The Lucky One(22)
Author: Nicholas Sparks

"Just kidding. Get whatever you order normally. I’m not particular."

"Ben likes pepperoni."

"Then make it pepperoni."

She eyed him playfully. "Did anyone ever tell you that you’re pretty easygoing?"

"Not lately," he said. "But then again, I didn’t have many people to talk to while I was walking."

"Did you get lonely?"

"Not with Zeus. He’s a good listener."

"But he can’t contribute to the conversation."

"No. But he didn’t whine about the walk, either. Most people would have."

"I wouldn’t have whined." Beth tossed a length of hair over her shoulder. Logan said nothing.

"I’m serious," she protested. "I easily could have walked across the country." Logan said nothing.

"Okay, you’re right. I might have whined once or twice."

He laughed before surveying the restaurant. "How many people do you know in here?"

Glancing around, she considered it. "I’ve seen most of them around town over the years, but those I actually know? Maybe thirty people."

He estimated it to be well more than half the patrons. "What’s that like?"

"You mean where everyone knows everything? I guess it depends on how many big mistakes you make, since that’s what most people end up talking about. Affairs, lost jobs, drug or alcohol abuse, auto accidents. But if you’re like me, on the other hand, someone as pure as the wind-driven snow, it’s not so hard."

He grinned. "It must be nice being you."

"Oh, it is. Trust me. Let’s just say you’re lucky to be sitting at my table."

"Of that," he said, "I have no doubt."

Maria dropped off the drinks. As she was leaving, she raised her eyebrows just enough to let Beth know she liked Logan’s appearance and expected to find out later what, if anything, was going on between them.

Beth took a gulp of her tea, as did Logan.

"What do you think?"

"It’s definitely sweet," Logan said. "But it’s tasty."

Beth nodded before wiping the condensation from the outside of her glass with a paper napkin. She crumpled it and set it aside. "How long are you going to stay in Hampton?" she asked.

"What do you mean?"

"You’re not from here, you have a college degree, you’re working in a job that most people would hate, and getting paid very little for it. I think my question is fair."

"I don’t plan on quitting," he said.

"That’s not what I asked. I asked how long you were going to stay in Hampton. Honestly."

Her voice brooked no evasions, and it was easy for Logan to imagine her bringing order to an unruly classroom. "Honestly? I don’t know. And I say that because I’ve learned over the past five years never to take anything for granted”

"That may be true, but again, it doesn’t really answer the question."

He seemed to register the disappointment in her voice and struggled with his response. "How about this?" he finally said. "So far, I like it here. I like my job, I think Nana’s terrific, I enjoy spending time with Ben, and right now, I have no intention of leaving Hampton any time in the foreseeable future. Does that answer your question?"

She felt a jolt of anticipation at his words and the way his gaze roamed over her face as he spoke. She leaned forward as well. "I noticed you left out something important in that list of things you like."

"I did?"

"Yeah. Me." She studied his face for a reaction, her lips up-turned in a teasing grin. "Maybe I forgot," he said, responding with the faintest of smiles. "I don’t think so."

"I’m shy?"

"Try again."

He shook his head. "I’m out of suggestions."

She winked at him. "I’ll give you a chance to think about it and maybe come up with something. Then we can talk about it again later."

"Fair enough. When?"

She wrapped her hands around her glass, feeling strangely nervous at what she was about to say next. "Are you free on Saturday night?"

If he was surprised by the question, she couldn’t tell. "Saturday night it is." He lifted his glass of iced tea and took a long drink, never taking his eyes off her. Neither one noticed Ben walk back to the table. "Did you order the pizza yet?"

Lying in bed that night, Beth stared at the ceiling and asked her-self, What on earth was I thinking?

There were so many reasons to avoid what she had done. She didn’t really know much about him or his past. He was still hiding the reason he’d come to Hampton, which meant not only that he didn’t trust her, but that she didn’t completely trust him either. Not only that, but he worked at the kennel-for Nana and within sight of her home. What would happen if it didn’t work out? What if he had… expectations she wasn’t willing to meet? Would he show up on Monday? Would Nana be on her own? Would she have to quit her job as a teacher and go back to helping Nana with the kennel?

