Page 33 of Bride Games

33

E li parked among a sea of cars in multiple lots on both sides of the road. Emma’s eyes bulged. “Oh, my gosh. This has grown into a mammoth operation. We’re definitely going to get our steps in today.”

After he turned off the ignition, Eli said, “I say we take the tram. We’ll get enough exercise just walking through the park for hours.” Once they made their way to a tram station among hundreds of other park goers, Lucy’s eyes welled with tears. “I forgot Mr. Pickles. He would love ‘City.”

Some days Emma wanted to flush her daughter’s stuffed rabbit. She cursed herself for not remembering the toy but took another stance. “Mr. Pickles is watching our house for us. He likes being in charge so he can make all the decisions and sit wherever he wants.”

“Oh.” Lucy brightened, clearly enjoying the thought of her plush rabbit in charge of the entire household. Reaching for her mother’s hand, she bounced up and down when she spotted an oncoming tram. “We get to ride a train.”

“We sure do.” The threesome stood in a long line and eventually boarded a second tram. Every seat was filled. Once inside the park, the threesome stood at the entrance surveying the area. The area was packed with guests. As the sun beat down, Emma wished she had worn shorts and flipflops or at least a hat. She could already tell she was going to smother in her jeans but she didn’t have time to use self-tanner the night before and hated her pale white legs. Eli reached for her free hand while Lucy tugged on the other one. He leaned in, whispering, “I adore your freckles. I bet your whole face is covered with them by the end of the day.”

She grimaced. “I hope not.”

“I hope so.” Eli crouched beside Lucy. “What do you want to do first?”

“Everything!”

Eli laughed. “Hopefully, we’ll have time to see most of the park.” He led them past a booth serving deep-fried funnel cakes covered with powdered sugar. Emma glanced toward the line of people at the booth. “Those smell so good. My mouth is watering.”

“Want one now or later?” Eli asked.

“Later. Let’s get to the kid zone. I hope you know where it is.”

Eli held up his phone. “I surveyed the SDC website earlier. I can navigate this entire park since I downloaded the app. It’ll even tell us how long we have to wait for the rides if the lines are long.”

Emma grimaced. “Lucy isn’t the most patient—me neither—for that matter.”

“No worries. There’s a ton of stuff to do. They have live shows, craftsmen, shops, and restaurants.”

“I’m glad one of us is in charge.” Parents pushed strollers, kids raced past them, and elderly people sat in the shade on benches. Teens were on their phones as Emma, Eli, and Lucy strolled past a pavilion and decided to go inside Grandfather’s Mansion.

Soon after stepping inside, Lucy held her arms to her side. “Mommy, I’m walking funny.” Emma giggled as the threesome attempted to walk across the slanted floor. After they explored the ride, they spotted a fudge shop and watched as employees slathered huge amounts of fudge on a big marble slab. Lucy happily accepted multiple samples while Emma told her to not spoil her lunch.

They walked up a hill and across a bridge when Lucy spotted a man holding a steel rod and placing horse shoes in the fire to be softened and shaped. Her eyes widened as she reached for Eli’s hand. “Mr. Hansen, they’re making shoes for the horses. Look!” She pointed until she got Emma’s attention. They stood close, but not too close, to the flickering flame. The blacksmith asked if anyone had any questions. Lucy waved her hand. “I already know what you’re doing. You’re making shoes for horses. Do you make pink ones?”

The small crowd that had gathered to watch laughed. Lucy ducked behind her mom. Emma squeezed her daughter’s hand. “I think that’s a great question, Luce. Well done.”

Eli crouched down, apparently noticing Lucy’s embarrassment. “You asked a fine question. The only way to learn is to ask. I think your bravery deserves a treat. Do you want something to eat or should we find a ride?”

“A ride!” Lucy reached for both Eli and Emma’s hands as the blacksmith waved goodbye to her.

Emma studied a brochure. “I had forgotten how big this park is. I think we should head toward the kid area.”

“I agree.” Eli studied the app on his phone and pointed. “It’s over there.”

An hour later, Lucy had jumped into a sea of plastic balls, shot water guns, and ridden a small roller coaster. Her sweaty hair was stuck to her forehead. She rubbed her belly. “I’m hungry.”

“Me too.” Emma glanced in every direction. “Looks like we have several choices—barbecue, sandwiches, chicken, or?—”

Lucy shouted, “Ice cream.”

“We need something more substantial, Luce. We have to walk all the way back.” Emma led them to a table in the shade while Eli ordered. After they ate, she noticed Lucy’s eyes were half open and whispered to Eli, “Someone’s worn out.”

“That makes two of us. Should we head back?” Eli asked.

“Let’s do one more ride.” Emma stared at the signs. “How about Mystic River Falls?” She threw away their trash and they headed toward the ride, standing in line for twenty minutes before getting on a big round tube with five other people. The seats were soaked. “Uh oh. We may be sorry about this.” Emma chuckled as she held Lucy’s hand. “If you get wet, don’t worry. You’ll dry off while walking.”

“O-tay.”

Sure enough, the ride got on a track in a lazy river only to go past a waterfall that splashed all over them. It crept up a hill and came down with a thud. Everyone screeched and laughed as they got soaked. Lucy and Emma hung onto the center wheel for dear life. Eli’s wet hair dripped down his nose. Emma whispered, “You look sexy.”

He wiggled his eyebrows. “Thanks. You too but we have a little one with big ears.”

“Don’t I know it.” Emma brushed Lucy’s hair away from her face as their tube made its way back to the platform.

“Again,” Lucy shouted, as Emma shook her head. “That’s enough. Let’s head back, Luce.”

Drenched, their clothes stuck to them but it didn’t matter. As they made their way past hundreds of people, Lucy spotted a life-size cow. A plastic one and pointed. “What’s that?”

Eli gestured to the bucket underneath the cow. “It’s a mechanical cow to be fake milked, I guess.”

“I want to fake milk a cow.” Lucy broke free, sat on a small stool, and instinctively began pulling on the cow’s udder as if she had grown up on a dairy farm. Water came out and streamed into the bucket below. She tugged on several teats while a little boy watched. He jumped in the fray, but instead of squirting the water inside the bucket, he leaned down and squirted it directly into his mouth.

Eli howled. “That’s exactly what I would have done at his age.” Emma noticed Lucy positioning herself to mirror the boy’s actions. “Don’t you dare, Luce. That water’s dirty.”

“No, it’s not.” Lucy gawked at the little boy who seemed to challenge her with his eyes. He bent down and repeated his actions, clearly daring her. Lucy reached for a teat, took aim, and opened her mouth. Before one drop landed on her daughter’s tongue, Emma dragged Lucy away with the promise of a funnel cake.

They sat on a bench eating an enormous, warm funnel cake covered in powdered sugar. As Lucy licked her fingers—and Emma cursed herself for not bringing antibacterial gel—her daughter said, “This was the best day.”

Eli leaned over and flicked white sugar off Lucy’s chin. “I’m glad you had fun. This will be one of many family adventures together.”

Lucy slipped her sticky hand in Eli’s. “Thanks, Mr. Hansen. Can we go home now?”