Fun Time

ZANE

Shay was practically bouncing with excitement as she pulled me into the building. A staff member held the door open for us, then locked it behind us.

“Good evening, Mr. Santone. All the stations are staffed and ready for you. Just pick what you want to do and they’ll be waiting for you.

“Here are your cards for the night. They’re loaded with the amount you requested,” he said, handing me two cards and giving one each to Noah and Conner.

I turned to Shay, her face lit up with anticipation. “What’s first on the agenda, sweetheart? We’ve got this place for three hours and can do anything you want.”

“Go-karts. I want the fast track. Let’s see who’s the best driver here,” she said, pointing towards the door.

I looked at Noah and Conner. “If either of you hit her, I’ll cut your dicks off. Got it? You can hit me all you want, but her kart is off-limits.”

They both grinned, a wicked glint in their eyes. Go-karting was always a blast when we came here. The staff member led us to the mega track, then pointed to a smaller one.

“This is the biggest track we have. Those over there are timed karts. You won’t have a time limit on this track, but the other one is timed.”

“We’ll start with the mega track. If my girl wants to try the faster one later, she can.”

“No way! I want to have fun with you guys,” she said, crossing her arms and shooting me a glare.

“Alright, but we can get pretty rough on this one. I’ve paid for a few damaged karts here before. Stay out of our way because you can’t take a hard hit—I won’t let you.

“If you get tired while we’re still racing, you can go ride the bumper boats. We’ll join you when we’re done.”

She smiled as the staff brought out three karts for us guys. They were modified for speed and durability. Go-karting was our way of letting off steam.

“Why do you guys get special karts?” She pouted, and I pulled her into my arms.

“I own this place, sweetheart. Those karts were special orders for us. How about this? You watch us for a bit, let us get our fun out, then you can join us in yours.”

I pointed to a brand new pink kart that some staff were pushing out for her.

“You bought me one?” she exclaimed, jumping into my arms and peppering my face with kisses.

“Yes, it’s just as fast as ours—but I mean it. I’m not going to risk the baby with a hard hit, and if you get in the middle of us, you might get hit by accident.”

“I’ll stay out of your way, I promise. When you come up behind me, I’ll move over. How does that sound?”

I kissed her and led her over to her kart. The staff helped her get strapped in while I settled into mine. I looked over at the guys one last time.

“I mean it, guys. You hit her, and you’ll answer to me. I think your punishment will be three rounds in the ring with me.”

They both shook their heads no, and the engines were started for us. The staff stepped out of our way, and we all took off like shots. She hung with us, and I was surprised at how well she handled her kart.

Noah and Conner kept bumping each other, and I gunned mine, coming in behind them and ramming them with my kart hard.

They took off harder as we all three slammed and bumped each other. Noah got spun out, then Conner and I started playing crash up derby.

I felt a hard slam in the back. Looking around, I saw that Shay had walloped me. I shook my head at her, but she slammed into me again. I took off, leaving her in the dust.

Conner and I raced around the track while Shay and Noah went at it. They were about a half-track behind us when I saw Noah spin out again. She took off laughing, and I tried my best to catch up with her.

Noah came up beside me as I passed him.

“She’s not listening to you, boss. She hit me and spun me out. I haven’t touched her, but she’s hitting hard. What kind of fucking motor did you put on that thing? It’s fast!”

I bristled with anger—she wasn’t doing what I asked. She was about a quarter-track ahead of me, and I watched as she slid around the corners with ease. She didn’t let off as she hugged the curves with perfection.

I needed to get a hold of her for hitting when I told her not to. I did my best to catch up, but she kept rocketing off.

I stopped at one of the attendants. “What the fuck kind of motor is on that kart? Mine is supposed to be the fastest, and I can’t catch her no matter how hard I try.”

He nodded. “That’s a new model, with a ten-horsepower motor that’s quick as lightning. The order came in for a brand new fast pink kart and this was the only one available, so that’s what we got.