There were lots of potential problems with all of this, and the more she thought about it, the more she was convinced she had made a terrible mistake. And yet… she was tired of being alone. She loved Ben and she loved Nana, but spending time with Logan over the past few days had reminded her of what she was missing. She liked the walks they took after dinner, she liked the way he looked at her, and she especially liked the way he was with Ben.

Moreover, she found it ridiculously easy to imagine a life with Logan. She knew she hadn’t really known him long enough to make that kind of judgment, but she couldn’t deny her intuition. Could he be the One?

She wouldn’t go that far. They hadn’t even been on a date yet. It was easy to idealize someone you barely knew.

Sitting up, she plumped her pillow a few times and then lay back down. Well, they’d go out once and see what happened next. She had hopes, she couldn’t deny that, but that’s where it ended. She liked him but certainly didn’t love him. Not yet, anyway.

Chapter 16

Thibault

On Saturday evening Thibault waited on the couch, wondering if he was doing the right thing.

In another place and time, he wouldn’t have thought twice about it. He was attracted to Elizabeth, certainly. He liked her openness and intelligence, and together with her playful sense of humor, and of course her looks, he couldn’t imagine how she’d remained single as long as she had.

But it wasn’t another place and time, and nothing was normal about any of this. He’d carried her picture for more than five years. He’d searched the country for her. He’d come to Hampton and taken a job that kept him close to her. He’d befriended her grandmother, her son, and then her. Now, they were minutes away from their first date.

He’d come for a reason. He’d accepted that as soon as he’d left Colorado. He’d accepted that Victor had been right. He still wasn’t sure, however, that meeting her-becoming close to her- was it. Nor was he sure that it wasn’t.

The only thing he knew for sure was that he’d been looking forward to their evening together. The day before, he’d thought about it consistently on the drive to pick up Nana. For the first half hour on the way back to Hampton, Nana had chattered on about everything from politics to her sister’s health before turning toward him with a knowing smirk.

"So you’re going to go out with the boss’s granddaughter, huh?"

Thibault shifted on the seat. "She told you."

"Of course she told me. But even if she hadn’t, I knew it was coming. Two young, attractive, and lonely single people? I knew it would happen as soon as I hired you."

Thibault said nothing, and when Nana spoke again, her voice was tinged with melancholy.

"She’s as sweet as sugared watermelon," she said. "I worry about her sometimes."

"I know," Thibault said.

That had been the extent of their conversation, but it told him that he had Nana’s blessing, something he knew was important given Nana’s place in Elizabeth’s life.

Now, with evening beginning to settle in, he could see Elizabeth’s car coming up the drive, the front end bouncing slightly in the potholes. She hadn’t told him anything about where they were going, other than to dress casually. He stepped out onto the porch as she pulled to a stop in front of the house. Zeus followed him, his curiosity alerted. When Elizabeth got out and stepped into the dim light of the porch, all he could do was stare.

Like him, she was wearing jeans, but the creamy blouse she wore accentuated the sun-browned tint of her skin. Her honey-colored hair swept the neckline of her sleeveless blouse, and he noted that she was wearing a trace of mascara. She looked both familiar and tantalizingly foreign.

Zeus padded down the steps, tail wagging and whining, and went to her side.

"Hey, Zeus. Did you miss me? It’s only been a day." She stroked his back, and Zeus whined plaintively before licking at her hands. "Now that was a greeting," she said, looking up at him. "How are you? Am I late?"

He tried to sound nonchalant. "I’m fine," he said. "And you’re right on time. I’m glad you made it."

"Did you think I wouldn’t?"

"This place is kind of hard to find."

"Not if you’ve lived here your whole life." She motioned toward the house. "So this is home?"

"This is it."

"It’s nice," she said, taking it in. "Is it what you expected?"

