Several pairs of female eyes tracked his easy, confident gate.
Including mine.
“Good, I thought he’d never leave,” Lenni said.
“That’s not a nice thing to say,” I said with a laugh.“Especially because he’s treating us to dinner.”
She reached for the soda glass and took a sip.“That’s not what I meant.I meant, I’m glad he’s gone so you and I can talk.”
“Talk about what?”
“Ms.Thomas.”
“Your teacher?”
She nodded.“Ms.Thomas tried to get the principle not to suspend me for fighting.Saying it wasextenuatingcircumstances, whatever that means.But anyway, she was really cool about it.I think she’s nice.”
“Nice, andpretty,” I remarked.“There are so few of us.”
Lenni smiled and nodded again.“Yeah.I think she and my dad would get along really well.”
“Get along well,” I repeated, my tone flat.
“Yeah, I think he should ask her out on a date,” she said with a bright grin.“What do you think?He could bring her here.”
I think I want to stab my eyes out with a butter knife.
“You want your dad to be happy, don’t you?”I asked.
“Yes.Very much.Oh, shhh.Here he comes.”
Lenni widened her brown eyes, attempting to appear innocent.Archer was no idiot, though.His gaze narrowed at his daughter and then he shifted his stare to me.
“What did I miss?”he asked.
“We were talking about dessert,” Lenni stated.
First a champion fighter, now a world-class liar.
This girl was trouble with a Capital T.
“Yes, dessert,” I croaked.
“No dessert,” Archer stated.
Lenni’s face fell.“But?—”
A server entered the dining room—carrying a slice of chocolate cake with a sparkler candle—and glided toward our table.
Smiling, the server placed the cake in front of Lenni, who peered up at him in delight.
“Champion fighters get champion cakes,” the server said with a wink.
I quickly concealed my smile as I watched Lenni attempt to blow out the trick candle.
“Help!”she begged.
Archer and I leaned over and aided her.
