Page 90 of Falling Into Forever
“I was motivated.”
“You’re a PR nightmare.” Dante laughs. “Are there more balloons in there?” he asks Grady.
He peers into the bucket. “A few. Why?”
“There’s more in the kitchen.” Two sets of eyes turn to me.
“What?”
“You warned them it’s game time, right?” Dante asks. His eyes sparkle with mischief and my arms tingle with awareness.
“Yes,” I say warily.
Grady and Dante eye each other. Are they? Are they teaming up on me?
“Then you’d better run, Sass,” Grady says with a grin I’ve never seen before.
My jaw hangs open in disbelief for half a second before I take off as fast as I can. I run down the stairs and out the back door but hear them running after me. Geez. They sound like elephants.
Dante’s strong arms grab me from behind, and he lifts me off my feet.
“Payback, Sayls.” He holds me in front of him and turns me toward Grady.
“You wouldn’t,” I seethe.
Dante’s breath tickles my neck as he walks us away from the water and into the grassy area between my house and the abandoned building next door. “Oh, I would. All’s fair in love and war, right?”
“Dante. Don’t you…”
My words are cut off when Grady hits my belly with a whipped cream-filled balloon.
“I’m going to lick that off you later,” Dante says before nipping at my neck. He’s still holding my arms at my side, and Grady launches another attack.
“Me too. Me too. Me too,” Poppy cries, running for Grady.
He sets the bucket down and lets her choose one. To no one’s surprise, she carefully sifts through them until she finds a pink one.
“Look, Mommy!” She holds up her treasure, and Lena walks to her. Poppy throws it when she’s close, and it explodes with bright yellow mustard all over Lena’s legs.
Lena and Poppy both stare straight ahead, wearing matching dumbfounded expressions.
Time seems to stop as we take in the mess around us. And then all hell breaks loose as we dive for balloons.
Somewhere in my mind, I register that the photographers are probably having a field day, but we’re all laughing too much to care.
My arm freezes midair.I’mhaving too much fun to care. Instinctively, I search for Dante, and he’s already watching me. He has so much life and love emanating from him, it’s hard not to gawk. But then he nods with a sexy smile, and belts me in the chest with a chocolate-syrup-filled balloon.
Grady stands in front of Lena as Poppy tosses balloons at him. I watch it bounce off his legs three times, but he stands perfectly still while she picks it up and throws it again and again until it pops.
Dante walks toward me, and everything else slows to a stop. All the colors of life fade to black and white, except for this man, covered in every sticky substance I could find. He’s the shot of color that fills me with life.
He stands before me and cups my cheeks with messy hands. The world hits fast forward around us, and I commit this moment to memory, hoping that if I lose myself in the future, this is a moment in time I’ll never forget.
My heartbeat whooshes in my ears as he lowers his lips to mine, and I swear I hear cheers from the peanut gallery.
When Dante pulls his lips away with a sexy grin, I laugh because I wasn’t hearing things. Most of the photographers across the street are laughing and snapping picture after picture. It’s truly such a strange profession.
To my left, Grady and Lena are facing each other, with Poppy dancing in the grass between them.
