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She shook her head, yet her smile remained. She hadn’t been on a roller coaster since she was ten. Even the reminder of her subterfuge couldn’t dampen the mood.
He led her away from the ride, past smiling people and laughing kids. “Want to try the pirate’s ship?”
She stopped at the huge boat-shaped ride hanging precariously on a thin, shaky beam. As the pole moved back and forth, the ship rocked, until it actually wentupside down. Her mouth dried, but this was the best strategy for the day. If they stayed at these rides, where the preschoolers were sure to avoid, maybe enough time would pass to satisfy Aidan, and they could leave. She nodded nervously.
Clearly aware her fright, he laughed. “I’ll never understand you. But don’t worry, you’ll have fun. If you’re scared, just hold on to me.”
Yes, please.Yet she said nothing as they walked hand-in-hand to the ride, paying and then entering the already rocking cabin. And during it, shedidhold on to him, as she did in each of the six thrill rides they subsequently rode. And with each scary ride, she became more comfortable and less frightened, happy and excited she had overcome a fear held since childhood. By the time they were done, her hair was wild and her lips chapped from the wind, but she had enjoyed every second. They even went on the roller coaster a second time.
They were sitting on a bench, relaxing after the last ride. “Want to go on more?” She tapped him playfully on the shoulder, sending a wisp of hair over her eyes. She moved to scoop it away when he did it for her, brushing her face in a touch so innocent and yet so intimate. Untold emotion surged, as they locked gazes.
What was he thinking? If only she could see into his mind, discover his hidden desires. At the beginning, she longed to know so she could judge his fatherly abilities, but now it was more than that. She couldn’t decipher her emotions, but if they had met as strangers, she would be interested in seeing what could develop. With her life-changing secret, could there ever be athem?
The sound of children jerked Laura back to the present. She couldn’t consider this now, not when her independence was at risk. Now she had to get Aidan Bancroft out of this carnival. “I’m thinking…” she paused, considered potential plans. Found one. “That I’d love to go bowling with you again. How about it?”
He frowned, and her chances dimmed. Hours had passed, but it was still early, and a major part of the carnival remained explored. Her suggestion just didn’t make sense.
Clearly, he agreed. “How about later? Right now, I'd love to try some of those games.”
Laura grimaced. Unlike the thrill rides, the amusement area was definitely fair game to the four-year-olds, however according to the agenda, they would be at the circus right now. If Aidan was satisfied with just a few rounds, it could work. “All right,” she agreed. “Let’s go.”
They stopped at the first booth, a ring toss. “Three chances each.” Before Laura could stop him, Aidan handed the attendant a few dollars and took the offered rings.
“You don’t have to pay for me,” she protested as she accepted the scratchy red hoops. “This isn’t a date, after all.”
He didn’t agree, held back his ring, and with the swift agility of an athlete, threw the disc towards the pole. It landed dead center. “I forgot this outing was solely forbusiness.” He waved away the stuffed animal the attendant offered, indicating he wanted to try for the bigger prize.
“What do you mean by that?” She took her ring, and with an easy toss, also hit the goal. She, too, declined the prize in favor of continuing.
He held up his next ring. “With the exception of the two sentences we spoke for the sake of Miss Carol White, this excursion hasn’t seen a sliver of business.” He raised his eyebrows, daring her to disagree. Unfortunately, she couldn’t. She had meant to throw in some collaboration-centered questions, but had been so preoccupied with Jeanie, she had forgotten. He was now calling her on it.
Without winding up, he easily tossed the second ring onto its goal. She turned to him. “Just because I’m not asking questions doesn’t mean I’m not gathering information for my article. This is a very thorough story. I always spend time with my subjects as I craft my profiles.” With that, she threw the ring haphazardly, surprised when it also reached the pole. They both declined the prize to try for larger.
“Do you normally get this close to your subjects?” he challenged as he threw the last ring, landing right on target. He took a large teddy bear, which he immediately handed to her.
Her cheeks heated at memories of the kiss in the Tunnel of Love. Of course, she’d never gottenthatclose to her subjects before. But then again, none of her subjects had been quite like him: intelligent, smart, powerful, the father of her child. She didn’t answer his question, instead she just threw the last ring. She smiled when it reached the target and gave her purple, polka dotted, stuffed giraffe to Aidan.
He laughed. “Wait till my housekeeper gets a load of this. And I’ll take your silence as a no, you don’t get this close to them.”
She ignored the comment. “Ready to go?”
He laughed and shook his head. “Not yet.”
She swallowed a groan as they moved to the next game. Every second that passed signified more danger. The time of the circus’s ending came and went, but despite her subtle and not-so-subtle hints, Aidan insisted he wasn’t finished. Finally, they played all the games, several twice and one thrice. Aidan turned to her, and with welcome words, announced he was finally ready to leave. She just managed not to jump, pump her fist in the air and yell “hip, hip hurray!”
Unfortunately, the games were located at the far end of the carnival, thus they would have to traverse the entirety of the fair to reach the car. If she made it through the next few minutes she would be free. They walked quickly, Laura setting the pace through the throngs of people, workers and booths. She kept a close lookout for her daughter, and by fate’s mercy, did not see the precious little girl.
They were almost at the exit when Aidan suddenly stopped. “My cell phone.” He frowned as he patted down his pants. “I had it in my back pocket, but it must have fallen out during one of the rides. I’m going to run back for it.”
“No!” Laura screeched.
“Laura–” He shook his head. “I know you want to leave, but…”
“No, I mean of course someone should go back, but let me do it. I’ve been trying to get more exercise anyways. I don’t mind the extra steps.” Either of them going posed a threat, but if someone had to go, it should be her. He would probably stroll while she would run, plus he had less of a chance of running into Jeanie by staying in one spot as opposed to roaming the whole park. At this time, the preschool group could be anywhere.
“I’ll go with you,” he offered.
“It’s better if you stay in one spot,” she immediately denied. “That way if someone knows who has the phone, they’ll be able to tell you.”
