"Were you perves watching me change last night?" Eli said with a laugh.
"Absolutely not," Kins said and winked at me.
I laughed. I had no doubt that Kins was watching him change. "You really don't have to take that class, Eli. I don't want you to get hurt."
He shifted slightly so that his lips were by my ear. "You're worth taking a few punches for, Sadie."
And just like that, I felt like an asshole. I needed to stop thinking about Miles and the vigilante. Eli was good and sweet. I was making him a villain in my head and I didn't even know why. His reasons for ditching me were sound. Why was I questioning a good thing?
"They're seriously embarrassing to hang out with." Eli nodded toward Kins and Patrick.
They had abandoned any idea of eating and were just making out hardcore.
Eli and I both stifled our laughter. I smiled up at him. Safe was what I needed.
Chapter 29
Saturday
I set down a tray of dirty dishes in the kitchen. My shift ended in 30 minutes and all my tables were already eating. I'd probably get out early.
"You were just requested at table seven by a very handsome gentleman," Joan said.
I smiled. Eli promised he'd be here to walk me home tonight. It was sweet of him to come early to hang out for a bit. "Thanks, Joan."
"Is he your boyfriend?" she said as she raised both eyebrows.
"We'll see. Nothing's official yet."
She laughed. "Atta girl. Make him work for it."
I walked out of the kitchen with a huge smile on my face. But it disappeared when I saw who was sitting at table seven. Miles. Now Joan was going to think that I wanted Miles to be my boyfriend. And I didn't. I didn't want a one night stand. I wanted to be loved the way I loved him.
I shook away the thought. This didn't have to be weird. He didn't know that I thought he was flirting with me at his game. He knew I worked here and that's why he requested me to serve him. He was just being a sociable RA. I walked over to his table. "Hi, Miles." My voice sounded oddly high pitched. Stop being weird.
He smiled out of the corner of his mouth. "Hey, Sadie. I was hoping you'd be working tonight."
I tried to tell my quickening heartbeat to take a chill pill. He meant it in a friendly way. So why did the center of my chest ache? Why couldn't I stop looking into his eyes? I felt like my feet were melting into the ground.
"Sadie?"
"What?" I shook my head, hoping it would dismiss my wandering thoughts.
He smiled again but then he lowered his eyebrows slightly. "What happened?" He lightly touched the side of his jaw.
My fingers found the Band-Aid on my cheek. "I tripped."
He pressed his lips together. "You should have stopped by my dorm. I wouldn't have minded bandaging you up again."
Is he flirting with me? No. He's just being a good RA. "I'm okay, really."
"When do you get off?"
"10." I swallowed hard. Did he really come to walk me home? I told him he didn't need to.
He glanced at the clock on the wall. "Maybe I'll just take a chocolate chip cookie and a glass of milk then?"
I nodded and wrote it down in my notepad even though I knew I wouldn't forget it. Some nights he'd sneak cookies and milk into his tree house. It was his favorite snack. I saw the telescope sticking out of his backpack. He was on his way to the observatory. Did he remember pairing those things together? I had always been a part of that equation. "I'll be right back." I didn't make eye contact with him before I walked away.