“Thank you for telling me. It’s relaxing here.” It was what she would have bought herself for a getaway property. The landscape could use a few more flowers but for the most part it was perfect.
“It is. This is my perfect date. Just spending time with you in a place that takes all my stress away.”
Lauren turned quickly, easily pushed Ainslon to the ground, and rested atop her. “I love you and this is perfect. I bet it’s beautiful in the winter.”
“It is.” Ainslon wrapped her arms around Lauren and pulled her close, nuzzling her neck. “It’s funny. Where Garriety hardly gets any snow, last winter, this place got close to two feet the two weeks Nana and I stayed.”
“We’ll have to come some winter and see.” Lauren rested her head on Ainslon’s chest and enjoyed the moment. When the air chilled, Lauren stood up. “While I am enjoying this, I would love to see the inside of the cabin.”
“Let’s go.”
Lauren stood and clasped Ainslon’s hand. The cabin, on closer inspection, wasn’t as small as she’d first thought. It looked to be well built and well-maintained. Two rocking chairs sat on one end of the porch and a red porch swing on the other end. “How big is the cabin?”
“Sixteen feet wide by twenty feet long.”
Once inside, Lauren stood in awe. This wasn’t what she expected. The walls were lined with wood planks and gray slate tiles covered the entire floor. Directly to the right of the door was a small kitchen, complete with sink, stove, fridge, and pantry. A moderate sized wood stove was to the left of the kitchen. A couch and a large bookcase took up the middle half of the cabin and from an open door, she could see the bathroom at the back of the cabin. Two large area rugs and a handful of pictures completed the look. “This is amazing.”
“Easton helped me redo the inside. It took us close to a year.”
“You are full of surprises.” Lauren drew Ainslon into her arms. “You did a good job.” She took a step back, taking Ainslon with her. “The bed looks comfortable.”
“Oh, it is.” Ainslon wiggled out of Lauren’s arms and walked to the bed, leaving a trail of clothes in her wake. “I had Brian, the guy who checks on my place, change the sheets a couple of days ago. Care to join me?”
The sight of Ainslon naked, beckoning her was not something Lauren would ever take for granted. “You don’t have to ask me twice.”
Lauren followed Ainslon’s lead and undressed before joining her on the bed. She kissed her ankle, then placed feather light kisses on Ainslon’s calf before she straddled her lap. Lauren shivered when Ainslon slipped both arms around her, then ran both hands up and down her back in slow motion. “Are you trying to kill me?”
Ainslon laughed. “No, I’m trying to love you.”
When Ainslon rose and flipped their positions, Lauren easily rolled with her, pulling her down and kissing her deep and slow. When Lauren pulled back, Ainslon’s eyes stayed closed. She took the opportunity and ran her tongue along her jawline before reconnecting their lips. “You drive me crazy.” She hissed when Ainslon cupped her breasts. “Absolutely crazy.”
“You love it.”
Ainslon trailed kisses down Lauren’s throat before latching onto a nipple to stroke it with her tongue, then suck.
“That…don’t stop.” Lauren pushed her chest upward, a hand at Ainslon’s nape, small sounds of pleasure sounding in her throat.
Ainslon released the taut nipple to run her tongue down the slope of breast to kiss Lauren’s abs. “I have no intention of stopping.”
A few hours later, Ainslon lay in Lauren’s arms after making love and a short nap. “How long can we stay?”
Ainslon ran her fingers along Lauren’s arm. “Maybe another hour. There’s a diner in town we can eat dinner at before we head back.”
Lauren traced circles on Ainslon’s stomach. “Sounds wonderful. Can you spend the night with me?”
“Like you would even have to ask. My perfect date night ends with us in bed together.”
“Good, then we can get an early start on my perfect date.”
Ainslon turned in Lauren’s arms. “I’m sure whatever it is you have planned, I’ll enjoy.”
“I hope you will.” It was too late to second guess her choices now. She only hoped Ainslon would enjoy it.
Sunday dawned bright and early. After a leisurely shower and a wonderful breakfast, Ainslon and Lauren relaxed on the living room couch.
