One Tiny Miracle...

‘Have you dated again—I mean since…?’

‘She died three, nearly four years ago,’ Ben said, answering the unspoken question.

‘Oh.’

‘A bit.’ He gave a shrug. ‘Though it was probably too soon.’

‘Are you still comparing them to her?’ Celeste asked, boldly striding in where no one else really dared to go, but Ben just ignored her question and, glad of the diversion, opened the gates to the units, but Celeste stood patiently waiting.

‘Are you?’ she asked.

‘Sorry?’

‘Comparing them?’

She was a persistent little thing, like a little woodpecker, peck, peck pecking away—

‘I used to,’ Ben admitted. ‘But not now—that’s not fair on anyone.’

‘Especially as she sounds like Superwoman,’ Celeste grumbled, and her response was so refreshing Ben actually smiled. ‘So,’ she pushed, ‘are you ready now?’

‘Perhaps, though not anything serious.’

‘Ooh, I’m sure there’ll be plenty of takers.’ Celeste grinned. After all, she’d heard the giggles and gossip in the staffroom—Ben could take his pick!

‘What about you?’ They were sitting on her steps now, the conversation, and the friendship, too new, too fragile to snap it by asking him in. And anyway the power was still off, so they sat on the steps and got to know each other just a little bit better.

‘I’m hardly in a position to date.’ Celeste rolled her eyes. ‘Can you imagine me out clubbing?’

‘I guess not!’

‘And I’m still in that “all men are snakes” place.’

‘It’s probably a very wise place to be right now,’ Ben agreed. ‘I’ve been a bit of a snake myself lately.’

‘Do tell!’ She did make him laugh, she was so eager for gossip, and so easy to talk to, that somehow he did.

‘I went out with someone for a while—she was great, but even though I told her from the start—’

‘She didn’t listen?’ she finished for him.

‘She did at first, said she wanted the same thing—then, well, it got a bit more serious. She started to hint at wanting different things.’ He looked into her smiling amber eyes. ‘Like moving in.’

‘Not for you?’ she said wisely.

‘Maybe one day, but she also started talking about children. And one thing I do know is that I don’t want kids.’

‘Never?’

‘Never,’ he said emphatically.