Sassy Blonde - Stacey Kennedy Page 0,38

across the blue sky.

She glanced sideways at Hayes when they reached the top and hung there for a second. His easy grin took her breath away.

“Hold on tight,” he said, his fingers twined with hers against the bar.

Something broken that lived deep in her chest began to heal, but then the car tipped forward. The wind rushed over her face as the car raced down the metal rails, her scream breaking through the silence as her stomach bottomed out. The whoosh of the air brakes forced her head back against the headrest. She burst out laughing and looked over at Hayes, finding his hair wind-blown, a wide smile on his face. The biggest smile she’d seen on him in a very long time.

Feeling like she got today totally right, she hurried out of the roller-coaster car when it pulled to a stop. “Come on,” she said, tugging him along. “We only have two hours. I need all the fun.”

This was what she could give Hayes that no one else could. She knew how to have fun. Live. Enjoy. Be free. She never needed any help with that. And to finally do something that she was amazing at, felt good.

Hayes smiled, running a hand through his hair. “Let’s do this.”

One hour quickly turned into two. They’d gone through a two-story haunted house painted in gloomy colors. She nearly threw up on the swinging pirate ship see-sawing back and forth against a blue sky. And they rode enough roller coasters that the ground felt a little wobbly as she walked toward a funhouse with a creepy clown entrance. She hurried forward, and over her shoulder, she said, “You get a kiss if you find me.”

With a chuckle, she rushed inside before he could answer, entering the maze of mirrors. Hands out, Maisie moved along the maze and bumped into more mirrors than she could count, until she was deep enough inside that he couldn’t find her too easily. She circled around, only seeing herself. Then she blinked and Hayes stood there, a smile on his face.

She gasped. “How the hell—”

His smile faded to something hotter. He had her up against wall in a millisecond and kissed her with a passion that weakened her knees and had her nearly climbing up his body.

“Get a room,” a laughing teenager yelled before he and his group took off running through the maze.

Hayes nipped her bottom lip then chuckled. “We were that stupid once.”

“I remember,” she said with a laugh. “How did you find me so fast?”

“I followed the floor,” he said, gesturing down to the worn hardwood. “This isn’t a complicated maze.”

She slowly shook her head. “The mirrors always make things so much more confusing. You and your logical brain amaze me.”

“Well, you and your creative brain amaze me too.” He dropped his chin, the slight scruffiness above his lip tickling hers as he gave her another soft kiss. “I hate to ruin the fun, but we have a schedule we need keep. We should probably get on our way.”

She sighed. “Yup, our last festival awaits.”

That statement hung in the air between them as they made their way out of the maze, passing the group of still-laughing teenagers. Maisie tried not to think about what would happen once they got home. Was sex still on the table? Or was this just fun while they were away? It didn’t feel like only fun, but it also didn’t feel like Hayes was offering up much beyond that either. They strode down the row of carnival games, passing by the floating duck game, when Hayes said, “Hold up.” He turned to the shooting gallery with pop-up targets, the giant stuffed animals hanging off the ceiling as prizes.

Maisie sidled up to him as he gave the attendant a five-dollar bill. He picked up the gun, took aim. One by one, the targets fell. Maisie had never seen Hayes in action, but she remembered him in his police uniform back in the day. The whole cowboy thing suited him, but he also, with his eyes on the target, looked like a cop.

When the bells dinged to signal the end of the game, the attendant yelled, “We have a winner. Pick a prize.”

Hayes glanced back over his shoulder with a shit-eating grin. “Well?”

She studied the stuffed animals around her, trying to find the perfect one to remember this day. Then she found exactly what she was looking for. She pointed. “The bear, please.”

The attendant took down the huge bear that was