Ainslon took a sip of her tea. “What have you got planned for today?”
“Well.” Lauren set her cup of coffee on the coffee table. “I hope you won’t be disappointed.” She ran her fingers along the back of the couch. “But I’ve already had my perfect date with you. Like you said, I enjoy being with you, so for today I took the liberty to pull an activity out of the jar.”
“Okay.” That wasn’t what Ainslon expected but it didn’t make her angry. “Go on.”
“As you know, I like to have fun and I’ve arranged something for us. In any relationship, you have to keep each other on your toes.”
Ainslon had known Lauren long enough to know that the way her forehead scrunched was a sure sign she was nervous. Ainslon finished her tea, set her cup beside Lauren’s, then took both her hands. “I’ll enjoy anything you planned.”
“Softball isn’t the only thing my sister roped me into.”
“Oh.” Ainslon rose up and straddled Lauren’s lap. She would never get tired of the feel of Lauren’s arms around her. “What is it? It can’t be that bad.”
Lauren quirked up her brow. “Paintball.”
Ainslon blinked. That…wasn’t what she had expected. “Paintball?” Now she was sorry she’d never gone with Easton when she’d tried to drag her along with her.
“It’ll be great. Us bonding over something with our family and friends. I haven’t had a chance to try out your planning and attack strategies yet. I think for a relationship to work, sometimes we have to get down and dirty.”
“I can do dirty.”
Lauren turned and guided Ainslon to recline back on the couch, then the tickling commenced. Ainslon squealed and tried to get away but Lauren kept a firm grip. “Do you give?”
“I give. I give,” Ainslon said between laughs. Lauren raised Ainslon’s arms above her head and leaned down to place a kiss on the tip of Ainslon’s nose before settling in beside her and holding her tight.
Ainslon relaxed into Lauren’s embrace, tracing shapes on Lauren’s t-shirt clothed stomach.
Lauren rose up. “I would love to take you right now on this couch, but we have to meet everyone in an hour and a half.” Lauren hopped up off the couch.
“Wait. Everyone? How many people are going to be there?”
A mischievous smile turned up the corners of Lauren’s mouth.
Two hours into the paintball game, Ainslon feared she had made a terrible mistake, agreeing to this madness. One of the opposing teams lost Charlie first, along with Jeffrey, leaving Callie on her own. Surely, she would be easy to take out. When the teams were divided that morning, Ainslon had naturally been paired with Lauren. Brandy and Justin were paired together. Paintballs whizzing by her wasn’t as fun as Ainslon hoped it would be.
More than once, Lauren sent her hand signals, but Ainslon didn’t know what the hell she was going on about. For a good twenty minutes, she huddled behind this outbuilding, trying to steer clear of the multiple teams on the field. Per the leaflet, at any given moment, there could be up to twenty-five teams in play.
She jerked her head around and came eye to eye with Justin. The look of shock on his face mirrored her own. She’d been surprised, but happy Lauren had invited Justin and Brandy along today. Easton would have joined them but it was a rare Sunday that she had to work. Justin’s blue vest was paint splattered, but not with the green color paintball they were designated at the beginning. Ainslon’s pink vest was spotless and from time to time she would see the orange of Callie’s but never worked up the nerve to shoot her.
The i
nstructor had stated it was up to the group how they wanted to be split up and how their game would play out, but it was illegal to shoot another group for the hell of it. It looked like whoever shot Justin didn’t take those rules into account. They’d decided on green paintballs and one hit would take you out of the game.
“So, this is where you’ve been hiding,” Justin said, his gun aimed at her chest, voice muffled a bit by his face shield.
“Better here than out there.” Ainslon raised her gun. It wasn’t a hot day but with all the layers she had on, she was already worn out. Maybe she should consider exercising more.
“I don’t want to do this anymore,” Justin said. “They’re psychos.”
“I don’t either. Lauren is crazy.” Lauren had a desire to win and on one hand, it was hot and the other, she was scary.
