Page 21 of A Hard Fit (Falling Hard #2)

Grand Opening

Rory needed only a second to assess the situation. “What can I do?”

Finn got Bryson a change of clothes and left his grape-stained ones in the bathroom sink to soak, while Rory scrubbed the rest of the purple out of the chair and helped Cali get the cookies in the oven. It wasn’t until Finn had introduced everyone that he realized—“Cali…did you add the baking soda, baking powder and salt?”

Cali blinked. “No?”

Finn nodded. “Okay. That’s okay. There’s so much chocolate in them, I’m sure they’ll taste just fine.”

And they were delicious. Warm and gooey, dense as fudge but soft, and oh, so chocolatey. Finn missed the salt a little, he decided, but overall, not a problem.

They were sitting around the kitchen table with glasses of milk, polishing off the first tray, when Rory asked, “Did Uncle Finn tell you what you get to do tomorrow?”

“No,” Cali said, licking a smudge of chocolate on her lip.

Bryson eyed the next tray. “Can I have another cookie?”

“I think maybe ease off, bud,” Finn said. The kid had had Frosted Flakes, a freezie —well, most of one—and multiple cookies since he’d been here. “Maybe after dinner.”

“I’m too full for dinner,” Bryson said, holding his stomach.

“You just asked for another cookie…”

“I’m not full of cookies.”

“But…” Finn furrowed his brow, processing.

“What do we get to do tomorrow?” Cali asked.

“Well, Rory and I have been helping redesign an amusement park at work…and we get to go there tomorrow to try it all out!”

“We do?” Cali said. “For real?”

“What’s an amusement park?” Bryson asked.

Cali’s grin stretched wide. “You know, like rides and cotton candy and stuff.”

“Yay!” Bryson threw his fists in the air and thrashed around in his chair in celebration.

Finn laughed. “Sound good?”

“Sounds great!” Cali said. “Can I please have another cookie?”

* * * *

Finn and Rory baked homemade chicken strips for a late dinner, served with veggies and dip, and got the kids to eat some fruit for a bedtime snack, so Finn didn’t feel too bad about all the treats. They called Liz to say goodnight, then he supervised the brushing of the teeth and herded them into bed.

Cali curled up with her book, but Bryson didn’t stop chattering away to Finn as he clambered under the covers.

Finn waited for him to take a breath. “Your mom said you usually read to her at bedtime. Do you want to read to me?”

“Okay!” Bryson dug in his backpack. “Mom packed these babyish books for me, but I could read you one if you want.”

Bryson read a Little Critter story— Just Me and My Babysitter —then Finn tucked him in.

“If you need me during the night, you know where my room is, right?” Finn asked them both.

“Yup,” Cali said. “Is it okay if I read a bit longer?”

“A little bit longer,” Finn said. “We’ve got a big day tomorrow.”

“Okay. Thanks, Uncle Finn.” She smiled up at him, the light from the lamp teasing the red out of her auburn hair.

“You’re welcome. Have a good sleep.”

“Night,” Cali said.

“Night,” Bryson yawned, eyes already drifting closed.

“Night.” Finn flipped off the dining room light, leaving Cali in a pool of lamplight and Bryson clutching his stuffed dinosaur.

* * * *

“They’re all settled,” Finn whispered, creeping into their bedroom.

“Why are you whispering?” Rory asked from their spot propped up against the pillows.

Finn huffed a laugh. “I don’t know.” He brushed his teeth, got into his pajamas, and slipped under the covers to cuddle up to Rory. “I can’t believe they’re here.”

Rory snuggled closer. “I know. It was such a fun night. And tomorrow’s going to be even more fun. All my little cousins should be there, too.” Markos had indeed said Rory could invite their extended family, so invite them they had.

“Who all is going?” Finn attempted to sound casual, although there wasn’t much of a point. Rory would know exactly why he was asking.

“Um, I think everyone with kids is coming. And Griffin, of course. He’s just a large kid, really.”

So Jackson would be there. “Great,” Finn said under his breath.

Rory still heard it. “I’m going to talk to Jackson, okay?”

“You are? At Thrill Island?”

“If he won’t even call but he’ll come for a free day at an amusement park? He can have a conversation with me.”

“Okay.” Finn kissed Rory’s shoulder. “Thanks.” It didn’t really make him feel any better about the day, but it was something.

Rory patted Finn’s hand. “It’ll be fine. I promise.”

* * * *

“This is amazing!” Cali squealed, bouncing along the boardwalk to the front gate.

Bryson was right behind her. “Look at that guy! Can you take my picture, Uncle Finn?” He dashed to put his face through the cutout for the ‘hacker’ character. “Cali, come do one!”

Cali chose the ‘distraction’ in the evening gown. The kids smiled wide for Finn to snap a few pictures, then they ran to use the viewing binoculars to check out the harbor.

Rory took Finn’s arm. “Look how excited they are, and they’re not even inside the park yet.”

“It’s pretty great.” They hung back, smiling at the kids’ antics and waving at the Breakpoint staff they spotted streaming toward the gate.

