"This is Sarah," she said, horrifying me. "Would you mind telling us what you were thinking just now when you were staring at her?"
"Macy!" I whispered.
She smiled at me and gestured toward the guy. "I just wanted to know what he had on his mind when you two were looking at each other." She turned to face him. "I was trying to see if she was right about guys, that's all."
"Oh, my goodness, you need to leave that poor man alone, Macy." I shook my head as I lowered my gaze, putting my fingertips and thumb on my eyebrows and waiting for him to walk away.
He did not do as I hoped. Instead, he stood there. "I don't mind telling you what I was thinking, but if something's awkward…" He trailed off, and I knew he was looking at me. I could feel it.
"Nothing's awkward," Macy assured him. She nudged me with her elbow, and I glanced up to smile at the guy, feeling red-faced and horrified.
He wore a curious half-smile as he stared at me, letting his light eyes roam all over my face. I blinked and stared down shyly. "I was thinking she looked like sunshine, actually."
That caused me to cut my eyes at him, which made his smile broaden as he shrugged.
"It's true. You look like sunshine to me. It was the very first thing that crossed my mind when I was standing here just now. I was trying to think of something better to say, but you really do strike me as sunshine."
"In a fat way?" I asked, wrinkling my nose at him and hoping my off-the-wall comment would serve as distraction to my pounding heart.
"No," he said with an amused grin. "In a sunny way."
"I can totally see what you're saying!" Lu said.
"Me too," Macy added.
I looked at all of them as if they had gone mad. "You all think I'm fat," I said with a fake pouty face. My weight had fluctuated a little over the years, but I had never been self conscious about it. I was totally kidding, and they all knew it.
"Were you thinking about hooking up with her?" Macy asked.
"Macy!" I scolded again, with wide eyes.
"I'm pretty sure that's a trick question," the guy said.
I glanced at him with an apologetic stare. "Yes, please don't answer that. They're just giving me a hard time today." He smiled at me and let our eyes stay connected for several seconds before shifting to arrange the empty dishes in his hands. Within seconds, they were balanced, and he glanced at everyone at the table. "How was your meal?"
"Amazing," Drake said.
"Seriously," Lu added. "It's my new favorite."
"I'm glad to hear that," he said with another smile.
His teeth weren't perfectly straight, but they were even more appealing just the way they were. There was a little bit of sharpness to his canines that gave his smile a dangerous edge. I swallowed hard and glanced away when I caught myself staring at his mouth.
"Can I take anyone else's plate?" he asked.
Beckett handed hers over, and he took it.
"I'll eat that," Drake said, reaching out to intercept the plate, which still had about half of her portion remaining.
"I was going to ask if you wanted me to box it," the busser said.
"I'll eat it," Drake said, looking at Beckett, who smiled and nodded as if she was fine with him finishing it off.
"I'm glad you kept it," Beckett said, reaching over to take another bite of food off of the plate that was now in front of Drake. "I just got so caught up in him being Collin Ross that I handed him my plate. I think I just wanted to say I handed him something."
"You talking about…" Drake motioned with a thumb in the direction the guy had walked away.
"I thought I recognized him," Lu said.
Drake looked over his shoulder. "Is he famous or something?"
"He owns like ten restaurants," Beckett said. She looked around. "This must be one of them. I don't think he's a chef, but he's a famous food guy for sure. He's always a guest judge on all those Food Network shows."
"I've seen him!" Macy said.
"I have too," Lu said. "And he's even hotter in person."
"He's not that hot," Beckett said rolling her eyes for Drake's sake.
"I can't believe you put him on the spot like that," I said, kicking Macy under the table.
"Oh, but it would have been okay if he was a waiter?" Macy teased, dodging me.
"No, but better than some Food Network guy."
"You thought he was cute," Lu said, teasing me. "You liked that he called you sunshine."
"No I didn't," I said defensively.
"You did!" Lu teased.
Macy put the back of her hand to her forehead and swooned dramatically. "I don’t know what I would give to be called a beautiful ray of sunshine," she said in her best Scarlett O'Hara voice. She winked at me. "Don’t try to act like you didn't see how he was looking at you—how you were looking at each other."
"We were looking at each other like we were mortified by you putting him on the spot like that."
"She didn't put him on the spot until after you were staring," Drake interjected, being no help whatsoever.
"I can't believe you had a moment with Collin Ross," Beckett said longingly, causing Drake to scowl at her, which made us all laugh.
My heart was beating a mile a minute as I tried to remember the details of the conversation, but everyone was still talking, and I wasn't able to rehash everything.
"Are you guys ready for the check, or would you like to order some dessert?" our server asked, coming to stand over Drake's shoulder so we could all see her. "And Mr. Ross said your appetizers are on the house."
"Tell him he can have Sarah's number if he wants," Macy said, which resulted in my elbow coming into contact with her arm.
Our server just laughed nervously as she leaned over to take Lu's plate. "Are you Sarah Spicer?" she asked, glancing at me with a shy smile.
I nodded.
