I hit the bottom step and see the back of Ashley’s head.  I walk behind her and rest a hand on her shoulder, squeezing as I bent down and whispered in her ear, "Hey there, baby.  You look stunning."  Even though she was still sitting, I could see her smile and saw her face flush in embarassment.  I knew what clothes she was wearing: white cargo pants that were tight on her ass and loose everywhere else and a silver and black scoop neck t-shirt.  Her smell was intoxicating.  She looked over her shoulder at me and her smile widened, standing up and walking over to the table with me.  She had been blushing at my comment, and walked around and gave me a hug.  It was hard not to notice the speed of both of our heartbeats, and as we walked to the kitchen table, I could feel her eyes looking me up and down from behind.  She sat on my right with my dad on my left at dinner.  We all took hands for the prayer, but I didn’t hear a word she said.  All I knew at that moment was the feeling of Ashley’s thumb lightly caressing my hand as she held it.

"Amen," everyone said in unison, jolting me back to reality.  Reluctantly, we let go of each other’s hands, and both looked at each other, in essence, letting each other know that neither of us wanted to let go.  Everyone began serving themselves and the first half of the meal’s conversation is relatively uneventful.  After a short silence, Paula entered a dialogue with Ashley.

"So Ashley, are you seeing anyone right now?"

Leave it to my mom to ask the awkward personal question.  I eagerly glanced over to Ashley to see how she would handle the situation.  She uneasily shifted in her chair and started stuttering.

"Uh, me? Oh, um… I don’t… No, I’m not… " she paused and I could tell she wanted to say something more.  She took a deep breath and then looked Paula square in the eyes.  "No, Paula, I’m not with anyone right now.  But I will say that there is a girl, a fantastic and beautiful girl, who I can’t wait to take out."