SHE HAD A GREAT FALL
by Carol E. Ayer
As I pulled on the controls to bring the merry-go-round to a stop, the last bit of paint remaining on the lever flaked off into my hand. I sighed. Like many of the rides and sets at LitLand, the Gryphon-Go-Round could use some cosmetic touch-ups.
I stood to help the smaller of the kids off their Alice in Wonderland characters. An especially cute girl was riding The Mad Hatter, and she smiled at me to reveal several missing teeth. She then tore off into the arms of one of the most good-looking men I’d ever seen. His dark hair curled over his ears, and long lashes framed his ice-blue eyes. He waved his thanks to me.
Hmm, I thought, working on the rides does have its advantages. I was the manager of the small city-run storybook park, and I was usually stuck in the office all day with mounds of paperwork. But we’d been short-staffed lately. I’d been forced to pick up some of the slack, and this had me wearing a number of different hats.
“Cute guy, huh?”
The park’s assistant manager, Sara, had arrived to take over for a few hours, and she’d apparently caught me staring.
“Definitely,” I agreed.
“You should totally go talk to him.” Sara undid the chain link gate and the next group of kids came rushing through to choose their characters.
“I can’t. It’s too pushy.”
“Exactly where has not pushy gotten you? As far as I can tell, you haven’t dated since you started working here.”
Sara was right. I hadn’t had a date since Richard and I broke up six months ago. Not only had our breakup wreaked havoc with my love life, it had sidelined my work plans as well. I’d been counting on heading up Richard’s growing computer business. Now here I was, with an advanced business degree, working alongside the likes of The Cowardly Lion and Long John Silver.
I bid Sara goodbye and set off reluctantly for the office to my paperwork. I left the Alice in Wonderland area, headed down White Rabbit Way, and promptly tripped. I managed to break my fall, but I still found myself on the ground with scraped knees and palms.
“Well, Humpty Dumpty, that was quite a fall.” From my vantage point of all fours, I looked up to see the man from the merry-go-round peering down at me.
“Wasn’t it? Hey, you haven’t seen Tweedledum and Tweedledee, have you?” Gingerly, I stood up. I wasn’t sure which was more painful—my wounds or this conversation.
“Seriously, are you all right? I think you’re bleeding. Here, I have a napkin. Becky doesn’t need them all.” He gestured to his little girl, who was completely engrossed in a stick of cotton candy.
I accepted the napkin with a word of thanks, and held it against my knee.
“I’m Jim Donaldson, and this is my daughter, Becky.”
“Nice to meet you. I’m Laurie Fischer.” Should I ask them to join me at Peter Rabbit’s Pizza House for a soda? Sara would want me to, but I just couldn’t summon the courage. So I shook Jim’s hand, waved goodbye to Becky, and left for my office.
All week, I couldn’t get Jim out of my head. He seemed to be everything I wanted in a man—handsome, caring, an involved father, and funny. But I had no idea if he was available. And why would he be interested in me? I’d fallen down in front of him! And here I was at the advanced age of thirty-three, overworked and underpaid at a children’s park. I tried to force him from my thoughts.
That Saturday, I found my pile of paperwork at an acceptable level. Glinda’s Gift Shop needed change, so I unlocked the safe, grabbed a bunch of bills, and headed out.
As I walked through the Alice area, I saw Jim and Becky at the merry-go-round. I was surprised to see them back so soon. Jim beckoned to me, and I walked over.
Once Becky was ensconced on the Queen of Hearts, Jim said, “Laurie, I’m so glad we ran into each other again.”
My heart skipped a beat.
“I understand you’re the manager here.”
Uh, oh, he probably just wants to book a birthday party. Or worse yet, he has a complaint. I braced myself.
“I was hoping we could set up a meeting on Monday. My business partners and I are looking into buying the park, and I have some ideas I’d like to run by you.”
I stared at him. Who would want to buy this place? Then I remembered hearing that a big chain was interested in LitLand. They would completely redo it, turning it from a small children’s playland into a huge theme park with sleek rides and multiple shopping areas. The rumor had slipped my mind, frankly because I didn’t care one way or the other. As soon as I could find another job, I was out of here.
“I love LitLand,” Jim continued. “I came here all the time when I was little. My partners and I want to restore it to its former glory rather than let it fall into the clutches of a conglomerate. The park is a valuable asset to the community.”
I gulped. I was ashamed to realize I’d never thought of LitLand in those terms. I was here only until something better came along. But I remembered the happy children at the birthday parties I’d arranged; the numerous thank you cards I’d received after class field trips. Suddenly, I didn’t want anything more than for Jim to save the park and fix it up.
“Monday at three?” I asked.
“Perfect. I’m just about to take Becky out for Chinese food before I run her back to her mother’s. Can you join us?”
Carol Ayer's credits include The Christian Science Monitor, Woman's World, and Poesia. Her romance novella, Storybook Love (set at a storybook park like the one in this story), was recently released by Wild Child Publishing. Contact Carol. www.seaaircarol.com
