i wasn't looking for this

[sophia lillian abraham]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=cellspacing,0,true][atrb=style, padding: 10px; width: 500px, bTable][cs=2][style=background-color: #fff; width: 490px; padding: 5px;][style=font-family: arial; font-size: 23px; font-weight: bold; color: #494949; text-transform: uppercase; text-shadow: #f1f1f1 1px 1px 2px; letter-spacing: -2px; text-align: right;]I TRADE MY SOUL FOR A WISH,[/style][style=background-color: #494949; width: 490px; height: 25px;][style=font-family: arial; color: #fff; font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: -1px; font-weight: bold; text-align: left; text-shadow: #333333 1px 1px 2px; padding-top: 4px; padding-left: 5px;]PENNIES AND DIMES FOR A KISS[/style][/style]

[atrb=style, width: 350px; background-color: #fff;][style=font-family: tahoma; font-size: 9.2px; color: #494949; text-align: justify; padding: 10px; line-height: 12px;] [style=background-color: #494949; padding: 2px; height: 100px; width: 100px; opacity: 0.8; margin-right: 5px; float: left;][/style] Sophie fluttered anxiously around her kitchen, talking at full speed to the babysitter she had hired for the night, who watched her employer with a bemused smile, trying not to laugh. The mother of two had a millions thoughts going through her head as she bustled around, trying to remember everything she needed for the evening. She had on her dress, and a light, natural looking dusting of makeup covered her face. Her shoes and purse were by the front door, being played with by an ever-curious Lillian. Taking a deep breath, Sohpie continued, ”Okay as usual emergency contacts are on the fridge, the kid’s dinner is in the fridge….Um, there’s also leftover pizza if you get hungry. Carter needs to be in bed by 7, and then you can read to Lillian until she falls asleep. She won’t stay up past 7:45.” Sophie motioned for the sitter to follow her into the living room, ”Diapers are in the drawer under the TV counsel, along with wipes and all that good stuff. OH!” She hustled to the front of the house, saying to Lillian, ”Now sweetie, remember if you have to go potty, try the big girl potty! It’s so fancy and just for you!” Lilly didn’t bother to look up, but continues to smear lipstick from her mother’s purse all over her hands. Sophie swept up her purse and spilled into her shoes, kissing Lillian on the head before coming back up. ”Be a good girl, mommy loves you.” Lillian laughed and responded, ”Mommy you’re silly!” Finally, Sophie knew she was ready to go. It was fairly likely she had forgotten something, but that would just have to be okay. She walked back into the living room and picked up Carter, squeezing and kissing him while he laughed and gave her sloppy kisses back. She handed him over to the sitter, and he immediately started to scream. ”I’m sorry baby, mommy loves you! Thanks so much, Silvia, I’ll be back by midnight, I promise!” Hustling out the door, Sophie shook her head, tousling the loose curls she had styled in the morning. She looked messy and a little carefree certainly, but beautiful nonetheless. She swept herself out the door and hustled down the street to the bus stop—it didn’t make sense to drive the minivan through crazy downtown traffic. Once she was settled securely on the bus, Sophie pulled out her mirror to check her makeup, trying to distract herself. Tonight’s date felt like a big deal. She had been so excited when Ben had finally called and asked if she wanted to go out again—they’d had so much fun last time and she felt like she had a million more things to learn about him. Her heart fluttered nervously at the idea of seeing the tall man with the teasing smile. She wondered if he cared that she was recently divorced, or that she had two young children. If he did, he hid it well. She wondered if he would kiss her goodnight, or if he would try to take her home. The numerous questions buzzed around her head, distracting the red head so much that she almost missed her stop. Pulling hard on the stop cord, Sophie stumbled to her feet and nearly threw herself out of the bus. Seven ten. Only ten minutes late—that had to be a record. Ms. Abraham was notoriously late, but was so sweetly apologetic every time that hardly anyone really seemed to care. She bit her lip and walked just across the street to the little Italian restaurant Ben had recommended they go to. It was under a year old and Sophie had never been, but she loved Italian food so she hadn’t objected. Not sure what the dress code was but certain it wouldn’t be too fancy, she went with a simple dress that could be acceptable at a variety of levels. Smiling confidently, Sophie strolled inside and saw been almost right away. She walked over quickly, breathless but excited. ”Sorry for the delay! You know how the bus can be sometimes, and Carter was devastated that I was leaving. How are you?!” She sat down, immediately pulling her napkin into her lap, ”This place looks great, nice choice!” [/style]

