Dream Lover

"Why? Were you planning on whacking me with your cane or something?"

"Oh, now that was just uncalled for!" Reese said.

"No, it pretty much was called for," he insisted.

"I guess it's a good thing I left it at home tonight then, huh?" she said now smiling happily. "Oh, I'm just up here on the right."

Darin pulled into the driveway and said, "Nice house."

"Um...thank you, but um...it's my...mom's house."

He could tell it wasn't a big deal to her, yet it clearly bothered her so he didn't reply.

"May I walk you to the door?" he offered.

"No. You don't need to do that. Thank you, though," she said as she pulled his coat from around her shoulders.

"You sure?" he asked as he set the coat in the back seat.

"I'm sure. But thank you so much for the ride. I'm not sure how else I'd have gotten home as my mom doesn't drive at night anymore."

"It was my pleasure, Reese," he told her.

"Well, thank you again, Darin. I really enjoyed talking with you, too. You're very sweet."

"Ah, yes. The dreaded 'S' word. I see I've made quite the impression on you," he said in a way that didn't sound pathetic, but let her know he was interested in being thought of as more than just 'sweet'.

"If you're ever in the mood for a scone, it's on me," she said with a happy smile.

"I may just take you up on that one of these days," he told her with a smile of his own.

"Well, thank you again and...goodnight," she told him.

"Goodnight, Reese," he told her as she opened the door and got out.

She waved at him through the glass then walked quickly to the front door and went inside.

Darin waited until she was out of sight before backing out and heading home where he too, still lived with his parents. He knew it was absurd to think about asking her out on the heels of a breakup, and then there was the rather formidable difference in their ages. At yet he couldn't get her off his mind the rest of that night or the following day or for several more days after that.

Inside, Reese shared the events of the evening with her mother who was once again grateful her daughter had come to her senses. As she recounted her conversation with Albert, Reese couldn't help but think she should at least be mildly upset or a tiny bit sad at having just ended a relationship. Yes, she'd been the one doing the ending, but even so, she shouldn't feel the way she was feeling. And yet she felt almost happy, and in her heart of hearts, she knew it was because she'd just been charmed by the most unlikely person; someone she felt sure she'd never see again. Even so, it had been very pleasant having such a good-looking guy of any age make her feel like that.

As she lay in bed later that night, the last thing she thought about her brief interaction with Darin was his comment about how 'well' things had worked out with both Albert and her ex-husband, both of whom had been within two years of her own age. She hated admitting he'd been right, but she had to ask if it was a cause and effect kind of thing or merely coincidence?

She didn't know the answer to that question, but she felt reasonably sure she'd never look at someone that young 'like that', but perhaps she should at least be willing to consider adopting a...broader view...when it came to the age of men in the future. Not boys, of course, but men.

That next day, Norm downplayed his enthusiasm when Reese casually mentioned that she and Albert were no longer together, but it was obvious he very happy to learn she was now free and available. In the meantime, he showed her how to make two new pastries knowing how much she enjoyed that. What he didn't know was that she intended on leaving at some point and using everything she'd learned to build her own business. For now both of them very happy but for very different reasons.

Three days later was Wednesday and Darin had the next day off as the restaurant was closed on Thursdays, the worst day of the week for business. He decided he'd check out local pastry shops and see if he might get lucky and find this very attractive, older woman he was still thinking about almost constantly.

If she had only been polite because he was helping her out but had no interest in him 'like that' then he'd be able to stop thinking about her and move on. But until he knew for sure, he was driven to find her and at least let her know how he felt.

A quick search on his phone told him this might not be such an easy task. There were ten possible places in Renton alone, and he didn't even know if that's where she worked. Undaunted, he sat down and decided to 'let his fingers do the walking' and started dialing.

"Yes, ma'am. I was wondering if Reese was working today," he said to the first voice that answered on his first call.

"Reese? No, there's no one here by that name. May I help you with something?"

He politely thanked each person then kept working his way down the list. He was on his eight call when he hit the jackpot.

"Sugar Shack," he heard a deep male voice say.

"Yes, sir, I was trying to get ahold of Reese. Is she there by any chance?"

"Hold on," the man said. "Reese? It's for you."

