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“Hey Mark!” The waitress Summer motioned over, saunters up to Mark, laying her hand on his forearm. “Good to see you again.” She’s beautiful with a big wide smile and long blonde hair.
I see a contradiction as his body stiffens yet his words flow easily. But his smile. It’s different.
So, we both do the fake smile thing.
And why am I noticing?
“Hi Kelly. How’ve you been?”
“I’m great now. Haven’t seen you in a while. Where have you been hiding?” She leans in and moves her hand up to his biceps. I track it with my eyes and a weird feeling comes over me. I don’t like it. I hear a throat clear and look up to see Summer eyeing me intensely.
“Hey Kelly, can we place our order with you? It’s been a long week and I’m ready to unwind with my friends.” She hits the words ‘my friends’ with a point and I’ve never loved someone more. I hide a smile and turn from the show that isn’t sitting right with me.
“Sure thing, Summer.” She’s got a bite to her words, but Summer just rattles off some drinks and food, then turns, dismissing her quickly and grabs a seat next to me.
“What’s gotten into you?” I ask her. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a bit of rudeness from my friend. She’s always so happy and full of sunshine.
“Kelly tries too hard. And I saw the way Mark reacted, even though he was trying to be nice.” She eyes me again. “And I saw the way you watched it all happen.”
I remain quiet and she leans in. “Is he the guy you went out with last week?”
I bury my face in my hands. “Yes, but I don’t want this to become a thing. It’s not a big deal.”
“It’s a small circle! It’s already a thing! Does he know who your father is?”
“No.”
“Mackenzie, don’t hide it. Especially from Mark.”
“But I don’t want people to think- “
“Listen, none of us would think twice about how you got a job here or care that your dad is the Dean. You’re clearly qualified. But the bigger problem is that if you do like him, you need to sort out that mess. Mark is well aware that Dean Stoll hates him.”
Do I like Mark enough to explain it? “We’ve only gone out twice. It’s brand new. We’re just colleagues at the same University. We have the same friends. Of course, we’re in the same circle.”
She raises a brow. “I don’t want to see my friends hurt, though. And I’m talking about both of you. Mark is not what everyone says.”
“I’m seeing that.”
“What’s with the whispering, ladies? Secret Cheer stuff?” Mark slides into the chair next to me as Dash, Aiden and Noel all grab seats around our table.
“Yes. Top Secret. You should stop spying on our practices.” Summer calls him out.
“No can do. See, every time I show up to watch my boy’s son play ball, I can’t help but notice the gorgeous coaches on the other side of the field.”
“Careful, Mark.” Dash warns.
Mark just laughs and carries on, nodding at Dash. “That’s my boy. And he told me earlier that he’d like to know if you think I’m cute? So, it’s not spying, it’s research. I have questions thatI knowyou have answers to.”
“Don’t pull me into your mess, McCall.” Dash teases him.
I can’t help but smile every time Mark speaks. You never know what’s going to come out of his mouth. And when I smile, his shines brighter. And there’s the difference I noted earlier. The one he shows me is genuine.
Kelly arrives with our drinks, but before she can flirt with Mark, Summer continues. “So, you’ve been watching our practices, huh? Any particular reason?”
Mark makes a show of leaning back in his chair, stretching his arms behind his head. I notice his shirt rising. A tiny sliver of skin shows through.
“Here Mark, on the house.”
