“If you do, we both know what’s in store for you.”
Petey just laughed. The sound seemed carefree, but as soon as Keifer was out of hearing distance, all smiles and charm dropped. A hard glint entered in his eyes, and he let out a soft sigh. Then he looked at me, and just like that, a switch flipped and the easygoing worker was back.
“You can tell me. You requested my booth, didn’t you?” He winked.
“What? No.”
“It’s okay.” He moved around me, jumping on the counter in one swift movement before hopping back down on the other side of me. “Come on. Follow me.” He led me to the back of the booth and showed me some of the basic things I’d have to know in case the game stopped working. “Just in case I’m not around, you know, but I should be. This booth is my baby. But no worries. You won’t be working here the whole time.”
I followed him back to the front. “Where do you think I’ll be put?”
“You’re a townie. He’ll put you somewhere he wants your local friends to come visit you.” A waiting customer stood at the base of the rope ladder, and Petey scooped up the offered money. He gestured for him to start, and a second later, the customer was cursing. He’d already been flipped backward.
The man’s friends cheered him on, making fun of him at the same time.
Petey leaned back in his seat, watching the whole thing. “You got a boyfriend?” he asked me.
“What?” How was that his business? “Yes, I do.”
“Does he get into fights?”
“Why?”
“Because Keifer will want to know. If he doesn’t, you’ll go to the beer garden. Keifer will want all your friends to come in and get drunk. If your boy does fight, you’ll be put in the swim tank.”
Swim tank? I looked across the carnival. A large tank in the middle had a crowd of guys in front. They took turns throwing baseballs at the target, and each time one hit the bullseye, a girl in a bikini dropped into the water. I watched as she fell in and noticed how cold she looked. She trembled as she climbed back out.
My hands grew clammy and icy. I tucked them into my pockets.
“No, not there.” Petey pointed farther down. “It’s in the main. You’d just be swimming in there. It’s a big pool-like place. People can pay for their kids to go swimming, or you might get some of the drunks in there, too.”
My hands weren’t as cold now. “Mark mentioned—”
“Sam?”
A female voice cut me off, and I looked up to see Becky, Adam, Cass, and another girl standing there. Becky held a polar bear to her chest, and Cass and the other girl each had a beer. Adam’s eyebrows were raised.
“What are you doing here?” Becky asked.
I ignored her, asking Adam instead, “You’re done working today?”
He nodded, his eyebrows still arched. “What are you doing here?”
“I’m working.” I threw them a dark look before pulling out my phone. I held the phone up to Petey. If Mason was done with work, he could come and visit. “I need to text someone.”
He nodded, pointing to the side. “Go to the back.”
I slipped out and was texting Mason when Becky came around to the rear of the tent. “What are you doing?” I asked her.
“I could be asking you the same thing.” She looked over her shoulder to the carnival. “What are you doing here, Samantha? Mark said you guys got jobs, but I didn’t know it was at this place.”
My phone buzzed a second later.
Okay. I’ll get Matteo. We’ll come and walk around for a bit.
I frowned. I wanted him here, but… I shook off the hesitation. I wanted him here. Only seeing him in the evenings was nice, but I still had to share him with Matteo, and Nate was coming at the end of next week. We never had gotten that living alone time. Logan would be here the week after that, and I assumed Taylor would come with him.
I’m at the rope ladder booth. Love you. I typed.
Love you.
I put my phone into my pocket and turned back to the booth. Becky was still standing there, holding that bear. She was biting her lip and I sighed. I crossed my arms over my chest. “What do you want, Becky? I mean, why are you doing this?”
“Doing what?”
“This.” I pointed at her. “Standing back here. Pretending like you’re scared or nervous, or whatever you’re doing.”
“I can’t do all of that?”
“You’re acting like we’re friends.”
“I…” She closed her mouth, moving back a step. “I didn’t realize you were still like this.”
“What? No.” She was getting this wrong. “No, Becky. This is not me being a bitch. This is me reminding you how things have been for the past three and a half years. We haven’t been friends, and it’s awkward to find myself the guest of honor at your engagement. I mean, that’s just weird.”
“I didn’t do that.” Her neck grew red. Her cheeks would soon be matching. Her hands formed fists around that polar bear. “You can’t get mad at me because Adam thought about all of that, but I’m glad he did.”
A headache was forming. I gritted my teeth, knowing it’d be blinding me within an hour. “Look,” I gentled my tone. “It was nice finding out that you wanted me at your engagement. That was…” I didn’t have the words. I wasn’t sure. There was still a tickle in my chest every time I thought about it. “But we’re not friends. I hugged you. I congratulated you, but you’re acting like we’re friends again. I don’t remember saying I was okay being friends with you again.”