“Is Luka coming?” Rory asked, scanning the crowd.

“No, he… Well, if you can believe it, he actually asked Thomas out.”

“What?” Rory’s jaw dropped. “He did?”

“Yup. They’re going to Montecalvo today.”

“Wow. Good for him.”

“Yeah. Hope he doesn’t fuck it up.” Finn didn’t know how much more pining Luka could take. “Ready to head in?” Finn called to the kids. “We’re just getting started!”

“Coming!” They ran over and each grabbed onto one of Finn’s hands, swinging his arms as they got in line to get their tickets scanned. The place was jumping—besides the employees’ family and friends that Markos had invited, the citizens of Oakport had turned out in droves.

The sign above the gate had been totally redone, from the cheesy slasher font to a slick logo in red, silver and black. Goosebumps stippled Finn’s forearms when they passed through the gates. Everything was how he’d pictured it, except bigger and better in person. There was sparkling new signage everywhere and fresh paint in the new color scheme. There was already a lineup at the Ziller and the air rang with the joyful shrieking from its occupants.

“This looks incredible!” Rory said when they stopped in the main square to take it all in. A family walked by, each kid carrying a red helium balloon tied with black string—the preteen’s balloon read ‘I’m the hacker’ in white letters, the toddler’s said ‘I’m the muscle’ and an ‘I’m the getaway driver’ balloon bobbed from a stroller handle.

Finn smiled. The balloons had been his idea. “What ride do you want to do first?” he asked the kids. Bryson was vibrating so hard it rattled Finn’s bones.

“Finn!” Rory exclaimed. “You have to use the app!” They held up their phone to show the interface they had so painstakingly designed.

“Oh, shi—shoot, right. Of course.”

But Bryson had decided. “That one!” Dancing in place, he pointed at the Thrillcoaster. It was the centerpiece of the park, red tracks twirling and swooping like insect wings unfurled to the sky.

“Does that go upside down ?” Cali asked, horrified.

“You don’t have to go on it if you don’t want to,” Finn assured her.

“Don’t be a wimp, Cali!” Bryson said.

She scowled, but her reply was—fortunately—cut off by a new voice calling to them.

“Rory! Finn!”

Finn turned to see Steffie and Mikala approaching, with Leo and Troy in tow.

Bryson forgot about the roller coaster and studied the two older boys, eyes wide.

They exchanged greetings and Finn introduced his niece and nephew. “We were about to go check out the Thrillcoaster,” he said. “Do you want to come with us?”

“Can we, Moms?” Leo asked.

“You bet!” Steffie said. “Looks so fun.”

“I am not getting on that,” Mikala said firmly.

“Come on, Mom, you can do it!” Troy took her hand and the group made their way across the park, accompanied by happy screams and shouts from the rides they passed.

“What do you think, Cali?” Finn asked when they arrived at the Thrillcoaster.

She tilted her head back and stood staring at the peak of the first drop, lip between her teeth. “I don’t know…”

“What if you sit with me and hold my hand? You can squeeze it as hard as you like.”

Cali took a breath and nodded. “Okay.”

Leo and Troy had similarly talked Mikala into braving the coaster, although she looked much less certain than Cali as they got in line.

The ride was even better than Finn remembered as he listened to the delighted shrieks of his family around him. Cali clutched his hand and howled the whole way, but when they got off, she laughed and exclaimed along with the rest of them, chattering over each other with their gravity-defying tales.

“I screamed so hard that first drop!”

“Oh my God, when it went upside down!”

“Bryson screamed, too!”

“No, I didn’t!”

Mikala was white-faced, insisting she was both proud of herself but would never do that again.

Back out in the park, Finn consulted his app. “It looks like now might be a good time to check out The Heist Experience.” The VR ride had ended up being ready to go only days before. Rory had said all the tests ran smoothly and Finn hoped it would be a hit.

On their way to the entrance, they passed the exit to the ride. A familiar frame stood with his back to them. Then the voice reached Finn’s ears.

Jackson.

“—garbage,” he was saying to Amy. Minnie held tight to Amy’s hand, brown curls up in adorable pigtails.

“You didn’t like it?” Amy asked him. “I thought it was fun!”

“It’s the worst ride I’ve ever been on. Jolting around in a seat while things whizz at my head? I had to close my eyes. Why would anyone line up for that?”

“Are you sure it wasn’t just your motion sickness? These types of rides are really popular these days—”

“I think I would know, Amy—”

Minnie saw them approaching and pulled away to jump into Rory’s arms. “Ro-ro!”

Jackson’s face flashed with annoyance, then a fake smile took over. “Look who it is!”

They exchanged another round of greetings and introductions while Finn’s heart thudded. He hated the power Jackson had over him—how he was anxious and angry, one big ball of fight and flight.

“Did you like The Heist Experience?” Rory asked Jackson and Amy.

“Loved it!” Amy said. “My favorite part was the car chase at the end.”

“I guess I’m not cool enough to get the 3D glasses thing,” Jackson said with a fake self-deprecating shrug. “Not really my thing.”