"I usually don't do things like this, but I'm really hoping I get a part on your dad's new pilot. I auditioned a few days ago, and I think I really nailed the part. Do you think you could put in a good word for me?"
And there it was. The phrase I had heard countless other times. Everybody wanted me to put in a good word with my dad. I just smiled and nodded since that was easier than explaining that my dad had nothing to do with casting.
"I'm Nichole Massey. I read for the part of Elle. I had my hair in a big bun."
I smiled and nodded.
"Thank you so much!" she said.
"I can't promise anything."
"I know. I guess I just figured it couldn’t hurt to ask."
"Certainly can't hurt," I said, feeling bad that she was so excited and nervous to talk to me about it.
"I figured I might as well since I'm on a roll today," she said, leaning over to pick up the remaining dishes. "Mr. Ross is here today, and I overheard him talking about filming an episode of Best Chef tonight. I asked if he'd take me on the set, and he agreed." She shrugged. "I'm trying to break through into show business any way I can. If I don't try to make the most of any given situation, well then that's on me."
"You go girl," Macy said, snapping her fingers in mid-air the way they did in the 90's.
They all seemed to like the gutsy waitress, and I liked her, too. Only for some reason I had an odd sense of jealousy that she was going somewhere with the handsome restaurant owner when I wasn’t—like she was somehow on my turf. My first thought was that I would show her who's boss by not putting a good word in with my dad, but then I realized that it was a ridiculous thought since her good fortune of going on the set of Best Chef was of no consequence to me. I laughed at myself internally for being jealous over this guy's attention now that I knew he was some hotshot Food Network guy. I thought about the ridiculousness of me wanting his attention at all. My own feelings left me a little confused, and I sat there, composing myself.
Chapter 3
Drake and Beckett had to leave, but Macy and Lu decided to stay for coffee and dessert, so I stayed with them.
"O
oh, they missed the best part," Macy said, taking a huge bite of the soft sopaipilla with a blissful expression.
"I thought she was nice," Lu said, referring to Beckett.
I nodded. "Me too. I think he likes her, too."
Macy dipped a second sopaipilla in honey and stared longingly at it, like she hadn't eaten a day in her life.
"I can't believe you're still hungry," I said, since I was stuffed from lunch.
"It's the cinnamon," she said. "I have a thing for cinnamon."
I reached out to touch the top of the small French press that was sitting in front of me. "Will you push this down in like two minutes?" I asked. "I need to go use the restroom."
Lu nodded and waved me off as she chewed.
I saw Collin Ross standing in the dining room as I made my way through the restaurant in search of the ladies room. He was talking to three people who were sitting at a table, but he glanced in my direction when my movement caught his eye. He smiled and lifted his chin at me before focusing again on the people who were talking to him.
I was only in the restroom for a minute, so I was a bit surprised to see Collin standing in a completely different spot when I was on the way back to my table. He was again speaking with people at a table, but this time, he was much closer to the main walking path that led through the center of the dining room. I would have to pass right by him to get to my table, and this idea left me feeling unnerved. I told myself to breathe and put one foot in front of the other.
I thought I might make it past Collin without incident, but I was mistaken. He asked the customers sitting around the table to excuse him, and he stepped in front of me just before I made it past them.
"Hey," he said. "I'm sorry if it was weird back there. I wanted to say the right thing for you in front of your friends, but all I could see was the sun."
I put a hand to my chest, feeling altogether breathless after having him stand there, smiling and talking to me like that. "What? Me? You mean what you said at the table?" I cleared my throat in an effort to stop stuttering. "I'm the one who should be sorry about that."
Collin put a hand on my arm to usher me to the side. "I'm sorry I called you sunshine," he said. "I realized after I walked off that you may get offended by that. I was just looking at your sweater, and the way your hair's pulled up, and your smile. You just reminded me of sunshine, that's all."
"I wasn't offended by it. I figured it made sense for you to compliment your customers."
"I don't subscribe to flattery," he said with a subtle shake of his head. "I've actually never told anyone they look like sunshine—although no one has ever really asked me what I was thinking when I first laid eyes on someone."
"Sorry about that," I said.
"Let me buy you dinner to make it up to you," he said.
I smiled. "But I'm the one apologizing."
"Then you can buy me dinner," he said, carefully inspecting every inch of my face in spite of the busy restaurant.
"I'm not sure if you're asking me on a date right now, but if so, the answer is 'no' because I don't date." I could have been really tempted to go out with him, but I was so scared of falling in love and getting hurt, that I made the statement without even thinking about it.
"Why not? Are you married?"
"No. I just don't want to. I have trust issues. I'm afraid it'd be a waste of your time." I pulled back, staring at him skeptically. "Why are you asking? Do you know my dad or something?"
He threw his hands up like he had no idea what I was talking about and smiled. "Can't a guy ask a girl on a date in his own restaurant?"
I giggled. "I don't date, but thank you. I'm honored, since I heard you're some big shot up-and-comer."
"Who you callin' an up-and-comer?" he asked, staring sideways at me, and causing me to laugh again.
