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“I can take this when you’re ready.” She bent down to Jason’s ear, whispering something. And then, “Call me.”
Jason watched her walk away, and I gripped my fork like a weapon.
“She’s cute,” my mom observed.
“A little forward and not very good at her job, but whatever.” I bit into a piece of cantaloupe, and Jason tilted his head in silence as I chewed and swallowed.
“Jealous?”
“Of Jessica? No, I’m not jealous of the waitress throwing herself at you.”
“Okay,” he said with a sarcastic chuckle, and I tried to remember where the arteries in legs were. All it would take would be one quick stab, and he’d come tumbling down.
Frank reached for the check, but Jason batted his hand away and stuck his credit card in the holder before passing it to another waiter as he walked by. When Jessica returned with it a minute later, she seemed a bit put out, yet he signed the receipt without any further flirtations. “Everybody ready to go?”
Frank helped Caroline up and led us to the parking lot, where Jason pressed a button on his key fob. The lights flickered on his truck.
I stopped in my tracks. “You’ve got to be kidding me.”
“What, sweetheart?” Frank asked, opening the passenger side door of his car.
“First, the sports car, and now, a truck?”
Jason stepped next to me. “What’s this scowl for now?”
“Have you ever thought about the gallons of oil you’re burning through every day? The amount of carbon dioxide you’re putting into the atmosphere? Almost nine thousand grams of—”
“And there it is,” he grumbled.
“There what is? You really don’t—”
Frank cut me off. “Jay, you’re coming to the picnic tomorrow, right?”
When he nodded, Mom smacked her forehead. “Gemmie, I forgot to tell you about that. We’re having—”
“A picnic. Yeah, I deduced that from what Frank said,” I said.
“Deduced.” Jason rocked back on his heels. “Good use of vocabulary words.”
I should’ve gone for the femoral when I had the chance. “I don’t have a master’s degree but at least—”
Mom grabbed me by the shoulders. “I’m sorry. I forgot with all the wedding planning and everything. You can come, right?”
“I’m supposed to work at the store tomorrow. Alex has the day off.”
“But tomorrow’s Labor Day.”
“So?”
She rubbed my back. “You get that many customers that you need to stay open on Labor Day?”
I shied away from her, annoyed at her patronizing tone. “Yes, we get enough customers to stay open on Labor Day. Where else would people get their tofu hot dogs?”
Frank choked at that. “Who eats tofu hot dogs?”
“All right.” Jason clapped. “On that note. I’m gonna head out.” He kissed my mom’s cheek then shook Frank’s hand before heading to his truck.
“Besides, I don’t want to ride my bike there again,” I said, returning back to my conversation with my mother.
