Chapter Seven

 

Elle

 

 

 

I’ve been spotted. By him. Not in the sexy ankle-length jeans I bought in Paris last spring, or my favorite black shirt that hides my muffin top in the best possible way, but in an ugly brown costume and equally repulsing ketchup hat. If anything had the power to scare away cute guys, this costume would win without even trying.

Not that I need to attract cute guys but… come on. The hottest man in the park is without a doubt Colton Wilson, and here I am, squeezed between two brown buns, in full view of the park’s royalty.

“Could you hand me a fresh stack of napkins?” Layla asks. “I like to be prepared before the lunch rush starts.”

“Huh? What?”

“Napkins?”

I give her a blank stare. I’m way too distracted to know anything about napkins and their whereabouts. I frantically start opening boxes, because I don’t want her to tell Frank that I’m lousy at this easy job.

She laughs and points at one of the storage compartments tucked away under the cart. “The one on the left.”

“Sorry,” I say and hand her a big stack of napkins.

She motions toward the park’s castle garden. “Drooling over Prince Charming, were you? You should keep one of those napkins for when that happens again.”

I hold my hands up. “No, I wasn’t looking at him and I certainly wasn’t drooling.”

She leans against the cart and laughs. “It’s okay, you can admit it. I don’t know of a single employee here who hasn’t had a crush on him.”

“Really? What about you?”

“Oh, girl, I had the hots for Colton for an entire year when I started working here.”

“Did anything happen between you two?” I ask, feeling a stab of jealousy, even though I have no feelings whatsoever for the guy.

She shakes her head. “Colton’s not an easy catch. Perhaps something could’ve happened between us if I had tried harder and been able to accept that it would only last a few weeks, but I couldn’t. I didn’t want some fling, you know. A long-term relationship is more my thing, like the one I’m in right now with my boyfriend.”

I frown. “So, he’s a player?”

“No, that’s not what I mean,” she says with a laugh. “His sister keeps setting him up with dates, and he does go out with those women, but it never turns into something real.”

“Wow, you seem to know a lot about him and his love life.”

She shrugs. “Nah, news just travels fast around here. Fair warning, it’s hard keeping secrets at The Magic Wonderland.”

“Okay,” I say, not sure whether I like that. I don’t want everyone to know everything about me. Then again, why would they care? I’m just some girl manning a hot dog cart. There are far more interesting people working here.

“Like, a little birdie told me you and Colton drove into work together this morning,” she says while refilling the bun tray.

I feel my face get as red as my ketchup hat. “It’s true. I’m kind of living with him. His sister is my best friend and she offered me a room in their house until I find something myself.”

She whistles. “You’re sharing a house with Colton Wilson? You’re one lucky girl,” she says louder than I want her to. The last thing I need right now is for her to draw people’s attention, especially not Prince Charming himself. He’s been glancing at me since his shift started, probably snickering at my ridiculous outfit.

“Well, he’s my best friend’s brother, so nothing can happen between us. Not that I want it to,” I quickly add. I don’t want her to get any wrong ideas and start spreading them around the park like truths.

“You’re not the slightest bit interested in him?” she asks, one brow up as if my statement surprises her.

I shrug. “Not really. Am I open to dating? Sure. Do I harbor any secret feelings for Prince Charming over there? Not in the slightest.”

Her eyes grow wide, almost as if my words made a light bulb go off in her head. “You know, that’s actually perfect. I could set you up with my cousin. He’s a great guy. Laid-back, sweet, good-looking as well. Oh, and I’ll be moving out soon, so my apartment will become available. My landlord hasn’t found any new renters yet. Wouldn’t it be great if you two could move in together there when I move out? You can even have some of my old furniture that I’m not taking with me to my new place.”

I open my mouth, but don’t know how to react to that. She wants me to go on a date with her cousin and assumes I’ll be moving in with the guy if it goes well? I mean, she might as well pick out my wedding dress and send me a link with house listings in a five-mile radius.

