Thankfully for me, there is a carnival in town. Normally, I would take a woman on a pretty extravagant date, but I don’t make the kind of money that I used to. Surprisingly enough, Laurel is really into the carnival scene. I feel like a kid on a first date here, but it’s actually a lot more fun than dinner and a movie would have been.

We pig out on corn dogs and funnel cake, play some rigged carnival games, and ride a few rides. I get her holding my hand by the time we’re getting onto the Ferris wheel. “You’re not one of those assholes who are going to shake the bucket, are you?” she asks as the Ferris wheel takes us up.

I laugh, “Damn, you figured out my plan.”

“Not funny,” she says.

“Don’t tell me the former marine, MMA star is afraid of heights?” I question.

“Not really –just don’t make me woozy,” she warns. “I remember when I was younger, like high school, going to fairs and hating it when guys would do that.” I lean forward slightly once we start to go around, and the bucket tils with me; she grips my arm and cusses under her breath

“You see, now, that’s why guys would do that,” I say and lean back, throwing my arm over her and promising not to be an ass by getting her all freaked out. Now that I have her in a confined space, I lean over and kiss her forehead, and she melts into my embrace. “I can’t figure you out, Laurel,” I admit. “I mean; do you like me or hate me?”

She laughs, “Now I really do feel like I’m in high school again.”

“I’m serious,” I say, “First we almost sleep together, then you throw me out on the street drunk out of my mine. I run into you at the gym, and you act like you want me dead. Then we have coffee, and you invite me back to your place –we have a lot of fun, and you make me breakfast. Then I see you at the gym, and you act like you want me to drop dead. Then you let me win our little sparring match so that I get to take you on a date. You’re sending me some mixed signals, Laurel.”

“I guess I am,” she says once I lay it all out for her. “I guess what it comes down to is that I don’t want to like you, but I do.”

“That doesn’t help me to understand where we are any better,” I say.

I feel her fingers reach up and touch my cheek, coaxing me to look down at her; her head is rested on my chest. We’re at the top of the Ferris wheel now, and she tilts her head upward towards me and closes her eyes. I lean in and kiss her. The moment turned out a lot more romantic than I thought it would with the way the stars are out, the slight breeze, and just how close we are seated together. She gasps slightly when we pull apart. I take a good look at her; she looks beautiful. Her long blonde hair is down, which I rarely see, and it curls slightly on the ends. Those shimmering blue eyes stare back at me with a sense of longing.

There’s a sort of inner struggle I’m feeling as Laurel’s hand clasps mine tightly and as she leans her head on me, resting it on my chest as the wind causes us to sway at the top of the Ferris wheel. Should I really be doing this at all? I mean, should I really be pursing something with Laurel when Brandi is out there somewhere carrying my unborn child? Shouldn’t I be more focused on trying to restore that relationship? Who am I kidding? Brandi made it pretty clear that she would never take me back. Maybe getting myself straightened out is what’s important –at least then Brandi might actually let me into my child’s life. I just don’t feel like I’m getting things straightened out fast enough.

We leave the carnival, heading out to the parking lot to where my stupid, pink car is seated up. “Mmm… that thing is a serious mood killer,” Laurel jokes as I climb over the passenger’s side to open up the driver’s side door. She’s still holding the teddy bear I had won her at the ring toss, and for some reason this moment is just so perfect. She’s standing there, waiting for me to hold the door open for her, her arms gently hugging this oversized bear. I catch myself looking her up and down, staring at those beautifully fit legs she’s showing off in her shorts.

“Yeah,” I say, snapping myself back into reality as I help her into the passenger’s side and then run around to the driver’s side.

We head back to her apartment, and we talk the entire ride there about the carnival, about the gym, and about her career as a mixed martial artist. I pull up outside of her apartment complex, and she smiles at me. “You’re coming up, right?” she asks.

I smile. “Of course,” and I follow her up to her apartment.

She puts her teddy bear down on the couch and then pulls me back to her bedroom. We fall onto the bed, and our lips interlock; she lays her head on my right arm, which brings us closer together. I’m not exactly expecting much after what happened last time she invited me up to her apartment, but for the time being I’m pretty content just being around her –kissing her.

I suddenly feel her hand reach down and stroke me outside of my pants, and I swear if she’s planning on teasing me all night I’m leaving. She reaches both hands down, and she undoes my belt and zipper. “Laurel-” I say as though I’m going to ask her to stop; honestly, after having her cut me off twice in the past, I’m kind of worried she’s going to regret it. I don’t want her to regret it.

“It’s okay,” she says, and she smiles at me.

I’m still me, I suppose, because it doesn’t take much to convince me that she’s fine. I throw my pants over the side of the bed and remove my shirt; she was even quicker than me –she’s down to her bra and underwear as I am throwing my shirt to the floor. I take in the scenery for a moment; she’s gorgeous. She laughs at me, and I realize I have been staring at her longer than I probably should have. I kiss her –on her lips, her cheeks, her neck, and her chest. I run my fingers over her stomach softly, tickling her. She takes off her bra, tossing it off the bed, and I explore the new territory as I had with her lips.

There’s this excitement building up inside me that I cannot quite explain. We drop our underwear, and she gets really handsy. I certainly don’t mind. I enter inside her, and she has this look of absolute satisfaction written all over her face. She giggles suddenly and says, “This is a lot better sober.”

I laugh, “Just don’t throw me out in the hall this time.”

We both laugh together this time. I’ve never felt so playful in bed before. It’s in this moment that I realize I’m falling for this woman, and I’ve never wanted anything more than for her to feel the same. We curl up next to one another under the blankets, and we fall asleep wrapped together in a tight embrace.