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Clara
I smiled as I watched the fire engine disappear down the main street of Riverville. Partly because it was exhilarating watching the firemen rush into their gear and drive away to do something heroic.
But mostly I smiled becauseI had a date with one of them.
Once I shook off my stupor, I packed up their food and carried it inside the station proper. I passed several rooms with bunk beds and a big communal bathroom before reaching the kitchen. First I turned the oven to thewarmsetting. The pasta was already in an aluminum tray, so I threw that inside right away.
The pizza was tougher. Although the cardboard boxes wouldn’t burn at such a low temperature, I didn’t think the firemen would approve of me putting cardboard directly in an oven. Instead, I found two baking trays in the cabinet and began transferring slices of pizza to them. Then I covered both trays in aluminum foil and threw them in the oven.
Now the guys would have hot food when they returned, and the temperature was too low to be dangerous. Just to be safe, I scanned the bottom of the oven for any crumbs or pieces of loose food. They wouldn’t ignite at that temperature, but I figured better safe than sorry.
I found a notepad, scribbled a note about the food, and then left.
On the way out, I paused in one of the bedroom doorways. There was a bunk labeled “Lloyd,” which was Jordan’s last name. Next to the bed was an art easel holding a blank canvas, and a box of paints were on the floor next to it. Was that Jordan’s, or did it belong to the bunk next to his? That one was labeled Heath. Taylor Heath, the blond probationary firefighter.
“I shouldn’t be snooping,” I muttered, then hurried out of the garage to my car.
“What took you so long!” mom complained when I got back to the restaurant. “There’s another delivery waiting!”
“Sorry! The guys got a call and had to run, so I boxed their food up for them.” I collected the waiting delivery order and paused. “Mom, I have a favor to ask. Can I get off fifteen minutes early?”
“Early? Why?” she barked from the kitchen.
“I kind of… have a date.”
Her head slowly peered around the massive pizza oven. “A date? With who?”
“Jordan Lloyd. One of the firemen.”
A huge smile split her face. “My daughter is going out with a fireman!”
I groaned. “Mom. It’s not a big deal.”
The little Italian woman opened the oven and inserted a pizza. “Not a big deal, she says to me!” She closed the oven and whirled toward me. “Now you will give me grandchildren!”
“Jason and Maurice already gave you a grandson,” I pointed out. They had adopted a little boy named LeBron, named after my brother-in-law’s favorite basketball player.
“They only have one,” Mom said, beaming. “I wantmore. Give me all the grandchildren to love!”
“It’s one date. Let’s not get ahead of ourselves.”
Mom wiped her hands on her apron and hurried to the counter to greet a customer. “Welcome to Tony’s Pizza. My daughter has a date with afireman.”
I rolled my eyes and hurried out to make my next delivery.
The rest of the night was a blur of activity. I had two more deliveries, and after the last one I swung by the house to get my hair straightener and a change of clothes—nothing fancy, just clean jeans and a blouse. Finally, the dinner rush died down around eight-thirty. I went into the back room, cleaned myself off as best as I could, and changed into my new clothes.
I was straightening my hair when the front door opened at eight-fifty.
He’s early,I thought frantically. I wasn’t ready yet—I needed more time! But when I poked my head out from the back, I saw a college-aged guy standing at the counter.
“Welcome to Tony’s Pizza,” I called to him, putting down my straightener and then approaching the counter. “We’re closing in ten minutes, but…”
“That’s okay,” the guy said. He looked stoned. “I need four extra-larges. Two pepperoni, one meat-lovers, and one Hawaiian.”
I groaned.Technicallywe accepted orders all the way until nine. But for an order this size, mom would need my help.
“Four extra-larges…” I said, writing it down on an order sheet.
