Quinn's Hart Read Free Page B

unreality. He kept walking along with the rest of the group, but the scents of chocolate and baked goods and the sound of music playing over unseen loudspeakers distracted him.
    Their first stop was a huge tree house. Elaine broke them up into pairs and shooed them to the entrance. Josh's partner, a guy named Doug, immediately started complaining about how lame it was.
    After the third or fourth complaint, Josh had had enough. "Then go find the exit. I think this is pretty cool."
    Doug stomped off, muttering to himself. Josh shrugged and went back to exploring. He ran into Damien, who'd been paired with Art the restaurant guy. Damien rolled his eyes toward Josh in an obvious "I'm not having fun" gesture, but Josh ignored him. No way did he want to get stuck with a high-maintenance drama queen. The brief time they'd spent together showed him Damien was a little too much like his ex, which was the last thing he needed right now. He made his way through the winding stairways and across bridges until he reached the exit.
    For the next ride, a jungle riverboat cruise, Josh ended up paired with a blond, bespectacled accountant named Steve. Sparks didn't fly, but from the instant they started talking, Josh liked the older man. His sense of humor wasn't snarky or cruel like a couple of the other guys Josh had met, and he didn't make fun of the cheesy animatronics or Josh's enthrallment with them. That alone made Josh decide Steve was a friend.
    When the boat was about to dock, Steve leaned forward with a conspiratorial grin. "I got to talk to Art last night at dinner, and I really liked him. I'm trying to get up the nerve to see if he wants to hang out after lunch."
    Josh grinned and clapped Steve on the back. "Leave it to me, buddy."
    "Don't talk to him, I'll be so embarrassed." Steve blushed. "God, I feel like I'm in high school again."
    "I'm not going to embarrass you, but I'll figure something out."
    Steve opened his mouth to reply, but closed it when Damien sauntered over and threw his arm around Josh's shoulders. "Looks like I'm your partner for the next ride."
    Exercising supreme restraint, Josh managed not to shrug off Damien's arm. He gave him a weak smile. "Let's go, then."
    The ride in question was a pirate ride. Apparently, it was a popular attraction, because they had to wait in line for a while. Damien's obvious double entendres and his habit of standing too close had Josh on edge before they reached the boats.
    About two seconds after the ride started, Damien leaned closer to Josh. "Got plans for after lunch?"
    "Sort of," Josh hedged. It wasn't really a lie. He did want to help hook Steve up with Art. He glanced around, desperate for a diversion. A hologram of one of the bad guys from that Johnny Depp pirate movie appeared, making dire pronouncements. He grinned. This had to be the cheesiest thing he'd ever seen in his life. He loved it.
    Damien was nothing if not persistent. "What about tonight?" The look he gave Josh was probably supposed to be sexy and come-hither, but came across as more of a leer.
    Annoyed, Josh waved a hand at the other man. "Shh! This is awesome." He leaned forward to watch the animatronic pirates moving, talking, and singing. A familiar face caught his eye among the other pirates. He nudged Damien and pointed. "Look. It's Johnny Depp. I can't believe how realistic these things are."
    The eye roll he got told Josh Damien wasn't impressed. He shrugged and went back to watching, humming along with the theme song.

    * * * *
    At one o'clock, Elaine herded them all into a restaurant styled to look like a colonial house. A waitress dressed in eighteenth century garb got them seated in two groups of ten by scooting tables together. Josh snagged the seat next to Steve. Lyle, his partner from the last ride, sat on his other side. He was pleased when Art sat across from him. He'd met Ray, the burly bald guy who sat across from Steve, when they'd been paired on the roller coaster. Guys whose names he