The Summer of Cotton Candy (16 page)

“Like what?”

“A week from Thursday there’s a big private event being held at the picnic grounds. I’d like you to help with the food service.”

“You mean with the cart?”

“No, with the barbeque — ferrying meat back and forth, along with buns, condiments, etc. It would be the same hours, and it would be something different.”

“Sure, I could do that,” she said.

“Great. Next Thursday, report over at the picnic grounds at eight a.m. They’ll tell you what to do.”

“Okay.”

“Well, then, think you can handle things here?” Martha asked.

“So far so good,” Candace said.

“And if you get in trouble…”

“Push the red button,” they said together.

“I promise, no more yelling, just button pushing,” Candace said.

“Good girl. Call if you need me.”

“I will,” Candace assured her.

When her lunch break came, Candace hurried over to a bench outside the cantina where she and Kurt had agreed to meet for lunch. He grabbed them a couple of sandwiches and sodas and settled down next to her to eat.

“This is nice,” she said. “It’s like a date in the middle of the workday.”

He laughed. “You think this is nice, just you wait.”

“Oh yeah, for what?”

“I want to take you out tomorrow night,” Kurt said.

“Awesome. When?”

“Right after work. Is that cool?”

“Sure, I’ll just need to run home and change clothes.”

He shook his head. “Bring clothes to change into and then meet me in the Locker Room.”

“Okay. Where are we going?” she asked, hoping to at least have an idea how she should dress this time.

He smiled and shook his head. “It’s a surprise.”

She wondered briefly if they had reached a stage in their relationship where she could ask him if she should go casual or dressy. She wasn’t sure, but she decided to risk it. “Should I be thinking jeans and a T-shirt or something nice?” she asked.

“Something like what you wore on our first date would be great,” he said. “By the way, did I tell you how great you looked?”

“I’m not sure,” she teased. “Better tell me again.”

He leaned closer. “You…” and he kissed her, “looked…” another kiss, “great.” He ended with a really big kiss.

She pursed her lips as if thinking about something. Finally she said, “You know, I couldn’t quite hear you.”

He laughed and kissed her one last time. “How’s your hearing now?”

“It seems to be improving. Maybe if you spoke just a little bit louder.”

He wrapped his arms around her and then dipped her backwards and gave her a huge kiss and then sat her back up. “Are you good now, or should I think about getting you a hearing aid?”

“No, I think I’m good,” she said, moistening her lips.

He laughed and she joined him. It was good to have a boyfriend. It was great to have one that was such a good kisser. Lunch was over long before she was ready, and with a sigh she returned to the cart where she sold a lot more cotton candy than the day before when it had been so hot.

Later that night she enlisted her mom’s help again in picking out what to wear. After much discussion they picked out a royal blue skirt and a white blouse with sheer, billowy sleeves. A pair of white slingbacks completed the look, and Candace finally crawled into bed satisfied that she would sufficiently impress Kurt.

The next day found her in the Splash Zone again. She hadn’t had the chance to talk to Josh in a couple of days, and she was eager to catch up. Now that she and Tamara weren’t speaking, he was her closest friend.

“Our team is going to be pretty hard to beat at the Scavenger Hunt this year,” he bragged.

“Oh yeah, and why’s that?”

“We’ve been working out,” he said.

“You’ve got to be kidding.”

“Nope, we’re each jogging five miles or more a day.”

“Does a silly scavenger hunt really mean that much to you?” she asked.

And she knew instantly just how wrong she had been to ask that. He looked at her, and his eyes showed a mixture of surprise and hurt.

“It’s not just a silly scavenger hunt. It’s the heart of what The Zone is all about. This entire park was founded on the ideals of hard work, team effort, striving for excellence, and the spirit of physical and mental improvement through play and competition. What you see as mere games and sports, I see as avenues to challenge and improve myself as an individual and a member of society, the largest, hardest-hitting team of all.

“The Scavenger Hunt embodies all of that. It’s a test of memory, skill, quick thinking, and observation that requires you to work successfully with other people in the tightest quarters under very stressful conditions. It’s not a game; it’s a test of character and a great team-building experience. It’s the glue that binds us all together and proves that it is something special to work and play here. So, yes, it means that much to me. And, no, it’s not silly.”

“I’m sorry, I wasn’t thinking,” Candace said.

He was staring at her intently, eyes burning with passion. After a moment he smiled, and it was as though he shook off the zeal and was once again carefree surfer Josh. “It’s cool,” he said.

“I liked what you said. It kinda made sense to me. I’ve always just seen this as another theme park, and I never really thought of it as a testing ground.”

He smiled. “Most don’t, but that’s the beauty of it. Did you know that more history and science is taught here everyday than in most classrooms in this country? Do you know how many of the scientists who do demonstrations over in the Exploration Zone first got inspired by science when they visited here as high school students? Most of them.”

“Wow. You’re like half referee, half player.”

He smiled. “We’re called Zoners. That’s the name for those of us who work
and
play here.”

She smiled. “It suits you.”

He shrugged and gave her his lopsided smile. “Now, let me tell you why your team is going to get pummeled in the Scavenger Hunt.”

She laughed. “Oh ho, starting with the smack talk are you?”

“Not at all. Just speaking facts.”

“And what facts would those be?”

“Two of you are new to the place.”

“Beginner’s luck we’ll have in spades,” she countered. “One of you tries to kill others.”

“But not the people on his train. And since we’ll be tied together, we’ll be like his train, which means he’ll only try to kill the rest of you,” she said smugly.

“Nice.”

“Thank you.”