“She knows how to handle that thing. I’ve never seen a woman who could handle this track that well in a kart that fast.”

Just then, she flew by us, waving as she gunned it again.

“Fuck!” I took off after her, but it was no use; her kart was way too fast. I caught up with Conner and Noah, and we raced, rammed, and hit each other.

I kept an eye out for Shay as she started creeping up on us. I motioned with my hand and the three of us spun around in the middle of the track, driving the other way, three-wide.

She slammed on the brakes, and so did we. I jumped out of my kart and ran over to hers. “What the ~fuck~ did I tell you? Take it easy!”

She smiled and put her hand on my face. “No, you told ~them~ not to hit ~me~. You never said anything about me, baby. You just assumed that I would be going slow around this track. You underestimated me, didn’t you?”

I let out a chuckle, shaking my head at her quick wit. I hadn’t expected her to keep up with us, but her determination was infectious.

“You got me there, sweetheart. I just didn’t want you to get hit and risk hurting the baby.”

She held up her phone triumphantly. “I talked to the doctor. He said as long as I don’t get hit from the side or the back, I’ll be okay.” Her smile was a balm to my worries.

She had taken all the necessary precautions, and I couldn’t help but feel proud. We returned to our karts, racing around for another half an hour or so.

Shay had pulled off to the side and climbed out of her kart, so the guys and I took a few more laps before calling it quits.

“What’s next on the agenda, sweetheart?” I asked, pressing a kiss to her hand.

“Laser tag. I want to see how well you and Noah can hold up against Conner and me.”

“Why Conner? Why not me?” I asked, feigning hurt.

“Zane, we all know you’re a sharpshooter. I thought it would be fair to give Noah a fighting chance instead of us wiping the floor with them,” she replied.

Both guys halted in their tracks, turning to look at her. “Hey, that’s not fair!” they protested in unison. I couldn’t help but laugh.

“Alright, let’s see who the better team is then,” I said as we made our way to the laser tag entrance. We were ushered inside, and she picked out a blue pack.

“There are four colors. How about we see who’s the best in the first round? Then we can split into teams. I want to play at least six rounds.”

I chose the yellow pack, Noah took the red, and Conner picked green. We entered the room and scattered, but not before I caught her.

“Don’t hold back, sweetheart. You know all three of us are sharpshooters.”

I kissed her and watched as she disappeared into the darkness with a smirk. The countdown began and our packs lit up.

We darted around, shooting at each other, but I couldn’t find her. My eyes scanned the room, but her pack was nowhere in sight. Where the hell did she go?

My pack vibrated from a hit and I spun around, but I couldn’t see where it had come from. I ducked behind a wall and kept watch.

I saw a laser hit Conner and traced it back to her hiding spot. She had climbed up a wall and was tucked away in a nook, her pack hidden behind her.

Grinning, I took off my pack and quietly climbed the wall from the back. I dropped down in front of her, causing her to scream and lose her balance. She fell off the wall, but I managed to grab her foot.

“Conner! Noah! ~Catch her!~” I shouted.

They both rushed over and caught her easily. I climbed down with her pack and dropped it at her feet.

“Shay, you’ve nearly given me a heart attack twice now.”

“You didn’t set any rules. I always hide up there. That’s how I always win—with the highest score, which still hasn’t been beaten.

“My name is on that wall outside for the longest-standing highest score, so don’t lecture me. This is the first time anyone has found me, and you scared the crap out of me.”

I rubbed the back of my neck, trying to calm down. It was my fault she fell.

“Okay, new rule. No climbing walls—feet must stay on the ground at all times.”

Just then, the lights came on. We looked up at the screen; she had beaten us by seven hundred points. I chuckled and handed her pack back.

“You did well, though. Now let’s play the right way.”

“Fine. Hey, where’s your pack?” she asked, pointing to my bare chest.

“I took it off to sneak up on you. It’s over there,” I said, pointing to the wall where I had left it. I walked over, slid it back on, and we lined up for the next round.