Page 13 of Mistletoe Dreams
Regardless, things had settled down when he'd gotten a steadyjob as a state trooper, and he'd figured they were over the roughest patches of their relationship. He'd even suggested more children, which Peyton had been adamantly opposed to.
Maybe because she was already involved with someone else. The thought felt bitter in his mind, and he tried to focus on what Noah was saying.
"It's going to be much bigger this year than last. Last year we broke records. This year, we need to be a little bit more organized, and we're going to do a few new things. We're going to have a festival medical director, and we're also going to have a security coordinator. Security is not just for the protection of the people who are there but also to close down roads, direct traffic, and figure out what state permissions we need, if any. I'm not even sure how that works. So you're going to have to be able to work independently."
There was a murmur going through the crowd, and Ben was tempted to duck down in his seat. Maybe there was someone else who was an obvious shoo-in for that position, but he knew he didn't want it. He had enough on his plate, and if he were being perfectly honest, Mason was the one who was most likely to cause any disruptions to the festival.
He would do a better job of keeping an eye on Mason if he wasn't completely consumed with keeping everyone else safe.
"You should volunteer for that, honey," his mother said, leaning over and speaking into his ear while she tapped his leg with her hand.
"I have too many other things going on," he murmured back, although he knew he’d take the position if the town needed him to.
Noah continued speaking, saying that they were also going to have a director of music, and if no one else was interested, he would head up that committee.
No one else raised their hand, and Noah declared that that had been decided.
Unfortunately, no one else volunteered for any of the other positions, and soon Noah was calling names out of the crowd.
"Dr. Terry, I would volunteer you for the medical director. I know you’d do a great job. But I know that that's about the time your baby is due."
"It is. Although I'd love to do it. Maybe Dr. Hannah?" Terry said, looking back to where Dr. Hannah sat just in front of Ben.
Ben almost smiled as Hannah squirmed in her seat, almost as though she too were interested in ducking down out of sight. Sitting in the back the way she was, she obviously hadn't come expecting to be volunteered for anything.
"I could do that," she said, her voice sounding stronger and more confident than her position would've made Ben guess it would.
"That's great," Noah wrote down her name on the paper that was in front of him. "We'd like to have a tent set up where people can go if they have heat exhaustion, fatigue, and any kind of minor injuries, and have it stocked with first aid supplies. If you don't mind staying afterwards a little bit, I have a list of things that I was hoping you could include, and we'll go over that, along with all of the other heads of committees." He took a breath. "And if you'd like to have anyone serving alongside of you as a help, we'll talk about that then. And... you can either ask someone, or we'll have another meeting where we ask for volunteers."
Dr. Hannah nodded her head, and Cassie giggled and said something in her ear. It made Hannah smile as she looked at Cassie, and almost as though she could feel Ben's eyes on her, she looked around just a little more, and her eyes met his for just a second.
In that second, time seemed to slow down, and it felt like something passed between them. He wasn't even sure what. But it seemed strange, although not unpleasant.
And then it was over. Just like that. She turned back, and he ripped his eyes away, focusing instead on Noah, who stood at the front.
Although it took a few moments until he heard what Noah was saying, and his mom poked him in the ribs.
"Volunteer!" she hissed.
He wasn't even sure what she wanted him to volunteer for, so he kept his hand firmly down and stared at the podium, avoiding eye contact and hoping he could figure out from context what in the world was going on.
What had that been between Dr. Hannah and him? Had he been the only one to feel it?
He had to have been, and he tried to push it aside. He wasn't one for hocus-pocus feelings. He'd gone down that road once, swept away by youthful passions, and had married hastily. He certainly wasn't going to do that again.
"My son, Ben, is a perfect person for that, and I nominate him." His mother stood up and spoke, and he remembered just in time to keep his mouth closed, since it wanted to drop open in shock.
What had she volunteered him for?
Just as that thought went through his head, he realized that the seat beside his mother was empty.
Where was Mason?
"Ben? Is that okay with you?" Noah asked, and then after a small pause, he said, "Although if your mother says you should do it, I think you gotta listen to her." Laughter rippled throughout the crowd.
Ben grinned and tried to keep the concern off of his face. Where had his son gone?
"I'm definitely going to listen to her. What is that commandment about obeying your parents?" He huffed out a breath. "I don't think there's an end date on that."
