Total pages in book: 51
Estimated words: 48061 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 240(@200wpm)___ 192(@250wpm)___ 160(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 48061 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 240(@200wpm)___ 192(@250wpm)___ 160(@300wpm)
“Where to first?” Benny asks.
“Carousel first,” I decide. “Then you guys can ride something more exciting.”
“The froggies!” Liam shrieks when he sees them and points.
“Frogs are up next,” Benny agrees.
When we mount the carousel, I settle Liam on the white horse he selects and I climb up beside him onto a gray one with gold and blue ribbons. The music begins, the ride turns. My horse lifts beneath me, rising and falling with the music. I look at Liam’s grin, at the crank of the machinery above me and the brightly painted scenes on the side of the carousel. Then my eyes settle on Benny. He’s positioned himself to stand at the head of our horses, between them, so he can reach us both, watch us both. Warmth settles in my chest and I smile back at him. He’s here close by watching over us, happy. The smile we exchange says everything.
When the ride ends, I look wistfully at Liam. I didn’t even get a picture of him riding his first Coney Island ride because I was caught up in the moment. I bite my lip as I get down, and Benny helps Liam off his horse.
We make our way to the frog ride, and when we get there, Benny hands me his phone. “I got a couple good ones of the two of you on the carousel. Wanna edit them while we’re in line?”
I glance at the screen and see a picture of Liam looking in awe as I point out some detail on his horse before the ride began. I do have a picture of him on his first ride—a picture of both of us together and I didn’t even have to ask. Benny just knew to take it. When I look up at him, he’s smiling. He seems to have a permanent grin today. I kiss his cheek. “Thank you. It’s perfect the way it is.”
“I could say the same about all of this,” he says. Liam pulls a face but doesn’t whine about hurrying onto the ride, just tugs on Benny’s hand.
“I’ve got him. I expect you to return the favor, so go find a place to sit with a good angle to take our picture,” he says.
I nod. “Have fun. Stay buckled in,” I tell Liam.
“I will, Mommy!” he says and bounds toward the ride, dragging Benny after him.
About two minutes into the ride, I’ve taken fifty pictures. I flip through images on the screen deleting some. When they find me on my bench, I show Benny my favorite shot of them together.
“Let me see, Mommy! Let me see!” Liam demands and Benny picks him up so he can look. “I wasn’t screaming. I laughed. That is not a scream,” he insists.
“I’m with the kid on this one. He was laughing. Like a maniac.”
“Are frogs better than dinos now?” I ask Liam teasingly.
“Yeah, I wanna be a frog for Halloween.”
“Not a T-rex?” I say.
“Frog! Frog! Frog! Please Mommy can I be a frog?”
“I think we can make that happen,” I say. “I’m going to get a drink, anybody need anything?”
“Hey,” Benny says, “Let me do that. You look at the map and decide what to do next.”
He comes back with drinks, and I sip my Diet Coke gratefully.
“One Coke a day is safe. I checked,” he says. I kiss his cheek again.
“Are you gonna keep doing that?” Liam asks. “Cause I wanna ride rides.”
“Okay, okay,” I tease. “I’ll stop kissing so you can ride.”
“What’s up next? I always liked the swings.”
“The boomerang,” I say. “I’m not thrilled about it.”
“Mommy just wants to do the carousel more,” Liam informs us.
“Maybe later,” I say. “You go have some fun. I’ll take the pictures.”
“Ride with us, Mommy!” Liam says. I shake my head.
“Not today. Maybe another time.”
“We can come back here?” he shouts.
“Yes, we’ll come back. And next summer I’ll ride the roller coasters with you and everything. I promise.”
“Yay! Let’s go on the boob-arang!” he crows.
“Boom,” Benny corrects, trying not to laugh, “Boom-a-rang. With an m.”
Liam tries and fails to repeat it. It’s all I can do not to laugh.
“What are you waiting for? I ask. “The boobarang is waiting for you.”
Benny doesn’t let go of Liam’s hand as he leans down and kisses me softly.
“Hey!” Liam protests.
“I never said I was gonna stop kissing. You’ll get used to it,” Benny tells him good-naturedly.
30
BENNY
Ikeep thinking Liam is going to get tired. We ride a lot of rides and go on the frogs five times, and he throws up his pretzel when we go on the boomerang the second time. But here he is, still bouncing off the walls and ready for more fun. I look at Daisy helplessly.
“He’s not just excited about Coney Island. He’s always like this,” she says with amusement. “But Mommy’s tired and you have school tomorrow.”