Ben slammed his laptop shut and pushed away from his desk. What was wrong with her? They’d been having a nice conversation and then wham, out of the blue came...whatever that was. Sure, okay, Bread of Heaven was hoping to get more donors from their partnership with the mission, but the mission stood to gain new donors as well. And they’d been completely open about that in all of the documentation. The fact of the matter was that many people who gave to international hunger relief had no idea that many Americans went hungry every day. The reverse was true as well, though those who gave locally tended to know about the international problem. They just didn’t necessarily see it as their responsibility to do anything about it. Maybe seeing a joint effort would help them change their minds. So what, exactly, was Rebecca’s problem?

Zach poked his head in the door. “Hungry? I was going to throw together something dinnerish. Easy enough to make two plates instead of just one.”

Ben shook his head. “Thanks though.”

“How was lunch?” Zach leaned against the jamb.

“Food was good. Her mom is great. But we touched on the fundraiser and then things got weird, like she shut down. I don’t know.”

“Huh. Gonna call her?”

Should he? “I was thinking of giving her a day. See if she needed some time. I mean, if she’s not excited about working together...I don’t want to push.”

Zach nodded. “If she doesn’t call tomorrow, you’ll call her?”

“I don’t know. Probably. Why?”

“’Cause Amy’s nervous about Sunday and I kind of promised she wouldn’t be the only one there who hadn’t met everyone else yet. Plus, as much as we’ve been spending time together, it really has been work-related at this point. I haven’t quite figured out how to bridge that friend-slash-coworker gap. So, anyway, I kind of made it sound like just a group of friends hanging out.”

Ben gave a sardonic laugh. “I didn’t even remember to ask about Sunday. I’ll do that for sure tomorrow. I still think she needs an evening to collect her thoughts.”

“All right. But if you can possibly avoid making me a liar, I’d appreciate it.”

“I’ll do my best.”

Ben stared at his phone. He wasn’t going to call. That didn’t mean he couldn’t text, right? He grabbed the phone and put in her number. What to say?

Had fun at lunch, thanks for inviting me. I like your mom.

That should do. His phone buzzed with a response. She had fast fingers.

Glad you could come. Mom liked you, too.

Hmm. Ben’s stomach clenched. Something was off. He tapped in another text.

But...?

Minutes ticked by without a response. Should he call after all? Or should he just leave it alone? He shouldn’t have even texted. Why did he always do this? He plugged his phone into his charger and grabbed his crutches. Maybe there was a ridiculous monster movie on that he could sucker Zach or Jackson into watching with him.

Paige bustled around the living room, lighting candles and adjusting the trays of bite-sized munchies she’d put in various locations.

Ben frowned, his brow creasing. “I’m confused. I thought it was just you and Jackson, Zach, Amy, and me? It’s not like it’s going to be a standing room only cocktail party.”

Paige crossed her arms. “Men. Doesn’t this seem friendlier than dumping everything on the kitchen table and making people circle it for food? Now there’s something delicious wherever they are.”

Or wherever they aren’t. Ben bit back the retort. He was either going to have to con people into bringing him things or do a lot more walking without crutches than he was supposed to. Even if he was expecting to get clearance tomorrow that would allow him to drive and ditch the torture devices, he wasn’t going to take any chances today.

“Wait. What about Rebecca? Why’d you leave her off the list?” Paige crossed the room and perched on the edge of the sofa. “Isn’t she coming?”

Ben lifted a shoulder. “I’m not sure. She wouldn’t commit one way or the other, I wasn’t comfortable pushing super hard, and so she’ll either show up or not. But I don’t think I’d count on her. She said it was a long week with her parents in town.”

“What’s going on? From what Jackson said, things were going great with the two of you, once you figured out that she was your long lost romance.”

“Yeah, well. I don’t know.” Ben raked a hand through his hair. “I thought so, then I had lunch with her and her mom and she’s been dodging me since.”

The doorbell rang. Ben smiled in spite of himself. Paige groaned. “Why haven’t you guys changed that? Seriously, are you twelve?”

“There’s some part of every guy out there that stays twelve. Don’t you know that? Relax, it’s just a doorbell.” Jackson stopped and squeezed Paige’s shoulder on his way to answer the door.

Ben hauled himself to his feet when he spotted Rebecca standing there, her hands clasped in front of her. “You made it.”

“You must be Rebecca. Come on in.” Jackson opened the door wider. “I’m Jackson. This is Paige, and you know Ben already. Zach—you met Zach, right?—went to get Amy. She lives downtown and doesn’t have a car. So he was meeting her at the Metro.”