[atrb=vAlign,top][atrb=style, width: 140px; padding: 5px; background-color: #fff;][style=font-family: arial; color: #494949; font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: -2px; text-align: left; border-bottom: 2px solid #494949; font-weight: bold;]TAGS[/style] [style=font-family: tahoma; font-size: 10px; color: #494949; text-align: justify; margin-left: 10px;]BENPHIE 4 EVA[/style] [style=font-family: arial; color: #494949; font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: -2px; text-align: left; border-bottom: 2px solid #494949; font-weight: bold;]WORDS[/style] [style=font-family: tahoma; font-size: 10px; color: #494949; text-align: justify; margin-left: 10px;]712[/style] [style=font-family: arial; color: #494949; font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: -2px; text-align: left; border-bottom: 2px solid #494949; font-weight: bold;]NOTES[/style] [style=font-family: tahoma; font-size: 10px; color: #494949; text-align: justify; margin-left: 10px;]this is what she's wearing[/style]

[style=font-family: courier new; font-size: 10px; text-align: center; text-transform: uppercase;]TEMPLATE BY JOHN OF OTE & BTN[/STYLE]

[benjamin elijah clark]

[style=width: 147px; height: 100px; background-color: b8b5b4; text-align: justify; line-height: 100%; color: 000000; font-family: calibri; center; padding: 10 10 10 10px; overflow: auto; border: 5px solid #f4f4f4; font-size: 10px;]tagged fjskefh benphie<3 words 1024 notes so cute FINALLY gawd

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it wasn't that he hadn't been gutsy enough to call the lovely sophia abraham yet. luce had teased him about not having the balls (and, after another few snide remarks about her current relationship status, slammed the door in his face), and perhaps he had been putting it off because he was a little nervous about meeting the teacher and finally getting out on a date. it wasn't something he was accustomed to, though ben tended to charm the pants off of most of the women he met without even intending to. benjamin had been rather experienced with woman in his day and age when he was in high school, but once he got the promotion to chief editor and was given luce to take care of, she had been the 'leading lady' in his life for a while. ben cared about her more than himself - he'd do anything for his mute niece, and while it was completely trite to say that she was 'the only woman for him', benjamin had neglected the dating side of things for quite a while. that was, until his friend decided it had been wise to set him up on a blind date. the date had gone well - enjoyable, even, for both parties (hopefully). and as much as ben had enjoyed meeting the woman, he had never called her back. he couldn't necessarily diagnose why, and he pondered over this whilst slipping on a black sports coat over his white vneck and dark wash jeans. one way or another, the two had run into each other in the library, and she had straight out called him on not calling her. this had woken up ben a bit more and he decided to give it a try again. now he was wondering why he ever put off seeing her again. he really was excited, though it had to be a year since he had gone on a date. benjamin absentmindedly twisted the ring on his middle finger, spinning around in place slowly as he searched the room for anything he might have forgotten (god forbid the editor leave the house with no shoes or something similarly idiotic). moments later, he was out of his bedroom, walking briskly past luce's bedroom and then turning around suddenly, pulling himself around the door frame and leaning into her room. luce was sitting on the bed, reading some book. ben made a note to ask her about it later. "hey, i'm leaving. there's leftover pizza in the fridge or, you can make something..." he trailed off and luce stared pointedly back at him - even a bit smug, and ben wondered if he looked at all nervous. "no boys," he blurted pointedly, knowing fully well luce would have boys over if she wanted to, and ignored her sulking glare as he spun around and made his way down the stairs of the house and out the front door.

