Page 37 of Live Like There's No Tomorrow
Charlotte watched as he pulled away. She wished he didn’t have to go, but she knew how important his work was to him. It always had been and no doubt always would be. She understood that much better now than she had when they were kids. When they were kids, she’d always felt it shouldn’t be his responsibility yet. She felt differently now, not just because he was older and it obviously was his responsibility, but also because she understood him much better now. She raised her eyebrows; was that true, and if so, how could it be? She hadn’t been around him for years, so how could she understand him better? She gave a rueful smile as she went back inside. Perhaps it was because she was as grown-up now as Ben had been when he was seventeen.
She wandered around the house thinking about everything they discussed. When he first arrived, she’d been so determined that she didn’t want to interfere in whatever was going on between him and Angel. She didn’t want him to be with her out of some sense of obligation. She wanted him to feel free to choose. He had chosen. She smiled—he’d chosen her. Her smile faded a little. He’d chosen her and then Angel had called. No, that wasn’t fair. He hadn’t left to go and see Angel; he left because work needed him. An uneasy shiver ran down her spine. Work always came first for Ben. And Angel was a part of his work. No! She had to get a grip. She tried to make him explore whatever feelings he might have for Angel, and he’d flatly refused. He refused because he wanted to be with her because the two of them had wanted to be together since they were ten years old. She had to believe in that; she had to believe in them. It was right that they should take things slowly, but she shouldn’t go to the extreme of pushing him away.
Ben had gone back to work. He was getting on with his day, and she needed to do the same. She needed to make a start on all the things she’d told him she was going to. Make a start on her life here. She didn’t know yet what she was going to do about work, but she could get to that on Monday. She did know that she wanted to start catching up with old friends though. She needed to call Emma. She would’ve heard if the baby had been born already but it must be due anytime now. And Michael, too, his girlfriend, Megan, must be about ready to have their baby. And at some point, she’d have to pop next door to say hi to April. It made her smile to think she was living next door to the girl who’d helped her through that night in Vegas. She picked up her phone. First of all, she wanted to check in with Missy.
~ ~ ~
Ben pulled up in front of the lodge at Four Mile. He turned off the ignition and sat for a moment gathering his thoughts. If Angel hadn’t called, he no doubt would still be at Charlotte’s place right now. Even that was a lot to take in—the fact Charlotte now had a place here. Wow! It was finally happening. He shook his head. It was strange after all the conversations he’d had this week, now Charlotte really was here, and Angel was the one to call him away from her.
He rubbed his hands over his face and then took a deep breath and got out of the car. Even Charlotte had thought that there might be, and possibly should be, something going on between him and Angel.
“Hey!” There she was, standing outside the reception waiting for him.
He smiled. She was undoubtedly a good-looking woman. She was great to work with, easy-going, efficient, and if he was honest, a lot of fun. The only thing going against her was the fact that she wasn’t Charlotte.
He ran up the steps and greeted her with a smile. “Hi. Let’s get this system reset, shall we?”
She nodded. “I’m sorry I had to drag you over here, especially after saying this morning that I’d leave you alone.”
“It can’t be helped. And I really don’t think we should have to avoid each other.”
“You don’t?”
Ben shook his head. She looked a little too eager for him to be comfortable. “No.” Even as he said it, he knew he wasn’t being entirely honest. They shouldn’thaveto avoid each other, but he had a feeling he was going to be avoiding her anyway.
She followed him through to the office where he sat down at the computer. He tried the usual fix for the reservation system, but it didn’t work. Damn! This was going to take a while and he really didn’t want to be here.
Angel peered over his shoulder. “I have no idea what I did to it, I’m sorry.”
“It’s not your fault. It just happens sometimes.”
Her hair brushed Ben’s shoulder as she reached past him to pick up a pen. He closed his eyes as a hint of her perfume filled his nostrils. He wished he didn’t feel attracted to her, but there was no denying it, he did. Why? That was what he didn’t get. That was what he’d been denying to himself all along. He didn’t want to be attracted to her; he was in love with Charlotte.
“Are you okay?”
“Yeah, I’m fine. I just get frustrated with the system at times.” There went another lie. He didn’t like it. He may not be as forthright as Missy, but he did pride himself on being an honest man. He sat in silence staring at the screen trying to ignore Angel as she moved around him. He willed the reboot to go faster; he just wanted to get out of here. He wanted to get away from Angel. “Okay,” he said when it was finally done, “it shouldn’t give you any more trouble for a while now.”
“Thanks so much. And sorry again for dragging you over here.”
“No problem.”
“I was thinking about what you said this morning.”
Ben shook his head adamantly. “Don’t. I don’t think we should think about it or talk about it anymore.” He felt bad as she looked up at him, eyes wide, but it couldn’t be helped. This was one thing he was going to be completely honest about. “Charlotte’s back. She’s here. She arrived last night.”
Angel looked stunned for a moment, then she visibly pulled herself together and forced a smile. “That’s wonderful news for you. You must be so happy.”
“I am.”
As he got back in his car and drove away, headed back to the resort, he had to wonder why, for the second time that day, he felt sad about what he’d just told Angel.
When he got to the resort, he went straight to the Boathouse. There were still a few stragglers from the lunchtime crowd, but other than that, the place was quiet in the mid-afternoon lull. He smiled when he saw Pete and Jack sitting in a booth in the corner. Pete looked up and grinned when he saw him.
“Hey, bud! Come on over.”
Ben made his way to them, wondering as he went why he still hadn’t made time to call Pete and tell him about Charlotte. As he reached the table and saw their grinning faces, he realized it was too late. They obviously already knew.
“So, how does it feel? She’s finally back! And you didn’t even tell me she was coming.” Pete raised an eyebrow, seeming to imply something was amiss.
