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I raise my arms over my head and do a small twirl. “I think I’m a little high on good vibes because I cast out all the bad ones.” My leg gets caught in the other and I pivot forward, about to go splat on the floor.
Arms wrap around me and lift me before I could face-plant. I stare up at the masked face of Liam, his gray eyes the only thing visible. For a second, time stands still as he and I stare into each other’s eyes, but then I laugh sheepishly and free myself from his hold. “Told you I have two left feet.”
“Nice save, dude,” Lily tells her brother. “We can’t have our princess with a face injury right before she’s about to meet her prince.”
“You okay?” Liam asks me.
“Yeah. Just a bruised ego. Nothing new.” I laugh lamely.
“Well, don’t stop now.” Ava twirls into Aidan’s arms, and he dips her. “Continue getting your groove on, Junior Musketeers.”
We dance for probably another twenty minutes before someone announces that the trivia game is about to start.
“You guys have fun,” Willow tells us. “I’m going to wait in line at the game.”
“I’ll come with you,” I say. “I can use a break from all the dancing.”
She and I make our way to where they set up the trivia game. The money raised from the game will go to charity. The more questions players answer correctly, the more money the sponsors will donate. And if someone reaches the bonus question, one of the sponsors will donate an extra ten thousand dollars. And the winner will get the Xbox.
Just as we’re about to stand in line, we almost get run over by two little kids. The boy is my cousin Brock, and he’s chasing after Aidan’s sister, Lexi.
“Come on!” he urges as he tries to keep up with her. “Dance with me! I don’t have cooties!”
“Not unless you give me your shark tooth!”
“But it was a present from my neighbor! C’mon, Lexi, just dance with me.”
I’m about to call after my cousin to say hello, but he and Lexi zip by and disappear into the crowd.
Willow and I chuckle at each other as we wait in line with the other guests. Most of them are adults, though I do see a few teens and a kid or two. Willow is about to say something, but she stares at the woman standing in front of us. “Mom?”
The woman turns around and lifts her emerald mask. It’s Charlie. I should have known because I can recognize that red hair anywhere. She smiles at us. “Hey, Willow. And let’s see who that is…Chloe, right?”
“Yep.”
“What are you doing here?” Willow asks.
Charlie chuckles. “My goal is to go all the way and win those ten thousand dollars for charity. I did it when I was your age. Let’s see if I can do it again. I still remember my question—it was about Joan of Arc.”
“Cool,” I say. “Willow’s going to try to win it, too.”
“I want to win lots of money for charity and the Xbox for Mia. Don’t worry, I’ll only let her have it when she’s done with her punishment.”
“Oh, honey. You’re so kind for wanting to win something for your sister.” She wraps an arm around her. “What do you say we team up and win it together?”
“Sure!”
Charlie lowers her mask and focuses on the game. The questions are pretty easy in the beginning but they get harder the further the player advances. Many players don’t make it very far, but they’re super happy with the money they raised. I’m tempted to play as well because I would love to raise money for charity, but I don’t think my head is in the right place at the moment. The hour of the meeting with the secret admirer is getting closer and closer…
“And now we have two young ladies with beautiful green masks,” the woman announces when it’s Charlie and Willow’s turn. “Looks like quite the dynamic duo! Let’s see how much money they can raise.”
Willow and her mom breeze through the first round of questions without even a second of hesitation. And they pass the second round just as fast. Some younger kids crowd around when they realize there are serious challengers trying to reach the top. The way mother and daughter spit out the answers is staggering. They really are a force to be reckoned with.
“That’s my wife and daughter!” Asher yells from a few feet away, where he stands with Mia and wearing a matching emerald mask. Mia’s mask is hot pink. “Go get ‘em!”
When Charlie and Willow answer the final question and are ready for the bonus question, the crowd around them starts to chant, “Bonus! Bonus!”
Willow glances at the Xbox sitting on the table next to the woman. “That’s coming home with us.” She nods at the woman. “Hit us with the bonus question.”