Darin's heart began pounding as he heard that now-familiar voice say, "Hello? This is Reese. May I help you?"

For the first time since he was 14 he panicked when a girl he called to talk to answered the phone.

"Hello? Is anyone there?" he heard her say as he sat there dumbfounded and unable to say a word.

The line went dead, and Darin felt like he was back in junior high.

"Very classy, dumbass," he told himself.

But at least he now knew where she worked.

It was a little after 10am and he'd just showered and gotten dressed. He laughed as he stood in front of his closet trying to decide whether or not he should change. Did he look too 'boyish' in what he was wearing? Would a different shirt or pair of pants make any difference? If it did, was she really someone he wanted to get to know?

He was wearing jeans and a rugby shirt then decided he'd keep the jeans but wear a long-sleeved, button-down shirt with a sweater. One look at that seemed to only make matters worse so he pulled the sweater off and threw on a black leather jacket. His hair was a mess, but he was otherwise satisfied with the overall look so after running a comb through his hair, he declared himself ready to pay Reese Evans a visit in person.

The Sugar Shack was a quaint little place with a half dozen tables and as many barstools set up in front of a counter where people could sit and talk. There was just one another patron sitting at a table reading the paper with a cup of coffee in front of him when he arrived.

He hadn't taken two steps when he saw her. She was wearing a uniform that was a maroon color with a white collar and white cuffs on its short sleeves as well as a two-inch white hem at the bottom. He couldn't read the name embroidered on it in white, but he could make out the 'R'.

He could only see the side of her face, but even in her work attire, it was obvious she was every bit as attractive as he'd remembered. Her long, dark hair was pulled back into a ponytail and even from 20 feet away he could easily make out one of her distinctively high cheekbones and see half of her soft, full lips.

As he got closer, she looked up and said, "Hi, there. How may I..."

"Hi," Darin said with a smile. "I told you I really liked raspberry scones."

"Oh, my goodness. Darin! Hi!" she said with genuine enthusiasm. "I honestly never expected to see you again."

"I didn't mean to disappoint you," he teased.

Reese laughed then said, "Hardly! I'm really glad you stopped by."

An older gentleman in a maroon shirt with a white collar and the name 'Norm' on it was standing right next to Reese. He looked at Darin and said to Reese, "You two know each other?"

"Yes, yes we do," she told him. "This is the guy who gave me a ride home after I walked out on Albert."

"Oh, sure. Yeah, I remember."

He leaned over and said, "You weren't kiddin'. He does look like he's still in high school."

It wasn't said to mean, he was just agreeing with something Reese had obviously said about him to Norm.

Darin could also tell his remark made her visibly uncomfortable, but she didn't say anything about it.

"So...would you like that scone?" she asked wanting to move on from the comment about his youth.

Darin pretended not to have noticed and smiled.

"Sure. And if you serve...high school kids...maybe a cup of coffee?" he said unable to keep up the charade about not having heard the comment. It wasn't a dig, it was just a playful reply.

Reese was clearly embarrassed and said, "I am so sorry. I wasn't putting you down or anything, Darin. I was only trying to explain how grateful I was for your help."

"It's fine," he assured her. "Someone I respect very much, a guy I call 'Dad'—once told me to enjoy every stage of my life and to never wish even a single day away so I'm doing my best to enjoy my youth, such as it is."

"That's very good advice," she said as she put a fresh, hot scone on a plate.

She poured him a cup of coffee then told him, "I have a ten-minute break coming. If you'd like I could take it now and sit and have a cup of coffee with you."

Her eyebrows were raised signifying she was hoping he'd say 'yes' so she could feel less guilty about the high-school thing.

"Well, that was kind of my ulterior motive for coming here so...yes, I'd like that very much," he told her.

His comment drew another look which involved Reese lowering her head and raising one eyebrow indicating he was pushing it.

"Norm? I'm gonna take my break now, okay?" she called to the older man as she poured a second cup for herself.

"Sure thing," he said with a smile that told Darin he found Reese as attractive as he did.

"So that must be your pastry chef," Darin said as they sat down at a table for two.

"It is. He's one of the nicest guys I've ever met," she told him as she took a small sip.

"You know he's got a thing for you, right?" Darin said before taking a first bite.

