"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.

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.