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"You bet!" Marnie squealed, practically bouncing up and down. I wondered if Simon was noticing her bountiful gifts.
"You here to eat?" Colleen asked, squinting her eyes and adjusting the ludicrous beret on top of her head.
"Sorry, no," Simon said, smiling apologetically. "Although I ate here last Saturday and your blueberry pancakes were out of this world."
Colleen grinned proudly. I wanted to roll my eyes. Was there no one that Simon couldn't charm?
Simon looked at me. "I was just grabbing some beers for the gang helping me unpack and Colette's was on my way so I decided to drop in to say hi," he explained. "I've been so busy this week with my classes and rehearsing that I feel like I haven't seen you at all."
I tried to ignore the fluttering of my heart and gave Simon a small smile. "Oh, I'm sure you've been busy getting used to a new school and everything," I said. "No worries. I've been pretty busy too."
"I actually wanted to see if you could help me out tomorrow," Simon said, quirking the side of his mouth. "I don't know where anything is around here, and I could use your help showing me where stuff is, like the supermarket. Grant's pretty busy gearing up for the show tomorrow night and Marcus has another soccer practice."
"Well," I said, trying to stall and think of an excuse. I couldn't use work as an excuse because I was sure Colleen would blow my cover if I tried to lie. I wasn't ready to chance that embarrassment. Besides, I admitted to myself that I had missed seeing Simon. It was odd because I had just met him and spent only a few hours with him for a couple of days. But it had felt like I had been going through withdrawal this past week because of his absence. I figured there was no harm in helping him out. That's what friends did. And this would be a good test of our budding friendship. "Sure, why not," I agreed. "I'm free."
"Great!" Simon exclaimed. "Let's say around eleven in the morning? I'll come pick you up."
"Okay," I said nodding slowly, hoping I wasn't making a mistake. "See you tomorrow at eleven."
Simon nodded at Colleen and Marnie. "Nice to meet you," he said, although I had never even introduced him to Colleen. He turned back to me. "See you tomorrow," he said with a wink. And then he was gone.
Marnie had watched the whole exchange with rapt eyes, and after Simon left she began screeching again. "Oh my God!" she yelped. "He's even hotter close up. And he's into you!"
I groaned. I did not want to get into this discussion. "I've gotta make sure my tables are okay," I said, turning to check on my customers.
Marnie opened her mouth but Colleen cut her off. "Marnie, table two is glarin' at you," she said. "You better go see what they want."
As Marnie reluctantly walked away, Colleen gave me a conspiratorial wink. I groaned inwardly. Why was everyone winking at me these days? But I felt anticipation growing as I finished the rest of my shift, not wanting to admit to myself that I was looking forward to tomorrow more than I should have.
CHAPTER SIX
The next morning I was having second thoughts about spending time alone with Simon and tried coe
rcing Sarah into coming with us.
"Come on, Sarah," I pleaded. "Why don't you come with us? We can get some grocery shopping done too."
"No way," Sarah replied, looking up from spooning cereal into her mouth. "We just went grocery shopping. Anyways, I have a group meeting for my Visual Arts class at one o'clock."
"Maybe we'll be back by then," I wheedled. "We can get you back in time for your meeting."
Sarah rolled her eyes. "I thought you said you were fine being friends with Simon."
"I am," I said with a sigh. "I think I'm just overreacting."
I plopped down on the couch and checked my watch. It was ten to eleven and I needed to stop working myself into a tizzy. I told myself that this was no different than spending time with Grant or Marcus.
"How does Simon's apartment look?" I asked. Sarah had spent most of last night helping him unpack, along with the rest of the group.
"You should see his stuff. It's like he's a real grown-up. He has real furniture, not just stuff like a futon," Sarah said, waving her hand towards ours. "It looks like an actual apartment, not just for a college kid. And I forgot how nice Sherry's place was. Although I don't think she was ever home unless it was to throw a party. I wonder how much the rent is?" Sarah gave me a sly look. "I'm sure Simon will be more than happy to show you his apartment if you just ask."
I rolled my eyes at her. "I was just curious since I hadn't seen it since the last party I went to at Sherry's, which was ages ago."
"Where are you guys going today besides the supermarket?" Sarah asked.
I shrugged. "I'm not sure. Simon said something about running errands. I guess maybe to pick up stuff for his apartment."
Sarah wiggled her eyebrows. "Have fun. But not too much fun. We wouldn't want you to get carried away and cross your self-imposed friend boundary."