“So, what do you say?” she asks.

I pull a face. “To moving in with your cousin?”

“No, to a date with him.”

I glance at the castle gardens, where Colton is causing moms to laugh like nervous teens while their kids get their pictures snapped with him and the park’s princess. So what if he’s hot as hell? His looks shouldn’t concern me. He’s got his own life to live, and I just happen to stay at his place. It means nada. Zilch. Nothing.

I look at Layla and nod. “I guess one date won’t hurt.”

She grins. “You are going to have the best night ever.”

“That’s a tall order.”

“Not where Zeke is concerned. That’s my cousin’s name, by the way.” She takes her phone out and asks me for my number. I dictate it to her, all the while wondering whether this is a good idea. I just hope this Zeke guy isn’t some weirdo.

“I’ll have him text you as soon as possible. This is so exciting,” she says with a sigh.

“Yeah, I can’t wait,” I reply.

Before she can do anything else, like plan my and Zeke’s honeymoon, a group of hungry teenagers needs our attention. I squirt condiments onto their hot dogs, skillfully ignoring their comments about my costume. I know they don’t mean it in a bad way, and I do look horrible, so technically I can’t even hold their snorting against them.

By the time my shift is over and I’m back at The Village, I can hardly feel my feet anymore. Lifting the costume over my head feels like a massive relieve.

“Feels good, doesn’t it?” Layla asks while I rub my feet.

“The best.”

“You’ll get used to it.” She straps her bag over her shoulder. “See you tomorrow?”

“Absolutely. Have a great evening.”

She closes the door behind her, and I get ready to leave as well. After a couple of wrong turns, I find my way back to the employees’ parking lot where Colton and I agreed to meet after our shifts.

I stop in my tracks as soon as I spot him. He’s leaning against his motorcycle. His eyes are closed and he’s got a lazy smile on his face. I take a deep breath and bite my fist to stop myself from moaning.

“Hey dude, what’s up?” I cringe as soon as the words leave my mouth. Why do I keep doing this to myself? It’s not as if I want Colton to think I’m incapable of using normal words, and yet that’s exactly where this is going if I keep this up.

He opens his eyes slowly, a grin on his lips. “Hey, dude?”

I shake my head. “I promise you I’m not normally this weird.”

“Have you noticed that it only seems to happen whenever I’m waiting for you somewhere? Here, the airport…”

“Ugh, I know.”

He takes a step toward me and hands me a helmet. “Don’t worry about it. I’ve heard weirder things, believe me.”

“Oh yeah? Like what?”

He thinks for a moment before breaking into a smile again. “People say the strangest things. You’ll find out for yourself if you continue working here.”

“Why won’t you give me an example?”

He slings his leg over his bike seat. “Because it’s more fun this way. I can just imagine you bursting into my room to tell me all about the crazy ketchup demands a guest made that day. And then you’ll realize it wasn’t so bad after all, because I will have an even weirder story. Seriously, being Prince Charming isn’t always that charming. More people than I can count have tried to touch me in places I don’t want to be touched by some stranger,” he says with a hearty laugh.

I swallow. He’s imagining me bursting into his room like we’re best friends? My heart skips a beat at the prospect of that really happening. “I can come into your room unannounced?”

He laughs. “Let’s go home, shall we?”

I give him a thumbs-up and slide the helmet over my head, because why would I keep talking at this point? Every time I open my mouth to speak, I sound like a sixteen-year-old girl who’s unable to keep herself in check. The more I speak, the more he’ll think of me as his younger sister’s silly friend who blurts out silly things. Shutting up is my best bet if I want to appear somewhat normal and appealing. Not that I need to be appealing to my best friend’s brother as he’s way out of my league and, more importantly, completely off-limits, but… Well, no one wants to come across as kooky either, that’s for sure. This is just me taking care of business, making sure I seem normal, no ulterior motives whatsoever.

At least, that’s what my mind is trying to convince my heart of.