“Yeah, that’s wild, huh? This is probably the biggest Ferris wheel I’ve ever been on.”
“This is the first Ferris wheel I have ever been on.”
I stopped mid-conversation and looked at Karina. I just knew she wasn’t telling me what I was thinking that she’d never been on a Ferris wheel in her whole life, which would be a tragedy.
“What you mean? Like the first one in London?”
“No, this is the first Ferris wheel I have ever been on period.”
Karina said that with a straight face, as if it wasn’t a big deal. I turned all the way sideways so I could see her face. There was no way in hell this girl had never been on a Ferris wheel.
“You gotta be joking. We went to the fair together plenty of times as kids.”
“Yeah, and every time, I was the person holding the food or bags. I never had and never would have gotten on anything like this before today. I can’t believe I even let you talk me into getting up here.”
“Karina, you can’t be telling me you go to carnivals, fairs, and theme parks and don’t get on the rides.”
“First of all, I don’t go to theme parks because, for one, they are too expensive and two, it feels like a couple or family thing to do, and since I don’t have either, I don’t go.”
“If being a couple is the only thing stopping you, we can solve that right now.”
“If you want to take me, that’s fine, but I’m just going to spend time walking around and spending your money on food.”
“You can spend my money on whatever you want to spend it on, but I’m definitely going to get you on a ride. I think thatthe fact that you are so high up in the air right now proves how capable I am.”
“So damn cocky. You’ve fooled yourself into thinking I’m going to keep letting you put my life at risk.”
“You know I will always keep you safe, right? A little ride can’t stop that from being true.”
“Are you sure about that?”
“I’ve never been surer about anything in my life.”
I looked Karina in her eyes, and she paused for a second without responding. I pulled her closer to me as if we weren’t thirty thousand feet up in the air. Kissing her lips felt better than it did on solid ground.
“Kareem, be good. We are way too far up in the air for you to be playing. We can fall at any minute.”
“I won’t let you fall… not without catching you anyway.”
Chapter
Seventeen
Karina
“Where are you going this morning? I thought we didn’t have anything going on?”
I skipped my way out of my hotel room and bumped into Ray in the lobby downstairs. I could see the sleep still in his eyes. It looked like he’d come out to grab something but was headed right back to the bed.
“You’re right. The calendar is clear. I just want to get out and explore the city a little bit. I’ll catch up with you guys later.”
“All right now. You know your stalker is upstairs. He’s going to be looking for you when he wakes up.”
“He is not a stalker, and I already left him a note letting him know that I’d be out for the morning.”
“Good, because I plan on catching up on sleep today, and I don’t need him dragging me all over the city trying to find you.”
Ray walked around me and headed toward the elevator. Even his walk was slower than normal. All the traveling had taken its toll on him.
