Page 19 of The Leaves In Autumn
“Afternoon. Coffee? Wait. You need a place setting.”
She signals the busboy and points to the table and my place specifically. He hops to it. She pours a refill for Nobel, and Van’s iced tea speaks for itself.
“Allison, this is my brother, Aargon.”
“Hello,” I say and smile.
“Aargon. That’s a great name. Nice to meet you.”
Now I am required to make an attempt at conversation.
“This place is jumping. Are you the manager?”
“She’s the proprietor,” Van says.
“You must be doing a good job. Is there a line every day?”
“No. Wednesday is coupon day. I’ll make sure your table gets the discount. Nobel is a regular customer.”
I get a little smile. Nothing overt, but I saw it and by the look on my brothers’ faces they did too. They have us married already.
My setting gets placed and the woman pours me a cup.
“Thank you.”
“Here’s the attorney we spoke about. Give him a call.”
“I will. Thanks. Enjoy your meal, gentlemen. And I look forward to seeing you all again.”
She turns and walks to the next table.
Van leans in and whispers. “She’s into you, bro!”
“What? No, she isn’t.”
“She has class. Understated,” Nobel says between bites. “Just saying.”
“You should ask her out.”
There’s no use rejecting their directive outright. They would only keep talking. I am not in the mood for the conversation to continue, so I shut it down.
“Let’s order. I’m starving.”
“She might be a good wedding date.”
Nobel joins in the big sell.
“That could work. Lots of distractions in case you’re not feeling it. Dancing, drinking, other people’s conversations at the table.”
“You two planning my love life now?”
“No. Just looking out for you, brother. You think coming stag to my wedding is gonna be a good time?”
Nobel jumps in for the kill.
“All the aunties and grandmas will love having you as their dancing partner.”
“Oh yeah. You can hear about Uncle Ronnie’s sleep apnea. He loves to talk aboutthose fucking hosesas he calls them.”
