AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Me, too.” She tossed me a quick grin before flipping open her menu.
I frowned. Maybe I needed to stop overthinking and let the conversation take its natural course. I opened my menu and skimmed the offerings. I’d never hear the end of it if I ordered the burger, no matter how amazing it sounded. So, the salmon. I was a sucker for harissa. I set my menu aside and glanced around while I waited for Kayla to decide.
Naming a restaurant after a mathematician was amusing. How many people knew who Ada Lovelace was? Or Charles Babbage, for that matter? Maybe it was taught in intro to computing classes here or there when teachers spent two seconds on history that got us to today, but who remembered that past the test? My students certainly never did.
I looked across the table at Kayla. “Would Ada and Charles approve?”
“Mine or the originals?”
“Yours, of course.”
Kayla set her menu aside and looked around. “I think they would. There’s enough fish on the menu to make them happy at least. If they’re lucky, I’ll bring them each home a bite of crab so they don’t feel too left out.”
“I’m getting the salmon. I can set a little aside if you want.”
“You don’t have to do that.”
“I know. But I wouldn’t want them to suffer.”
Kayla snickered. “You know how unlikely that is. But I also won’t say no. Because they’re spoiled babies.” She sighed. “This was a good idea. Thank you.”
“My pleasure.”
I didn’t get a chance to say anything more because our server appeared. He listed the specials, took our drink orders, and seemed a little put out when we declined appetizers and went straight to ordering entrées. Still, he took our menus and left us alone with a promise to be back shortly with drinks.
“What did I miss with you this week?”
Kayla’s cheeks pinked. “I didn’t tell you about Lucy at all, did I?”
I shook my head. “Lucy Hu?”
“Yeah. When I came back from our lunch a little early,” she paused to clear her throat. Was she embarrassed? She didn’t need to be. “I found Lucy copying from Aidan MacAllister.”
I winced. “He’s got a thing for her.”
“Does he?”
“Yeah. The signs are there if you know what to look for. They’re both in advanced calculus and sometimes I think I see little hearts instead of pupils in his eyes when he looks at her.”
Kayla chuckled. “Poor guy. Does Lucy know?”
“I don’t know how she’d miss it, but I also don’t see her encouraging it.”
She furrowed her brow. “Why not?”
“Have you met her parents?”
“I spoke to them on the phone this week.”
“Hm. Probably not the same effect. But I guess I’ll just say I don’t think it would go over well for Lucy to bring home a boy who wasn’t Chinese.”
“Oh.” Kayla’s lips stayed in the shape of the O for a moment. Then she nodded. “That makes a few things clearer.”
“You said she was copying? As in cheating?”
Kayla shrugged. “Lucy shouldn’t be in computers. She hates it, for starters. And while I think shecouldbe good at it, if she wanted to, she doesn’t. And it shows in her work.”
“Dad is pushing it.” The server came back with our drinks. I leaned out of the way for her to set them down.