“Hi.” Rebecca’s gaze flitted around the room before settling on Ben. “Sorry I didn’t let you know I was coming for sure.”

“As you can see, Paige made enough food for a party of thirty, so we were covered either way. But I’m glad you made it.” Ben sank back onto the couch. “Come on in and have a seat.”

Paige nudged Jackson in the belly with her elbow. “We’re going to grab the last of the food from the kitchen.”

“Can I help?” Rebecca ran her palms down her jeans.

“No. We’re good. You sit.” Paige pointed to the couch before grabbing Jackson and heading into the kitchen.

Ben chuckled. “I think she’s giving us privacy. There can’t possibly be anything left in the kitchen to bring out. Except maybe the stove and refrigerator.”

“Ah.” Rebecca crossed the room and sat, angling toward Ben. “Look. I’m sorry about Thursday. I’m protective of the mission. I know that sounds silly, but I got worried that this was all just a big publicity stunt for Bread of Heaven, something designed to steal our donors and get them involved in international ministry. Not that they can’t be doing both, but so many have a limited budget and...”

“Stop. That couldn’t be more wrong. I really believe that this project can help both agencies. If I didn’t, I wouldn’t have suggested it. Local ministry is just as important as international. And that’s part of the point I’m hoping people will see when they see us partnering together.”

“Okay.” Rebecca blew out a breath. “Sorry. Maybe we do need to go ahead and plan that meeting. I guess I’m not as proficient with email as I thought.”

Before Ben could comment, Zach and Amy, trailed by Jackson and Paige came in from the kitchen. After introductions were made, Ben eyed at the food scattered around the room. “All right, let’s eat.”

Ben leaned against Rebecca’s car, his heart pounding. “I’m really glad you decided to come.”

“Thanks. I am too. Look, I’m sorry about Thursday. My parents being in town was stressful. It’s complicated. Anyway, I shouldn’t have jumped down your throat about the project. I looked back through the information and it’s a solid plan. Getting people out to see the mission and interacting with the people who stay there is good.”

He cleared his throat. “Are you free on Friday?”

“Um. I can probably make time if that’s easier for you.”

Ben frowned. “For what?”

“Were you thinking of getting together to start work on the project? I have some ideas for how to word the invitation...”

A slow smile spread across his face as he shook his head. “That’s not really what I had in mind, no. Though maybe we can talk some about the project, too. I was thinking more along the lines of dinner. Just you and me.”

“I don’t...Ben....” She took a step back.

He reached for her hand and pulled her close. Fire—the good kind—burned along his leg and side where they touched. “Rebecca. Tell me you don’t still feel it. There hasn’t been anyone I’ve really cared about since camp for me.”

Rebecca’s tongue darted between her lips. Her voice was husky. “I feel it. I—you said at the sandwich shop—I never stopped loving you, either. But, Ben...I can’t...it just isn’t possible.”

He jolted, the air catching in his lungs. “Why?”

She eased back, severing their contact, and crossed her arms. “It’s complicated.”

“You say that a lot. But complicated problems still have solutions. Let me help you find one.”

Her eyes glistened in the streetlight and she shook her head, blinking. “I can’t. Just let it go. Let me go, Ben.”

“Rebecca...”

She wrenched the car door open and darted in. “I’ll see you at PT tomorrow. I had fun tonight. Thanks for the invite.”

Ben stepped back as she slammed the door, shutting him out. The engine revved to life. He stared, numb, as she backed out of the driveway and turned down the street, her car’s taillights disappearing. What now?

Zach pulled up next to the curb and hopped out of his car, hands in his pockets, whistling merrily. His night had apparently ended better than Ben’s.

“Hey man, Rebecca on her way home?”

“Yeah.” Ben blinked and pulled himself back to reality. “Amy seems nice.”

Zach grinned. “She is. She liked Rebecca and Paige, too. Still not sure if she understands how interested I am in her, but there’s time for that to develop, right?”

Time. Was time the problem? Was ten years too long apart for them to rekindle what they had? He sighed.

“You okay?”

Ben shook his head. “I asked her out.”

“’Bout time. Where are you going to take her?”

“Nowhere. She said no—it’s ‘complicated.’” He made air quotes. “I don’t know what to do with that.”

Zach pursed his lips. “You know what they say about eating an elephant, right? Seems to me that applies to any complicated proposition. Come on, I’m pretty sure Paige said there were leftovers in the fridge. A snack’ll help you sort it out.”

Ben turned and followed in Zach’s wake. A snack wasn’t likely to hold any answers. But it probably wouldn’t hurt, either.