Page 25 of The Matchmaker Club

“On it,” she yelled back over the talking of the crowd and clanking of silverware on plates.

I walked over to Bob. “Your usual, pastrami and mustard.” And then to table three where Kevin sat. “A bacon burger, medium rare, no cheese.”

He clapped his hands together, ready to dig in. “Thanks, looks good.”

When the last of the orders were out, Thelma and I leaned against the counter in the waitress station for a short breather.

“Ben’s throwing another bonfire get-together Saturday. You in?”

“Sounds like a plan.”

“Cool. Whose turn is it to do check duty?” Thelma asked.

“Mine.”

“Alright, you get started on that, and I’ll do a swing through to see if anyone needs anything.”

She held up her hand, and I gave her a high five. “Let’s do it.”

Mack helped me add up the checks, and I started to organize them by table. “This would go a lot faster if you upgraded to a computer.”

“My family and I have managed without one for forty years. No sense in messing with something that ain’t broke.”

“Suit yourself.”

Thelma went through the stack and picked up a couple. “You have the check for order number eleven? He’s rearing to go.”

Mack flipped through the few remaining and started to add it up.

“Would be nice if we could print them out ourselves,” Thelma added.

Mack held out the check. “Done.”

She rolled her eyes and headed to the dining area.

When the checks were finished, I started handing them out. Charlie walked in and sat down at his usual table as Thelma was wiping it down.

“Hey, Charlie,” I said. “If you want to wait a few minutes, I’ll join you for lunch. About to take my break.”

He smiled up at me. “I’d love the company.”

I got him his usual lemonade. “Whatcha having today?” I asked.

“Surprise me.”

I wrote down a sandwich he hadn’t had in a while: a pastrami Reuben on rye. I ordered the same for myself.

When I brought him the plate, he was more than pleased. “I always forget about this one. A real treat.”

“My favorite sandwich,” I said before taking my first bite.

“Good choice.”

“Listen, Charlie, I’m having some trouble with my assignment, and I was wondering if I could get your advice.”

Each one of us randomly picked a letter to respond to in our Matchmaker Club, and I wasn’t sure I was the right one forOne Last Hope.

“Sure, what is it?”