“No.”
“Vampire hunting.”
Stevie laughed. “Intriguing, but nope.”
“Damn. I’ve always wanted to fall madly in love with a vampire.”
“I’ll do some research for next time.”
“You’re pretty confident I’ll say yes to a second date,” Iris said.
Stevie just smiled at her. Soon, the trees thinned, and they broke through to a field, an endless swath of summer green.
And there, about a hundred feet away, a woman in a pair of dusky rose-colored coveralls stood next to a hot-air balloon.
“Oh my god,” Iris said, neck craning to take in the giant inflatable. It was huge, much bigger than she’d ever imagined a hot-air balloon would be, the body a beautiful rainbow of colors.
“Surprise,” Stevie said softly as Iris gaped.
“I’d say so,” Iris said, then turned to look at Stevie. “For real?”
“For real. Have you ever been on one?”
Iris shook her head. “I’ve always wanted to though.”
“Same.” Stevie squeezed her hand.
Iris grinned at her, her foul mood from earlier evaporating like fog under the sun.
“Stevie Scott?” the woman asked as Stevie and Iris approached.
“That’s me,” Stevie said. “And this is Iris. Are you Laney?”
“I am,” Laney said. “Welcome to Woodmont. You two ready?”
Iris swallowed. “I think so?”
Laney smiled. “It’s natural to be nervous, but you’re safe, I assure you. Go ahead and step into the gondola while I get things ready on the ground.”
“Thanks,” Stevie said, then pulled Iris toward the balloon’s gondola, which was truly just a giant wicker basket, a propane tank on top, flame filling the balloon.
They stepped inside, Stevie keeping hold of Iris’s hand even once they were situated in a corner. They didn’t talk—Iris found she was actually speechless. She’d never done anything this extravagant on a date before. Grant liked to wine and dine, but he took the term literally, and his idea of a perfect date was a night out at a nice restaurant and an expensive bottle of pinot noir.
“I mean, wow,” Iris said as Laney finished whatever she was doing and the basket lurched a bit.
Stevie laughed. “I know, it’s a bit over the top. But I figured, if a character in a romance novel was trying to woo another character, they’d probably do something a bit more dramatic than dinner and a movie.”
Iris laughed. “True. And Brionyischasing Tegan at this point.”
“See?” Stevie said softly, smiling at her. “Perfect.”
She held Iris’s gaze for a second before looking out over the field, and Iris felt suddenly off-balance. Then again, Laney had just stepped into the gondola, causing it to rock a little side to side.
“Okay, here we go,” Laney said as she fired up the tank even more, then pulled in the weighted bags holding the basket down. Soon, they were lifting into the sky, and Iris couldn’t help but squeal a little and grip the sides of the basket. The ground got smaller and smaller, the trees, the crops, the white farmhouse.
“Oh my god,” Iris said, watching as her entire world turned on its head. “This is amazing.”
“It really is,” Stevie said. She let go of Iris’s hand, then moved behind her, caging her in between her arms as she rested her hands on the basket’s sides. She set her chin on Iris’s shoulder, and Iris leaned her head against hers. She couldn’t help it. It felt so natural, so... normal.