“Did you just come up with that?”

“Yeah, pretty much.”

“Impressive.”

“Thank you.”

“You are forgetting two other important factors.”

“Which are?”

“One of you is a saboteur.”

“Ah, yes, but Lisa is also self-serving. She would rather win at all costs. Therefore, we will be the only team safe from her machinations.”

“Possibly, possibly. However, even if all you’ve said is true, there’s no escaping —”

“Destiny?”

“Roger,” he said with grim satisfaction.

“Is he really as klutzy as people say?” Candace asked.

“Worse. I once saw him knock down a whole line of people just like dominoes.”

“Oh.”

“Uh huh.”

“But he can’t be bad all the time.”

“Dominoes.”

“Well, we can give it our best at any rate,” Candace said.

“Go down fighting. That’s the referee way.”

She took a deep breath. Sure, on paper they might have the worst team imaginable, but that didn’t mean they couldn’t overcome it. After all, look at how many obstacles she’d overcome already.

“In the spirit of competition, I’ll make a bet with you, Josh.”

“Really?” he said, raising an eyebrow. “This wouldn’t be like the who-can-eat-more-pizza thing, would it? Because I could have told you you were going to lose that one.”

“No, this is not like the pizza. I’ll bet you that our team beats your team.”

He snorted. “You haven’t got a chance.”

“Chicken?” she asked.

“You’ve got a deal.”

“And the loser buys the winner’s team pizza.”

He laughed. “See, I knew pizza was going to figure in there somehow.”

“Yes, but you didn’t know how,” she said, lifting one eyebrow.

“Cotton Candy, I think you’re a little bit crazy.”

“Count on it,” she said with a smirk.

The rest of the day sped by, and soon Candace waved good-bye to Josh and headed for the Locker Room to grab her clothes. Fifteen minutes later she returned to the Locker Room in her date outfit to find Kurt already waiting. He was wearing black slacks and a white dress shirt with a black tie. Candace was a little surprised. Clearly they were going somewhere special.

“Ready?” he asked, offering her his arm.

“Absolutely,” she said.

A moment later she was again surprised when they turned away from the exit to the referee parking lot and walked on field. It felt really weird to be walking through the park dressed like a player.

“Where are we going?” she asked.

“Did you know that unlike most theme parks, The Zone is renowned for the high quality of its food and its number of fine-dining options?”

“I did, actually,” Candace said.

It was true. The Zone had great food. There were, of course, carts and counter-ser vice restaurants where you could get all the junk food you could want, such as the cotton candy she served daily. For the more discriminating, though, there was a wealth of fine-dining choices. In fact, the restaurants in The Zone were so popular that the park had a special “connoisseur season ticket,” which gave the holder entrance into the park after 5:30 p.m. every day of the year. A lot of commuters left work and headed for the park for dinner before going home. Candace’s parents were connoisseur season ticket holders, and they often went to one of the restaurants in The Zone.

So, Kurt had one of the restaurants in mind. The question was, which one? Candace tried to guess. It quickly became clear that they were heading for the History Zone. She instantly ruled out the Chuck Wagon, King Tut’s, King Richard’s Feast, and Poor Richard’s Pub because none of them was fancy enough to cause Kurt to wear a tie. Boone’s, the restaurant on the top floor of the Fort, was also not a likely destination because it was black tie and required you to be on some special list, or know someone who was, in order to get in. While it was not impossible that Kurt could have found a way to get them a reservation, neither of them was dressed well enough to eat there.

That left only one real choice, and as they crossed the bridge into Ancient Greece, Candace knew she was right. Ancient Greece was located in the lake, separated from Egypt by a narrow channel where the boats for both areas would pass each other. The Greece boat ride was called The Odyssey and was definitely a more thrilling adventure than most boat rides.

The island itself had an amphitheater at its heart, where plays and other types of entertainment, including re-enactments, debates, and even the occasional sporting event, took place. Scattered around the amphitheater were three other buildings. The largest was the Temple of Hermes, named after the Greek god of merchants, and was the second largest, most extensive shop in the park. Slightly smaller was the building that housed the Labors of Hercules, a magic-motion ride where viewers sat in chairs that moved all around while watching the action on a large screen. The smallest building was Aphrodite’s.

Aphrodite’s was one of the top restaurants in the park. It was so good that people came from a hundred miles around just to eat there. The Mediterranean fare was light and refreshing, and the ambience was very romantic. The outside of the building looked like a white marble temple, and the tasteful sign held by two cherubs proclaimed that At Aphrodite’s It’s Valentine’s Day Every Day. The white marble motif was continued inside where the walls were decorated with friezes depicting the romantic escapades of the Greek gods. Tiny winged cupids were found throughout. Nightly entertainment consisted of live music and living tableaus.

Candace had eaten there once when she was little, but this was so much cooler than eating there with her parents. She and Kurt were escorted to a semiprivate alcove with curtains draping it.

“This is amazing,” Candace said as she took her seat.

“I’m glad you approve,” Kurt said.

Within minutes, a waiter had appeared with a bottle of sparkling cider and poured them each a glass. When he departed, Kurt raised his in a toast. “To us and to what is hopefully the most romantic night of your life so far.”

Candace raised her glass. Kurt didn’t realize that that wouldn’t be hard to pull off. After all, until this moment he was responsible for the two most romantic nights of her life. Someday she’d tell him that, but not yet. She was enjoying all his effort.

Still, there were little nagging doubts in the back of her mind. On their first date she had discovered he was a high-school dropout. Did he have any other bombshells for her? After all, they barely knew each other.