Page 68 of Beehives and Broken Heroes

“No,” she said. “I would never do that. I love you too much.”

His gaze flew up to hers, and his jaw hung slack.

She didn’t miss a beat. “And you love me. You’ve loved me for a long time now, haven’t you.” She didn’t phrase it as a question, because it wasn’t one. If she was right—and she was pretty sure she was—he’d loved her for months now. The thought made her all giddy, mushy, ooey-gooey inside.

He snapped his jaw shut and clenched it. His light brown eyes bored into her, and she nearly flinched. Okay, what on earth? He grabbed her hand and dragged her behind him, but a stinging in her foot, the one he’d just been looking at, made her hiss. He stopped.

“It’s my foot,” she realized, staring at the blood that’d pooled and now dried to the bottom of her pants. “I got it stuck in a blackberry bush when we were running away.”

Moving in fast, he picked her up and tossed her over his shoulder like a bag of potatoes.

“Brandon!” she cried.

“Hey,” Danny called. “You need to stay here!”

“We’ll be right back,” Brandon called back.

Jo yelled after them. “What’s going on?”

She tried to look for her sister, but it was hard like this, upside down, face to perfect buttocks—seriously, how had she missed his butt before now? Brandon walked past a balloon and made a turn, letting her catch sight of Jo. Cash was with Jo now, holding her close, and Jessie stood beside them. The three of them watched, eyes wide, as Brandon carted her off into the field of hot-air balloons.

* * *

Brandon weaved through the field of wicker baskets and colorful nylon until he found the Carroll Family balloon, Allie screeching all the way. Tonight, as a special extra for the end of the balloon festival and the concert, several of the balloons decided to tether and take people up to watch the concert from behind the crowd for half-hour sessions. One balloon was heading up now, and another was coming down.

He ignored the looks people gave him for wandering around with a woman over his shoulder—some knowing, others downright curious—until he reached the line to his balloon. Ralph’s eyes nearly popped out of his head when Brandon stopped at the front of the line.

“Mr. Carroll.” Ralph furrowed his brow at Allie’s wiggling form. “What . . . How can I help you?”

“No.” Allie writhed and kicked. “You’re not taking me up in that fiery balloon trap of death!”

Brandon tightened his grip over the back of her legs and spoke to Ralph. “We won’t take the full half-hour.”

Ralph stepped aside and let Brandon pass. Brandon stepped over the top, and once in, he deposited Allie on her butt in the corner of the basket. The flame was already lit, so Brandon started tossing the sandbags over.

“Do you want me to pilot?” Ralph shot a glance at Allie as she tried to get to her feet.

Brandon had piloted the balloon before—he’d had Ralph teach him when he’d first hired him. “We’re good.” He increased the flame. “We’ll tug on the line when we want you to bring us down.”

Ralph nodded.

Allie rammed into the back of him, one leg half over the side before she saw they were already leaving the ground. An audible gasp sounded from the crowd as Brandon yanked her back into the basket.

She turned on him, eyes alight with fury. “Brandon Carroll, if you don’t take this balloon down right now, I swear I will knock you so hard you’ll see tomorrow today.” She pointed at the floor.

He slowed the burner just a touch as they came to the end of the tether.

It jerked, and Allie screamed and threw herself at him, burying her head in his chest. “We’re going to die!”

Brandon grabbed her shoulders and held him back from her. “And this from the woman who just outran two soldiers who are in top shape, and who just got shot at.” She glanced up at him, and he went for the manipulative, metaphorical kill. “Unless that was just some kind of projection and you’re the swooning type.”

She stepped out of his grasp, her red hair blowing lightly in the wind. “I fainted one time! In all of my life. Once.”

He chuckled. “Lucky me that I got to be there for it. I’ve never seen anyone drop like that before.”

She shook a fist at him. “You’re about to drop like that.”

“Oh yeah? Think you can take me down?” He curled the fingers of one hand at her, beckoning her closer.

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