23. Cherry
Cherry
Iclutch the twins’ hands tightly as we approach the entrance to the fair.
Nerves and excitement fill me. I’ve never been to a fair before and am excited to see everything.
But we’re not in Starfall Haven anymore, and that has me a tiny bit anxious.
Even though I know Dr. J and his guards are dead, we know there are still other facilities and others like them out there somewhere.
We had no idea how much they each knew of the others’ experiments. Hopefully not much, and not enough to be able to find me. No, the real fear now is Blaze, who found me in Starfall Haven too.
And when my mates suggested taking me on this date, that they didn’t want to keep me hidden away inside our house just because it was fully warded, my love for them only grew deeper. I don’t think of our home as a prison, but I can see how it might start to feel that way if we never leave it.
Although Bain had a lot to say about the risks involved, he had agreed it would be okay, since Blaze isn’t any stronger than my mates are. In fact, thanks to bonding with me, they all noticed their abilities increasing. They are stronger, faster, and more agile than ever before.
As long as I make sure to stay close to them at all times, Blaze doesn’t stand a chance against my five mates, even if he can resurrect.
In addition to my ring, which I put on my finger today instead of hanging around my neck, Gage had given me a smart watch to wear with a tracker in it, plus I had my cellphone in my pocket. And thanks to being bonded to all five of them, they can sense my emotions and we can speak through the bond.
There is no way Blaze will be able to take me while I’m here.
Today is going to be perfect.
Gage steps up to the ticket booth and buys a whole bunch of tickets, which I’m told are needed for all the rides, then he passes them out amongst the guys, not giving me any. But it only makes me smile, because I know that I won’t be going on anything alone.
“What shall we do first?” Gage asks, shoving his own tickets into his pocket as we step into the fairgrounds.
“How about a game?” Maddox asks.
“Or a ride?” Hunter suggests.
“Let’s get some food!” Chase says excitedly.
They all look at me expectantly and I laugh, shaking my head. “Don’t ask me! Let’s just do the first thing we see that we like.”
“There,” Maddox says, pointing at a game nearby. We walk over and watch the people playing. They’re aiming water into a target that makes race horses move across a track.
“This looks fun,” I say, realizing it’s not about strength but about accuracy. Maybe I’d stand a chance against them.
Maddox steps over the man running it and hands over tickets so we can play next.
I eye Chase, who’s rubbing his hands together excitedly. He sees me watching and grins. “Don’t think I’m gonna go easy on you and let you win.”
I gasp in mock horror. “Don’t you dare! I want to win fair and square.” The race ends and we take our seats, but I notice Bain doesn’t sit down; instead, he stands directly behind me, placing his hands on my shoulders.
Looking up at him, I frown. “Aren’t you playing?”
“I have a more important job to do.”
“Is that making sure Chase doesn’t cheat?” I ask with a grin, giving Chase the side eye as he mock scowls back at me.
“No, it’s keeping you safe. At least one of us needs to keep our focus on you at all times.”
“Oh,” I say, blinking up at him dumbly. I guess I hadn’t thought about how if we were all focused on the game, then my back would be exposed to potential danger. But that’s because I don’t feel like I’m in danger with them around.
“Get ready!” The game operator says loudly, making my head snap back around to focus on my target.
I’ll make sure Bain isn’t always the one to sit out on games today.
He squeezes my shoulders. “Get set!” A louder buzzer goes off and water starts streaming from my water shooter.
I squeal, quickly trying to get the water in the center.
It’s harder than it looks, and I quickly notice that horse number three, which is mine, is being left far behind the other four.
“You’re doing great,” Bain says, rubbing my shoulders.
“Nah, she’s terrible,” Chase says with a chuckle.
“Don’t talk about my mate like that!” Hunter growls from the other side of Chase, then he turns his target and shoots the water right at Chase’s face.
I burst out laughing from his look of shock, and by the time he recovers and tries to shoot Hunter back, Gage has already won, and the water streams stop.
“We have a winner, number one!” The man says loudly. I hop down from my stool and run past Maddox to wrap my arms around Gage in a big hug.
“You won! Congratulations!” I say proudly.
He smiles down at me, stroking my hair back from my face as I tilt it up to him. “What do I get as a prize? A kiss?”
