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Chapter 13
Eleanor looked at himwith her mouth hanging wide open.
“You organized everything last night. You’d do a great job there, I’m sure of it.”
Oh. That changed things. He just wanted her because she was good at organizing things. For a minute there, she was thinking he was asking her out on a date. That he liked her, that maybe he was feeling some of the same feelings she was.
She should have known better. He just wanted somebody to help him, and she was a good candidate.
But she could. And she would enjoy it. It would be a chance to get out, and she could be friends with Franklin. Maybe she was feeling like she wanted something more, but if friends was all he wanted, she could do that.
“Don’t feel like you have to. Chicago is a little different than Strawberry Sands,”
She laughed. “I think I know that. And I suppose ten years ago, this would have terrified me. But I actually think it might be fun.”
“It might be the kind of thing that you enjoy. Some people do. I like having done it, but I don’t usually like the planning or the execution. But after it’s over, I always have a great feeling of satisfaction. Mostly because we raise a lot of money for a good cause.”
“The Chicago Midtown Humane Society?”
He nodded.
Humane societies were close to her heart as well. Obviously, considering that she was a dog groomer by trade, animals were a big part of her life.
“When is it again?” she asked, hedging a little bit. It wasn’t that she didn’t want to. She just thought that maybe he could find someone who would be better for him. She didn’t want to hold him back when someone else would help him rather than hinder him. And while she was pretty sure she would have a great time, with her inexperience, she was afraid she might not be a great help.
“It’s Saturday night. Tomorrow.”
“Wow. I need to get a dress.”
He smiled and shrugged. “I never even thought about it, but I suppose you probably would.”
She had no idea what to wear. She’d never been to anything remotely like a big gala in Chicago. Hadn’t been interested.
“Is there anything I need to do in the meantime?”
“No. When we’re there, there is a little bit of mingling and keeping track of things. We’ve switched to an online auction, so it’s not quite as difficult as it was, but there are still some hands-on things that you just can’t give to a machine to do.”
“I see.”
“Seriously, I’d love to have you, but I don’t want you to feel obligated or anxious.”
“I don’t feel obligated. I would like to help you. I... I was kinda thinking that maybe we’re friends now.” She said that a little tentatively. After all, she had been thinking that she would like to be more, and she’d been way off the mark with that. Maybe he was still thinking of them as barely acquaintances; even though they did spend so much time together, it was just for one day.
“Yeah. I definitely thought we were friends.” He lifted his shoulder. “I didn’t think we had to quantify that, but you can’t really go through something like this with someone and not come out on the other side feeling like you know them a little better. And, I have to say, I was not disappointed in you.”
Well, that wasn’t exactly an undying declaration of love, but not being disappointed was probably a good thing.
Rather than trying to figure out what their relationship was, she lifted her chin and looked him in the eye. “I’ll go. I’ll get a dress somehow, if we get rescued. And just tell me where I need to meet you in Chicago.”
“When we get our phones back, I’ll text you the address of the gala, but maybe I can pick you up so we can ride together.”
“I wouldn’t expect you to come the whole way up to Strawberry Sands to pick me up, and I’m assuming you’re going back to Chicago as soon as we get...rescued.” She said that a little bit ironically, since she did have a car outside. “Maybe I can try my car if the snow lets up.”
“Maybe, although there’s no shovel around, and we’d probably need to shovel you out.”
“Yeah, I don’t think it’s going to quite go through all the snow to get to the road. But I think the road will be clear shortly after the snow stops. They’re usually really good about it.”
“I’m going to go out and get a few more loads of firewood.”
