Southern Hospitality Ch. 04

He had thought her to be like Laura, a strong confident woman looking to score a prize, the prize being his ass. But as he watched her he came to the slow realization that that wasn't the case at all.
If this was an act, it was flawless, it seemed to him that she was being genuine and honest in her embarrassment.
The serving girl handed him the two drinks and he walked slowly back to the table, re-evaluating Amy as he lowered himself into the seat, sliding her drink across to her.
Her face lit up in a smile as her hands closed around the cup, enjoying the warmth as she spoke, "Ah, thank you."
He noted as he sipped his coke that she lacked the southern drawl of her aunt. "So... Really your first date?"
She smiled shyly and nodded, glancing about, "Y-yeah, I um... I'm not very good with boys. I've had a couple of bad experiences... You know, things go well, we get close, we get closer and... I er, probably shouldn't talk about my ex's, should I?"
Ash smiled reassuringly, "It's okay, it's good for me to know what they did wrong so I don't make the same mistake. I guess they were surprised to find out about your..." He glanced down meaningfully.
She blushed very brightly, glancing around as if suddenly the centre of attention for everyone in the room, "You, you know about..."
"Your extra package?" he asked, a soft smirk on his lips.
"O-oh, you do know." she swallowed, looking at him with a more interested expression, "And... You don't mind?"
Ash eyed her for a few moments, he was beginning to suspect that she knew nothing about what Ash and Laura had gotten up to. He thought then that he understood, Laura had wanted to keep him, he knew, but she had said she was sharing him with her niece for his own good. He knew now that it hadn't just been for his own good, but the good of her niece as well. This young beautiful gem, alone in the world because of a few bad experiences. Laura hadn't only set him up with her, she had practically trained him to help her.
It was quite a contrast, with Laura he had been shy and anxious, her the confident one, but with Amy, the roles were reversed, he was the one confident in what he wanted, she the shy anxious one.