Chapter 6

 

 

“How did you do it?” she asked. “I had an entire plan.”

“I know,” he said, “but I convinced Ember to help me.”

“Traitor,” she said.

“I didn’t get to take you out on my turn,” he replied. “So I wanted to steal a few minutes from your date.”

She began to laugh, the sound building as she leaned back, the motion causing the bench to rock. Grateful she wasn’t angry, Reed reached under the bench and pulled out the bag he’d had Jackson stash for him.

“Cotton candy?” he asked.

“This doesn’t mean you win,” she said, her humor subsiding as she accepted the treat.

“I think it does,” he said.

“How did you ever turn Ember?” Kate marveled.

He took a bite of his own cotton candy. “I told her I felt cheated, that Jason had stolen my date. I didn’t want to break our tradition, so we concocted the plan to hijack your date. I’m glad you aren’t angry.”

“Some,” she admitted. “But more surprised. I love the Ferris wheel but the line is always so long it takes forever.”

“I know,” he said. “Your mom said you’d always wanted to get stuck on the top of a Ferris wheel.”

“How did you convince the fair to cooperate?”

He smiled. “That was the easy part. Marta’s cousin was surprisingly helpful. I swear her extended family is like their own covert army.”

She laughed again, the tone chagrined. “Do you get the feeling that our friends have no loyalty?”

“A little,” he said. “But they want us to be happy.”

“Is that what you are?” she asked, glancing his way.

He gestured to the view. With the lights of the fair below them, their vantage point allowed for an unbroken view of the valley below. The lights of Boulder were a dim glow beneath a starry night.

“How could I not be?” he asked.

“I never expected this challenge to occupy so much of my attention,” she admitted. “I think about it in the morning, when I get ready for work, and in class. One of my professors asked why I was so distracted.”

He nearly choking on cotton candy. “Dr. Caldin said that to me the day you soaked me. You were beautiful in the masquerade mask, by the way.”

“You assume that was me?”

“I know your eyes,” he said.

She raised an eyebrow and smiled coyly. “Oh? Just how well do you know my eyes?”

“Enough to know they’re beautiful,” he replied. “And I’ll stop there before you think I’m stalking you.”

“You called my mother and talked my roommate into hijacking my date,” she said. “I think we’re way past stalking.”

“When you put it that way, you make it sound bad,” he said.

“It’s only stalking if I don’t like it,” she said. “And I assure you, I’m enjoying every minute with you.”

Uncertain where to take the conversation, he smiled and looked at the view. The sun had set and the lights of the fair glowed beneath them. Then he noticed the crowd that had gathered below them. He expected them to be angry that the Ferris wheel was not moving, but most had smiles on their faces.

“It looks they are enjoying the spectacle,” he said.

She leaned over the edge and smiled at the crowd. “They must think we’re together.”

“Kiss her!” someone shouted.

He grinned. “It looks like you’re right.”

Another person shouted as well, and it quickly swelled to a chant, the sheer volume drawing more people to the Ferris wheel. Employees leaned out of the tent and looked up, grinning as they joined the chant.

“Kiss her! Kiss her! Kiss her!”

She turned to him and tilted her chin upward in invitation, her eyes sparkling with mischief. “You set the stage,” she said. “You have only yourself to blame.”

“You’re not going to help me out of this?” he asked.

“Nope,” she said, her smile widening. “But I think if you don’t make a move, they’re going to riot.”

He laughed, giving himself time to think. The crowd grew insistent, their chant rising with impatience. Kate cocked her head to the side as if waiting for the kiss, her smile one of invitation.

He grinned. “Don’t move,” he said, and then leaned in.

He put his arm around her and pulled her close. She blinked in surprise and shock but he twisted to the side, brushing his lips across her cheek. The contact was brief but sent tingles to his toes. More importantly, from the crowd it looked like a kiss, and they roared their approval.

He leaned back with a smug smile. “My apologies,” he said.

“Cheater,” she said.

It may have been his imagination, but it seemed she was breathless, and she swallowed several times as if attempting to regain her composure. He popped a bite of cotton candy in his mouth and tried to convince himself that he’d kissed her cheek exclusively for the moment. Then his eyes slid across the now dispersing crowd, and one face stood out.

Ember.

Standing with Marta, Brittney, Jackson, and Shelby, Ember stood in the center of the crowd, a smug smile on her face. She noticed him looking and their eyes met. Caught, she smirked and sauntered away, the others following. An ice-cream cone in hand, Jackson saluted as he left. A glance at Kate revealed she did not know the blondes were present. Reed may have sought to hijack Kate’s date, but he was not alone.

Apparently deciding the kiss had ended the moment on a high note, the Ferris wheel operator pressed a button and they began to lower to the ground. Before their friends disappeared, Reed pointed to Ember.

“It appears that I wasn’t the only one to hijack your date,” he said.

It was clear the moment she spotted her roommate. “Ember,” she said, spitting the word like a curse.

“It seems like she wanted to force a kiss,” Reed said wryly.

Kate shook her head, and then grinned. “I’ll have to thank her later.”

“Me too,” he said, drawing a surprised look.

“You’re not mad she pushed your rules?”

“A little,” he said, using her words. “But I can’t deny how much I enjoyed it.”

The Ferris wheel came to a halt and he stepped out, reaching back to help her from the bench. The crowd applauded as they walked back to the fair, and Reed endured the attention with a smile.

The rest of the night passed in a blur, but his thoughts remained on the almost kiss. It had been years since he’d kissed a girl, and the contact with Kate left an indelible mark. Obviously conscious that their relationship was pushing forward, Kate seemed content to accept the progress. But her looks made it seem she was examining him with new eyes.

Many times they were stopped so someone could shake their hands. One older gentlemen even smirked and tipped his hat. Enduring the scrutiny with grace, Kate smiled and gently dismissed assumptions even as she glanced at Reed, a twinkle in her eyes signifying she didn’t entirely believe her own words. As the fair finally began to wind down, they returned to her car and she drove him home.

They talked, but he could not remember the words spoken. His lips continued to tingle with the yearning to pull her into his arms, and it took all his strength to hold the desire at bay. Only when she’d driven away and he stood on his porch did he allow himself to breathe.

“What do you think, Aura?” he murmured.

But there was no answer. Whether he meant it to happen or not, her grip on his soul had begun to loosen. Feeling lighter than he had in months, he turned and entered his house, already planning his next date.