“It does, right?” Megan smiled at her. “There’s no guarantee Barnaby will still be available, but the sooner you get your application in, the better. And if he’s gone, I’ll have someone new for you to meet.”
“Okay, I’m filling out my application right now.” The woman rubbed Barnaby and blew him a kiss before moving over to the shelter’s table.
“I need to head out and take some photos,” Megan told Ruby. “Do you want to keep him here at the table for me?”
“You got it.” Ruby took Barnaby’s leash from her.
Megan ruffled his furry head before she stood and headed into the crowd. This was the part of today she’d been most looking forward to. Camera in hand, she moved through the festival, capturing happy details as well as the overall look of the event. She snapped a little girl taking a big bite of her cotton candy, pink fluff stuck to her nose, and a couple on the Ferris wheel, sharing a kiss as they swooped overhead.
“Want to take a ride?” Jake said from behind her.
“You’ve got an uncanny ability to find me in a crowd,” she said, turning to face him.
“Not hard when you stand out in any crowd.” He reached out to cup her cheek, a look of pure, unabashed affection in his eyes. “Also, the big camera helps.”
“Ha.” She punched his biceps playfully.
“So, want to ride the Ferris wheel with me?”
She opened her mouth to say no, because she was working right now, but on second thought… “Actually, I could get some great overhead shots of the fair from up there.”
“You can call it work, but I just want to make out with my girlfriend in one of those baskets.” Jake winked at her.
“Well, in that case…” She grabbed his hand, leading him toward the line for the ride. “Have you got tickets?”
He held up a strip of them. “I was hoping I might convince you to have a little fun with me.”
“A man who plans for success. I like that.”
They held hands, laughing and chatting as they waited in line. Megan felt relaxed and happy with Jake at her side, and when they finally made their way into a little green basket, she settled close to him on the seat.
“Not afraid of heights, are you?” he asked.
“Nope. I went sky diving on my twenty first birthday.”
“Damn.” He looked at her, his expression equal parts impressed and aroused. “I don’t know why the image of you jumping out of an airplane is turning me on, but it definitely is.”
“It’s the adrenaline rush,” she whispered as their basket lurched forward.
“I do love a good adrenaline rush.” He leaned in and pressed his lips against hers.
“Yeah? What else do you do for a rush?” she asked, squeezing his hand.
“I think I’ve lived for a long time with insufficient adrenaline,” he said softly. “You’ve changed that for me.”
“Happy to help.” Their kiss turned more urgent then, tongues teasing as the basket slowly made its way toward the top, stopping and starting as the Ferris wheel was loaded with new passengers. Finally, they broke apart, desperate for oxygen.
“I’d like to discover more new things this year,” Jake said. “Want to help me?”
“I’d love to.” And there was that damn word again. “What did you have in mind?”
“I don’t know. Anything. Everything. I’d jump out of an airplane with you.” He stared at the fairgrounds laid out beneath them. “I’d also like to take a trip, even just a small one while I get my business off the ground. I haven’t left Towering Pines in too long.”
“I’m totally game for that. I love to travel. Hold that thought for a minute, though.” Their basket had come to a stop at the top of the wheel, and this would be her best chance to take photos before they started moving in earnest. Securing the strap around herself, she lifted the camera and started snapping, capturing the festival laid out beneath them.
The basket lurched as it began to move, and she put the camera away, reaching on instinct for her phone. She held it out and snapped a selfie of them, snuggled up next to each other with the blur of the fairgrounds behind them, carefree smiles on their faces. She leaned in to press a kiss against his cheek, snapping another selfie as she did so, not even noticing that she had turned the scarred side of her face toward the camera.
