“Why don’t we do a few rides before we eat anything?” Fitzgibbon asked. “That way there, you won’t barf half-chewed popcorn on everyone when we ride the roller coaster.”
“Ew!” Everly and Brooke said in perfect sync.
“The Viper is this way.” Ronan led the way through the park, which he knew, even twenty years later, like the back of his hand. They passed the Jolly Roger Pirate Ship, a toddler ride featuringboats shaped like ducks, and several games where you could win stuffed animals that were taller than the kids. “Here it is!” Ronan announced when they were standing in front of the giant ride.
Up against the fence was a sign with a snake about to strike, advising riders they needed to bethissssstall to ride. One by one, Ronan measured each of the kids while Ten shot pictures. Everly was hilarious, shooting the fake snake a fierce look of her own. All of the big kids were tall enough to ride. The question was, would they want to?
“Wow!” Jude said. “What do you think, Wolf?”
“It’s bigger in person.” Wolf looked a bit uncertain and had lost some of his earlier excitement.
“Here comes the next car.” Ronan pointed to the top of the coaster. Kids and adults who were buckled into their seats waved to their friends and family on the ground. Seconds later, those same waving, happy people were screaming as the car dove down the first drop. Ronan watched in awe as the car went upside down through the first loop and again with the second. The screams of the passengers died down when they passed into the corkscrew, which was further away from where Ronan and the kids were standing. Before he knew it, the car was pulling into the platform, exchanging exhilarated and woozy passengers for the next group of riders.
“What did you think of that?” Ronan asked, his eyes studying each of the kids.
“Let’s do it!” Wolf said, looking eager to join the line.
“Girls, what about you?” Fitzgibbon’s focus was on Aurora.
Everly looked a bit uncertain, while Brooke and Aurora shook their heads in an emphatic “no” gesture.
Ronan felt disappointed that Everly didn’t have the same attitude as Wolf. He was hoping they could experience the Viper together, like he’d done with Craig Feeny when he was fourteen years old.
“I have an idea,” Ten began, kneeling down in front of the kids. “There’s a roller coaster for kids just down this path.” He pointed toward the back end of the property near the water park. “The cars are shaped like dragons, and they move slower than the Viper. Why don’t we give that one a try first?”
“Will you ride with me, Dad?” Everly asked, looking up at Ronan.
“You bet,” Ronan agreed. Maybe if she had fun on the little coaster, she’d be able to pluck up enough courage later to ride the bigger one.
All of the kids agreed they’d like to see the smaller coaster. Several minutes later, they stood in front of the Dragon’s Breath coaster. At its highest point, the tracks only ran ten feet off the ground. There were small dips and hills, but they were tame compared to Viper.
“This looks like fun!” River said. “Do you want to ride it with me, Brookie?”
The little girl looked to Everly, who was nodding her head. “Yeah.” She looked a bit uncertain.
“You’re so brave, Brooke! You can do it,” Everly urged.
“I can?” Brooke’s eyes brightened.
“Yup! Aurora too!” Everly took her friends’ hands and led them to the line.
“I’ll be here with Cope, Barb, and the little ones.” Ten pressed a kiss to Ronan’s cheek.
The line moved fast, and before Ronan knew it, he was sitting in the front seat of the dragon with Everly by his side. Jude and Wolf were behind them, followed by Fitz and Aurora and then River and Brooke.
The car jerked forward, and a worried look crossed Everly’s face. “I’ve got you. Nothing’s going to happen.”
Everly shook her head as if she didn’t believe what Ronan was saying.
Ronan wondered if his daughter was seeing a ghost and if that’s what made her a bit ambivalent. Before he could ask her, the coaster took off. It sped down the first dip and back up again. Everly screamed, not with fright but with exhilaration. He threw his arms high in the air, and his daughter followed his lead.
“This is fun!” Everly shouted over the noise of the car shooting around the track.
From behind him, Ronan could hear Wolf and Jude screaming too. He wondered how Aurora was doing when he heard her tiny voice laughing. It was the kind of belly laugh that you couldn’t stop once it got going. It did Ronan’s heart good to hear the little girl having so much fun.
What wasn’t doing Ronan’s heart good was the way his stomach was heaving as if it were filled with dozens of rioting butterflies. If he wasn’t careful, he was going to end up spewing half-digested eggs and bacon on his daughter. What the hell was happening to him?
When the ride pulled up to the platform, all of the kids were shouting that they wanted to ride again. Ronan wasn’t surehis stomach could take walking up a slight incline, never mind speeding around the little coaster. Getting out of his seat, he noticed Jude looking a bit green as well.
