The bell rang and Annie and I gathered our books, stuffing them into our backpacks.

"Hey, Lisa," Annie said with a smile. "It was good to see you again."

"Yeah," I agreed. "You, too." I thought for a minute, and then asked, "Annie, we're going to the city tonight to scope things out. You want to go?"

Annie's eyes literally twinkled with excitement. "Sure!"

"But, before you agree," I interrupted her before she could break into a happy dance, "it's not a pleasure ...