“I have a lot riding on this throw. Be patient. I intend to be.” He waggled his eyebrows suggestively and stepped up to the line. He threw his three darts quickly in rapid succession, missing all three times.
She shook her head and clucked her tongue. “You always were fast on the draw, Ethan.”
The game attendant choked back a laugh, and Ethan shot him a dirty look. “Fine. You were always slower than molasses. But be my guest.” He gave an exaggerated bow to her and stepped aside.
“I just needed the right warm-up.” She stepped to the line and tested her dart in the air with a mock throw. “Watch and learn.”
The first dart went low. Ethan chuckled. “Not as easy as you thought.”
She shot him a cool look. “You’re in my space.”
He bowed out again and exchanged amused glances with the teenager watching them, fascinated by the interchange. She rolled the dart in her hand and focused her gaze. A flick of the wrist and she released it. Wide. Damn.
She pointed at Ethan. “Zip it. I have one more.”
“What did I tell you, dude? Slower than molasses.” Ethan spoke in a loud whisper.
The kid, getting into the situation, leaned back and crossed his arms. “Seems like you just can’t handle her.”
Delaney barked a laugh. Thank God she hadn’t started her throw. Ethan’s face reddened, but he grinned good-naturedly. Damn, he always was a good guy.
Nice and easy. Slow and steady. Breathe in. Let it out. Smooth. She tossed the dart, and the balloon popped.
She let out a yell. “I win!” She turned, hands on her hips. “Sweetie, which little prize would you like? The purple elephant? The unicorn? Or maybe the pink bear?”
The attendant wasn’t even trying to hide his laughter anymore. “Dude, you got smoked by a chick.”
Ethan ruefully nodded and plucked the stuffed unicorn from the wall. He put his arm around Delaney. “We both won. Here, honey.”
“I won it for you. I like to take care of my man.” She shoved it back into his arms and sashayed away, hips swaying, laughing the whole time.
He caught up to her and draped his arm around her, unicorn tucked under his other arm, pulling her close. “We’ll wait for the second part of your prize until we’re alone.” He straightened. “What’s next?”"
She shivered at his words and the warmth of his breath against her ear. Focusing on the task, she pulled out the list and frowned. “Piece of local art and a piece of sea glass.” She looked up at him. “We only have twenty-five dollars left.”
He took a deep breath. “Okay, sea glass. We should be able to find one on the beach easily enough.”
“Since when did you become a lawyer, changing contracts to suit you?”
“Do you want to win or debate the finer points?”
She shook her head. “That’s easy. Win. That leaves local art. We only need to buy one of them.” She turned and looked around the amusement park, looking for sale booths. “Over there. Arts and crafts. We should be able to find something.”
A short while later, they were comparing the various art items for sale in the local booth, not really excited by anything. The only item in their price range was a sea scape that looked like it was drawn by a toddler. He frowned. “Kind of ugly, isn’t it?”
She grabbed the picture and stalked away. “It’s in our budget. It’s impressionist art.” She fingered a pendant of pale blue sea glass wrapped in silver filament. She glanced at the price tag. Damn, too much. She compared it with the art. Together, they were forty dollars. If they skipped the art, the pendant was within their budget.
“You’re the art dealer.” He shrugged and peered over her shoulder. “What’s that?”
“Sea glass pendant. Too much for our budget. Too bad because it’s beautiful.”
He reached for it. “Then let’s get it.”
“We can’t get that and the art. We’re over by fifteen dollars.” She shook her head. “No, we need the art and can try to find a piece of glass on the beach.”
He peered out of the booth at the rapidly darkening sky. “Are you sure? It’s going to be dark soon.”
“Are you afraid?” She walked to the register to pay.