"Norm? No. No way. Be serious!" Reese said looking over at her boss. She really did suspect he thought she was attractive, she just had no idea he thought of her 'like that' in spite of his previous comment.

He smiled at her the way he had before and winked.

"Oh, my gosh," she said.

"I may only be a high school kid, but there are some things a guy can just tell. And that is one of them," he said with a smile. "And...this is incredibly good!"

Reese thanked him then said, "I'm really sorry about the high school thing. I was trying to describe you, and that just kind of came out. I did mention you were boyishly handsome, if that helps."

She made a squinty face and asked him, "Are you ever going to let me live this down?"

"That depends," he said very seriously before taking another sip of coffee to wash down the delicious pastry.

"Onnn?" she asked dragging out the 'n'.

"I'd like to make dinner for you sometime," he said being serious.

Then, less seriously, he said, "You know, with my being an up-and-coming chef and all."

Reese smiled politely then told him, "I'm very flattered, Darin, but in case you forgot—or in case you can't see—I'm not exactly, um...in high school...anymore."

"Then we have something in common," he told her with a smile.

"Okay. I deserved that," she said sweetly. "But please be serious. I mean, just look at me and then look at you."

"I am looking at you," he told her. "In fact, I haven't stopped looking at you since I walked in. You didn't see me for a few seconds, but even from the entrance I could tell how beautiful I remembered you were. And now, sitting this close just proves I was right."

Reese stopped smiling and looked down for a moment before saying, "That may be the nicest thing anyone's said to me in...well...ever."

"I find that very hard to believe," Darin told her.

"Um, I don't exactly have the best track record when it comes to men," she said smiling a kind of frail smile. "Another reason you should be running for the door."

"How you two doin' over there?" Norm called out. "Can I get you some more coffee, Reese?"

"No, thanks, Norm. We're good," she said with a bright smile.

"Nope. He doesn't have it bad for you. I'm sure every boss fetches coffee for his employees," Darin teased politely.

"Stop! Norm is a very nice man," she said in his defense.

"I have no doubt," Darin agreed. "He seems very..."

"Please don't say 'stable', okay?" Reese pleaded.

"I was going to say 'safe' but sure, 'stable' works, too."

She didn't bother explaining the significance of the word to him. She just shook her head and said, "I'm hopeless!"

"Reese? I not only haven't stopped looking at you, I haven't stopped thinking about you since I saw you standing there freezing in that very pretty, but very thin dress you were wearing."

She nearly blurted out that she'd been thinking about him quite often too, but managed to check herself.

"I...I don't know, Darin. I mean, even if I did go out with you or let you make dinner for me or whatever, where could this go from there? I wasn't kidding when I told you I was in high school when you were born," she said trying to let him down gently.

"All I know is I've grown up quite a bit since then," he began with a smile as he sat up straight and tall.

"Well, I also know you're a very beautiful woman and that I really enjoyed talking to you the other night. And I wasn't kidding when I said I haven't been able to stop thinking about you. Lastly, I'd never forgive myself if I didn't let you know that and ask you out."

She finally looked back at him so he decided to go for it and kept talking.

"Life presents us with opportunities sometimes, and we never really know when they'll come along. Sometimes we don't even notice them, so we have no idea we may have missed something amazing. Other times, we look right at an opportunity, but because of preconceived notions, we dismiss it. And those are the ones we tend to look back on with regret. You know, the 'woulda, coulda, shoulda' thing."

He smiled at her then said, "Don't dismiss this opportunity just because you have it in your mind I'm too young."

She still hadn't replied so Darin smiled even more broadly then told her, "Please keep in mind what you said about your track record with men then ask yourself if you want more of..."

He nodded toward Norm then said, "That...or if you might be better served to try something new; something maybe even a little bit out of your comfort zone."

Reese finally smiled and said, "Like you, right?"

"As they say, nothing ventured, nothing gained, right?" he told her in a matter of fact kind of way.

She looked over at Norm who smiled at her again.

"I'll be right there, Norm!" she told him.

"Take your time. I've got it covered."

"He's got it bad for you," Darin said again but not in a silly way this time. "You just have to decide if you want more... what word did you use?"

Reese exhaled deeply then very quietly said, "Stability."

"Right. Stability. Or you could try someone..."