fresco's italian! he really did enjoy the place. the editor and his niece ordered takeout pizza every friday night and played charades in the living room. it was a silly tradition but something they could both do, and he cherished the small amount of time they had together. anyway, anything done with benjamin couldn't typically be boring, and it was the same way with lucinda. ben's smile infected his eyes under the dark glasses as he sped out of the driveway in the black coupe. he really hadn't worried about the date too much, in terms of sitting and obsessing over what to say and do. girls tended to do that more than men, anyway, and benjamin was soon pulling into a the cramped parking lot and exiting the car, entering the restaurant, and giving them the name on the reservation he had made. it was five after - five minutes after the time he had told her, and benjamin prayed that she wasn't the overly punctual type as he slid off his sunglasses and dipped them into the v of his shirt. thankfully, when the hostess took him to a table, she gave no signs of a prior member of their party showing up and no one was at the table. ben thanked her briefly and sat down.

five minutes later, there were two glasses of pinot grigio on the table, and ben's fingers absently played with the stem of the wine glass as he looked around the restaurant. a flicker of movement caught his eye, and ben turned to find sophie approaching the table. she looked spectacular, in a creamy getup (ben's eyes did not linger; he smoothly raised his eyes from the perfectly fit dress to her glowing face, which was already smiling as she made her way over with those sparking eyes). "sorry for the delay! you know how the bus can be sometimes, and carter was devastated that i was leaving." benjamin just smiled at her, his eyes warming at the mention of her son. he did know that she had two children, and his only reaction was eagerness to meet them. "how are you?! this place looks great, nice choice!" ben chuckled slightly, his eyes absorbing her quick movements as she sat down and tugged the napkin onto her lap. he followed suit with his. "i'm well, thanks. i've been anticipating my night out eagerly, with a woman who looks beautiful, i should add," ben remarked. "yeah, luce and i love fresco's. i hope you like white wine," he added, with a gesture to the glass in front of her. he watched her with a boyish grin for a moment longer, then shook his head and looked down at the table briefly to pick up his glass of wine. "carter was devastated? if only he was old enough to know you were in good company." he took a sip of the wine with a teasing glint in his eye. there were small touches about her that he enjoyed - the fact that she wasn't covered in makeup but was still breathtakingly beautiful. benjamin didn't make a habit of flirting with women who tried for the raccoon look.

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RECKLESS ABANDON, LIKE NO ONE'S WATCHING YOU

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[sophia lillian abraham]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=cellspacing,0,true][atrb=style, padding: 10px; width: 500px, bTable][cs=2][style=background-color: #fff; width: 490px; padding: 5px;][style=font-family: arial; font-size: 23px; font-weight: bold; color: #494949; text-transform: uppercase; text-shadow: #f1f1f1 1px 1px 2px; letter-spacing: -2px; text-align: right;]I TRADE MY SOUL FOR A WISH,[/style][style=background-color: #494949; width: 490px; height: 25px;][style=font-family: arial; color: #fff; font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: -1px; font-weight: bold; text-align: left; text-shadow: #333333 1px 1px 2px; padding-top: 4px; padding-left: 5px;]PENNIES AND DIMES FOR A KISS[/style][/style]

