Page 28 of A Royal Promise
They all agreed and walked a few yards to a tent and took their places behind stationary mounted water guns. They each put on their game faces, hands ready on the handles, then the bell rang for them to begin. Drew aimed his water stream at the small target, hitting it right in the center after a moment. He watched as his horse started moving closer to the finish line. Bri’s moved steadily along with his, while Phillip trailed behind.
When his horse crossed the finish line first, Drew let out a whoop before choosing his prize—a small stuffed panda bear. They’d always reminded him of Bri, with their playful spirit and attentiveness. He walked over and handed it to his best friend.
“For you, Bri Bear.” The nickname felt fitting for her.
She tried to shove it back in his hands. “You won it, fair and square.”
“I want you to have it,” he insisted. A slight blush covered her cheeks as she thanked him.
Drew couldn’t look away. All he could see was the smile on her face—and the blush he had put on her cheeks.
“Can we do the ring toss?” Phillip tugged on his sister’s arm.
“Sure,” she said, taking a few steps toward the new game. When she realized he wasn’t following, Bri turned back to face him. “You coming, Drew?”
He shook his head out of his daze. “Yeah, coming.” Drew jogged to catch up with them.
Phillip won the ring toss and duck pond games, both solely based on luck. Bri shocked both boys by dominating the basketball shootout game.
“Where have you been hiding those skills?” Drew asked, his eyebrows raised in surprise.
“I might have been practicing in our gym.” She shrugged, but a smirk tugged at her lips.
“I’m impressed,” he said truthfully, admiration coating his words.
“Thanks.” Her lips turned up into a full-on smile. “I’ve worked up an appetite. Are you ready to get some food?”
“Of course. I’m starving.”
“You’re always hungry.” She lightly shoved his shoulder as his stomach let out a low growl. “Let’s go.”
Drew didn’t have to be told twice. They walked over to a nearby food stand where they ordered three funnel cakes and lemonades. As soon as they had their fried treats and drinks in hand, they sat down at an open picnic table with Bastian standing guard nearby.
All three of them dug into their funnel cakes without another word. Soon enough, their fingers were covered in powdered sugar, and their stomachs were full of the sweet goodness. Drew took another sip of lemonade to wash it all down.
Their parents met them at the table soon after, and Phillip jumped up to tell his mom about all the games he’d won. Drew looked up to talk to Bri and spotted some powdered sugar on the side of her mouth, close to her cheek.
“You’ve got some sugar.” He pointed to his face where she needed to wipe.
She rubbed on the wrong side. “Did I get it?”
He shook his head and leaned across the wooden table, gently wiping the powdered sugar off with the pad of his thumb. As his finger ran across her skin, Drew felt like an electric current ran through him, shocking his entire system. He quickly jerked his hand back, sitting down and rubbing his hands on his jeans.
What was that?Drew asked himself as he felt a blush climb his neck. For the rest of their time at the fair, Drew couldn’t help himself. His gaze continued to roam back to Bri.
The setting sun left a warm aura around her, making her blonde hair look almost golden. Bri was his best friend, but looking at her in this setting, he felt something else, like a warm sensation in his heart and fluttering butterflies in his stomach.
He finally recognized them for what they were—feelings. And he didn’t know if he would ever be able to go back to feeling like just friends.
Chapter Ten
Bri
As they walked into the middle of the fun, even the smell of fried treats couldn’t seem to distract Bri from her thoughts.
They obviously needed to do a better job of convincing the press they were together and in love, that this engagement wasn’t a sham—even though it was.
While their betrothal might be fake, the way Drew had shielded her from the press with his body was very real. She appreciated how protective he was of her. She never doubted if she was safe around him, because she knew he would never let anything happen to her. Whether it be something life-threatening or just a slew of over-the-top, invasive questions from the press, Drew would always have her back. And it was only one of a million reasons why she was grateful for his friendship.
