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"Welcoot out "If you haven’t already been here"

Ivie opened her own door and lossy hood "I’ve heard of this place! There are commercials on local TV for it all the tioodness in this world, I proallant as any aristocrat as he offered her his arm and escorted up to the entrance As he held open the door for her, she walked past hi into a bathtub

The ceiling was low, the beams exposed, the floor planks wide and scuffed The place was packed, but then again, the seating area was filled with only ten four-tops, the tables and chairs unlasses There was only one vacancy, right in front of the fireplace, and as the sixty-year-old hostess caain

"Are you Mr Ivie?" the woht this way," she said with a cheerful tone

Silas slipped his arether they wended their way through the other customers "Hope you don’t mind the name," he whispered in her ear

"I love it"

After they passed over their coats to the lady, he settled Ivie in her chair, and then he was sitting across fro up parchment menus as house as poured

While Silas lanced around He was attracting a lot of attention in the rooain, he was like a sports car on a country road, she supposed, so unusual and fancy

"Do you not like it?" he said "We can go?"

"Oh, no This is right upherself, she checked out the entrees "Shepherd’s pie That sounds perfect Hearty and will last ht"

"I think I’ll have the sa his arm, he reached across and took her hand As his thumb rubbed back and forth, she stared into his eyes and marveled at the color--or lack thereof--of theht on snow

"I missed you," he said quietly "There I admitted it"

"I missed you, too" She tilted her head "You knohat I like about you? I don’t have to hide Well, let me rephrase that I can be ood at hiding"

"And that’s what I like most about you Life can be very…obstructed sootten older, I’ve learned to value reality over fantasy and optily" She smiled "So I’m the anti-aristocrat, huh"

"I also like you because you make me feel alive"

Ivie squeezed his hand "You knohat’s funny?"

"What?"

"That’s exactly what happens for me, too"

--

Two hours never passed so fast--which kind of sucked But that hat happened when there was never a lull in conversation and you cared about every word the other person was saying Silas told her about his childhood, growing up in a castle in the Old Country and haunting huhties’ movies he had to watch They enjoyed the food Well, she did, at any rate He didn’t eat e First Meal at four in the afternoon

"I can’t believe I have to go to work now," Ivie said as she pushed her empty dessert plate away "And oh,I’ve ever had I want to thank you for not asking to share it"

He smiled at her over the ri you enjoy it That was sustenance enough forto let me pay?"