Justin nodded. “She’s not the only one; so is Brandy. I didn’t know she was such a beast. So, how about on the count of three we shoot each other and go join Jeffrey and Charlie with the pizza?”
“They’re eating pizza?” She could go for pizza right now. Hell, anything to get out of this horrible situation. She couldn’t believe Lauren had picked this for their date.
He nodded. “Yes.”
Ainslon had no problem going out like this. “We can say we ambushed each other.”
“Sounds good to me.”
“Okay. One. Two—” Ainslon jumped back when green splattered across Justin’s chest and he fell back, stunned. She didn’t have time to comprehend what had happened by the time Lauren had dragged her away.
Lauren patted her on the shoulder and kept glancing behind her. “Good job distracting him. Now all we have to do is take Callie and Brandy out. They’re not even on the same team, but for being so small they sure are quick. But, babe, we’ve got this. The two of us.” Lauren held up two fingers.
Lauren looked so earnest Ainslon didn’t have a choice but to go along with whatever plan she had. That’s how she found herself plastered to a tree. A young boy had run past her twice and told her it was a lot more fun to play than to stand around. She took his wise words to heart, but Lauren had specified she stay here and wait until she drew Callie out in order for Ainslon to shoot her.
The size of the paintball park, over twenty acres, should have been daunting, but Ainslon quickly learned there was a method to all the madness. Maybe she could have enjoyed it more if she knew what she was doing.
Ainslon seriously considered making her own plan when she spied Callie ducking behind an ammunition box and lifted her gun, ready when Callie popped back up. But she never showed herself. Ainslon lowered her gun and jumped back, startled to come face to face with Callie. How the hell had she snuck up on her?
“I play to win,” Callie said. At the same time Callie pulled the trigger, Ainslon was pushed aside and landed on the ground. She lay stunned for a moment, but quickly picked up her gun and shot at Callie running away from her. She expected to see Lauren but was surprised to see the kid from earlier.
“That’s illegal, you know?” Ainslon stood and wiped herself off, only a bit pissed the little shit saved her. Justin was more than likely devouring pizza at the moment.
He shrugged. “I’m a rebel. Now go get them.” He jumped up and took off running.
His confidence in her gave her the courage she needed. Ainslon made her way toward the center of the field. She knelt, settled her gun on top of the box in front of her, and scanned the area. A flash of orange caught her eye. She took aim at the small piece of orange hidden behind the tree and pulled the trigger. She heard a curse but didn’t wait around. She lifted the small device they were given to check what team members were taken out, but her grin faded when she saw Lauren was out. Shit. Fuck. She and Brandy were the only ones left. She couldn’t lose now.
It took another twenty minutes, and a fist-bump from her buddy before she noticed Brandy. They both eyed each other across the field. This was it. Ainslon had never felt so pumped before and relished the feeling. Brandy darted to the right and Ainslon the left.
Quickly but quietly, she made her way to a tree to hide behind when a paintball whizzed past her face. She fell to the ground, crawling the rest of the way to the tree. She could make out a piece of Brandy’s vest and decided the best defense was a good offense. She wasn’t sure she could make another shot like the one with Callie. That one was pure dumb luck.
Ainslon took a deep breath, thanked Lauren for all her teachings, then jumped up, steadied her gun, and ran at Brandy. Brandy peeked out from behind the tree and flinched. That’s when Ainslon pulled the trigger.
Ainslon slid on the ground in front of Brandy and raised her gun in case the first shot hadn’t hit its mark. The paint splatter on Brandy’s chest confirmed a hit.
“Damn, Ainslon. Good shot,” Brandy said, conceding defeat.
Ainslon accepted Brandy’s hand and stood.
“That’s right. That’s my girl,” Lauren shouted at Justin and ran toward them as Ainslon and Brandy walked to the lounge area after handing in their gear. Ainslon squeaked when Lauren picked her up and twirled her but beamed at Lauren’s smile.
“Take that, losers,” Lauren said, holding Ainslon with one arm and pointing at Justin with the other.
