Blushing, Ella smiled at Ben but said nothing.Then after a moment, she responded, “I will be in San Luis Obispo in two weeks.I usually get a ride with a friend of mine who is also in the program.I couch surf at my friend Eliza’s apartment.I am not sure there would be room for both of us.”
“That won’t be a problem.I will get a room.So how do those weekends work?”
“We drive down on Friday morning.Since most of the students who go through this program are either older or have full-time jobs, the class instruction goes from six to nine on Friday night.All day Saturday is field work, or lab work as they call it.We are usually in fields from eight until six.”
“Wow!That sounds intense.”
“Yes, it used to be.Now that I am in the final semester, all I have left is the practicum.I have two big projects that I have to complete and present, so class time is replaced by time for us to work with our group on our projects.”
“If I drive up on Saturday, would you be able to meet me for dinner?”
“My friend and I usually drive home on Saturday night, but I will ask him if he would mind staying over an extra night.I think he will.His girlfriend is at Cal Poly, and they don’t get a lot of time together.If he is good with it, we could have dinner and even breakfast Sunday if you are up for it.”
“Oh, I will be up for it,” replied Ben, wagging his eyebrows suggestively.“Maybe you would be open to staying with me?”
Nodding, Ella replied, “I will think about it.”
“You do that.In the meantime, I am serious about talking often.I have class during the day but am free most nights.Would you mind if I called you?”
Ella could not stop the smile that spread across her face.“I would love that.”
“Great, what time would be best to call?”
“I am almost always home from the diner by nine.You can call any time after that.”
Bringing Ella’s hand to his lips, Ben kissed it and said, “It is a plan.Now let’s get out of here.”
Chapter 5
The Next Few Weeks
Napa, California
True to his word, Ben called Ella every night at 9:00.She quickly learned he was a stickler about time.That was fine.So was she.Ella was all about conservation and the best use of resources.Her whole college major centered around that, and no question, for Ella, time was the world’s most precious resource.It was the only resource that could never be increased or recycled.It was also equally distributed to everyone, regardless of wealth or position.Everyone, everywhere, gets the same twenty-four hours each day.How someone used their time, as well as how well they respected the time of others, said a lot about a person.And while you cannot put time in a bottle and save it, you can definitely squander it.
It might be a small thing for other people, but to Ella, how a person used and managed their time was a big thing.In her short nineteen years, she had tried to respect and make the most of her time, and anyone who was going to win her heart would as well.Ella was learning Ben was that kind of person.He was always punctual with his calls.
When Ben called, he was as ready to talk as he was to listen.In short order, Ella came to count on those calls.She saw them as the lifeline of their young courtship.To the best of her ability, Ella tried to be home and ready as well.On the two nights she was detained, she texted him she would call as soon as she could.Both times, he had picked up on the first ring when she called him back.Over the many hours they spent talking, they learned so much about each other.It was crazy they could bond over something as simple as time.Time to talk.Time to learn about each other.Time for their first feelings of lust to grow ever so slowly into the first buds of love.
It was during these calls that Ella learned just how traumatic Ben’s childhood had been.He told her about being born in New York and living there as a child.He shared stories about growing up in a small New York apartment with his mom, Poppy, a watercolorist and his father, Thomas Thompson, an abstract artist.It broke Ella’s heart to hear the residual sadness still ringing in Ben’s voice when he talked about his dad dying when he was seven.Similarly, it blew her mind when he nonchalantly shared that his father had been gay and that his partner, Jack, who Ben still called Uncle Jack, had lived with them until his father died.
When Ella questioned Ben about whether it was weird to have two gay dads, he had just scoffed and said no.But then he quickly added that it had been a bit strange finding out he had a straight one later.At that comment, they both roared with laughter at the absurdity of such a statement.He then explained about being eleven and finding out his real father was Bennett Carrington, a former United States senator.When Bennett and his mom reconnected and married, he and his mom moved to Arkansas.He told her about his sisters, Lizzy and Lola.The way he talked about them and even said their names made them sound like they were one person: LizzyandLola.When Ella pointed that out to Ben, he laughed.After thinking on it for a bit, he agreed he did think of them as one unit.He wondered if everyone thought of them that way.
Ella loved listening to the sound of Ben’s voice.It carried notes of a Southern accent with a little Bronx, New York, roughness mixed in.It fit him and his very polite yet also gung ho personality perfectly.She was so impressed by all that Ben had gone through at such a young age and yet had still grown into an amazing person.
In turn, Ella shared much about her family life.She told Ben about growing up the oldest in a large, mixed family.She had a lot of funny stories about her mom, dad, and six siblings.She confided that she felt a lot of responsibility toward them all—to her parents to help at the diner and to her six brothers and sisters to help raise and support them.Ben could tell her love for them ran deep though they often drove her crazy.She told him of her great affection for both sets of her grandparents.She amused him with stories of how very different they were, one set white, the other Hispanic, both so loving, yet so different and each with their own history, culture, and expectations.Lastly, she shared some of her deeply held religious beliefs and how important church was to her and her family.Ben was genuinely impressed by Ella’s devotion to all of it because he too was devoted to his family and church.
When not discussing their families, the conversion would turn to their studies because they both liked talking about what they were learning in their classes.Ella loved when Ben got going on about one political issue or another.He geeked out on issues and initiatives he was passionate about.Ella spent hours researching and reading about them so she fully understood them.The ones he gravitated to most centered around helping families combat homelessness, food insecurities, and mental health problems.At the same time, he was obsessed with finding ways to reduce taxes while still growing healthy communities and supporting infrastructures and business development.When Ben spoke, Ella could literally feel his great desire to affect change in these areas.She loved that he was smart and knowledgeable.He was going to make a great leader.
In turn, Ella told Ben about her passion, conservation.Having grown up in Arkansas, a farming state, Ben had a vague understanding of soil conservation and hydration.She tried to explain to him what she loved about walking through a field of grapes and knowing that the steps she took had helped them grow and prosper.She would share the components of her senior projects, which were taking up a ridiculous amount of her mental capacity at the moment.She tried to keep it to layman’s terms and stayed away from getting too technical.She was used to seeing people’s eyes glaze over whenever she went too deep.
But if Ben was bored, he did a great job of hiding it.He always listened and asked thoughtful, intriguing questions.Ella could tell the topic did not trip his trigger like it did hers, but that was okay.Having different interests and passions made their conversions more lively.
Ben and Ella talked about many things those first two weeks, but the one thing they had not discussed was where Ella was going to stay when Ben came to see her at San Luis Obispo.Ben had already gotten a room for Saturday night and extended an invitation for her to stay with him.But, Ella was still on the fence about that.
Just the thought of being with Ben all night in bed was driving her crazy.She knew he would never push her to do anything she did not want to do.But that wasn’t what she was worried about.
She was worried about herself.Ella loved kissing Ben, in the dark streets outside her house and later in the solitude of the vineyard.She loved being held in his arms and knowing she was sparking something wild and passionate in him as he was her.And heaven help her, she could not wait to do it all over again.And therein was the problem.She was afraid that her desire for Ben was going to out distance her common sense the minute they were alone together.Of course, she wanted to be with him every minute she could.But, if she stayed with him, what would it mean for her and them as a couple?
