Mr. Hatter’s smile stretched only by a fraction, but enough to be noticeable.
“The beginning sounds great,” she amended.
“The Rabbit Hole it is.” Hands in his pockets, he invited her in and locked the door behind her.
It was hard to believe the park had been as crowded as it was the day of the scavenger hunt. Silence enveloped everything eerily now, in that way things that should have life and motion, but didn’t. Adelie longed to break that silence. She asked the first question that came to her mind.
“Your name. Is it really your name? Hatter is legitimate?”
“It is,” he said. “My mom named me Maddox because Alice's Adventures in Wonderland was her favorite book. In fact, this—” He gestured. “Is all for her.”
Adelie stopped for a moment to admire the flowerbeds, trees, and towering rides. The smells of popcorn and caramel were missing today. She was surprised she’d noticed, considering how distracted she’d been the last time she was here. She hadn’t taken much time to really see everything Friday, either.
“Really? That’s such an amazing thing to do for your mom. Does she love to come here?”
Maddox lowered his head. “She passed away, I’m afraid. It’s one reason I did it, as a tribute to her memory.”
“I’m sorry to hear it. That’s so hard. Both of my parents are gone too,” Adelie said, falling into step with him once more. Why had she brought that up? She didn’t want to go into her family’s difficult past—not now, not ever. And especially not with him. In fact, part of her wanted to forget she’d had parents at all.
Maddox led the way up the stairs toward the entry point for The Rabbit Hole drop. No lines. Just directly to the front. She remembered some of her frustration with the lines, regretting how surly and distracted she’d been. Part of her wished for a do-over. How would it be to jump on any ride you want whenever you wanted?
“I’m sorry to hear that,” he said.
“Yeah, I was raised by my grandparents. That’s one reason I’m doing this. I want to save their house.”
He whistled. “Must be some house.”
“It is,” she said, unable to help her smile. “It’s got this perfect craftsman look to it, and I have so many memories there.”
“I’d like to see it sometime,” he said.
Adelie paused. “You would?”
“Sure. If you care about it that much, then it must be amazing. All right, here we go.” He gestured to the sign at the front of the ride near the railing meant to separate those who were waiting from those taking their turns.
It was a lighthearted version of Alice on her hands and knees, staring into a hole in the side of a bank. “This is the sign we’ll be redoing. I want to hail back to as many of the original images from the book as possible. We’d like to capture you looking stunned and amazed as you’re falling slowly down a well.”
The idea made her muscles twitch.
“I see,” she said. “How exactly are you going to capture me falling?”
Maddox lifted his arms and mimed the movement, astonished facial expression and all. The combined actions were so endearing, she laughed.
“You’re onto something. Why not just don a wig and do the pictures yourself?” she said.
“And miss the chance of seeing you?” He winked, kinking her insides. “Come on. Pool of Tears is next.”
They meandered through, stopping by the water ride she and Suzie had experienced. She was grateful the towering, quick-drop ride was closed. She’d ridden it Friday to obtain the next clue, and once was enough. They stopped next at the Caucus Race ride, made up of animals that spun and moved at slow speeds.
“To dry off,” Maddox added as he pointed them out.
Adelie chuckled to herself, remembering the ride’s slow-spin progression and the young kids and their parents who’d smiled in delight. It was the perfect sort of ride for little kids.
“It’s nice of you to gear some rides to kids,” she said.
“People from every walk of life love the book. And if not the book, then Disney’s rendition of the story. I wanted to make sure the park could be a family place.”
“Is that why you’re not open on Sunday?”
“An old-fashioned notion, I guess,” he said, stopping before the Odds N' Ends store across from the Ever After Sweet Shoppe. “Mind if I make a confession?”
She swallowed. “What do you mean?”
“I saw you in the shop Friday,” he said, gesturing toward Odds N' Ends with its sweeping striped awning. “You stole my breath, right from the start.”
Talk about stealing breath. Her lips parted. She was captivated by his confession, by the sincerity in his eyes. What did that mean? Who talked like this anyway, especially to someone he just met?
“I—I don’t know what to say.”
The corner of his mouth tipped. “I knew from that moment I needed you as my Alice.”
She shook the stardust from her eyes. Right. Alice. He was only talking about his park.
Adelie drew in a long breath and stepped away from him, waiting for her head to clear. Don't get in over your head, she told herself, staring at the brick. She needed a focal point, to get herself back on track away from the cloud he’d momentarily led her on.
Maddox pointed to the store’s windows.
“See? Even here, you’ll be on posters and displays in the store windows. Even the bags in the stores will have some version of you on them.”
Butterflies rolled in her stomach but were soon forgotten as thunder crackled through the sky overhead. March was the season for spring showers. Seconds later, a single drop kissed Adelie’s cheek. She blinked upward, struck by the mass of gray clouds that closed in overhead. They hadn’t been there when she’d first arrived.
“Uh-oh,” Maddox said. “Looks like we might have to cut things short unless you want to get caught in a deluge.”
“Spring rain,” Adelie said with a chuckle. More drops trickled down, wetting her hair and shoulders. Without further warning, the rain increased