I smiled as I turned to walk away, I really regretted mentioning my dad, and I was glad he hadn't asked me about it. I was so used to people being nice to me because of who my dad was that, by instinct, I had to go ahead and call him out on it.
"Who's your dad?" he asked, reading my mind before I could walk away. He reached out to usher me to the side again as someone passed.
"You tell me," I said, turning to face him.
"Chuck Norris?" he asked as if it were truly his best guess.
I giggled. "Never mind," I said shaking my head shyly.
"Tell me," he said.
"No."
"Why?"
"Because he's not nearly as cool as Chuck Norris."
"Charles Schwab?" he guessed.
I smiled. "Maybe a little cooler than Charles Schwab."
He motioned with his hands for me to tell him. "Saul Spicer," I said.
"The Bad Medicine guy?" he asked, referring to my dad's most famous television series that was currently in its twelfth season.
I nodded.
"I think I've actually met your dad a time or two at charity functions," he said.
"Probably," I agreed. "My mom's always got us going to one of those things. In fact, I'm sure we've met before." I gestured back and forth from me to him, and he shook his head.
"I'd remember," he said, staring at me in a way that made me know he was intrigued by the looks of my face. "What's your name?"
"Sarah."
"Sarah," he repeated. "I'm Collin."
I nodded since I already knew.
"One coffee, Sarah Spicer," he said.
I shook my head regretfully. "I really don't date," I said. "I'm flattered that you'd even ask. I know my refusal only makes me seem more appealing, and I'm sorry about that. I apologize if I gave you the wrong idea. I really don't date. It's sort of a rule."
"A rule from your dad?" he asked.
"No," I said, laughing. We had drifted to the side where we were no longer in anyone's way. "I'm a grown woman. My dad didn't even care who I was dating even when I lived at home, much less now that I have my own place."
I had been living in my own apartment for the last five years, and there I was, sounding like a teenager who had just gotten my own place yesterday. I smiled and reminded myself there was no shame in being quiet, so I clamped my mouth shut and smiled at him.
"Am I to understand, Miss Spicer, that you can't have coffee with me because of a self-inflicted rule against dating?"
I smiled. "Yes."
He rubbed his jaw, which was lined with a week's worth of stubble—a short beard.
"I'm happy to tell you that the beauty of self-imposed rules is that you can break them," he said.
I smiled because I just couldn't help it. He was so charming that I almost forgot all about my no-dating policy.
"I won't break it," I said, knowing it was the truth. After my dad, and then Brian and Cameron, I had no desire to mess with men. I shook my head with a regretful smile.
"Why not?" he asked.
"Because you're too ugly," I said. I delivered the statement with a straight face, but I knew he knew I was joking by the way he struggled not to smile.
"That's why I need you," he said. "I need some beauty to balance out what an ugly oaf I am."
"So ugly," I said, with obvious sarcasm since he had a face that was clearly made for television. "Nichole will help," I said. "She's pretty enough."
"Who's Nichole?" he asked.
"The girl who's going with you to the set of Best Chef tonight."
"Oh, yeah. She's not coming with me. I'm leaving her a pass at the door."
"She's pretty, though," I said. "What I'm saying is that she could balance you out if you're looking for someone to do that."
"I'm not really looking for someone," he said.
I narrowed my eyes at him, which made him smile.
"Please say I am the first in line when you come to your senses and start breaking this despicable rule."
"I'm not breaking it."
"But I'm first in line if you do."
I smiled. "Sure. I better let you get back," I said since about three different people were vyi
ng for his attention in our periphery.
He nodded, and we broke apart. I headed toward our table, and Collin turned to pay attention to the person who was standing at his left.
"What was that all about?" Lu asked when I finally got back to the table. "We saw you talking to Collin. You were standing over there forever."
"He asked me out," I said.
"I knew it!" Macy said, pushing at Lu excitedly.
"Don't worry, she didn't say 'yes'," Lu said in a bored, monotone voice.
"How do you know what she said?" Macy asked.
Lu looked at me, and I shrugged innocently.
"I told him I don’t date."
"What do you mean, you don't date?" Macy asked, smirking at me.
"I haven't gone out with anyone since Cameron," I said. "And I don't have plans to."
"She doesn't trust men," Lu added.
"Not even famous ones?" Macy asked.
"That's nothing," Lu said. "She talks to famous people all the time. She's basically best friends with Ethan Prescott."
"We're not best friends," I said.
"They have each other's numbers," Lu said.
Ethan was Dad's biggest-name actor. He had been starring on Bad Medicine for the past five seasons and was a big hit with all the ladies.
"All the actors love her because she's hot and her dad's their boss," Macy said. It was a statement, but I knew she was testing to see if I would deny it.
"Mostly it's my dad," I said, putting away the last two bites of sopapillas they had saved for me. "
I knew by the way Macy and Lu smiled over my shoulder that someone had come to stand behind me. It didn't take a genius to figure out that it was Collin, either. I knew that's who it was before I even turned around. I could barely breathe as I shifted to face him. He smiled and handed me a napkin that was folded in half.
"I wanted you to have it just in case you changed your mind about reaching me," he said.
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