[atrb=style, width: 350px; background-color: #fff;][style=font-family: tahoma; font-size: 9.2px; color: #494949; text-align: justify; padding: 10px; line-height: 12px;] [style=background-color: #494949; padding: 2px; height: 100px; width: 100px; opacity: 0.8; margin-right: 5px; float: left;][/style] Sophie’s heart beat rapidly in her chest as she and peeked at Ben through her eyelashes. God, he was breathtakingly handsome. To say that she was attracted to him was an understatement. It had been a long time since the red head had found herself interested in a man, excited and eager for a new possibility. She was still young, for someone with a divorce and two children under her belt, and she’d always been a restless and passionate person. Fresh fire, new romance—it was the sort of situation that Sophia flourished in. Her eyes were bright and her cheeks glowing with excitement—Ben wasn’t just any guy. He was a catch. He was funny, charming, handsome, and loved books as much as she did. Already she found herself thinking about how a future could be with him—cuddled up on the couch reading, restless afternoons spent outdoors. The young woman mentally admonished herself; it was far too early to be thinking about the future, about their future. Doing that too early was exactly how she ended up heartbroken and alone two years into her last marriage. Blinking, Sophie focused on Ben. No dwelling on the future or the past. Just this moment, right now. ”I’ve been anticipating my night out eagerly, with a woman who looks beautiful, I should add.” Sophie blushed, smiling and tilting her head up to look him straight in the eyes, her silky hair shifting softly away from her face to caress her shoulders. ”Thank you, Mister Clark… you look as handsome as usual.” Her formality had a light, teasing tone to it, as Sophie wasn’t usually one to take a compliment with much sincerity. She glanced at the wine in front of her, noticing it for the first time. Sophie bit her lip, holding back a smile. She loved a man who was confident enough to make decisions, who did things without being asked. Most guys these days wouldn’t just order wine without talking to his date first, it took guts. Sophie felt herself tighten, looking back up at Ben with a darkened look on her face. There was such a way about him, a smoothness and command that made it easy for her to find herself wanting him. She picked up the wine glass and took a sip, then hummed with pleasure—the wine was crisp, sweet, and cool just the way she liked it. She nodded her approval with a small giggle, ”This is delicious, thank you.” She saw the teasing look he gave her and smiled even brighter. Suddenly she wished they were alone, rather than in the restaurant. The thought made her look back down at her wine glass, smiling to herself. Cool it, Abraham, you’re only just out of the gate. Carter was devastated? If only he was old enough to know you were in good company.” Sophie laughed; it was hard to imagine Carter getting older and yet it was happening so fat right before her eyes. She looked wistful, responding, ”I don’t know, I think I can wait awhile before he’s that old.” She narrowed her eyed playfully and leaned forward as if she was going to tell Ben a secret, ”Besides, who says I’m in good company. I have no idea you’re your intentions are, and surely I can’t just trust your opinion on the matter.” She smirked and leaned back, watching carefully for Ben’s reaction. Not everyone liked her sense of humor, but she and Ben had gotten along quite well so far. Sophie thought back to their last meeting, when they’d run into each other at the library and ended up getting coffee. She raised an eyebrow; if that counted as a date, that would make this one their third… She stared at Ben, wondering what he expected. Third dates were meaningful, after all… Can you stop thinking about sex for three seconds! Sophie took a deep breath and opened the menu lying next to her plate. She stared at the many pastas, salads, meat dishes and pizzas with wide eyes. She bit her lip, chewing on it absently as she read it over, glad for the distraction from her rapidly deteriorating train of thought. She remarked softly, ”I’ve always hated big long menus. Nothing against the restaurants that have them or anything, I just hate having all of these options. I can never ever choose.” She glanced up nervously, hoping he wouldn’t rush her. ”Um, what do you recommend? Anything too mind blowing to pass up?” The young woman laid her menu down while she talked, reaching to the center of the table for a slice of the warm, hearty bread that had been laid out. The blond waitress that was working their section of the restaurant was eyeing their table, clearly trying to see if they were ready to order. She was also not so subtly eyeing Ben, clearly charmed by his good looks. Sophie narrowed her eyes—she hated the types of girls that would flirt with a man while he was on a date, and her womanly instinct told her that she was about to be thoroughly annoyed. The blond, seemingly impatient, sauntered over, a wide and flirty smile gracing her features. She simpered, looking only at Ben as Sophie watched with a purposefully straight face, waiting to see how Ben would react. The blond rattled off the specials for the night, a dark, playful gaze on her face. Sophie had to fight desperately to keep from rolling her eyes. She plastered a placating smile on her face as the fresh-faced waitress finally said, So are you two ready to order?” Her bright blue eyes still hadn’t turned towards Sophie once. [/style]

[atrb=vAlign,top][atrb=style, width: 140px; padding: 5px; background-color: #fff;][style=font-family: arial; color: #494949; font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: -2px; text-align: left; border-bottom: 2px solid #494949; font-weight: bold;]TAGS[/style] [style=font-family: tahoma; font-size: 10px; color: #494949; text-align: justify; margin-left: 10px;]BENPHIE 4 EVA[/style] [style=font-family: arial; color: #494949; font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: -2px; text-align: left; border-bottom: 2px solid #494949; font-weight: bold;]WORDS[/style] [style=font-family: tahoma; font-size: 10px; color: #494949; text-align: justify; margin-left: 10px;]952[/style] [style=font-family: arial; color: #494949; font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: -2px; text-align: left; border-bottom: 2px solid #494949; font-weight: bold;]NOTES[/style] [style=font-family: tahoma; font-size: 10px; color: #494949; text-align: justify; margin-left: 10px;]this is what she's wearing[/style]