He laughed and said, "I was about to say 'less stable'," which got a genuine laugh from Reese when she understood the other meaning.

"How about...someone less...predictable?" he offered. "Let me make dinner for you. I'll do all the work while you do what you do best."

Darin got another raised eyebrow in return.

"Which would be?" she asked wondering what else was coming.

"Sitting there and looking beautiful," he told her sincerely.

She smiled again then said, "Oh! You're good. I gotta give you that much."

"So when can I pick you up?" he asked.

"Oh, my goodness, Darin. You're really serious, aren't you?"

"As a heart attack," he told her in mock solemness.

She tried her best not to laugh then said, "I'm free pretty much any night so I guess I at least you owe one dinner for helping..."

"Great!" Darin said a little too excitedly. "The restaurant is closed on Thursdays. How about I pick you up at 7:30?"

"I have no idea why I'm agreeing to this, but...okay," she told him.

He smiled then told her, "Just think. Now you'll never have to look back and ask, 'What if', right?"

"Yeah. Lucky me," she said trying to sound like she was making yet another big mistake.

Secretly, she was somehow happy he'd asked her. It didn't make any sense to her, but given the choices she'd made in her past, even if this turned out to be another disaster, how awful could one bad date be compared to chaos or the dreaded...stability?

He polished off the last bite of the scone and said, "I'm not kidding. This was delicious!"

"Told you!" she said sweetly.

He finished his coffee too, then said, "So...I'll see you Thursday then."

"Well, you know where I live so...yes, I'll see you then," she said cheerfully as they both stood up at the same time.

"You won't regret it. I promise!" he said with a big smile as he headed out.

"Bye, Darin," she said with a shake of her head.

"What won't you regret?" Norm asked never once thinking she would even consider going out with a high school kid.

"Oh, nothing," she told him, confident that's all it would turn out to be was—nothing.

"He seems like a good kid. It was real nice of him to look you up like that." Norm smiled then said, "Good thing he's not ten years older."

Reese forced a smile back when she realized why he'd said that.

"Oh, right," she said politely. "You know...I should um...get busy on those turnovers in the back."

"You work too hard!" Norm said as though she wasn't his employee he expected to work hard.

When Thursday evening rolled around, Reese found herself actually looking forward to seeing Darin again and was trying to decide what to wear. She wanted to look nice, but had no intention of going all out. After getting ready she went downstairs and let her mom know what she was doing.

"Mom? I'm gonna be going out for a couple of hours. Will you be all right?" Reese asked.

"Thank you for asking, honey, but I think I can manage on my own for few hours," her 75-year old mother, Bridgett Evans, replied sweetly.

She called Reese her 'miracle baby' because she and her late husband had tried for years to get pregnant. They'd given up then at 40, she was shocked to learn she was finally going to have a child.

"I know. I just worry about you being here all alone," she said before kissing her mom on the cheek.

"Who's the lucky fellow?" her mom asked with a smile. "Please don't tell me you gave in and went back to that stick in the mud, Albert."

"No, mom. I'm not that desperate," she said a little put out yet knowing it wasn't out of the realm of possibilities in her mother's mind.

"You need to be willing to try new things, dear. I try never to give unsolicited advice, but when the same old thing never works..."

"I am 'oh-for-two'," Reese admitted. "But do you really have to remind me?"

"I worry about you too, honey," she told her daughter. "What's that new saying?"

"I'm gonna need some help here, Mom," she said knowing things like 'the bomb' or 'back in the day' were 'new' sayings to her mother.

"Oh, yes. Try thinking...out of the box...every once in a while, dear. Especially if the box you're looking in is filled with empty suits—like Albert."

"Mother!" she said trying to make her mom think she was upset.

"Well...if the shoe fits..."

Reese gave her a fake glare just as the doorbell rang.

"Is that Prince Charming?" her mom asked.

"I'll see you later, Mom," she said ignoring the question as she knew the next one would be, 'Why don't you invite him in so I can meet him'?

Reese had quickly gone from looking forward to seeing Darin to second guessing her decision, and the last thing she needed was a lecture from her mom about robbing the cradle. All she had to do was spend a couple of hours enjoying a nice meal, make some friendly conversation, and Darin Reese would be in her rearview mirror.