How We Were | ✔️ (Complete)

41. Cowboy, Take Me Away

"It's not what you think." I considered explaining further, but really, why? It didn't matter. I was done torturing myself over all that.

"Okay, so you want to go back there? To them?"

"No, but I don't want to leave the fair. I have things I need to do."

Without meaning to, my gaze dropped down to stare at my hand, still safely enclosed within his. He looked too.

Layla, you fool. Now he's gonna let go.

But he didn't.

"Then where?" he asked.

I still had an half hour until I was scheduled for the auction block. I looked around us.

Well, well, well, what do we have here?

Smiling, I pointed up.

*****

Jake knew the guy who was running the Ferris wheel so we got to cut the long line. People grumbled and some even shouted in protest, but Jake didn't care a lick about that as he shoved our way to the front of the line. It was really rude of us, but kind of exhilarating at the same time.

We were almost to the front when some guy shoulder checked Jake. Accidentally? On purpose? I didn't know, but Jake whipped around fast and shouldered him back with an aggressiveness that shocked the smile right off my face.

What the hell?

Stopping dead in my tracks, I stared at the back of his head. He froze too, his shoulders tensing up in realization. But a heartbeat later, he turned and grinned in such a way that I melted and forgot all about it.

Our car was bright green and we scrambled in, him after me. I hoped that he would sit beside me, but he took the seat across instead.

With a chipper "Y'all enjoy," the operator shut the door and the machine whirred, lurching us forward.

I was getting kind of jittery and my hands shook a little, but I couldn't tell if it was from the excitement of finally getting on the Ferris wheel, or because of Jake.

Probably Jake.

Contain yourself, we don't want him to think we're childish. We also need to stop referring to ourselves in the Royal "We" because there's nothing royal about us.

Thirty seconds later, we stopped and the next car was filled.

Smoothing my skirts around me, I hummed along to the carnival music and focused on making sure I didn't squeal out loud.

Jake slouched in his seat with his legs splayed, his fingers tapping on the side rails. Clearly bored. Me, I just stared at him from beneath my eyelashes and thought he looked extra dreamy tonight with the red and green and blue and yellow neon shadows cast upon his face.

The third time we jerked to a stop, he looked at me and lifted an eyebrow. "Seriously?"

I giggled.

"What's the fucking point of this ride? Why are people waiting in that ridiculous line to get on this thing?"

Shrugging, I grabbed onto the rails and looked down. We were still low enough to the ground that I could make out Peyton's silhouette. He and Alice were huddled together in an alley between the lemonade and corn dog stands, talking. Good, she looked calmer.

Jake leaned over to see what I was looking at. "Is Bishop gonna bid?"

"No, I told him not to. I don't want to make a spectacle. Really, it doesn't matter who bids for me, it's just a stupid kiss."