[style=font-family: courier new; font-size: 10px; text-align: center; text-transform: uppercase;]TEMPLATE BY JOHN OF OTE & BTN[/STYLE]

[benjamin elijah clark]

[style=width: 147px; height: 100px; background-color: b8b5b4; text-align: justify; line-height: 100%; color: 000000; font-family: calibri; center; padding: 10 10 10 10px; overflow: auto; border: 5px solid #f4f4f4; font-size: 10px;]tagged fjskefh benphie<3 words 1178 notes holy crap fskjlef

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the third date. ben didn't know what to make of that. he suddenly decided that this had progressed more than his mind had allowed him to think. typically, benjamin strayed towards being more of the confident type, leaning more towards cocky than self-conscious, but he hadn't realized how much his brain had subconsciously dimmed this down to nothing. this was his third date with sophie, and he felt as if he liked her more each occasion. benjamin watched in fascination as a delicate rose color passed over her cheeks in a blush, and tilted his head ever so slightly to the side. her hair shifted - what he would do to have the freedom to run his hands through that hair. "thank you, mister clark... you look as handsome as usual," she returned formally, though her tone was teasing and relaxed. ben gave a boyish grin at this, suppressing a laugh he had in store for her. he watched as she bit her lip - what he would do to have the freedom to bite that lip. ben forced his eyes away just as she went to sip the wine, picking his own glass up and swirling it around to keep the liquid moving as his jaw muscles worked impatiently. "this is delicious, thank you." she had giggled – a sound he probably would have a hard time forgetting, considering he’d heard it multiple times the past few dates and craved it when he wasn’t hearing it. he watched her eyes carefully as she seemed to reflect back on his comment on carter, then replied: "i don’t know, i think i can wait a while before he’s that old." ben thought he knew how she felt – despite the fact that he hadn’t raised luce from birth, he still had seen her grow over the past couple years. sophia had now leaned forward playfully towards him, and he regarded her with calm interest, a smile threatening his lips. "besides, who says i’m in good company? i have no idea what your intentions are, and surely i can’t just trust your opinion on the matter.” he let the laugh out, turning his head to the side conspiratorially and then leaning in over the table closer to her (reminding him of the one kiss he had from her, the one memory of her lips). "i guess you’ll have to figure it out all by yourself." he smirked at the electrified tone with which the words left his mouth, leaning back as she did.

benjamin wondered what sophie’s intentions were, during all of this. there had been three dates, so naturally there was an interest there, but the topic of what the two intended to come from this hadn’t been raised yet. he wondered for himself – serious relationship? short term thing? benjamin wasn’t a fling type of guy – he considered it indecent, what with his chivalrous mannerisms. the only thing ben was sure of was the fact that he wouldn’t stop seeing her at this point – the draw to her was inevitable, and she often crossed his mind nowadays. silly little things about her, even – occasionally biting her lip, her chiming laugh, showing up flustered, the way her hair fell in front of her shoulder just now as she looked down to regard the menu. ben almost rolled his eyes at himself, leaving his menu sitting on the table closed. he always got the same thing. "i’ve always hated big long menus. nothing against the restaurants that have them or anything, i just hate having all of these options. i can never ever choose,” she said with a nervous glance up at him, and he did nothing but nod and give a warm smile. "i agree. i miss when this place used to be tiny and more family-owned. they had… probably fifteen things on the menu, and at least half of the restaurant space they have now." he reminisced with a shrug. "but i still come back. their food is still great. i don’t get to see the owners as often, though." "um, what do you recommend? anything too mind blowing to pass up?" ben inhaled, reaching up and absently scratching the back of his neck. "well, i’ve gotten the lasagna ever since they opened. call me vanilla, i guess. but it depends what you’re in the mood for – everything i’ve tried has always been great." only then did the waitress slink over – she hadn’t been the one to take his wine order, but seemed to be interested for reasons of her own. not that benjamin was cocky – he just had a knack for telling when women should just drop to the floor and drool already, and it wasn’t attractive to him in the slightest. "so, are you two ready to order?" another thing ben picked up was that, despite she was less than a foot from the woman, the waitress hadn’t glanced at sophie once. it reminded ben of comments he had picked up from various women before – hating other tasteless women who came onto their date. with another sideways glance at sophie, he looked back up disinterestedly at the waitress, thinking for a moment, and then folding his hands in front of him. she had mentioned that she hated making decisions from big menus, right? and asked him for his advice? deciding to make a rather bold move for the second time that night, ben leaned forward over the table slightly before answering. "yes, actually! my date and i will have two orders of the lasagna." ben’s eyes watched her pointedly as the waitress finally turned her head and glanced over at sophie, and he heard the beginnings of defeat creeping into her voice as she jotted the order down. "alright. i’ll get that right out for you two," she said, and walked off with a last glance at him that he ignored. ben was just glad she hadn’t been more difficult.

