“Thanks, but we can buy our own,” the brunette says.

“Go on, take it, otherwise I have to put it in the trash,” I say, nudging the stick against Emily’s hand.

She looks at me, smiles and takes it.

“I’ve always loved the way cotton candy dissolves on my tongue,” Emily says.

I can think of another thing I’d like to put on her tongue.

“Are you enjoying the carnival?”

Emily starts laughing, and I don’t know why. Is she laughing at me or with me?

“What are you laughing at?” I ask.

“You keep telling me to enjoy the carnival.”

“Well, that time I asked you if you were.”

“Same thing,” she says, still laughing.

“So are you?”

“Yes, it’s lots of fun, just like every year.”

“I was hoping this year would be even more fun for you.”

She shrugs, “Maybe a little bit.”

“Only a little bit?” I say, flashing my best get-them-into-bed smile.

“Why can’t you just leave us alone?” the brunette says.

“And why can’t you just let us have a little fun. That’s all this is, no need to get snippy.”

“Don’t worry about Courtney. She’s just jealous you aren’t giving her the cotton candy.”

I turn to the brunette and say, “Courtney, eh. You’re beautiful too.” I pause and turn to the redhead, “You too, Red. What do you say I take you three beautiful ladies for some funnel cakes?”

“Oh my God, funnel cakes are the best thing ever,” the redhead says.

“No thanks,” Courtney says.

I nod and smile at the redhead, and turn to Emily and say, “What about you, Goldie? You’re the tie-breaker, do you want funnel cakes or not?”

She thinks about it, her eyes flitting between her two friends. I catch her blue eyes and hold them, to convince her.

“All right, funnel cakes it is,” she says, and stuffs a piece of cotton candy in her mouth.

“Awesome,” I say, and lead the three of them to the funnel cake hut.

I overhear Courtney tell Emily, “You dad is going to flip when this gets back to him.”

Fucking ace. There’s nothing better than corrupting the good girls. I could tell from the second I laid eyes on her that she was ripe for the picking. Who else comes to the carnival in a fancy-looking dress like that? Not that I’m complaining, she looks hot. Fucking hot. I can’t wait until I’m ripping it off her and tasting her pussy.

We have to walk down the midway to get to the funnel cake hut. Shitloads of townspeople are looking at me. No doubt wondering what I’m doing with three of the town’s finest young women. Suckers would all be jealous if they knew it’s like this in every town I go to.

“Don’t look now, it’s Connor,” Courtney says.

“Who’s that?” I ask.

“The jerk she used to date,” the redhead says.

“Is that so,” I say, turning to look at her. Emily’s cheeks turn red, and I laugh.

“He’s winning at that game. Look, he has a massive tiger and he’s trading it in to win a giant dolphin.” It’s the Basket Toss, all you’ve got to do is get the baseball in the peach basket. Her ex-boyfriend seems to be cleaning up at it.

“Your ex, you say?” I start to walk to the booth. Time to have a little fun.

“Hey,” I say. “That guy cheated, I saw from out here.” Cess is going to love me for this. It’s a big hit to her wallet when the big prizes are won, since she’s paid on commission.

“Is that so?” Cess says.

“Yeah, he put spin on the ball.” It’s the oldest carny excuse in the book.

“Sorry, sir. No putting spin on the ball.”

“What the fuck? That’s not a rule.”

“Yes, it is,” Cess snaps back.

If anyone can handle herself in a situation like this, it’s Cess. She doesn’t need any more of my help.

“Can you smell them funnel cakes yet?” I say to Emily, returning to the three girls.

“I can’t believe you just did that.”

“Why? Your friend said he was a dick.”

We pass the Balloon Dart and Shoot The Star. The midway is busy. When it’s this busy on a Saturday night, it usually means there’s shit else to do in the town.

A little further down the midway, I notice a boy at the Basketball Toss. He’s maybe five, six, fuck if I know. His age doesn’t matter, he’s young. But he’s holding a basketball and taking aim with a big smile on his face.

The fourth best thing about being a carny is seeing the smiles on kids’ faces. We’re their wonderland, and every weekend I get to bring Christmas to kids in all the little towns in the Carolinas. I’m fucking Santa Claus.

As we get closer, I realize the boy has a broken arm. Duke’s working the booth. I take three big strides to reach the booth and nod at Duke.

He hands me a ball, and I stand beside the kid.

“Hey, buddy,” I say to the kid, “What do ya say we take this shot together? If one of us gets it in, you win a kangaroo?”

The kid smiles hard, and his eyes shine with excitement. He looks at his parents, and they give him their nod of approval.

“Ready?” I say, holding my ball up.

“Yes!” he shouts, holding his ball tight above his head.

“Set,” I say, taking aim.

He stays motionless, waiting for my next word.

“Go!” I say and release my ball.

I put a hard arc on my ball, and it passes through the hoop with a swish. Even though the hoop is oval and the ball over-inflated, I can get it in every time, that’s how much I play it.

The boy’s ball goes up in the air and almost reaches the edge of the hoop.

“High five, buddy, we did it! We won!” I say, and crouch to get a high five off him.

“Yay!”

Duke passes him the stuffed kangaroo. He’s got the biggest smile ever, even bigger than before. He high fives me.

“Have fun at the carnival!” I say, and ruffle his hair.

Emily and her friends had stopped to wait for me, watching the whole thing. I don’t feel the need to say anything, I’m still too pumped from making that kid so happy. The smell of the funnel cakes is calling me, and I carry on walking to them.

They don’t think I can hear them, but you learn to have big ears in this business.

“He just did that to impress you,” Courtney says.

“So what. Do you think I care?” Emily says.

“If you didn’t, you’d take his eyes off his butt,” Courtney says.

“It is a great butt, there’s nothing wrong with enjoying the view,” Emily says.

That’s why I wear the tight jeans, ladies.

We arrive at the funnel cakes, and I grab three for them from behind the counter. Papa Smurf would dock my ass something awful if he found out, so I don’t risk getting them any of the great toppings. They’re going to have to settle for some sugar on top.

Speaking of the devil, I see his stupid red hat coming down the midway. Time to get my ass back to work before he busts my balls about slacking off.

“Sorry, ladies, I have to get back to the rides.”

“No apology necessary,” Courtney says. Bitch.

“So, Goldie, remember what I said earlier, come find me at close.”

One side of her mouth turns up in a half smile, and she says, “Thanks, but I’ve got to get home.”