Mavis patted his shoulder in an unexpectedly motherly gesture and nudged him toward the door. “You go on. Me and Craig’ll have some lunch and a nice long chat.”
The prospect of food perked Dad up considerably, and he gave her a fond smile. “I’d like that very much. Thank you.”
Pleased by the upturn his worrisome morning had taken, Ben teased, “You sure I can leave you two kids alone out here?”
“Oh, you,” Mavis clucked, the faint blush on her cheeks telling him he’d managed to flatter the crustiest woman in town. “Get outta here before I put you to work in my vegetable garden.”
Ben made a show of bolting for the exit, letting the outer door slam behind him. As he strolled out to his truck, he heard laughter inside and congratulated himself on successfully navigating what could have been an awkward situation. His father needed someone to talk to, a friend who’d listen to his problems without judging. Since Ben hadn’t gotten anywhere with him, he was grateful for any help Mavis could give.
On his way into town, he finally had a chance to mull over his odd discussion with Lauren that morning. Her baffling comments made it painfully obvious that she’d been through something awful recently, and his gut was almost certain that was why she’d unexpectedly landed in his hometown. What was she hiding? he wondered.
They’d just met, so it had nothing to do with him, which meant it was strictly none of his business. Even if by some stretch of the imagination he could do something about it, he wasn’t keen on adding Julia’s troubled friend to his already lengthy list of responsibilities. Still, he couldn’t help wishing there was something he could do to help her.
When Ben got to Landry’s Books, the owner Amelia Landry, met him at the door with a worried frown. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing, just had to finish up something out at the lighthouse before I came here.”
Eyes narrowing, she gave him the Mom look. “If you don’t want to tell me, fine, but I know something’s up with you. Cooper gets that same look on his face when he’s chewing on something.”
As a single mother, she’d more or less adopted her son’s friends as her own. Even though they were all adults now, she still watched over them. With his own mother completely out of the picture, Ben appreciated Amelia now more than ever.
But he’d never share his suspicions about Lauren with anyone, so he just grinned. “It’s really nothing, but thanks. Now, the sooner I get back to work on those cabinets, the sooner I’ll be out of your hair.”
While he opened his toolbox, Amelia made a good show of fussing over a display of Easter figurines and doodads set out for the holiday. The original formation looked fine to him, so he guessed that she was stalling, trying to frame whatever it was she had to say.
“I saw you in town with Julia’s friend yesterday,” she began. “She’s quite an eyeful.”
Setting a hinge in place, he chuckled. “Yup, she’s real pretty.” Actually, she was a stunner straight out of some old Hollywood movie, but admitting that would open him up for all kinds of probing questions, so he kept that detail to himself.
“What’s her name?”
Ben knew perfectly well the local gossip mill had churned out that bit of information long before Lauren even arrived in town. Because he liked Amelia, he played along. “Lauren Foster.”
“What a lovely name. Is she nice?”
That wasn’t the right term, but Ben was surprised to find he couldn’t come up with a one-word description of her. She was clearly bright and talented, but she had a darkness about her that struck him as completely out of place. That contradiction intrigued him more than it should, and to get back on track, he simply said, “Yeah, she’s nice.”
“I hear Julia adores her,” Amelia went on, using a feather duster on a collection of pint-size forest gnomes. “She’s been worried about her, though. It seems Lauren’s gotten herself tangled up with someone who’s not very good for her.”
“I’m pretty sure they broke up,” Ben blurted without thinking. Embarrassed to be gossiping, he focused on the hinge to conceal his sudden discomfort.
“Really? Well, that’s a whole new ball game then, isn’t it?”
Glancing up, Ben caught Amelia eyeing him, then laughed when she abruptly turned her attention to a nearby shelf that was already perfectly arranged. “And you think I should step up to the plate, is that it?”
“I’m just saying there’s more to this life than work and more work. When’s the last time you had a date?”
“Church social last month.”
“You sat with the pastor and his family then ended up washing dishes till midnight. That’s not the kind of socializing a young man needs, and you know it.” Setting the duster aside, she hunkered down beside him. “Ben, your mom and I were friends all through school, but what she’s done to all of you is just plain wrong. When things get tough, you don’t turn your back on the people who need you.”
Ben had never discussed the breakup of his family with anyone, and it still made him sick to think about it. After an honorable discharge from the military, his older brother, Eric, was roaming around New England, working odd jobs and still trying to find his place. Three years ago, his sister, Casey had moved to Detroit with her husband and young children. That left Ben alone to manage their father’s troubling downhill slide.
Amelia’s honest sympathy had nudged a crack into his characteristic self-control, and he heard himself say, “The divorce is final now. Dad’s taking it pretty hard.”
“Of course he is. Divorces are awful, even when you both agree it’s the best thing for everyone.”
Ben didn’t have a response for that, so he just nodded. Having gone through it herself when Cooper was young, he figured she knew what she was talking about.
Standing, she folded her arms and looked down at him. “What you need is to have some fun. This girl won’t be in town forever, so you should ask her out sooner rather than later.”
“What makes you think I even want to?” She tipped her head in a chiding gesture, and he laughed. “Okay, maybe I was tempted for about five seconds, but she’s one of those uptown girls who needs a room-sized closet to hold all her shoes. Not exactly my type.”
“I’m not saying marry her,” she argued, “I’m saying go to a movie or something. You only live once, and you should make sure you grab a little fun along the way.”
Maybe she was right, he thought. Lauren had snared his attention the moment he met her, and he was more than a little curious about what made her tick. She’d left her ex behind in New York, so there was no reason for Ben to keep his distance. Amelia’s suggestion was worth thinking about, anyway. Since Lauren was new in town, she didn’t know anyone but Julia, who was busy with her wedding. He could invite Lauren over for a good meal and some friendly conversation, no strings attached. Where was the harm in that?
Of course, if he shared his train of thought with Amelia, he’d never hear the end of it. Instead, he fended off her repeated attempts at a fix-up until he finished with her cabinets. The day had gotten away from him, so by the time Ben filled his supply list and checked in with Thomas and Sons other ongoing jobs, it was eight o’clock when he got home.
Too tired for anything beyond a glass of water, he kicked off his boots and fell into bed. Out of habit, he checked his voice mail and saw he had a message from an old buddy of his who now lived in Boston. Wondering what might be up, he played the recording.
“Hey, man, it’s Davy. Just took on a restoration job in Concord and could really use a top-notch guy like you. The project starts June 1, so you can crash with me till you find a place down here. Call me and I’ll give you the deets. Later.”
Intrigued, Ben started to call, but paused with his thumb