“Name one thing I like,” she said.
“Come on, that’s easy.”
“If it’s so easy, name one.Come on, we dated for a year and a half.You must have remembered something I like.”For their one and only Christmas together, he’d given her a tea collection.She hated tea.
“Tea, you like tea,” he said.
“I hate tea,” Eden said.“Maeve enjoyed it.”
“You love hot dogs.”
“Hate ’em,” she said.“I prefer a burger.”
“Look, this is all bullshit,” Mac said.
“No, one and a half years of thinking you had feelings for me was bullshit.”She hated to curse.“I don’t know what you’re trying to do, but stop.”
“Hey, babe,” Razor said.“Is everything okay?”He wrapped his arm around her waist, and the feel of him touching her set her on fire.
“Yeah, it’s fine.We were done,” Eden said.
Mac didn’t look happy, but she was not about to go down that rabbit hole with him.They had a chance, and now that was over.Eden felt glad about that.She was happy, and it was a good feeling.
With Razor’s hand at her back, they made their way through the fairgrounds, and she didn’t look back.
****
“Do you like rollercoasters?”he asked.
“Yeah, yeah, I ride them all the time,” Eden said.
Razor turned to look at her and laughed.“You know we don’t have to do this.”He was more than happy to do something else.
“No, it’s fine.I can do this.It’s not like I’ve seen multiple horror movies where something bad happens at a fair, or on a fairground ride.”
He wrapped his arm across her shoulders and pulled her in close, kissing her forehead.“Nothing bad is going to happen.”
“That’s what everyone says right before something bad happens.”She squared her shoulders.“But it’s fine.We all have to learn to try new things, and this is exactly what I’m doing.I’m learning to try new things.”She took a deep breath and let it out.
Razor thought she looked cute, and it was their turn to be loaded onto the roller coaster.It was the kind with carts, and they took their seats behind a couple who struggled to tear themselves apart as they were making out.There was just one smooch after another as they kissed.It was cute.Eden glanced at the couple and then looked away.
He took hold of her hand and felt how shaken she was.“I don’t want to be on this roller coaster if you don’t want to be on it.”
She offered him a smile.“It’s not just about you wanting to be on this ride.I want to be on it.I want to prove to myself that I can make this work.”She tightened her hand around his.
“Good.”
Her lips looked so plump and inviting.All he wanted to do was kiss her.It would be so easy to lean in and kiss her, and just as he was about to do that, the ride started to lower the restraints and the moment was lost.There was a whistle, and then the ride started to move.
Eden let go of his hand and held onto the cushions that held her in place.
“Oh, God, I can do this, right?”she asked.“It will be easy.So easy.”
She looked like she was going to throw up.
“I’m here,” he said.
“Okay, I think now is a good time to tell you I do hate heights, and I hate roller coasters, and I haven’t been on one in years, not since I graduated high school and my sister insisted it was a lot of fun.”