Ainslon gripped the collar of Lauren’s shirt and pulled her down into a kiss. The touch of Lauren’s lips sent fireworks through her body. When Lauren groaned and deepened the kiss, Ainslon wound her arms around Lauren’s neck and slipped her fingers into Lauren’s hair.
Lauren was the first to pull away. “Oh, my.” She rested their foreheads together. “You’re—Kapow!”
“Yeah?”
“Yeah.”
“Nice job. The win and the girl.” Ainslon chuckled as her accomplice walked up to them and held out his fist for her to bump.
“I never got your name.”
“Player one.” He pointed at Ainslon. “Player two.”
“I can live with that.” She bid him farewell, then she and Lauren walked arm and arm to join the others at the front of the course.
“Is he the little punk that foiled my shot at you?” Callie asked, eyeing the boy across the field.
“It is.”
“You’re lucky, O’Neil.”
Ainslon slipped her arm around Lauren’s waist, who was busy taunting Justin. “Don’t I know it.” Ainslon and Lauren trailed behind the others, heading to get some pizza.
“This weekend has been wonderful, and we still have tonight. I plan on making the most of it.”
“What do you have in mind?” Ainslon eyed the pizza.
“Jeffrey, Justin.” They both turned to Lauren. “How about karaoke tonight?”
Jeffrey jabbed his finger at her. “You’re on, Millán.”
“Sounds like a plan, Stan,” Justin said, joining Jeffrey in an impromptu dance session, soon followed by Charlie.
That did not sound like fun to Ainslon, and she shook her head when Lauren danced toward the boys and held out her hands toward Ainslon. “No.”
“Come on.” Lauren smirked. “You know you want to.” Lauren beckoned her with her hand and after a moment’s hesitation, Ainslon grasped it and let Lauren dance her toward everyone else. It wasn’t until after they were done, and she had bowed toward their onlookers, she realized Callie had recorded it.
She sidled up to Callie. “I want a copy.”
“Not going to threaten me to destroy it?”
Ainslon slipped her arm around Callie’s shoulder and relaxed when Callie rested her arm around her waist. “Nope. I’m sure I looked like a dork, but I’m happy.”
“I agree. You all looked ridiculous but happy.”
They joined the others for the group photo.
She smiled when Lauren wrapped her arms around her shoulders, pulled her back against her chest, and held the winner’s sign in front of them. She even made the others take a step to the right to separate the winners from the losers.
At the moment Ainslon laughed and leaned back
into Lauren, the photo was taken. Yes, what a perfect day.
Lauren walked around the fairgrounds, taking in all the booths set up for the food festival. Almost two weeks had passed since their paintball outing. She knew Ainslon felt apprehensive about playing but was a great sport, and they had won. Lauren made sure to put more of those type of outings in, what she had dubbed, their date jar. At this point, she had no complaints about her and Ainslon’s relationship. No, everything was moving along nicely.
The streets of Garriety were already congested with tourists, but she wouldn’t complain because the store saw a massive spike in sales. Though she had declined to sit on the board for the festival, she still wanted everything to go off without a hitch. The almost eighty booths took up every available space of the fairgrounds. One of those was Ainslon’s booth.
Just thinking about Ainslon left her breathless. They’d spent the night together but had gone their separate ways after breakfast.
Lauren glanced down at the festival map. Ainslon’s booth should be up ahead. At the next turn, she looked up and smiled. Ainslon had one of the larger tents that was equipped with fans, thank goodness. That would allow the children to be out of the sun while they enjoyed story hour. A large sign hanging at the top of the tent read Turn the Page. An easel was placed on one side of the opening with their schedule for the day. The tent itself was multi-colored and as she walked around it there was a mural on all three sides depicting a different children’s story. Lauren couldn’t help but be impressed.
She waved at a few people she knew, pushed the sunglasses up and into her hair, walked through the tent opening, and groaned in relief. The cool breeze from the fans instantly refreshed her. She kept her eyes closed as arms snaked around her and a warm kiss planted on her lips.
First Edition Romance Page 20