Amelia set her phone face down on the table, then crossed her arms. “I don’t know yet. Maybe.”
“Please come, hon,” she said. “It’s going to be a beautiful day. You don’t have to do a thing. Just show up and enjoy.”
Amelia’s beautiful face was expressionless, and Ben had no idea what she was thinking. Back in the day, she’d never hidden how she was feeling when she was around him, though she’d definitely done it around other people.
“I’ll think about it.”
“We’ve told people to be at the marina by one if they want to go out on the boat with us.”
“Who all is going?” Amelia asked.
“I’m not sure yet,” Annie said. “We’ve invited a bunch of people. The boat is big enough for a crowd.”
“It’s huge,” Ben agreed. “I guess you decided to go for the biggest boat available, huh?”
“Cole wanted the largest one we could use at the marina. Since he comes from a big family, he never wanted to run out of room for whoever wants to come.”
“Have you ever had all the family on the boat?” Ben asked.
“Not yet. It seems not everyone is a fan of being on the water.”
There was a bit of commotion as the kids let out whoops and ran towards their parents, who had just arrived to pick them up.
Annie got up as well and went to greet them. Ben stayed at the table with Amelia, sensing that she was getting ready to leave.
Angie and Kiara came over to the table while Julian and Jude made their way to where Cole stood.
The women greeted Amelia with smiles as they sat down at the table with her and Ben.
“Thanks for keeping the kids today, Annie,” Angie said. “Even with the barbecue tonight.”
“You know I didn’t do it all on my own. Mrs. Stevens and one of her daughters came to give me a hand. I know my limits.”
They chatted for a bit about how the week had gone at the basketball clinic. Ben could see that Amelia was preparing to leave, so it was no surprise to him when she said, “I think I need to head home. It’s been a long week.”
“Thanks so much for coming tonight,” Annie said, reaching across the table to touch Amelia’s arm. “It’s been great visiting with you.”
“It was nice,” Amelia said with a small smile, and Ben was pretty sure she actually meant it.
When she got up to leave, Ben stood up as well. She gave him a questioning look but didn’t say anything when he fell into step beside her as she headed for the front of the house.
As they approached her car, Ben gave it a critical look. It looked sturdy enough, but it definitely showed signs of age. He almost said something about it, but he bit his tongue instead. He had to remind himself that she wasn’t in the same financial position as he was. And if this was the best she could afford, who was he to make any sort of comment on it?
Plus, her dad was a mechanic, and Ben was pretty sure that he wouldn’t let her drive anything that wasn’t trustworthy.
“Thanks for coming tonight,” Ben said. “I know you weren’t too keen on it.”
“True.” She gave a small shrug. “But I’m glad I came.”
“Good. I hope you’ll be able to come tomorrow.”
“I’ll try.”
She opened the car door, then slid behind the wheel. Ben moved to stand beside the open door, watching as she buckled her seatbelt.
When she reached for the door, she looked up at him, her eyes wide. “Bye.”
“See you later,” Ben said, sliding his hands into his pockets.
