“It’s almost seven,” he says, grabbing the Jeep keys, his keys to the house, his phone, and wallet. “Let’s go.”
“Babe, it’s only six.” I follow him toward the door where he’s putting on his sneakers. “We have an hour.”
“It’ll give us time to buy our wristbands.” Christian grabs my hand and pulls me out of the house, and then he locks it behind him. “Come on.”
Christian opens the passenger side door for me to hop it. In the driver's seat, he starts the engine and turns on the AC, and he was right—the air is cooler now.
I love him so much.
“I’m so excited,” he murmurs, his face flushed and grin wide like a little boy.
“Me too, baby,” I chuckle.
“Katherine’s first?”
I nod and reach over to kiss his cheek before his hand comes to the back of my headrest and he stretches to look out the back windshield as he reverses. Finally, he’s driving forward and toward the diner, his leg bouncing and the grin glued on his face.
My giant teddy bear is still a child inside.
Tonight, I’m recognizing how good of an idea his no sex rule is. I have this…belligerent pent up need for him so whenever he’s ready, it’s going to wreck me. And it’s going to feel so fucking good.
I watch him order our sodas and hotdogs from where I sit at a picnic table, holding onto the giant llama he won for me at the paint balloon, dart throwing booth. I never know what it’sactuallycalled. The muscles of his arms flex and relax with each movement he makes, pulling out his wallet and handing the man the cash, grabbing the receipt—he’s hot.
He really is justsohot.
He’s pocketing his wallet, waiting at the side of the food truck, and I feel the overwhelming urge to wrap myself around him—just hold onto him like a koala on a tree branch.
I’ve spent so much time away from him that Ineedto be with him all the time, everywhere he goes. It doesn’t sound like a healthy attachment kind of thing, but I’m tired of missing him. Although, I do love when I’m at home and he comes in through the front door. It solidifies the image of our future inmy head, the one he’s implanted with our two babies and a lake house.
I’m growing impatient for all of that now.
But at least we’re back at the town’s summer carnival, and we’ll be here the entire weekend. We did this every year, came back all three nights, bought our wristbands, and went on every ride again and again—Friday to Sunday. Sometimes our friends would join for night two or three, and it was always one of the best weekends of our lives, I think. It was a weekend we could all be kids again.
There really is nothing like serotonin from rollercoasters.
“Auntie Lana!”
I turn to see a tiny, beautiful brunette with pigtails running toward me. “Gracie!” I swing around on the bench and catch her just in time when she leaps. I kiss her cheek. “Hey, little one.”
“Hi!”
In tow is Julian, watching his daughter with a smile. “Hey, Lana.”
“Hey, JuJu,” I tease just to get a rise out of him. “What are you two doing here?”
“Daddy said I can get cotton candy,” Grace tells me.
I gasp. “He did?”
Grace nods.
My little niece is the cutest baby I’ve ever known. We may not biologically be family, but this friend group we have—the guys, Christian, Grace, Nat, and Isa (and even though we are missing Elena)—we’re family no matter what. This little girl in my arms calling me her aunt proves that.
We’ve all remained by each other's sides, and they stuck by me after Christian left. We’ve been stuck together since we were teenagers, and it’s never going to change.
“Where’s Christian?” Julian asks.
I jerk my chin over my shoulder. “Getting food. He called timeout on the roller coasters.”
