Ben cuts me down with a single look. “If you want me to go ahead with this—and by that I mean not only participate but also help you plan it—then you, Campbell Andrews, are getting auctioned.”
I glare at him for a solid minute, but he doesn’t back down, and fuck if I don’t kind of admire that. “Fine. I’ll do it. In fact, why don’t we take things one step further?”
Ben raises his eyebrows as if to say,Bring it on.
“I bet I’ll bring in more money than you do.”
A smirk curls up the ends of his stupid pretty mouth. “You think you—ruiner of weddings, destroyer of dates, grandmaster of the dunk tank—can bring in more money than me?”
“Yup.” I pop thep, pushing my chair back and collecting my belongings, ready to make my dramatic exit.
Ben stands too, following me over to the door, which he opens for me like he can’t help but be chivalrous. “You’reon, sweetheart. Think about how the people of Heart Springs feel about me, the boy next door who spends his time healing sick children, versus you, who gave an eight-year-old nightmares.”
I skip down his front steps, chuckling. “Oh Ben, you’re forgetting one major piece of the puzzle here, my friend.”
“What’s that?”
I turn, halfway down the walkway, and find him perched against the doorjamb, a sexy smirk on his face and a blasted smolder in his eyes—and all of that could fetch a high price at the auction. I lose my confidence for a half a second, but then I remember exactly who I am. “I’m hotter than you.”
I put a little extra sway in my step as I swing through his front gate. And because I couldn’t possibly be so uncool as to turn around at this point, I continue marching straight ahead, as if I never meant to go home in the first place.
Oh well, I never say no to one of Emma’s lattes and something tells me she might need a little convincing before she agrees to my oh so brilliant plan. To the bakery, it is.
18
To my absolute surprise and shock, Emma not only agrees to the Date Auction but seems to be fully in favor of the idea. She must really be desperate to save the bakery because she doesn’t even put up a fight when I tell her a date with her is most definitely on the docket. Her excitement reinforces what I already knew was going to be a brilliant plan and I face down my to-do list with the kind of fervor I used to save for my biggest clients.
So plans for the Save the Bakery Date Auction barrel on, full steam ahead. With Ben at my side, everything becomes about ten times easier. Suddenly everyone is willing to donate their time, money, prizes, and themselves. Seriously, the man has been here just as long as I have—how has he managed to ingratiate himself to everyone in town so quickly? If he weren’t on my team, I would hate him. But I obviously don’t hate him because who could possibly hate Ben? He’s charming and witty and intelligent and patient and a million other qualities I shouldn’t even notice, let alone admire.
And something happens in those moments when we’re working together. Something I don’t want to examine too closely, but something that might resemble us opening up to each other. I’ve already shared more with Ben than I have with anyone else, but as we’re recruiting daters and designing tablescapes, it becomes about the little things. Like how Ben had dreams of playing baseball before he broke his elbow in high school. Or how I envied my peers who took creative writing classes, something I always wanted to explore, but that Grandmother claimed was frivolous. We start to truly get to know each other in a way I haven’t experienced with anyone else before, and it’s nice. More than nice.
Being so busy with the fundraiser means I don’t have a lot of spare time left over for dates with Noah, but after a week without seeing him, I finally give in and agree to meet him for dinner. I insist on meeting him at the restaurant since I’m already in town working on fundraiser stuff, not because I don’t want Ben to see him coming to pick me up.
Noah leans in and presses a kiss to my cheek as I rush into the lobby, breathless from sprinting across the town square. “You made it.”
I shrug out of my coat, draping it over my arm and doing my best not to tilt my cheek away from his kiss. “Sorry, got held up with some fundraiser stuff.”
Noah’s brow wrinkles. “It might be best if we don’t talk about that tonight. Keeping the business and personal separate and all that.”
“Sure.” I follow the hostess to our table, barely noting Noah’s hand resting on the small of my back.
We sit and peruse our menus. Order some wine and an appetizer. Make pleasant small talk about the weather. And then we stare. Not at each other, because that would be weird. But at the floor, and the ceiling tiles, and at my own reflection in the spoon.
Noah clears his throat. “So how are you feeling about everything?”
I take a small sip of wine to hide my grimace. “I’m afraid you might need to be a tad more specific. How am I feeling about what, exactly?”
He shrugs and waves his hands around aimlessly. “You know. Everything.”
“What would you like to hear about first? My job at the bakery you’re trying to shut down? Or the fundraiser aimed at stopping you? Those are the two main things happening in my life right now, Noah.” I don’t mean the words to sound completely bitchy. I can’t help it if that’s my natural tone.
He has the decency to look a little bit shamed. Not enough, but a little bit. “I know.” He sighs. “I’m sorry for the bad timing and all of this bakery stuff. I guess what I’m really trying to ask is how you’re feeling about us?”
I purse my lips together to keep from blurting out the real answer. I barely even thought about Noah in the week we didn’t see each other because his absence has no effect on me. Which is probably not a good sign.
But I can’t say that. One, because he actually looks sort of hopeful. And two, because this is my last chance. If I write Noah off…well I don’t actually know what happens if I write Noah off because I’m too afraid to ask, but I know it isn’t good.
I adjust my napkin in my lap so I have something to dowith my hands. “I don’t really know how I feel about us, Noah. Maybe we just need to see how things turn out with the bakery before we can really give this a chance.”
