Page 5 of Finding Kenna
The man waved and disappeared into the dining area once more.
“I guess I need to go take care of that,” she said, looking up at him.
“Okay.”
“If it’s all right…I’ll stop by to talk as much as I can.”
“It’s more than all right,” Aleck said.
“And…at eight-thirty, I get a fifteen-minute break,” she added. “If you’d be interested in hanging out with me?”
“Definitely.”
“Okay.”
“Okay,” Aleck echoed.
They stared at each other for a long moment before Kenna chuckled and scrunched her nose. “This is weird. I’m sorry.”
“It’s not. It’s fine,” Aleck reassured her. “Elodie and Lexie were thrilled to have a girls’ night out. I’m guessing they’ll bail on us guys at some point and go hang out at the bar.”
“Paulo will love that. He’ll probably grill them about all of you. I don’t suppose any of your friends are gay?”
Aleck laughed. “Sorry, no.”
Kenna shrugged. “It’s probably better. Paulo is kind of a man-whore. In a good way, of course.”
“Of course,” Aleck agreed, even though he had no idea what that meant.
“And now I’m babbling. Anyway, thanks for coming tonight. It’s nice to see you.”
Aleck knew his gaze was raking her from head to toe, but he couldn’t stop himself. He’d gotten an up-close look at her ass that morning as she’d climbed up the rocks to get out of the ocean, and he’d be lying if he said he hadn’t admired the view. But somehow, seeing her in a pair of khaki shorts, a Duke’s T-shirt tied in a knot at her waist, and a sensible pair of tennis shoes was even more of a turn-on than her running shorts and sports bra had been.
Shaking his head slightly, he realized that he’d been staring at her without saying a word. “You intrigued me this morning,” he said. “I wanted to see you again.”
“And now you know I’m a simple waitress who sometimes doesn’t think before she acts,” Kenna quipped.
“And I’m even more intrigued,” Aleck admitted. “Go on,” he urged, knowing he could stand in the hallway and talk to her all night, which would surely get her in trouble. “You’ve got people waiting on you.”
Kenna took a step backward. “Thanks for being cool about tonight,” she told him.
Aleck nodded and watched as she turned and walked away from him.
He stood there for a moment longer, then headed back to the table. Things weren’t turning out as he’d expected tonight, that was for sure. He’d planned on asking if Kenna wanted to sit at a table away from his friends, so they could get to know each other before joining the group again. He hoped she would get along with Elodie and Lexie, as well as his team.
While he was disappointed he wouldn’t get to talk with her like he’d hoped, he couldn’t be upset about spending the evening with his friends.
“So?” Pid asked when he returned to the booth.
“So, what?” Aleck asked.
“What’s her deal? She’s obviously working tonight. Did you know she’s a waitress? Are you gonna get to talk to her at all?”
“Jeez. I had no idea you were that interested in my love life,” Aleck quipped.
“I’m not,” Pid protested. “It’s just weird that you asked her out and she suggested you come here, and now she can’t spend time with you.”
“It’s not weird,” Elodie said, breaking into the conversation. “It’s smart. I mean, think about it.”
