"That's what family does to you. They know exactly which buttons to push. They installed them, after all."
They were approaching Callum's office now, a modern glass building that housed several businesses. Ben pulled the rental car into a spot near the door.
"Thanks," she said, meeting his eyes. "For listening. And stuff."
"It’s fine. I think you’d do the same for me.”
She would, although Ben seemed to have his life in order and all of his ducks in a row. He didn’t look like he needed anybody or anything.
"I can only imagine what Chase and Lulu say about me," he continued with a laugh. "Much worse things than what your sister said about you. Rigid. Unyielding. Cold. Distant. Take your pick of adjectives."
His voice carried no self-pity. If anything, he found their characterizations amusing.
"They really say those things about you?"
"To my face, sometimes." Ben's smile was small but genuine. "Chase once told me I need to remove the stick from my ass before it becomes a permanent part of my anatomy."
"Your siblings don't pull punches."
She could imagine Rob criticizing something about her, but it wouldn’t have been said with good humor.
"No, they don't." He tapped his fingers lightly on the armrest. "That discipline, that focus, that unwillingness to be swayed from a goal, they aren’t all bad. They've gotten me where I am. I wouldn't have built a successful business without them."
"True."
"And you wouldn't have your podcast without your own version of those qualities." Ben turned slightly in his seat to face her more directly. "It takes determination to pursue justice forLori when everyone else wants to forget. It takes backbone to leave a small town where everyone knows you and start fresh."
Kelly hadn't thought of it that way before. Her family saw her independence as stubbornness, her focus as selfishness. But it was those same qualities that had enabled her to forge her own path.
"We're not just one thing," Ben continued, his voice thoughtful. "People want to put us in boxes. Lulu is the wild one, Chase is the friendly one, and I’m the responsible one. But we're all mixtures of good and bad. The same trait can be a strength in one context and a weakness in another."
She was suddenly quite glad she’d brought Ben with her to Bergen. He had a way of making everything seem not so terrible.
"When did you get so wise?" she asked, only half-joking.
“I'm not. I’m just echoing what my parents have been saying my whole life."
"Your parents sound pretty cool."
"They are." His voice softened with obvious affection. "My dad especially has this way of cutting through all the noise and seeing what really matters. And my mom has a way of helping people see the good in almost any situation. They’re amazing.”
Kelly's interest piqued. Ben rarely talked about himself, always deflecting personal questions with vague answers. This glimpse into his family life felt like a gift.
"I'd love to hear more about them," she said.
"Maybe I'll tell you over dinner tonight," Ben offered. "Hell, I’ll even cook if you don’t mind spaghetti. We can add some garlic bread and wine to that. And dessert. We don’t want to forget dessert."
"Are you asking me out on a date, Bennett Reilly?"
The words came out before Kelly could stop them, and she almost slapped a hand over her mouth. What was she thinking? He was being a good friend. That was all.
But then, Ben met her eyes, his gaze suddenly intense enough to send heat rushing through her body. For a moment, the air in the car felt thinner, the interior spinning slightly before settling down.
"Would you say yes if I did?" he asked simply.
Yes. Yes, I would.
He wasn’t like anyone she’d ever dated. And that was a good thing, because she hadn’t shown much taste in males up to this point.
