attractive of all the Donner guys. Not that I’m looking.
Joey shakes his head, grinning. ‘Only our team should have to see that.’
‘Guys,’ Paz says, cutting in, ‘Lu’s busy.’
‘My shift hasn’t started yet,’ I say.
‘We need a round of coffee, and Shirley can’t serve at her own birthday party.’ He snatches the last bite of chocolate off my napkin and pops it into his own mouth.
‘Hey!’
‘You can’t afford the calories.’
Shirley gives Paz a gentle kick in the butt. ‘Why are you so mean to your sister-in-law?’
‘She’s not my sister-in-law,’ Paz says. ‘Grace and I aren’t married.’
‘Where I come from, a baby says you’re married,’ Shirley says. ‘Anyway, don’t call Luisa fat.’
‘Why not? She calls me short.’
‘You call me Shorty all the time,’ I point out.
‘It’s different for girls,’ he says seriously. ‘It doesn’t matter if you’re short.’
It occurs to me that Paz has been my main window on the male world for so long that my perspective could be permanently skewed. ‘Look on the bright side,’ I say. ‘I could be calling you Baldy.’
The guys start snickering behind Paz.
‘Luisa,’ Shirley says reprovingly, ‘a lady never draws attention to a man’s receding hairline.’
‘It’s not receding!’ Paz says.
‘Of course it’s not,’ Shirley says, flustered. ‘Have somemore chocolate. And Luisa, would you mind getting the coffee?’
‘Seven coffees, coming up,’ I say. ‘Six regular, one with Rogaine.’
Shirley steps between Paz and me, arms outstretched.
The cowbells ring, and I turn to see Mac Landis standing at the door. There’s something commanding about his presence that pulls all eyes toward him. His success as an athlete seems to have infused him with confidence. Until last Saturday, I would have said arrogance.
Okay, it is arrogance. But any guy who can admit he adored his grandfather can’t be all bad.
Mac smiles and waves, and all eyes turn from him to me. Paz opens his mouth to say something, but Shirley distracts him by asking for help with the jukebox.
Mac joins me at the counter. ‘Did I interrupt a private party?’
‘No, just the usual mayhem,’ I say, gesturing to a stool. ‘Have a seat.’ I pour coffee into a mug and slide it toward him.
He appraises me over the rim of his cup. ‘Nice outfit.’
‘It’s fire retardant,’ I say, giving a half spin so that the skirt swirls. ‘Didn’t some designer say everything should be both beautiful and useful?’
If Mac recognizes the quote, he doesn’t let on. ‘Wish I’d asked you to be in the Bootylicious Calendar. Although there’s not much booty showing.’
The weight of Mac Landis’s eyes on my crinolinedbackside makes me so jumpy that I forget to share my views on that sexist piece of crap.
At last he turns his eyes to the Donner guys. ‘Don’t some of them go to Dunfield?’
‘Past tense,’ I say. ‘They’re Cocoa grads now.’
Since Shirley is keeping the guys distracted, I offer Mac a menu. I assume he’s here because I bragged to him about Dan’s burgers.
‘On the house?’ he asks, grinning hopefully.
‘Just the coffee, cheapo,’ I say. ‘The burger’s on you.’
I place Mac’s order and stall for a moment, assailed by doubts. Maybe he wants to be alone while he waits. Why would he want me hanging around?
‘Can’t you sit down for a few minutes?’ he asks.
Mac Landis wants me to sit down with him! I realize he’s just killing time, but still. Maybe it’s because I am such a good listener. It’s probably my only advantage over people like Mariah and Brianna the cheerleader.
‘I’m on my way to do my grandmother’s grocery shopping,’ Mac says as I perch beside him. ‘She lives a few blocks from here.’
‘You do her grocery shopping? That’s so nice!’
My voice swoops up at the end, making me sound more like a giddy groupie than the level-headed Lu Perez that Mac apparently enjoyed talking to
Joey shakes his head, grinning. ‘Only our team should have to see that.’
‘Guys,’ Paz says, cutting in, ‘Lu’s busy.’
‘My shift hasn’t started yet,’ I say.
‘We need a round of coffee, and Shirley can’t serve at her own birthday party.’ He snatches the last bite of chocolate off my napkin and pops it into his own mouth.
‘Hey!’
‘You can’t afford the calories.’
Shirley gives Paz a gentle kick in the butt. ‘Why are you so mean to your sister-in-law?’
‘She’s not my sister-in-law,’ Paz says. ‘Grace and I aren’t married.’
‘Where I come from, a baby says you’re married,’ Shirley says. ‘Anyway, don’t call Luisa fat.’
‘Why not? She calls me short.’
‘You call me Shorty all the time,’ I point out.
‘It’s different for girls,’ he says seriously. ‘It doesn’t matter if you’re short.’
It occurs to me that Paz has been my main window on the male world for so long that my perspective could be permanently skewed. ‘Look on the bright side,’ I say. ‘I could be calling you Baldy.’
The guys start snickering behind Paz.
‘Luisa,’ Shirley says reprovingly, ‘a lady never draws attention to a man’s receding hairline.’
‘It’s not receding!’ Paz says.
‘Of course it’s not,’ Shirley says, flustered. ‘Have somemore chocolate. And Luisa, would you mind getting the coffee?’
‘Seven coffees, coming up,’ I say. ‘Six regular, one with Rogaine.’
Shirley steps between Paz and me, arms outstretched.
The cowbells ring, and I turn to see Mac Landis standing at the door. There’s something commanding about his presence that pulls all eyes toward him. His success as an athlete seems to have infused him with confidence. Until last Saturday, I would have said arrogance.
Okay, it is arrogance. But any guy who can admit he adored his grandfather can’t be all bad.
Mac smiles and waves, and all eyes turn from him to me. Paz opens his mouth to say something, but Shirley distracts him by asking for help with the jukebox.
Mac joins me at the counter. ‘Did I interrupt a private party?’
‘No, just the usual mayhem,’ I say, gesturing to a stool. ‘Have a seat.’ I pour coffee into a mug and slide it toward him.
He appraises me over the rim of his cup. ‘Nice outfit.’
‘It’s fire retardant,’ I say, giving a half spin so that the skirt swirls. ‘Didn’t some designer say everything should be both beautiful and useful?’
If Mac recognizes the quote, he doesn’t let on. ‘Wish I’d asked you to be in the Bootylicious Calendar. Although there’s not much booty showing.’
The weight of Mac Landis’s eyes on my crinolinedbackside makes me so jumpy that I forget to share my views on that sexist piece of crap.
At last he turns his eyes to the Donner guys. ‘Don’t some of them go to Dunfield?’
‘Past tense,’ I say. ‘They’re Cocoa grads now.’
Since Shirley is keeping the guys distracted, I offer Mac a menu. I assume he’s here because I bragged to him about Dan’s burgers.
‘On the house?’ he asks, grinning hopefully.
‘Just the coffee, cheapo,’ I say. ‘The burger’s on you.’
I place Mac’s order and stall for a moment, assailed by doubts. Maybe he wants to be alone while he waits. Why would he want me hanging around?
‘Can’t you sit down for a few minutes?’ he asks.
Mac Landis wants me to sit down with him! I realize he’s just killing time, but still. Maybe it’s because I am such a good listener. It’s probably my only advantage over people like Mariah and Brianna the cheerleader.
‘I’m on my way to do my grandmother’s grocery shopping,’ Mac says as I perch beside him. ‘She lives a few blocks from here.’
‘You do her grocery shopping? That’s so nice!’
My voice swoops up at the end, making me sound more like a giddy groupie than the level-headed Lu Perez that Mac apparently enjoyed talking to
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