“I’ll see you later, dear,” Evelyn promised, her voice steely. She lifted her purse higher on her shoulder.
Ben shivered. “Was that a threat?” he whispered in Avery’s ear.
Avery’s laugh was high and she cut it off too soon, glancing around them to see who had heard and stared. “I’m sure it will be fine.” She didn’t sound fine at all, and her hands shook as she placed her napkin in her lap.Ben had the distinct feeling that there was a storm on the horizon.
Whoever that woman was had an influence over Avery. “How do you know her?”
Avery cringed. “She’s Landon’s grandmother, my babysitter, and our next-door neighbor.”
“Oh.” A sense of unease tripped up his spine. He’d only seen his ex-mother-in-law once since the divorce, and that was disturbing at best. He couldn’t imagine living next door to her, let alone bumping into her with a date. “I’m sorry. That seemed … difficult.”
Avery chewed her bottom lip. The movement was adorable, and he found himself staring at her mouth. “It’s my fault. I hadn’t told her about … us.” Her lashes brushed her cheeks. “Dating. Us dating.” She paused. “We’re dating, right?”
He chuckled, taking her hand in his and rubbing circles with his thumb. “Up to this point, I think we’ve been hanging out. But …” He waited until her gorgeous green eyes lifted to meet his gaze so she’d see the honesty in what he was about to say. “Today is our official first date. I’m already looking forward to a second.”
She blushed beautifully, a soft pink dancing across her cheeks. He was a goner for this woman. “Me too.”
A server appeared with glasses of water. The mood lightened as he explained the specials. They ordered, and he was off again.
Avery took a sip of her water and seemed to come to herself. Her shoulders relaxed and her hands steadied. “Did you visit a lot of amusement parks as a kid?”
Ben smiled. He could talk about this all day long. “Did we ever.”
She narrowed her eyes. “Have you ever waited in line?”
He rubbed his chin in thought. Contemplated the answer. Chewed his lip. Anything he could think of to draw out the moment. “No.”
She laughed, and whatever worries Evelyn had imposed upon them flew away like a seagull realizing there wasn’t any food in the area. Whatever had happened with Avery and that woman was a blip in their otherwise wonderful lunch. They traded childhood memories as they worked their way through lemon chicken and herb salads.
“I’m sorry. Do you mind me talking about Luke? Is it weird?”
He rubbed his full stomach. “It’s not. Really. He sounds like the kind of guy I would want to be friends with.” Ben had no jealousy inside of him for Avery’s first husband. She spoke of him in the past tense. Even though there was love woven into her memories, and obviously her heart, it wasn’t something he felt he needed to compete with.
“He was everybody’s friend. The most popular guy in school. Without him, I would have been a wallflower.”
“I highly doubt that. You’re too opinionated.”
“Hey.” She laughed and winked at him.
He captured her hand. “I like us together.”
She smiled shyly. “Me too.”
Her phone alarm rang in her purse. He checked his watch. It was time for them to leave if they were going to make it back to the school. Managing his time based on a work schedule was strange for him and took some adjustment. In his work life, if a lunch went long, his assistant adjusted the afternoon to accommodate him.
“You set an alarm for our date?” he teased. The server had dropped off the leather book, and he’d already paid. They were free to go, so they gathered their raincoats.
“I didn’t want to lose track of time. And for the record, I totally lost track of time. I can’t believe it’s been an hour.”
He held out her coat so she could slip her arms inside, taking advantage of the moment and pressing a kiss to her hair. “Me neither.” He checked off his mental list—noting that they were compatible without the kids around. “We should do this again.”
She turned to face him, her hand landing on his chest, where his heart jumped and thumped because of her touch. “Most definitely. You’re not a bad date when you keep your food in your mouth.”
He pinched her side, earning a giggle. “You’re never going to let me live that one down, are you?”
She shook her head, barely keeping her laughter in. He motioned for her to precede him through the dining room, keeping his hand on her lower back. He loved the little arch there that felt like it was made just for him. The more time he spent with Avery, the more he believed they were made for one another. If things continued to progress, he’d propose before school let out. There was no point in waiting, not when they would be much better together than they were apart.
Chapter Twenty
