Even though it wasn’t the sufficient apology he deserved, I whispered, “I’m sorry.”
“You have nothing to be sorry about.”
“But—”
Rev shook his head. “You’re not your parents, Annabel.”
“I know.”
“Good.” He reached around to get his wallet out of his pants. After tossing out some bills, he grinned at me. “I think it’s time you went to your first carnival.”
“Seriously?”
“Sure.”
“But since I’m still healing, I can’t ride anything.”
“We can still walk around and take in the sights.”
I had to admit the prospect definitely excited me. “Are you sure we have time?”
Rev smiled. “We’ll make time.”
I laughed. “Okay, let’s do it!”
After rising out of the booth, we made our way out of the diner. We looked both ways before hurrying across the highway, then inched our way up the line to the ticket booth.
Once we got inside, I was momentarily overwhelmed by the crowd.
So many strangers.
So many strange men.
In spite of the heat, a chill passed over my skin.
As if he could sense my apprehension, Rev drew me close against him. “Anytime you want to leave, you just tell me.”
Although part of me would have preferred to turn around then, I knew I owed to Rev–and to myself—to try to stay. I was safe with him. No one could hurt me as long as Rev was around. And in some small way if I did stay, it would be a victory of overcoming my fears. “I will,” I replied.
As we walked around, I battled the sensory overload I found myself in—the noisy chatter, the smells of popcorn and funnel cakes, the screams from people on the roller coasters and other rides. Each time I would meet the eyes of a strange man, I would burrow closer to Rev. Thankfully, he didn’t seem to mind.
“What was your favorite part of the fair growing up?” I gazed up and tried to focus on him, rather than the crowd around us.
“That’s a tough one. Even though they’re kinda cheesy now, I really loved the rides. The bigger the adrenaline rush the better time I had. But I also liked playing the games.” He grinned down at me. “As I got older, I would try to win something to give to a girl.”
“Aw, that’s so sweet.”
He laughed. “Yeah, that was my idea of being a suave Casanova. I had a lot to learn.”
My gaze caught the glittering lights of the Ferris wheel. “I can wait here if you want to go on some of the rides,” I offered. Secretly I would die a thousand deaths until he returned, but I was willing to do it for him.
Rev immediately shook his head. “I’m fine.”
“Well, the least you can do is play some games. You know, for old times sake.”
With a smile, Rev said, “Yeah, I guess I could.” He then led me over to one of the booths. The game was set up so you won if you could hit the bulls-eye on the target.
The guy behind the counter eyed Rev’s cut before handing him the toy gun. I could tell by his expression he didn’t much care for Rev playing the game—as if wearing the cut gave him an unfair advantage or something. If Rev noticed it, he didn’t let on.