“Oh.” She looked at the ground.
And I felt like an asshole, but you can’t trick someone into being a friend. That’s not how it works, or that’s not how it worked with me.
“It is nice not having you or Adam as my enemy, though.”
Her head lifted. Her eyes were bright with unshed tears. “Yeah?”
I nodded. I could give her that. “Mason said he and Adam are actually getting along. That’s something.” His exact words were that he ‘didn’t feel like knocking him unconscious every day,’ but that was progress for Mason. I tried giving her a reassuring grin.
“Adam will like hearing that.” Her bear looked to be in danger of decapitation. She squeezed him like she was a boa constrictor. “He was nervous when he got the assignment from his dad, said there’d be no way they could work together. But he’s been saying the same, you know? He’s impressed with Mason, said he has a brilliant head for business.”
We were approaching unwelcome territory for me. Becky would start feeling all sorts of warm fuzzies, thinking thoughts about Mason and Adam becoming friends. That would lead to her wanting me and her to be friends, too, and I’d have to recycle everything I just said to her.
I began to inch around her, back into the booth.
“Well, fuck.”
My eyes snapped up, and I recognized one of Jared Caldron’s buddies.
“Caldron, look who’s back here,” he called.
Jared Caldron came to stand next to his friend, and I felt bathed in dirty and perverted mud. I fought against actually trembling; they’d get off on that. Instead, I moved past Becky and said under my breath, “Go around the back. Get Mark.”
She wavered. “But—”
“Now!”
I blocked her retreat just as Caldron started toward me. His buddy was joined by another two, and I let out a breath.
“Where’s your little friend going?” He leaned over to look beyond me, but Becky should’ve already been out of sight.
I still moved to block his view. “Where do you think?”
“Going for reinforcements?” He laughed, and a whiff of alcohol mixed with cigarettes and cotton candy coated my face. “Kade’s not here. I would’ve seen him, and we’ve been over the entire place.” He lifted an arm, holding onto one of the ropes used to set up the booth, and struck a cocky stance. He was literally leaning over me. His gaze lingered on the carnival shirt I wore. “You work here? That’s…convenient.”
Petey just laughed. The sound seemed carefree, but as soon as Keifer was out of hearing distance, all smiles and charm dropped. A hard glint entered in his eyes, and he let out a soft sigh. Then he looked at me, and just like that, a switch flipped and the easygoing worker was back.
“You can tell me. You requested my booth, didn’t you?” He winked.
“What? No.”
“It’s okay.” He moved around me, jumping on the counter in one swift movement before hopping back down on the other side of me. “Come on. Follow me.” He led me to the back of the booth and showed me some of the basic things I’d have to know in case the game stopped working. “Just in case I’m not around, you know, but I should be. This booth is my baby. But no worries. You won’t be working here the whole time.”
I followed him back to the front. “Where do you think I’ll be put?”
“You’re a townie. He’ll put you somewhere he wants your local friends to come visit you.” A waiting customer stood at the base of the rope ladder, and Petey scooped up the offered money. He gestured for him to start, and a second later, the customer was cursing. He’d already been flipped backward.
The man’s friends cheered him on, making fun of him at the same time.
Petey leaned back in his seat, watching the whole thing. “You got a boyfriend?” he asked me.
“What?” How was that his business? “Yes, I do.”
“Does he get into fights?”
“Why?”
“Because Keifer will want to know. If he doesn’t, you’ll go to the beer garden. Keifer will want all your friends to come in and get drunk. If your boy does fight, you’ll be put in the swim tank.”
Swim tank? I looked across the carnival. A large tank in the middle had a crowd of guys in front. They took turns throwing baseballs at the target, and each time one hit the bullseye, a girl in a bikini dropped into the water. I watched as she fell in and noticed how cold she looked. She trembled as she climbed back out.
My hands grew clammy and icy. I tucked them into my pockets.
“No, not there.” Petey pointed farther down. “It’s in the main. You’d just be swimming in there. It’s a big pool-like place. People can pay for their kids to go swimming, or you might get some of the drunks in there, too.”
My hands weren’t as cold now. “Mark mentioned—”
“Sam?”
A female voice cut me off, and I looked up to see Becky, Adam, Cass, and another girl standing there. Becky held a polar bear to her chest, and Cass and the other girl each had a beer. Adam’s eyebrows were raised.
“What are you doing here?” Becky asked.
