I smiled at him. “Sounds like fun.”

His brows shot up. “Did you ever go to a fair as a kid?”

Shaking my head, I replied, “I always wanted to go, but my parents . . .” I grimaced as their words echoed through my head.

“What?”

I twisted my napkin in my lap. “My parents said only low-rent people went to the fair, and I would catch something from them.”

Rev barked out a humorless laugh. “Well, I’m pretty sure they were right about my family’s low-rent status, but we never spread any diseases.”

I stared down at my plate, wishing I had answered him differently. In that moment, I hated my parents even more. I hated their hypocrisy of acting like they cared for the poor by having thousand-dollar-a-plate fund-raisers, but at the same time staring down their noses at anyone who wasn’t in their social class.

Even though it wasn’t the sufficient apology he deserved, I whispered, “I’m sorry.”

“You have nothing to be sorry about.”

“But—”

Rev shook his head. “You’re not your parents, Annabel.”

“I know.”

“Good.” He reached around to get his wallet out of his pants. After tossing out some bills, he grinned at me. “I think it’s time you went to your first carnival.”

“Seriously?”

“Sure.”

“But since I’m still healing, I can’t ride anything.”

“We can still walk around and take in the sights.”

I had to admit the prospect definitely excited me. “Are you sure we have time?”

Rev smiled. “We’ll make time.”

I laughed. “Okay, let’s do it!”

We made our way out of the diner, looked both ways before hurrying across the highway, and then inched our way up the line to the ticket booth.

Once we got inside, I was momentarily overwhelmed by the crowd. So many strangers. So many strange men. In spite of the heat, a chill passed over my skin.

As if he could sense my apprehension, Rev drew me close against him. “Anytime you want to leave, you just tell me.”

Although part of me would have preferred to turn around then, I knew I owed it to Rev—and to myself—to try to stay. I was safe with him. No one could hurt me as long as Rev was around. And in some small way, if I did stay, it would be a victory of overcoming my fears. “I will,” I replied.

As we walked around, I battled the sensory overload I found myself in—the noisy chatter, the smells of popcorn and funnel cakes, the screams from people on the roller coasters and other rides. Each time I would meet the eyes of a strange man, I would burrow closer to Rev. Thankfully, he didn’t seem to mind.

“What was your favorite part of the fair growing up?” I gazed up and tried to focus on him rather than the crowd around us.

“That’s a tough one. Even though they’re kinda cheesy now, I really loved the rides. The bigger the adrenaline rush, the better time I had. But I also liked playing the games.” He smiled down at me. “As I got older, I would try to win something to give to a girl.”

“Aw, that’s so sweet.”

He laughed. “Yeah, that was my idea of being a suave Casanova. I had a lot to learn.”

My gaze caught the glittering lights of the Ferris wheel. “I can wait here if you want to go on some of the rides,” I offered. Secretly, I would die a thousand deaths until he returned, but I was willing to do it for him.

Rev immediately shook his head. “I’m fine.”

“Well, the least you can do is play some games. You know, for old times’ sake and all.”

With a smile, Rev said, “Yeah, I guess I could.” He then led me over to one of the booths. The game was set up so you won if you could hit the bull’s-eye on the target.

The guy behind the counter eyed Rev’s cut before handing him the toy gun. I could tell by his expression he didn’t much care for Rev playing the game—as if wearing the cut gave him an unfair advantage or something. If Rev noticed it, he didn’t let on.

Instead, he focused on the target in front of him. His first shot pinged against the center of the bull’s-eye, knocking it down. “Great shot!” I exclaimed.

“What prize?” the man asked.

“It’s the lady’s choice,” Rev replied.

I laughed. “Really?”

“Of course.”

“Hmm,” I murmured as I gazed up at the stuffed animals on display. A cute brown and white dog caught my eye. “I’ll take that one,” I said, pointing to it. The man took it down and then handed it to me. “Thank you.”

“Come on. Let’s try some other ones,” Rev said.

“Ah, I’ve created a monster, huh?” I teased.

“Yes and no. I fully intend to have you play some as well.”

“Me?” My voice squeaked.

He grinned. “Why not?”

“Rev, I wouldn’t even begin to know how to shoot,” I protested.

“We’ll find you one that doesn’t involve shooting.”

“One thing I haven’t told you is I’m not very athletic.”

“I’m not sure I’m too surprised to hear that.”

I smacked him playfully on the arm. “Hey now.”

“Here. Let’s try this one.” He motioned to a booth where smaller children were picking up floating ducks to match prizes.

“I don’t think I’m so bad that we have to start at a kiddie booth.”

Rev laughed. “Okay, okay. You pick one.”