"Pretty much. Solid. Efficient. Kind of hidden." He acknowledged her double entendre with a smile, then turned to Zeus and commanded him to stay on the porch. He walked down the steps to join her. "Will he be okay outside?"

"He’ll be fine. He won’t move."

"But we’ll be gone for hours."

"I know."

"Amazing."

"It seems that way. But dogs don’t have much sense of time. In a minute, he won’t remember anything other than the fact that he’s supposed to stay. But he won’t know why."

"How did you learn so much about dogs and training?" Elizabeth asked, curious.

"Mainly books."

"You read?"

He sounded amused. "Yes. Surprised?"

"I am. It’s hard to tote books when you’re walking across the country."

"Not if you don’t keep them when you finish."

They reached the car, and when Thibault started toward the driver’s side to open the door for her, she shook her head. "I might have asked you out, but I’m going to make you drive."

"And here I thought I was going out with a liberated woman," he protested.

"I am a liberated woman. But you’ll drive. And pick up the check."

He laughed as he walked her back around to the other side. Once he was settled behind the wheel, she peeked toward the porch. Zeus seemed confused about what was happening, and she heard him whining again.

"He sounds sad."

"He probably is. We’re seldom apart."

"Mean man," she scolded him.

He smiled at her playful tone as he slipped the car into reverse. "Should I head downtown?"

"Nope," she said. "We’re getting out of town tonight. Just go to the main highway and head toward the coast. We’re not going to the beach, but there’s a good place on the way. I’ll let you know when we’re getting close to the next turn."

Thibault did as she said, driving quiet roads in the deepening twilight. They reached the highway in a few minutes, and as the car picked up speed, the trees on either side began to blur. Shadows stretched across the road, darkening the car’s interior.

"So tell me about Zeus," she said.

"What do you want to know?"

"Whatever you want to tell me. Something I wouldn’t know."

He could have said, I bought him because a woman in a photograph owned a German shepherd, but he didn’t. Instead he said, "I bought Zeus in Germany. I flew out there and picked him from the litter myself."

"Really?"

He nodded. "The shepherd in Germany is like the bald eagle in America. It’s a symbol of national pride, and breeders take their work very seriously. I wanted a dog with strong, working bloodlines, and if that’s what you want, you’ll usually find the best dogs in Germany. Zeus comes from a long line of Schutzhund competitors and champions."

"What’s that?’"

"In Schutzhund, the dogs ate tested not only in obedience, but in tracking and protection. And the competition is intense. Usually it lasts two days, and as a rule, the winners tend to be the most intelligent and trainable dogs of all. And since Zeus comes from a long line of competitors and champions, he’s been bred for both those things."

"And you did all the training," she said, sounding impressed.

"Since he was six months old. When we walked from Colorado, I worked with him every day."

"He’s an incredible animal. You could always give him to Ben, you know. He’d probably love it."

Thibault said nothing.

She noticed his expression and slid closer to him. "I was kidding. I wouldn’t take your dog from you."

Thibault felt the continuing warmth of her body radiate down his side.

"If you don’t mind my asking, how did Ben react when you told him you were going out with me tonight?" he asked.

"He was fine with it. He and Nana were already planning to watch videos. They’d talked on the phone about having a movie night earlier in the week. Made a date and everything."

"Do they do that a lot?"

"They used to do it all the time, but this is the first time since she had her stroke. I know Ben was really excited about it. Nana makes popcorn and usually lets him stay up extra late."

"Unlike his mom, of course."

"Of course." She smiled. "What did you end up doing today?"

"Catching up around the house. Cleaning, laundry, shopping, that kind of thing."

She raised an eyebrow. "I’m impressed. You’re a real domestic animal. Can you bounce a quarter on your bedspread after you make it?"

"Of course."

"You’ll have to teach Ben how to do that."

"If you’d like."

Outside, the first stars were beginning to emerge, and the car’s headlights swept the curves of the road. "Where exactly are we going?" Thibault asked. "Do you like crabs?"