“Coming right up.” Molly handed the chocolate to Mrs. Welch in their customary wax paper bag with the bakeshop’s name stenciled along the bottom. “Let me know what you think, and if you like them, tell your friends.”

But before she could move on to the next customer in line, Mrs. Welch bit right into one and grinned. “Amazing,” she breathed. “Don’t worry, Molly. I’ll tell everyone I know.” She looked down at the truffle in her hand, shook her head in wonder, and headed off with her remaining chocolates. Another satisfied customer.

“Sugar, you think we made enough of these things? We’re an hour in and already hitting our stash pretty hard.”

“No worries. There are more at the shop.” She grinned triumphantly, and though it was still early, that’s kind of how she felt. Triumphant. Bold. She was taking control of her life lately and if felt good.

Eden slung an arm around Molly’s shoulders. “My, my. It seems our fearless leader has thought of everything. When bonehead gets here, we can send him back for more inventory.”

“Eden, can we maybe not call Damon a bonehead? He’s a member of our staff and just as deserving of respect as the rest of us.”

“If you say so. And out of loyalty to you, I will try not to call the bonehead a bonehead.”

“Thanks for going out of your way.”

Eden placed a big smacking kiss on her cheek. “Anytime.”

As the hours rolled by, the bright blue sky dimmed and made way for the twinkling of stars. The crowds increased exponentially as did the line at the Flour Child booth. In good news, her shift was almost over and she could head out into the world to enjoy the festival. The carnival rides were now lit up with neon, and as she handed Mr. Walker his change, she stared at the towering Ferris wheel in the distance. Her nemesis.

The great big circle of terror.

Satan’s bicycle wheel.

The symbol of all her fears rolled into one.

Saying she was afraid of heights was an understatement. And after a widely witnessed freak-out on the ride when she was twelve years old, she steered clear of the thing. Even the sight of it sent a terrifying shiver through her. Every once in a while, she’d start to feel a little courageous and wonder if she could ever give it another go. You know, conquer that fear once and for all. But the answer was always no, she’d decide most matter-of-factly. She could not. Her fear of heights and rides and all things scary was just something she’d have to live with.

“Hey, proud business owner.”

Molly shot a look over her right shoulder and found Jordan leaning over the side of the booth. Her hair was swept partially back and she looked incredibly fresh faced and vibrant. This time a shiver moved through her for an entirely different reason.

They hadn’t seen each other since the kiss in the driveway. The kiss she’d initiated in one of the most daring moments of her entire life. The thing was, the kiss they’d shared that first time in her living room had been great. No, more than great. But the second kiss had completely devastated the first one. How? She wasn’t quite sure. It was a mystery—as was the fact that she forgot the rest of the world existed when Jordan’s lips were on hers. She didn’t know exactly where they stood, but a door was definitely standing open. It was just a matter of whether she chose to walk through it. And she had a feeling she’d know the answer by the time the night was over. “Hey, you. Enjoying yourself?”

Jordan grinned whimsically. “You have no idea. I’ve been here an hour and barely scraped the surface. Done soon? There’s festivating to partake in.”

“Festivating?” Molly arched an eyebrow.

“Festivating. Don’t look at me like that. It’s a word.”

“Give me five minutes.”

“Okay. Meet me at the bandstand?”

Molly considered this. “Only if you have a cold beer waiting for me. I’m working pretty hard here.” She offered up a pathetic facial expression for effect.

“I’ll see what I can rustle up.” And she was off, with Molly watching in appreciation as she walked away.

“You should take a picture. Lasts longer,” Eden whispered in her ear.

“What are you, seven? I haven’t heard anyone say that since elementary school.”

“What can I say? I like the classics.” Eden gestured in Jordan’s direction with her chin. “You hittin’ that yet?”

“Excuse me?” Molly said, shocked, but okay, not entirely. It was Eden. Molly took off her apron and handed it to Louise, who was taking over for her, and headed to the booth’s staging area.

Eden followed, close on her heels. “Don’t play innocent with me, Miss Molly. You have blatant lust scrawled across your forehead in giant red letters.”

Molly decided to drop the lame protestations. It’s not like Eden was wrong. “Okay, the blatant lust exists, yes. But blatant lust is not always smart lust, you know? Does lust have to be smart or can it just be fun? Fun lust.” She took a deep breath. “What do I do here?”

