"Sounds good, I guess." I pulled my phone from my purse and pulled up the quotes and slid my phone over to her.
"Oh, the quotes! Let me see," she said, rubbing her hands together and going over the first one.
Two of the quotes had come in fairly close to one another, and then there was Ben's. It was the highest of them all, but it didn't bother me. I knew he wouldn't screw me. I watched Kate as her eyes skimmed over each of them as she sipped on her Bellini until the glass was empty.
"So what do you think?" I asked, taking a sip of my martini.
"First things first, I need another drink." She giggled while waving the waitress over to our table and ordering another drink. "Okay, so, what I really want to know is which of these contractors is the cutest?"
I rolled my eyes and set my glass back down. "What does cute have to do with it, Kate? They are coming in and ripping my place apart. That's it, that's all."
Kate chuckled to herself. "Well, you are single, in case I needed to remind you."
"You need not remind me, and I am not single. I'm not even in the process of a separation."
Kate waved me off as if I were just being silly. "Well, if you will be stuck inside of your place all day with dirty, sweaty men, which honestly doesn't sound all that bad if you ask me, you definitely want a buff guy walking around your apartment. You know, shirtless, with abs, and whatever those drive-us-wild lines are called peeking out the top of his low-slung jeans." She winked and took a sip of the drink the waitress had just dropped off at the table.
I thought to myself. The first two contractors had been about fifteen years older than me, with beer guts and the matching plumber’s cracks to go with them. Ben, though, had stayed in shape. I thought of the way his T-shirt had snugly hugged his broad shoulders, and how it stretched across his back and biceps.
"Spill it, girl," Kate said, raising her glass to me. "What's on that mind of yours?"
I smiled. "Well, if we are going purely based on looks, then that would be Ben," I mumbled.
"Ben?"
"Yeah, from Sunset Builders."
Kate shuffled through the quotes again. She glanced at me. "You're on a first-name basis already, after only one meeting? Need I remind you that his is the highest quote."
"Yes, I know his is the most expensive, and it wasn't exactly our first meeting." I swirled my finger around the top of my glass, eying her reaction.
She studied me, and I could tell she wanted me to elaborate. When I didn't offer an explanation, it didn't take her long to ask. "What do you mean it wasn't exactly your first meeting?"
"He asked me to marry him," I said in a barely audible voice.
"TODAY?" Kate asked, sitting forward, waiting for all the information to pour out. "That's bold, wouldn't you say?"
"No, Kate, not today," I said, rolling my eyes. "If you must know, it would be almost seven years ago now. We dated in high school and college."
"Ah, gotcha, the one who got away!" Kate winked.
"More like the one I threw away."
"All right, so now I am even more curious. Why the hell did you say no?"
I thought back to that night. I could almost put myself right back into the moment, sitting in the front seat of his car as he read over the letter I had received, while I twirled his ring around my finger in excitement. I remembered watching his eyes as he read. I remembered seeing the disappointment, the fear, the unknown in his eyes as I presented him with my ticket to what I was sure was a better life. I could still feel how badly I had wanted him to say he would move with me. Instead, he got angry and shattered the dream of us within seconds, causing me to run. I'd left behind everything, met Kendrick, and had never returned, nor had I seen my parents again.
"Well…" I blinked away the burning sensation in my eyes. "He'd asked me to marry him about two months earlier. Things were going well, I had said yes. Then I auditioned, I guess for the modeling gig. After that, and thinking about what could be, things changed between us. Then I received the modeling opportunity."
"Okay, and..."
"I was so excited. I hated living in that town where nothing changed. I had dreams, and when I showed him what they had sent me, he burst that dream. He thought it was a silly idea for me to even have entered what he called a cattle call. He thought thatfollowing some directions in some silly letter was ridiculous. He was so against the idea. We got into a fight, if you could even call it that. I had wanted him to go with me, he didn't want to leave. He wanted to stay and work for his father and build a family there with me. When he dropped me off at home, I gave him back his ring. That night, I packed my bags and left. I didn't want to see the pain I had caused, and I knew dragging it out any longer would mean he would come back and try to make things right. That is the man Ben is. In hindsight, he was right, I should have just stayed. I not only hurt him, but I hurt my parentsas well."
"So you left him behind to chase your dreams. There is nothing wrong with that. I would have probably done the same thing."
"Yeah, some dreams. Kendrick made sure I never got my break, and instead of living in a dream, I'm living in a nightmare."
"Well, it may have turned into a nightmare, but it has brought you back to your dream guy."