Page 87

“Well, I don’t know that you need to go that far.”

He chuckled.

“Hey, would you like to join me?” he asked. “Meet me where I am? Help me forget about my crappy day.”

“At the mall?”

“Yeah. We have one of the world’s largest malls with an indoor amusement park in it. It’s got an aquarium and a mirror maze. One of those giant bean bag places. Every store known to man. There’s one that sells nothing but hot sauce. Mini golf, old-timey photos—”

I gasped. “I love old-timey photos.”

“Great. Come and we’ll take some. We can be pirates. Bring Maddy. She can make me walk the plank.”

“I want to do the 1920s one with the tommy gun and the bag of money,” I said.

“I look great in a fedora.”

I could see him smiling from all the way up here.

“I can promise you chaste forehead kisses and fine dining at Bubba Gump Shrimp…” he said, trying to sell it.

“You know what? Yeah. I think I would like you to chastely kiss my forehead today. I can be there in… fifteen minutes ago?”

I watched him halt to a dead stop and I grinned.

“You’re here?” he asked.

“Jane texted me last week. We’ve been conspiring to cheer you up for quite some time.”

There was a beat of silence.

“Did you just fist pump?” I asked.

Another pause. “How did you know that?”

“You’re getting predictable, Justin. Also, I can see you. Look up.”

He raised his head and beamed. Maddy popped over the railing next to me and waved.

“I’m on my way down,” I said.

Two minutes later I was on the escalator. Justin was waiting at the bottom in a navy Jaxon Waters T-shirt and jeans. He had Chelsea on his shoulders. She was using his forehead to hang on, her little fingers interlocked over his eyebrows. His hair was an absolute mess.

“I find that extremely attractive,” Maddy said, too low for him to hear.

“Same,” I whispered.

“Hey, Forehead Kiss Guy,” Maddy said when we got to the bottom.

He looked at me amused. “Wow. You are obsessed with me.”

I laughed and smiled up at Chelsea. “Hi, Chelsea.”

She gave me a shy hello, and I introduced her to my best friend.

Justin nodded toward the entrance. “I need to rent one of those little car strollers at the entrance. Her legs gave out an hour ago.”

“Where are Alex and Sarah?” I asked, looking around.