Eden stared at her as if trying to work a difficult puzzle. “What do you want to do here?”

“Hit that.”

Eden laughed loudly and pulled Molly into a hug. “I love you. And let’s be clear. Fun lust is not a crime and you could definitely use some fun. Get outta here and enjoy your night. I think you’re in good shape. Please do everything and anything that I would and that’s an order.”

Molly offered a small salute.

The area around the bandstand was overflowing with people when Molly arrived. The band onstage played a cover of “Neon Moon” and the vibe was laid back fun. Just what she was in the mood for. The dance floor was packed, but Molly was able to spot Jordan off to the side, sitting on the grass with the more mellow festival goers, taking in the music, the ambiance, the evening.

“I hate to interrupt, but is this seat taken?”

Jordan glanced up and smiled. The lights from the dance floor caught her eyes and the pleasant tug showed up right on time in the center of Molly’s stomach. “Well, I was waiting for this charming and attractive small business owner, but I guess you’ll do.”

“You’re so good to me.”

Jordan handed her a beer. “Look at that. I really am.”

She took a seat in the grass next to Jordan, and for the next few minutes they listened to the music as Molly enjoyed the chance to get off her feet for a little bit. It wasn’t long before out of the corner of her eye she noticed Jordan studying her. “What?” she asked, self-conscious. “Is there flour on my face again?” She swiped at her cheek.

“Nope.”

Molly glanced down at her hands then back at Jordan. “Then what?”

“I just can’t seem to stop looking at you.”

“Oh,” she said quietly. She looked back at Jordan and smiled. The gaze they held seemed to communicate so much. Jordan’s eyes were soft, kind, and through that stare Molly understood fully that she was safe. Jordan knew what she’d been through because she’d gone through it herself. Whatever it was she was afraid of, that kept her from letting go, slowly evaporated in the span of that exchange.

It was just Jordan, whom she’d known most of her life, looking back at her. There was nothing to fear, and the realization was like a cool glass of water on a thirsty day. She was all of a sudden energized and eager to live life. “Come to the fun house with me?”

Jordan looked at her dubiously. “The fun house?”

“Mhmm. I don’t do rides, as you know, but the funhouse has always been my favorite. It’s a different one this year so I don’t know the maze yet. We can figure it out together.”

“Well, if you insist. But will there be clowns? I hate clowns.”

“I’ll protect you.”

Molly paid for their tickets and led the way through the psychedelic red and white door. Once inside, it was pretty hard to see and crazy loud rock music filled the space. A flash of light lit the small room every five seconds or so and they used the brief illumination to find their way to a long hallway. “Careful. The floor in here is sloped.”

“Sloped up or down? Whoa.” Jordan said, stumbling.

“Up and down. Here take my hand.” She reached just behind her and found Jordan’s hand and held tight. They laughed as they made their way down the uneven path together, and Molly found herself on an adrenaline high from the combination of fun and the overt sexual tension that just holding Jordan’s hand was apparently able to elicit.

The second section of the funhouse was a rather complicated maze of mirrors. “Get ready,” Jordan offered. “I’m kind of a maze prodigy.” They maneuvered corners and squeezed through tight spots that forced them close together. But as is typical when dealing with a maze, every few minutes, Molly found herself stopped short up against Jordan’s warm body. As time went on, she started to anticipate it, hope for it. Long for it.

A rapid succession of inappropriate thoughts moved through her mind and she couldn’t say it bothered her. Her libido was clearly alive and well and trained alertly on Jordan and the incredibly sexy black top that dipped just low enough in front. The faded jeans she wore looked like they were made for her near perfect body.

They heard loud voices from up front as a group of kids entered the fun house. Jordan held a finger to her lips to indicate silence and gestured with her head for Molly to follow her into the darkened room that shot off the pathway at the end of the maze. Stealth was the name of the game and it was fun. Molly wasted no time and joined Jordan in the dim room, the only illumination a black light that caused the white tic-tac-toe marks on the wall to glow subtly.

Once they were inside and alone, Jordan gently pushed her up against the wall. “I thought we could steal a moment,” she murmured. “Want to steal a moment?”