An awkward pause hung over the group.

They were rescued by Minnie. “Can we go on the ponies, Mom?”

“Yes, sweetie,” Amy replied. “I told her we could do the carousel next because she couldn’t go on this one.”

“Okay, maybe we can catch up with you guys later,” Rory said. “I’m hoping the two of us can talk, Jackson.”

“Sure thing,” Jackson said, taking Minnie from Rory’s arms and hoisting her onto his shoulders. “But this one needs ponies right now.”

“Ponies!” Minnie sang, waving goodbye from her perch as the three of them made their way into the crowd.

“All right, who’s ready for a heist?” Steffie asked.

The kids cheered as they headed for the back of the line.

When they got to the front, a cheerful employee handed them their 3D glasses and they were loaded into their seats.

Finn loved the ride. It was exactly as he’d imagined it. They were right in the thick of the action, sneaking into a palace in Milan, dodging the security lasers, snagging the jewels then making a break for it through the glamorous party and being chased through the narrow cobblestone streets by the guards.

The kids chattered as they stepped outside again, blinking up at the sharp blue sky in the bright sun.

“That was so fun!” Cali exclaimed. “Did you and Rory really help design that, Uncle Finn?”

“We sure did,” Finn said, grinning. “What was your favorite part?”

The story swapping resumed until another ride caught Cali’s attention.

“Can we go on that one next?” Cali asked, pointing over to the infamous boat ride, whose sign now read ‘Stolen Kisses’ on a pair of puckered red lips.

“We don’t want to go on the boats!” Leo said. “They’re for babies.”

“Yeah, we don’t want to go on the boats!” Bryson added. “I wanna go on another roller coaster!”

“Let me see what has the shortest lineups right now,” Rory said, swiping through the app. “Hmm…” They frowned. “Nothing’s loading. Is it working for you?”

Finn pulled out his phone to check. “Doesn’t look like it.”

“That’s weird…” Rory’s thumbs flew over the screen. “The network signal seems to be fine.”

Finn tried refreshing the app. “Yeah, I definitely can’t get anything to load.”

“I’ll just check with Markos…”

“Can we go on the Thrillcoaster again?” Bryson asked.

“No, we should do the Diamond Dash! It’s a roller coaster in the dark!” Leo said.

Rory slapped a hand to their forehead. “Markos says the park Wi-Fi is down.”

Finn bit back a curse. “That’s not good.”

Rory typed a reply. “They’re trying to fix it, but he’s hoping people can use their data.”

“That’ll only work if they have good service here, and right now…” Finn held his phone up searching for a signal. “One bar, off and on.”

Rory nodded and continued typing. “I still see the Wi-Fi network, so the access points must be fine. There’s got to be some sort of problem in the server room.”

“Can we do another ride, Uncle Finn?” Cali asked.

“You bet, we just need a minute… Why don’t you guys go check out the fountain?”

“Let’s make a wish!” Steffie said, herding the kids over to the burbling water. “I have some coins.”

Finn furrowed his brow. “So, if people can’t use the app, they can’t use the line skipper or order food or anything, right?”

“I knew we should have done a soft open.” Rory raked their fingers through their hair.

A beleaguered family rolled up and stopped next to them. The mom had her phone out while children circled her legs, whining about rides and demanding food at full volume. The dad had a toddler on his back and appeared ready to give up on life.

“Hang on,” the mom muttered. “This stupid app…”

“I want to go on the fairy wheel!” a small girl cried.

“I’m hungry!” a boy about Bryson’s age whined.

“Yeah, I know, I’m trying to order some food, but…urgh! Nothing will load.” The mom groaned, tucking her phone into her pocket and picking up the girl. “Guess we’d better go get in line.”

The husband sighed as they trudged away.

Finn grimaced and checked his phone again. Now he had no bars. He didn’t want to throw the word ‘disaster’ around, but…

A large shadow loomed in Finn’s vision. “There you are!” Markos lumbered up to them. “This is a fucking disaster! I think the load on the cell tower has bogged everything down and now no one can do anything. What the fuck went wrong?”

“I’m not sure… What have you tried for fixes so far?” Rory asked.

“I don’t know, I don’t know. It’s all beyond me now.” Markos ran a hand over his head, leaving the few stray hairs on top sticking straight up. “If people can’t order lunch, they’ll leave. Fuck! An absolute disaster .”

“It’s okay,” Rory said. “We can help. Just give us a second.”

The kids were lined up along the cement wall of the fountain tossing coins into the spray.

Finn hunched down to talk to Cali and Bryson. “Rory and I need to go help out for a bit. Are you okay staying with Mikala and Steffie?”

“Yup,” Bryson said absentmindedly, going right back to Leo and Troy to see who could get a coin to land in the middle of the diamond mosaic on the bottom.

Cali nodded. “You’ll be back soon, though, right?”

“As soon as I can.” Finn was a little surprised when she hugged him, and even more surprised when his instinct was to kiss the top of her head.

“Okay,” Finn said to Markos. “Let’s go.”