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Andy whistled, and most of the kids stopped talking. “Listen up,” Andy’s voice projected through the room. He’d obviously honed the skill of getting a bunch of rowdy teens to shut up and pay attention.
When the room was relatively silent and a number of the kids were looking toward Andy, he said, “This is Jack. He’s going to be cooking for us occasionally and helping out for the next several weeks.”
“He can cook for us every day,” a girl called from the back of the room. She had on a dress that looked hand sewn, torn tights,and black boots. Her hair was bright pink and stood out around her head, making her face look like the center of a preschooler’s drawing of the sun. She was a cross between a singer in a glam rock band and an extra in Little Orphan Annie. Jack liked her instantly.
“I’m glad you enjoyed it,” he said. “Dessert’s up next.” The girl smiled, and Jack had no doubt the expression was unusual for her.
Several of the others kids got excited looks on their faces. “What is it?” one of them asked.
“Tiramisu,” Jack responded.
“What the hell is that?” a kid in front asked. He appeared to be fifteen going on forty. His eyes revealed that he’d seen way too much of the world.
“Layers of coffee-soaked cake”—he’d left out the rum considering who he was serving—“mascarpone cheese, which is a lot like cream cheese, whipped cream, and chocolate.”
The hard-eyed kid nodded his approval. “I’ll eat that.”
Jack had to fight to keep a straight face.
When dessert had been served, Trina and Dave finally showed up, and Andy set them to the task of cleaning up. “You got a few minutes to talk before you head home?” he asked.
“Sure, just let me say goodbye to Henry.”
Andy smiled and nodded.
Jack walked over to the serving line where Henry was clearing the unused plates and silverware. “Thanks for your help today.”
Henry’s cheeks colored, and his embarrassed expression made him look very young once again. “Sure. Any time.”
“I’ll see you soon, then.”
“Okay.” Henry started to wave, looked even more embarrassed, and turned back to his work.
Jack followed Andy to his office where Andy invited him to sit.
“Thank you again. Dinner was wonderful, and you were great with the kids, especially Henry.”
“He was easy. I didn’t have to work hard at all to get him to talk to me.”
“That’s interesting, because you’re the first person other than me and Natalie, the pink-haired girl who gave your food a shout out, that he’s spoken more than two words to since he got here.”
Maybe Henry wasn’t as well adjusted at he pretended to be. “Seriously?”
Andy nodded.
“He’s asked to make dinner before, but our rules prevent the kids from doing kitchen duty without an adult, and we just don’t have enough staff to send someone to babysit him in the kitchen. We have great volunteers, but a lot of them just want to bring in food and drop it off. I had a sense you wouldn’t mind letting him have a bigger role than server.”
“Not at all. That’s what I want. In fact, I’d thought maybe I could do some cooking lessons if Henry and some of the others would be interested.”
“That’s a great idea. Let me look at the calendar and see what we can come up with. Do you think you’d be up for a mentoring rolewith Henry? You’d need to meet with him at least once a week, and I’d need you to commit to continuing when your leave ends.”
Jack had never been more sure of anything. “Yes. I understand the commitment, and that’s not a problem for me.”
Andy beamed. “Great. After seeing the two of you together tonight, I’m certain you’re a good match for him.”
They shook hands, and Jack headed to his car, happier than he’d been in months.
14