I open my mouth to respond when the man running the games speaks first. “No kisses from me, but you have your choice of prize.” We both turn our heads to see the guy motioning to all the stuffed animals hanging above us.
“Hmm,” Gage hums as he locks around. Then he points to one behind me.
“That one.” It’s a small pink rabbit and I bite my lip, already knowing he picked it out for me.
The man pulls it down then passes it to him.
Gage smiles at me warmly as he presses it to my chest between us. “I won this for you, darling.”
Darling. He hasn’t called me that in a while, and I try not to swoon, loving the nickname. I clutch it closely as I whisper, “You still haven’t claimed your prize from me.”
His smile grows bigger as he leans down and presses his lips to mine. The kiss is far too quick for my liking, but we’re in public and don’t really want to be putting on a show for people.
As he lifts his head, I swipe my tongue over my lower lip, tasting him.
“Okay, I’m winning the next game, as long as Hunter doesn’t cheat again,” Chase says, scowling at us.
“What game do you want to play next?” I ask, turning into Gage’s side as I clutch my pink bunny to my chest.
“Let’s walk this way and see what there is,” Maddox says as he starts to move down the row of games.
None of them catch my attention, nor anyone else’s, as we walk.
What has caught my attention is how Maddox literally seems to part the crowd for us.
As he moves, people literally step out of his way, like they can feel his presence and are stepping aside to get away from him.
It has the opposite effect on me. I give Gage a quick smile before jogging forward and snatching up Maddox’s hand. He looks down at me in surprise, and I just smile at him, feeling a little hesitant.
“Hi,” I whisper, feeling a little shy. He moves his right arm to wrap around my shoulder and grabs my left hand with his left, twining our fingers together in front of us. We continue walking forward, and I smile as everyone steps out of our way without even looking at us.
Maddox has always had a very strong alpha energy, but now that he’s bonded to me, it must be even stronger. Something about it is not just appealing, but intoxicating. I can literally feel myself growing damp between my thighs the more I think about him.
He suddenly stops walking, and when I look up at him, he’s staring at me, his nose twitching.
Oh my Goddess, he can smell me!
“Not just smell you,” he whispers, making me think I must have said that last part through the bond. “But I can feel your arousal.” He closes his eyes and takes a deep inhale. I jerk as Hunter’s hands suddenly settle on my shoulders from behind.
“Is our mate getting needy? Does she need her alphas?”
Umm… Yes please.
They both smirk and I realize I said that through the bond too. I have to start remembering to shield my thoughts now that we’re bonded again. But then again, with the way they’re looking at me right now, I’m sorta glad they heard me.
“There,” Gage says, pointing to some sort of fun house. I’m not sure what he’s talking about, but Maddox quickly steers us in that direction. Gage gives tickets to the operator, and Chase moves in first, quickly storming ahead like he’s on a mission.
Hunter and Maddox, each holding one of my hands, move us slowly inside the building. The first part is a spinning tunnel that you have to walk through.
Gage goes through first, showing me how to do it. But with Hunter and Maddox clutching my hands, it’s pretty easy to get through without falling.
Next, we head through some weird area where there are different levels moving back and forth and up and down, and we have to walk through them all without falling over.
It’s actually more difficult than I expected, but my mates keep me from falling.
I laugh as I try to regain my balance, and Maddox suddenly picks me up against his front, and I instinctively wrap my arms and legs around him.
“Hold on,” he says, using one hand to hold me and the other to hold the railing. I laugh as I watch Hunter and Bain behind us, trying to follow. It definitely seems to be harder for Bain, his larger body obviously making it more difficult to keep his balance.
As the floor moves back and forward, my core starts to rub against Maddox’s firm abs. Even through my jeans and his T-shirt, I can feel the pressure there, making me suck in a sharp breath when Maddox stumbles a little to the side.
When we step off onto solid ground, Maddox’s now free hand finds its way to my ass, his fingers digging in and making me try to hold back a moan.
“Hold on a little more, sweetheart, and I’ll take care of you.” My core clenches at his words. When he says “take care of me,” does he mean protecting me, helping me through this fun house, or… taking care of the need growing between my legs?
I really hope it’s the latter.
As we step up into a doorway, he turns us sideways so I can look ahead. It appears we’re entering a hall of mirrors. Chase appears in the mirror and I smile.
“Chase!” I say with a smile as he duplicates in front of me, and I try to figure out which one is the real him.