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Their waiter approached the table, wheeling a cart, and with a good deal of ceremony revealed virtually a complete menu Her head spun as he displayed and then described each iteiven a price list Charlotte studied it and gasped aloud But, oodness, it all looked so delicious She made a mental note to tell Justine every detail she could rehter would want to know about this After the elaborate presentation, she ordered the grilled swordfish and both men ordered steaks

The meal was superb and so was the service The conversation, too, was enjoyable David had an engagingHe chatted about the weather and recent as for Christmas Ben remained stubbornly quiet, as he had before; it was up to Charlotte to respond to his son’s questions and re four ti the course of their meal

After the fourth call, Ben snapped, "Turn that daetic as he reached for his cell and pushed a button The telephone sang a brief song and then went silent

Charlotte breathed a sigh of relief and sht coffee to their table with several varieties of sugar from which to choose Charlotte was quite taken with the hard candy sticks that looked like sorew quiet "You uessed why I wanted to meet with you, Dad," he said as he stirred in the creaht spot"

"I can’t help you"

"Can’t or won’t?" David asked with barely suppressed anger

Ben’s shoulders heaved as if he’d inhaled sharply in an effort to control his own annoyance "Since you put it like that, the answer is won’t I refuse to give you another dime You haven’t paid back the last two loans I’d be a fool to give you ood for it I promise"

"That’s what you said last time and the time before that Why should I believe you now?"

"Because it’s true Dad, do you think it’s easy, co to you like this? Do you think I’d do this if I had any other options?"

He seeuments increased Ben’s irritation "How much do you need?" she asked She didn’t mean to intrude, but if it was a reasonable amount then perhaps Ben wouldn’t mind so much

"Five thousand," he said after a moment "That’s considerably less than I needed before," he added with a hopeful expression

"What do you need it for?" Charlotte asked, wanting to help and not knowing how Her questions didn’t please Ben, she could see that, but she felt badly for the young ed "It’s complicated"

"The usual, no doubt," Ben cut in "His credit cards areali a bonus this Christmas," David said "I only need the h You knoouldn’t ask if I wasn’t desperate I’ you, Dad, hts I can hardly eat"

"You certainly didn’t have a probleht," Ben pointed out David had obviously enjoyed histhose prices Fifty years ago, she could’ve fed her fale steak

David looked hurt "This is the first decent es You have to kno difficult this is for me There’s no one else I can ask"

"I’m sure it’s painful to ask for a loan," Charlotte said sy with a smile "I swear to you, Dad, I’ll pay you back I don’t knohat’ll happen if you turn me down"

"How old are you now?" Ben asked his son

David straightened slightly "Forty-three"

"Really," Charlotte said conversationally "I would’ve guessedhis father’s eyes

"Forty-three is old enough to stand on your oo feet and stop expecting someone else to bail you out"

David’s shoulders slumped

Charlotte felt dreadful for hi with his own child She reached for Ben’s hand under the table and he gripped it hard

"I told you the last ti to that I have to, David I’ financial troubles, but apparently you didn’t learn your lesson"

"You’re telling me no"

"I ae et upset, but nodded as if he understood

"So far, all I’ve taught you is to come to me when you have money probleree," David said reluctantly

"You pay me back what you owe from the first two loans, and then we’ll discuss future possibilities"

David pinched his lips together and nodded again Pushing out his chair, he stood "If you’ll excuse et back to my hotel Thank you for the pleasant dinner Charlotte, I think the syou"

Charlotte blushed with pleasure "Thank you, David"

He bowed slightly and walked out of the room

With his exit, the waiter walked over to the table and promptly delivered the bill