That evening at work, Kelly changed quickly into her uniform. When she came out, Connor was waiting on her. The hall was dark and his face was half covered in shadows. Kelly jumped back in surprise.
"Mr. Black," she gasped.
"Connor," he replied, "Call me Connor. I wanted to apologize about how I acted yesterday. I think it would be best if we forgot all about it."
"Sure," Kelly agreed.
After her talk with Connor, Kelly was in a fantastic mood. She was relieved Connor had stopped trying to get her to go out with him and was satisfied with just being her boss. Her shift was going great too. As she was waiting on an older couple, she heard a familiar voice.
"Excuse me, Miss, but could we get a table for four, please?" the voice asked.
Kelly turned to find Zack grinning at her. Jessie, Slater, and Screech were standing behind him waving. A smile spread across her face. "Zack, what are you guys doing here?" she giggled.
"We came by to see how you were doing. Plus, it would be nice to eat something other than Max burgers," he chuckled.
"Well, here is a table for all of you," motioning to an empty table in the middle. Then, she paused, "Where's Lisa?" Kelly asked.
"Shopping," Jessie said condescendingly. "Why spend money on food when she can spend it on heels?"
"Well, I'm glad you guys are here," Kelly said cheerfully.
"Is it going better today?" Jessie asked taking a seat at the table as Slater pulled a chair out for her.
"Much better," Kelly beamed.
"Great!" Zack grinned giving her a hug. "Now, what do you recommend?" he asked sitting down at the table next to Screech.
"I'd like the snail platter," Screech said as he pointed to the menu.
The rest of the gang groaned disgusted.
"It's a delicacy!" he spoke out.
"Couldn't you be polite enough to call it escargot like everyone else?" Slater grumbled.
Kelly shook her head and laughed as she took the rest of their orders. She slipped back into the kitchen smiling as she gave the chef her order.
When she left the kitchen, Connor was waiting beside the door. "Hey," he greeted her quietly.
"Hi," she replied with a grin.
"So, do you hug all of your friends like that?" he asked.
Kelly gazed questioningly at him. She wasn't sure what he was referring to, then, she remembered that Zack had given her a hug. "They're my friends. I hug them all of the time," she replied shyly.
"We're friends," Connor whispered stepping closer to her.
Kelly took a step backward. "I'd better go take some more orders," she replied timidly. Why was Connor coming on to her again? She thought the matter had been settled. She walked quickly back to the gang's table. Her solemn expression caught Zack's attention.
"Are you ok, Kelly?' he asked concerned. Jessie, Screech, and Slater all stopped chatting and looked at Kelly.
"Yeah, I'm ok," she forced a grin. "I just goofed up an order," she lied. She didn't know why she did it. It wasn't like her at all to lie to her friends.
Just then, Connor walked up to the gang's table. "How is everything this evening?" he asked in a professional tone.
"Fantastic, thanks to this fine, young waitress!" Screech complimented. "She's definitely a keeper! She even knows the French word for snails!"
The rest of the gang sighed. Kelly put her hand over her brow to hide her face. Connor straightened his tie and nodded. Then, he pulled Kelly aside. "You need to start giving other tables attention. If your friends are causing a distraction, I'll have to move you. I can't have my waitresses making me look unprofessional," he demanded.
"Sure," she nodded. It wasn't like she hadn't waited on her other tables, but maybe she had been spending too much time at her friends' table.
As she turned to walk away, Connor added, "A word of advice, to keep this job my opinion of you matters a lot more than your friend's," he whispered. "Don't forget that."
Kelly wasn't sure how to react. She just turned and went back to work hardly making any stops at her friends' table. She told them she was too busy to chat anymore.
The gang finished eating about ten minutes before her shift was over. They were going to wait on her to get off work, but Kelly told them it would be best to go. She didn't explain that she was afraid she'd lose her job if they stuck around.
When her shift was over, she went back to change only to find Connor waiting in front of the locker room door spinning his keys on his finger. He waved his other hand at her.
"Hi," Kelly replied. She wondered if he would move out of her path. When he didn't, she took a step closer.
"Thanks for doing what I asked," he told her, "I just didn't want you saying anything to your friends we'd regret."
"What do you mean?" Kelly asked confused.
"You know, about us. I don't want people to get the wrong idea," he peered at her. "That's why I had you stop waiting on your friends. I don't want you to make me out as a creep. I just want to get to know you." He smiled. "So, have you considered my offer?"
"About going out?" Kelly asked. Her voice cracked a little. She really didn't want to have to go through this again. "I don't think so."
He crossed his arms and nodded. She could tell he was upset, but she didn't trust Connor as far as she could throw him. No way was she going on a date with him alone. It gave her the creeps enough to be at work with him after hours.
As he walked back to his office, Kelly changed quickly and left.