perhaps he was grateful to his job in this department. it had given him an all-seeing eye into the world of the woman, because of all of the heaps of books he had read that were chronicled by a member of the female species. he hadn’t really ever thought about it before, but perhaps it was why he caught onto things so fast from their perspective. as the blonde waitress retreated, ben leaned closer to sophie again. "i prefer redheads, personally," he murmured with a suggestive waggle of his eyebrows, grinning at her and plucking a slice of bread from the basket in front of him and leaning back with a sigh. "so, miss abraham. when do i get to meet the carter and lillian i’ve heard so much about?" his voice had returned from deeper and suggestive back to the playful, relaxed tone the conversation had held before, though the incessant want for her was still pulsing through his brain. but his comment was true – he did want to meet her children. after all, he did adore children. he would never have taken luce in if he didn’t.

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RECKLESS ABANDON, LIKE NO ONE'S WATCHING YOU

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[sophia lillian abraham]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=cellspacing,0,true][atrb=style, padding: 10px; width: 500px, bTable][cs=2][style=background-color: #fff; width: 490px; padding: 5px;][style=font-family: arial; font-size: 23px; font-weight: bold; color: #494949; text-transform: uppercase; text-shadow: #f1f1f1 1px 1px 2px; letter-spacing: -2px; text-align: right;]I TRADE MY SOUL FOR A WISH,[/style][style=background-color: #494949; width: 490px; height: 25px;][style=font-family: arial; color: #fff; font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: -1px; font-weight: bold; text-align: left; text-shadow: #333333 1px 1px 2px; padding-top: 4px; padding-left: 5px;]PENNIES AND DIMES FOR A KISS[/style][/style]

