightened anticipation crawling up my spine. Nibbling on my bottom lip, I fist his henley. “If we drop out of that thing, you better land first to break my fall.”
The four guys holding the basket down all chuckle. Max pulls his hands out of his pockets and covers mine. “I promise I’ll land first.”
“Okay,” I say, swallowing the lump of nerves in my throat, looking up into the hollow balloon. I shake my head. Nope, don’t look up into the piece of cloth that could deflate or pop. A squeal escapes my lips as Max scoops me up and places me into the basket. I grab onto the side when Max lifts himself in. With his weight, the guys have to work extra hard to keep it still. “See, I knew there was a reason you shouldn’t have eaten the other half of my burrito.”
“You have a funny one there,” Brecken jests.
“Yep, she’s a real comedian.” He slaps me on the ass before sliding up behind me. “You don’t have to have an iron-clad grip there, Tink,” he says, peering at my white knuckles. “We haven’t even left the ground yet.”
“No, but we’re about to. It’s our turn.” Brecken pulls the cord that fires the burner.
“Oh, my gosh,” I shriek, jolting around, gripping Max’s shirt again as I dig my face into his chest. The buzz of cheers mixed in with the crew’s directions drown out the sound of my heart drumming in my ears. Max encases me with his arms and I focus on him.
“Are you scared?” he whispers into my ear.
I rock my head. “Nope, I’m just trying to become one with your shirt.” His chest vibrates against my head. “Yes, I’m scared, captain obvious.”
“Good. Because some of the best things in life are the ones you have to dig deep inside yourself to try.” My shoulders drop as I try to calm down. “Tink, you were born to fly.”
I pull back, humor flashing in my eyes. “That is not in the literal sense, Max. If I fall, I won’t spread my wings and fly away.”
“And if you’re in a car accident, you’re not promised to walk away either.” He lifts a challenging brow. “You don’t want to miss this, I promise.” He leans down, brushes his lips against mine. The gentle kiss morphs into a passionate one as he pulls me into his body, one hand grips my ass, one in my hair. It’s as if he knows the exact point when my body and mind submit to him, when everything else around us doesn’t matter, that he pulls back reminding me where we are. And we’re not alone. My cheeks flush in embarrassment.
I glance over my shoulder at Brecken. “Sorry,” I say, feeling the need to apologize for our PDA.
He holds his hand up. “No need to apologize. I’m just over here, blown away that Max has a romantic side. Who knew?”
Max roars out in laughter. “She definitely brings out the worst in me.”
I stab him with my finger in the stomach. “And you like it.”
His eyes warm, finding mine, as he says, “I love it.”
Oh! Butterflies flutter in my belly. Did he just tell me he loved me?
His gaze is focused behind me and the way his eyes glow with wonderment makes me turn in his arms. No, he didn’t. Not wanting to miss the beautiful piece of artwork in front of me, I push back all thoughts of love and the hope that he said it.
There’s still a bite to the early morning air as we rise higher. Leaning my head back against Max, I watch as we join the other balloons, all moving in the same direction, like a flock of geese. I begin to sing “99 Red Balloons” by Nena to tamper down some of my nerves. The basketweave tattoo on my palm will probably last for days. But that’s okay, because I’m not letting go until we’re safe on the ground. We float alongside a river, surrounded by luscious greenery. “What river is that?”
