table near the front window and Helen immediately picked up a menu. She slid on her reading glasses and scanned it. “You can’t eat here too often and keep your figure. Hamburgers, pizzas, wraps, wings...”
“Pub food. I can direct you to some dishes that aren’t too heavy or greasy,” Leigh said.
“Maybe next time, dear,” she said. “Look at these hamburgers!”
“And I can vouch for them, too. They’re wonderful. You do like your occasional hamburger, don’t you?”
“It might be my favorite meal. I’ve just never been any good on the grill. I can’t do it every time I eat out or I’d be as big as a house. But I’ve worked hard the last few weeks! Time for a treat. Let’s start with wine. What’s good here?”
“You pick,” Leigh said.
A few minutes later, their wine barely delivered, people began to drop by their booth to say hello. First was Eleanor and her husband, Nick. “Auntie, you remember Eleanor, don’t you? The best nurse in the county?”
“Of course! So nice to see you again!”
“I hope you’re staying awhile this time,” Eleanor said.
“I plan to be, until I get the itch to go somewhere.”
“Spring and summer are beautiful here,” Eleanor said.
Just after ordering their food, Connie Boyle approached the booth, carrying a large take-out sack. Leigh introduced Helen and asked about his wife, Sierra.
“She’s ripe as a melon and should pop in around a month or six weeks. She said she was dying for Rob’s potato skins and wings, so here I am. I’ve found granting every wish of a pregnant wife is always in my best interest.”
“Connie and Sierra have a one-year-old son and a daughter on the way,” Leigh explained to Helen.
“That’s cutting it close,” Helen said, sipping her wine.
“Good thing we like kids, huh?” Connie said with a smile.
Just as their food arrived, Tom Canaday and his fiancée, Lola, stopped by to say hello. Leigh explained that they were two single parents who had combined families and together had six kids between them. “We threw a pizza at them and ran for our lives,” Tom said.
“We really needed a night out,” Lola said.
All through dinner people stopped by to say hello and meet Leigh’s aunt. When Helen finished her hamburger and dabbed her lips with her napkin, she said, “That was fabulous. The meal and your neighbors. We often ran into people we knew when we were out at home, but nothing like this. You must feel positively embraced.”
“It doesn’t take long to begin to feel like a part of the community,” she said. “I want you to meet Rob but I only caught a glimpse of him and then he disappeared. I’ll ask about him.”
Before she could do that, an obnoxiously large piece of mud pie covered in whipped cream was delivered by the waitress. “Compliments of the management,” she said.
Leigh craned her neck and saw Rob behind the bar. He gave her a wave.
“Tell him if he has a minute to come over. I’d like to introduce him to my aunt.”
Leigh and Helen shared the dessert, though both of them were too stuffed to make much of a dent in it. Coffee was served and Leigh began telling Helen of the things she might like to explore—national parks, hiking trails, fancy spas, scenic railroads...
“It sounds like this could be a season of outdoor activities,” Helen observed.
Then Rob appeared. He said hello to a few patrons as he passed them, then slid into the booth next to Leigh.
“Ladies, how are you tonight? Everything okay? Can I get you anything else?”
“Everything was wonderful. Rob, I’d like you to meet my aunt Helen. She arrived just a few hours ago.”
“Pleasure,” he said, reaching across the table to shake her hand. “Is this your first visit to Pleasantville?”
Leigh saw Helen smile and could tell she was already charmed.
“I’ve made a couple of quick trips. Last fall, before winter settled in. Beautiful little slice of the world you have here. I’m going to stay a bit longer, see a bit more of it this trip.”
“You won’t be disappointed. Any way I can help, please call on me.”
“Your pub is outstanding,” she added. “And you do quite a business.”
“Thank you. The weekends are busier, of course.”
“Tell me, is it rewarding?” Helen asked.
“I love this place,” he said. “It was in lousy shape when I bought it, but with a little renovation it turned into a top-notch pub. I’ve been lucky enough to find great employees. It’s a small town so there are only two major eateries in town—the pub and the diner—and two different cuisines. The diner is more home cooking, no alcohol, great breakfasts and dynamite coffee. We have the best burgers, but there are plenty of good meals for the nonburger fan.”
“I’m definitely a burger fan,” Helen said. “You must be very well known for them.”
“Locally,” he said. “The best thing about this little business is that it allowed me the flexibility to raise my boys. They’re fifteen and seventeen now. Their mother passed away nine years ago and I needed a job I could escape when there were teacher conferences, sporting events, school programs or those nights they called to say they’d just happened to remember the big project they had to turn in tomorrow...that had been assigned a month ago.”
Helen laughed. “I’m a former teacher,” she said. “You just made my heart sing.”
“It all worked out, despite those emergencies. It’s so nice to meet you. I’m going to have to excuse myself. I want to keep an eye on the bar.”
“Thanks for stopping by,” Leigh said. “We’re going to get the check and be on our way.”
“I’ll have it sent over,” he said.
Leigh and Helen just looked at each other for a moment after Rob left. “I like him,” Helen said. “I suppose he’s very well known around here?”
“I’m sure everyone knows him,” Leigh said.
“Then the chances of him being a pervert and predator are slim.”
Leigh laughed. “I would think so.”
The check arrived. Compliments of the house was scrawled across the ticket. Leigh just shook her head, but she was touched that he would do that. She wasn’t completely sure, but she thought that was a gesture of goodwill and not just because he wanted a date. She left a tip for the waitress on the table. They were on the sidewalk when her phone pinged. She looked at the text and smiled.
If you’d like to include your aunt tomorrow night, feel free.
Everyone has a life story—in fact, several versions of that story, all of which are true but might differ in detail or emphasis. Leigh recognized that first dates were usually the time to share that story and the variations seemed to depend on how much she wanted the friendship or relationship to work. Most of the time she had no real interest in a serious relationship nor cared if it worked. She was very experienced with first dates. In fact, she was way too experienced with only one date. She had merely wanted to enjoy herself with a nice man for an evening but nothing beyond that.
The restaurant he’d chosen was perfect, Leigh thought. It was small, quiet, with a little soft background guitar playing. The chef immediately came out front to shake Rob’s hand and meet Leigh. They were delivered a menu of the nine courses to come. The food was a gourmet adventure designed to last a long time.
“I’m