Page 18 of Bossy Bred

Later that morning, we go down to the pier to ride the Great Wheel. There are a handful of people waiting, and we get in line behind a family of four. The kids are both young, and incapable of standing still. They chase each other around the pier, getting in everyone’s way.

Then, for some reason, one of them decides to run up to me and say hi. I stiffen, but say hello back.

“Are you going up there, too?” the little boy asks, pointing at the Ferris wheel.

“Yes.”

“If you’re afraid of heights,don’tlook down,” he says very seriously.

“Smart,” I say.

He stares up at me, as if it’s my turn to say something next. When I don’t, the kid rejoins his sister. I feel Leta’s eyes on me, and then I hear her say with amusement, “Not a fan of kids, huh?”

I shrug. “They’re fine.”

Leta laughs. “It’s okay if you aren’t. I won’t judge.”

“It’s not that I don’t like them. I don’t know how to interact with them.”

“Didn’t you say your brothers both have kids?” she asks.

“Yep. I’m not any better around them.”

“That’s okay. Not everyone is naturally that way.”

The line starts to move forward as people enter the gondolas. When Leta and I climb into ours, we pick a side to sit on and I casually lay my arm around her shoulder. She settles against me and looks happy as the ride begins.

Three slow revolutions later, I no longer think of the Ferris wheel as a gimmicky tourist attraction. It’s nice to see things from a different perspective than usual, and the slow, smooth ride is a surprisingly relaxing, nice experience.

Granted, a large part of that has to do with the person I’m in this gondola with, but still.

As we’re making our final descent, I turn Leta’s chin toward me and lean in to give her a slow kiss. She melts against me, but when we pull apart, she blinks at me and says, “What was that for?”

I lift an eyebrow. “I need a reason to kiss you?”

“It’s just—” She’s a little flustered. “That was romantic.”

“And that’s a problem?”

“I thought we weren’t on a date.”

“We aren’t.”

“Maybe you shouldn’t kiss me like that, then.”

“All right. Noted.”

Our gondola eases to a stop, and I get out first so I can offer a hand and help her out. As we walk back up the pier, I say, “So, friend. What are we doing next on our non-date?”

“Good question,” she says, smiling. “I think it’s your turn to suggest something.”

I nod at a small tattoo shop we’re about to walk past. “That looks like a good option.”

“Matching tats? Sure. Let’s do it.”

I keep a straight face as I walk up to the door and pull it open. “After you, milady.”

Leta’s pretty lips are twisted in amusement as she considers how far to take our joking around. She contemplates the artwork on display in the shop’s window, looks at me, then takes a step forward.

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