A moment for you

When Linda Bennett runs into her high school crush, Owen, she’s surprised by the sparks between them… and the promise of more

Oops! Excuse me!” I said the moment I felt my back hit someone else’s. I knew better than to walk backward while squinting at my camera in the hot noon sun. Turning, I opened my mouth to apologize again but stopped before the words got out of my mouth.

“Owen Wagner! Is that really you?”

The Owen I’d sat across the aisle from in Algebra had changed quite a bit since the last time we’d seen each other. Of course he had. That was 40 years ago at our high school graduation. The bright red-blond hair was now white, and he’d added a few pounds, but the sky blue eyes were exactly the same: clear and filled with twinkle, like a bright sparkler.

“Linda Bennett? Quick—what does x plus y equal?”

“Shush,” I replied, a ready smile on my face. “You know how much trouble I had with math. Some things never change.”

“Like you,” Owen said, appreciation in his voice. “You look exactly the same now as you did in high school!”

The look in his eyes as he gazed at me made my stomach do flip-flops. I’d always had a crush on Owen, though the timing hadn’t been right for us. I was dating Doug, the man I married—and then divorced— and Owen seemed to have a new girl every month. “Oh, go on,” I said with a laugh before adding, “I mean it, go on.”

Owen laughed too. “What are you up to, walking backward down the street?”

I held up my phone. “Vlogging.”

“I beg your pardon?”

“You know, a video journal. I’m a gardener, and my granddaughter, Emily, thinks I should start a video journal of gardens I like and then show people how they can create a similar one in their own yard.” I sighed. “It’s an interesting idea, but I don’t have a clue what I’m doing.” “I think it’s a good thing we ran into each other then,” he smiled. “I’m kind of a tech nerd, and I’d love to vlog… only I don’t have the faintest idea of what I would vlog about. Maybe we can help each other.” Owen pointed toward a restaurant across the street. “How about we discuss

“The look in his eyes as he gazed at me made my stomach do flip-flops”

it over lunch? My treat, of course,” he said with a handsome smile.

It took me less than half a second to say yes, and not just because I was starving after a morning of filming gardens. I said yes because it had been ages since I’d been asked out by an attractive man like Owen.

Although I’d been divorced for close to 15 years and dated my fair share since, none of the men who had asked me out had even come close to making my heart go pitter-patter the way it did when Owen looked at me with that warm smile.

No wonder I’d never done well in math class. I remembered now how hard it had been to concentrate with Owen three feet away. Who cared what x plus y equaled back then?

Over chicken salad sandwiches and iced tea, I learned Owen was widowed. “Kate and I married late, and we didn’t have nearly the amount of time together we’d hoped,” Owen said, more than a trace of sadness shadowing his eyes.

“I’m so sorry. When did she pass away?” “Three years ago. I’m finally getting back to living, but it’s been rough.”

Our eyes met, and it was all I could do not to reach across the table and hug him. “Oh, Owen. I can only imagine.”

“But enough sadness. Let’s talk about this vlog of yours. It was your granddaughter’s idea?”

I nodded. “I’m retiring from teaching next year and have been thinking about things to supplement my income. Emily thinks a vlog will be my golden ticket.” “What do you think?”

“I think it sounds like a lot of work!” He laughed at this. “But it can be lucrative! You’ll need a real camera, of course. You’ll go nuts vlogging with your cellphone. Then you need a theme. You could shape your vlog around historical gardens or all one color gardens or gardens near famous landmarks. If you’re warm and real, it might just pay off. You’re very attractive, so that helps.”

I covered the flushing of my cheeks by lifting my glass to my lips. Owen thought I was very attractive? This day, which had started out as a bit of a dud, had taken a turn toward blissful.

“Owen, I think I just figured out what plus y equals.”

“And what’s that?”

“A winning combination: us.” Owen grinned. “You finally understand algebra.” I smiled. “Better late than never.”