"Sadie, good to see you this morning." Mabel sweeps me into her arms. "You looked absolutely radiant last night."
I chance a look at Max, and he winks at me mid-conversation with his dad.
"Thank you. Everything was so beautiful." I fiddle with my cropped tank top strap. "I’m surprised you are all out here this morning. Clean-up must have been late."
Max and I stayed to help with some of the smaller stuff, but his parents insisted we leave around midnight.
Mabel waves her hand through the air. "It was no big deal. I wouldn’t miss this event. I have too much fun throwing balloons at Beatrice Bushnell. That woman can be a menace." She giggles at her confession, glancing around to see who’s within earshot when a loud whistle blows.
Ariella Marino’s father, Tony, stands on a tall platform near the end of the roped-off course with a megaphone.
"Welcome, neighbors and friends, to the Mage Hollow Balloon Bonanza. We do this event every year in remembrance of the battle that took place not too far from here, in which we gained our independence as a nation. Please remember that if you get hit three times, exit the playing area and watch the remaining contenders compete for the honor of being named victor. Watch out for the little kids, and most importantly, have fun."
Max steps closer to me, eyeing Sebastian and nodding his head toward the corner we discussed. Another loud whistle blares across the square, and people take off running in all directions,some in the road and some in the patch of grass that lies in the center of the square. Max scoops the two littlest girls, while Seb grabs Lily, and we sprint to the barricade. Mal and Mom trail behind, both heaving for air by the time our pack of eight clears the edge of the inflatable boxes that will serve as our haven.
Balloons of all colors whip through the air, splashing as they land on people’s bodies. The girls giggle uncontrollably, laughing at the hysterical reactions of grown adults yelping and squealing. I’m glad that Mal got a babysitter for Marigold—it would have been impossible to keep her from getting hit.
"Should we make a break for one of the buckets to load up?" I ask to anyone listening.
"Mal and I will go," Seb says. "And then you and Max can once we get back."
They leap around the corner, heading toward a green barrel that's full of balloons. But within a few feet of the bucket, Mallory takes a balloon to the face and two to the chest from none other than Patrick O’Reilly. My sister doubles over in laughter as she dips below the yellow rope that seals off the course.
Mom and Lily make a break for it in the opposite direction, reaching an orange tub and grabbing two balloons each. They fling them through the air, smacking Bridget and Zuri once each, and missing with the other two. Bridget pays them back with an assist from Nora to take them both out of the game. Down to five.
"Hiding back here? That doesn’t seem like your style," a husky voice rolls out from behind me, and I spin to see Howie and Ari standing in our corner with a balloon in each of their hands.
"Don’t even think about it, Howard. I’m unarmed."
My cousin laughs but pops a balloon on each of the girls' heads instead. Poppy and Magnolia squeal in delight as Ari drops to a crouch beside them.
"Do you think we should pay him back for that?" she whispers to my nieces, and their heads bob up and down in approval.
Ari lobs both balloons at Howard’s chest, and the girls clap when they burst open. But I don’t miss the twinkle in his eyes or the breath she sucks in when his shirt sticks to his chest muscles. She’s an idiot for not dating my cousin—he’s a catch.
Max, whom I hadn’t even noticed leaving, returns with a shirt full of balloons. There's a strip of skin exposed on his stomach, revealing his abs and the line of brown hair I know heads directly south. I stare at it far too long for it to be innocent before he bends down to my ear.
"Stop eye-fucking me and throw these, would ya."
Shaking my shoulders, I grab a couple of balloons and spin to finish my cousin off. But instead of hitting Howie, one of my tosses slaps Ari in the chest. She tumbles into laughter as Max nails her on the cheek and Howie in the shoulder.
"I’m out," my cousin says, as Mabel sneaks up and finishes Ari and the little girls.
"Who’s left?" Max’s mom asks, a smirk that matches her son’s painted on her face.
Turning, I see Seb sulking under the rope. "I think it's just Max and me."
She grins again, but instead of pelting us with balloons, she drops the remaining ones in her apron to the ground and saunters away.
"What the hell is happening?" Max asks, dipping down to grab the balloons she abandoned. "My mom never quits."
Peering over the edge of our barricade, it looks like we are down to only four remaining contestants, including ourselves.
Tony’s megaphone sends a shrill noise over the course. "And then there were four. Please come out from behind your barriers to the center of the course. We will move to a sudden-deathround where each contestant gets a single throw until we are down to a winner."
Max and I walk to the middle, carefully placing the balloons at our feet. Standing across from us are Thad and Nora.This will be fun… that guy deserves a direct hit.
Tony directs Nora to go first, and she takes aim at me but misses slightly to the left. Thad takes his shot, but it soars over Max’s head, and his face drops. Bending down, I grab a purple balloon and toss it lightly into the air, catching it with my hand. When Thad looks to the left of the course, winking at a blonde that’s entirely too close to the rope, I nail him right in the side of the face.
