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When it got to eleven-thirty, she started thinking about going to bed. She knew that her mom would give her dad a shake soon and they’d go up. She jumped when her phone rang and snatched it up to silence it before it woke her dad. All her breath caught in her chest when she saw the name on the display. She scrambled to her feet and headed for the stairs.
Her mom gave her a puzzled look, but she just gave her a little wave and ran up to her bedroom, pulling the door shut behind her before she answered.
“Hello?” Shoot! She should have said his name. She knew it was him.
“Becca? Hi, it’s Jacob. Is this a bad time? Is it too late? It only dawned on me after I dialed that you’re two hours ahead of me.”
“No. I mean … it’s late, but it’s fine. It’s …” She took a deep breath. She didn’t want to mess up this time. “It’s lovely to hear from you. I’m glad you called.”
“You are?”
“Yes. I thought that maybe you wouldn’t.”
He was quiet for a few moments, and she climbed onto her bed and waited. Maybe she’d said too much?
“I almost didn’t.”
Her heart sank. “Why?”
“Because … how old are you?”
“Oh. I’m twenty-nine. Why? How old are you?”
“Thirty-nine.”
She’d guessed that he was in his forties.
“Is that too old for you?”
She had to laugh. “No. I don’t want to offend you again, but I thought you were older than that. Because you’re … I don’t know, more distinguished, not because you look old.”
He chuckled. “Thanks. I think.”
“It’s a compliment, honestly.”
“Okay. I’ll take it.”
“What about you?” Her heart sank even as she asked. She wasn’t sure that she wanted to hear his answer – not if it was the reason that he almost hadn’t called. “Am I too young for you?”
Her heart hammered in the silence that followed. She really didn’t want him to say that yes, she was. She didn’t see ten years as much of a difference. There was an eight-year gap between her parents. One of her brothers was married to a woman who was nine years older than him. It just wasn’t a big deal in her mind. But what mattered was what he thought.
“I don’t know,” he answered eventually.
She didn’t know what to say to that. She could hardly try to convince him. It was up to him.
“I don’t think it’s the numbers that make a difference. It’s the people,” he said.
“I agree.”
“But people tend to be at different stages in life according to their age, too.”
“True.”
He chuckled. “You’re doing an awful lot of agreeing with me there.”
She laughed with him. “I am, but what else can I do? It’s not something that you need anyone else’s input on. Only you know what’s right for you. There’s no point in me trying to persuade you.”
She could hear the smile in his voice when he spoke again. “I don’t know which I like more – the fact that you want to persuade me, or that you know you shouldn’t try.”