I ignored her, asking Adam instead, “You’re done working today?”
He nodded, his eyebrows still arched. “What are you doing here?”
“I’m working.” I threw them a dark look before pulling out my phone. I held the phone up to Petey. If Mason was done with work, he could come and visit. “I need to text someone.”
He nodded, pointing to the side. “Go to the back.”
I slipped out and was texting Mason when Becky came around to the rear of the tent. “What are you doing?” I asked her.
“I could be asking you the same thing.” She looked over her shoulder to the carnival. “What are you doing here, Samantha? Mark said you guys got jobs, but I didn’t know it was at this place.”
My phone buzzed a second later.
Okay. I’ll get Matteo. We’ll come and walk around for a bit.
I frowned. I wanted him here, but… I shook off the hesitation. I wanted him here. Only seeing him in the evenings was nice, but I still had to share him with Matteo, and Nate was coming at the end of next week. We never had gotten that living alone time. Logan would be here the week after that, and I assumed Taylor would come with him.
I’m at the rope ladder booth. Love you. I typed.
Love you.
I put my phone into my pocket and turned back to the booth. Becky was still standing there, holding that bear. She was biting her lip and I sighed. I crossed my arms over my chest. “What do you want, Becky? I mean, why are you doing this?”
“Doing what?”
“This.” I pointed at her. “Standing back here. Pretending like you’re scared or nervous, or whatever you’re doing.”
“I can’t do all of that?”
“You’re acting like we’re friends.”
“I…” She closed her mouth, moving back a step. “I didn’t realize you were still like this.”
“What? No.” She was getting this wrong. “No, Becky. This is not me being a bitch. This is me reminding you how things have been for the past three and a half years. We haven’t been friends, and it’s awkward to find myself the guest of honor at your engagement. I mean, that’s just weird.”
“I didn’t do that.” Her neck grew red. Her cheeks would soon be matching. Her hands formed fists around that polar bear. “You can’t get mad at me because Adam thought about all of that, but I’m glad he did.”
A headache was forming. I gritted my teeth, knowing it’d be blinding me within an hour. “Look,” I gentled my tone. “It was nice finding out that you wanted me at your engagement. That was…” I didn’t have the words. I wasn’t sure. There was still a tickle in my chest every time I thought about it. “But we’re not friends. I hugged you. I congratulated you, but you’re acting like we’re friends again. I don’t remember saying I was okay being friends with you again.”
“Oh.” She looked at the ground.
And I felt like an asshole, but you can’t trick someone into being a friend. That’s not how it works, or that’s not how it worked with me.
“It is nice not having you or Adam as my enemy, though.”
Her head lifted. Her eyes were bright with unshed tears. “Yeah?”
I nodded. I could give her that. “Mason said he and Adam are actually getting along. That’s something.” His exact words were that he ‘didn’t feel like knocking him unconscious every day,’ but that was progress for Mason. I tried giving her a reassuring grin.
“Adam will like hearing that.” Her bear looked to be in danger of decapitation. She squeezed him like she was a boa constrictor. “He was nervous when he got the assignment from his dad, said there’d be no way they could work together. But he’s been saying the same, you know? He’s impressed with Mason, said he has a brilliant head for business.”
We were approaching unwelcome territory for me. Becky would start feeling all sorts of warm fuzzies, thinking thoughts about Mason and Adam becoming friends. That would lead to her wanting me and her to be friends, too, and I’d have to recycle everything I just said to her.
I began to inch around her, back into the booth.
“Well, fuck.”
My eyes snapped up, and I recognized one of Jared Caldron’s buddies.
“Caldron, look who’s back here,” he called.
Jared Caldron came to stand next to his friend, and I felt bathed in dirty and perverted mud. I fought against actually trembling; they’d get off on that. Instead, I moved past Becky and said under my breath, “Go around the back. Get Mark.”
She wavered. “But—”
“Now!”
I blocked her retreat just as Caldron started toward me. His buddy was joined by another two, and I let out a breath.
“Where’s your little friend going?” He leaned over to look beyond me, but Becky should’ve already been out of sight.
I still moved to block his view. “Where do you think?”
“Going for reinforcements?” He laughed, and a whiff of alcohol mixed with cigarettes and cotton candy coated my face. “Kade’s not here. I would’ve seen him, and we’ve been over the entire place.” He lifted an arm, holding onto one of the ropes used to set up the booth, and struck a cocky stance. He was literally leaning over me. His gaze lingered on the carnival shirt I wore. “You work here? That’s…convenient.”
