definitely aware of him, he thought with satisfaction.
"Here comes my mother, now." Ben looked over at Anne's mother who was crossing the room to their table. Seeing the disappointed look on her face, Ben guessed that the inn's early arrivals would take up more of hers and Jim’s time than originally thought. He silently thanked the unexpected guests for creating an opportunity for him to have time alone with Anne.
"Hi, Sweetheart. Hello, Ben," she greeted them when she finally reached their table. "This is going to take longer than I thought. Would it be ok if we pushed dinner back an hour? Ben, since you're here, maybe you could keep company with Anne so that she doesn't have to sit alone at the table?"
"It won’t be a problem with me as long as it is ok with Anne?" Ben could not believe his luck. He looked at Anne with raised eyebrows and a hopeful look on his face. When she gave her assent with a warm smile, he smiled back at her. Both of them missed the look her mother gave them at seeing their expressions.
"Then again, Ben. Maybe it would be best if the two of you just went ahead and ate without Jim and me. There is no sense in waiting for us since this will take a while, and Anne must be hungry after her tour this afternoon. Jim and I will eat later."
"Are you sure, Mom?" Anne looked back at her mother, her lips slightly pursed.
"Sure, I'm sure. You two have a nice dinner tonight, and we will try again tomorrow evening." Then she patted her daughter's shoulder and walked away again leaving the two of them alone at the table. Ben could not have planned the intimate dinner alone with Anne better if he had tried. He looked over at Anne who was now reading the menu with great interest. A little smile tugged at the corner of her mouth. The waitress came back quickly with a tall glass of beer from the tap and set it on the table in front of him. Anne looked up when the waitress arrived and watched him as he took his first sip.
"I don't know about you, Ben, but I am pretty hungry," Anne exclaimed as she leaned back in her chair. Her aquamarine blue eyes twinkled and she shook her head in humor. "That was some very clever maneuvering to get a dinner invitation, Mr. Carlson. Did you arrange the diversion, as well?"
Surprised at being found out so soon, he started laughing which set her softly laughing, too. The sound of her laughter and the look on her face reached into his gut and grabbed hold. "I wish I could say that I arranged that, but alas my pretty, my plan was only to get a dinner invitation." He twirled the end of an imaginary mustache, a move that started her laughing even louder. "Just how many of those have you had, already? I'm not that funny." He indicated the glass of Chardonnay in front of her.
"This one is my first, and no, you are not that funny. But the situation is, and I could really use a good laugh after the tour. So, thank you, Ben, for coming to my rescue, such as it is."
"You are welcome. A toast..." He raised his glass and waited for her to raise her glass, too. "...to making the most of a beautiful evening with a beautiful woman. Later, I plan on taking her down to the water and having my evil way with her," he said in his most charming way.
"You think so, do you?" Her grin was slightly shy. Her blush was back, and he found himself becoming enchanted with her once again.
"A man can always hope." He touched his glass to hers and swallowed some beer, never looking away from her face the whole time. She shook her head again with a slight smile on her face and sipped her wine. Then the waitress came back again to take their order, and they concentrated on the menu selections.
The next hour and a half passed as a fun, relaxing time, and Ben found himself enjoying her company immensely. He found out that she was single that morning, an important piece of information to his way of thinking, but learned that evening that she was once engaged. She did not elaborate about why she and her ex-fiancé broke up, and he did not ask. They also talked about the