Page 68 of The Other Fork in the Road

He sighed and nodded his head. Madison started walking as Grant pulled my arm until we were face to face.

He whispered. “You need to keep her here.”

“I wish it was that easy. Her home is in New York.” I glanced, and she was a good five feet in front of us.

“Well, build her a home here. We’ll make her a she-shed”

“She doesn’t want to stay. Her work and life aren’t here.”

“Well, we can make her stay. Yeah, you can put lots of locks on the door, so she can’t leave.”

“I’m afraid that’s kidnapping and illegal.”

He raised his little brows. “Only if you get caught.”

Okay, that’d always beenmyline, but sounded a little uncool—but still a little badass—coming from the little guy. Not sure what my adulting self was supposed to do.

“Let’s go to the zipper.” Adulting Jax was becoming a master at avoidance.

“You and me are going to make a plan to keep her here.”

I didn’t want to nod and encourage him, but I was open to whatever the hell kid could come up with.

Once at the front of the Zipper line, the ride operator opened the door, and two girls started to exit, but not before one puked, hitting the seat of the ride. Gasps emitted from everyone in eyeshot when the guy grabbed a red Solo cup, filled it from a huge bucket of water, and threw it on the vomit. After repeating his actions a few times, he motioned for us to get in.

“Uh, not happening.” I motioned to him. “Get us the next car.”

He shrugged, and we waited for the next one. Madison and Grant flew in ahead of me. I glanced up, wondering if any vomit chunks could get us while we hurled through the air.

Once inside, I tested their restraints. “Grant, it goes upside down. Are you sure you’re okay with that?”

“Oh yeah, I can’t wait!”

In a split second, we were off. Grant was screaming with laughter as Madison was trying to record with her phone. After our first upside down spin, the phone flew out of her hand and started bouncing off the walls around us. Upside down again while the phone shot about, which made screaming and laughter the only thing I could hear.

The cell phone became a weapon as it shot around at what felt like two hundred miles an hour. I heard anouchfrom Grant, then it got me in the jaw, as I was failing big time at getting a hold of it. After a few more spins and screams, I finally got the phone. When the longest ride in the history of the fair finally ended, we hopped out.

“Everybody okay?”

“That was funny!” Grant jumped up and down.

I looked over at Madison, who was holding her lower lip. “Just a little bump, I think.”

I stepped closer and pulled her hand away. “Looks a little swollen.”

I turned to Grant. “Hey Buddy, can you run over to that food truck and ask for a cup of ice for Madison’s lip? Don’t go any further than that.” I handed him a few bucks from my pocket.

He skipped away, and I turned back to Madison with one eye on Grant. “Does it hurt?”

“Not really.”

I stepped closer, and something flashed in her eyes. I kissed her lip lightly, then took it gently in my mouth and sucked. Her breathing became rapid as she froze. After a minute, I stepped back. “Better?”

She shot me a wide-eyed nod. I liked the way I made her pupils dilate, a reminder that it wasn’t only me feeling this heat that I didn’t know what to do with. Lie; I knew exactly what to do with it, the only thing to do with it. Sure enough, those rosy cheeks reappeared as if reading my filthy mind.

After a few minutes of ice on the lip, we headed towards the tilt-a-world, which sounded as fun as a kick in the groin. We passed the “Springfield Public Library” booth, and I thought we were in the clear, but Daisy started waving and jumping.

“Jax, Madison, Grant, come over here!”

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