[atrb=style, width: 350px; background-color: #fff;][style=font-family: tahoma; font-size: 9.2px; color: #494949; text-align: justify; padding: 10px; line-height: 12px;] [style=background-color: #494949; padding: 2px; height: 100px; width: 100px; opacity: 0.8; margin-right: 5px; float: left;][/style] Half-heartedness was never something Sophie could be accused of. She had been a passionate girl from a young age, the type to go after what she wanted without pause or discrimination. Because of this, Sophie had never liked flings, or friends with benefits, or casual relationships. If she was going to be with someone, she was going to go all in, and risk everything. That was before the divorce—before her heart had truly been broken. Now Sophie wasn’t sure who she could trust, or what she really wanted. She still didn’t like the idea of a casual relationship, but could she trust Ben to not break her heart? One part of her, the old part, wanted to jump in and just hope for the best, but another part of her held back. She didn’t have just herself to protect, she also had her kids to protect. She didn’t want to be brining men in and out of their lives. They needed stability. Sophie watched Ben through her lashes and tried to imagine Ben sticking around, and being around Lil and Carter. It brought a small smile to her lips. Distracted, she shook her head and looked back down at the menu. Focus, Soph. Don’t be a ditz.” ”Well, I’ve gotten the lasagna ever since they opened. Call me vanilla, I guess. But it depends on what you’re in the mood for—everything I’ve tried has always been great.” Sophie tipped her head to the side, frowning. She did love lasagna. ”Yeah… I don’t know…” Honestly, she just hated to make a decision about anything. Instead she picked restlessly at the hem of the tablecloth, not really giving the menu too much thought. She was lost in thought, thinking about the last time she’d had lasagna. She’d made it for Jonathan months ago, before he had left. It hadn’t been as good as his mother’s was, he’d said. Sohpie had resisted shoving the square slice of meat and cheese and pasta into his face for it. By the time her thoughts were back in the present, she realized she would be expected to order at any second. A startled and panicked expression came over her face as she dove back into the menu, trying to read through the long lists of pastas, meat dishes, salads, and pizzas. Her face began to turn an embarrassed shade of red—she hated keeping someone waiting because she couldn’t make up her mind. ”Yes, actually! My date and I will have two orders of the lasagna.” Sophie looked up with surprise, her eyebrows raised. She smirked at Ben satisfactorily and snapped her menu closed, giving the waitress she so disliked a sidelong glance of superiority as she handed the menu off. She gave Ben a genuine smile, ”Thanks, I was starting to panic! Lasagna sounds delicious.” She smiled to herself, quite pleased that Ben had ordered for her. Sophie took a long sip of her wine, wanting to loosen up and happy that she wouldn’t have to drive home. ”I prefer redheads, personally.” Sophie snorted, coving her mouth as she laughed, startled at Ben’s reaction. She tried to calm her laughing, leaning forward and responded, ”What a coincidence, so do I! Or maybe brunettes… blonds just have way too much fun for me." She followed Ben’s lead and reached for a nice warm piece of bread. She grabbed her knife and buttered it, salivating as the butter melted smoothly across the top. It was so nice to eat something in a restaurant when you cooked at home as frequently as Sophie did. The kids were at an age where taking them to a restaurant without another set of hands to help out was just foolish. They would cause a scene with easy, leaving Sophie pulling out her hair and with a distinct lack of appetite. ”So, when do I get to meet the Carter and Lillian I’ve heard so much about?” Sophie cocked her head to the side, her face calm although she was secretly pleased that Ben seemed so keen to meet her little ones. She though about it, chewing thoughtfully on a bite of bread. She didn’t want her kids to meet Ben if he wasn’t going to be a part of her life, but she didn’t want to scare him by starting off their dinner with a big conversation about where they were headed either. That seemed more like an end-of-the-night conversation to her. ”Maybe some time this weekend? Or next? If you meet them you should stick around for a few hours, sometimes it takes Carter a little while to warm up. He’s just starting to get stranger anxiety.” Sophie finished her glass of wine, setting it back down carefully as she tried to think of what to say next. Sophie found herself spending almost all of her time with either her high school students or her very young children, which shockingly made for difficult transition into sophisticated, grown up conversation. She smiled, cocking her head to the side, ”So, a question for the book editor. You reading anything interesting lately?” Sophie herself loved to read, although most of her reading lists consists of teen lit—not only because she liked to have books to recommend to her students but also because she genuinely loved the category. It wasn’t very frequently that she found the time to read more adult books, and so she always liked to hear about the newest trends in adult literature from her peers. ”I’m currently stuck on anther series about vampires… but don’t worry, it has fairies too, I have standards. The point being, I’d love to hear about something a little more salacious.” Sophie laughed, giving Ben an exaggerated wink to accompany the comment. [/style]

[atrb=vAlign,top][atrb=style, width: 140px; padding: 5px; background-color: #fff;][style=font-family: arial; color: #494949; font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: -2px; text-align: left; border-bottom: 2px solid #494949; font-weight: bold;]TAGS[/style] [style=font-family: tahoma; font-size: 10px; color: #494949; text-align: justify; margin-left: 10px;]BENPHIE 4 EVA[/style] [style=font-family: arial; color: #494949; font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: -2px; text-align: left; border-bottom: 2px solid #494949; font-weight: bold;]WORDS[/style] [style=font-family: tahoma; font-size: 10px; color: #494949; text-align: justify; margin-left: 10px;]960[/style] [style=font-family: arial; color: #494949; font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: -2px; text-align: left; border-bottom: 2px solid #494949; font-weight: bold;]NOTES[/style] [style=font-family: tahoma; font-size: 10px; color: #494949; text-align: justify; margin-left: 10px;]this is what she's wearing[/style]

[style=font-family: courier new; font-size: 10px; text-align: center; text-transform: uppercase;]TEMPLATE BY JOHN OF OTE & BTN[/STYLE]