Joesph got another mug and poured some into it.“Here you go, sweetness.”
Salzy grinned.“Aww.You love me.”
Jamie rolled his eyes.“How long before the people come to get the tables and chairs?”
“They said they’d be here around nine,” Joesph answered.“Is there any bread for toast or something?”
Jamie looked at his watch.“It’s only seven thirty.There is some bread in the walk-in.I stuck it in there while everything was being packed up yesterday.”He looked around.“I’ll turn on the big toaster, so it’ll be hot.”Jamie went and turned the big machine on.
“We going to start in on removing that counter?”Salzy asked Joesph.
“Yes.Do we have any tools?”Joesph asked as he opened the door to the walk-in.
“We do.I scrounged around in the garage the other day and found most of what we needed.”He leaned closer to Joesph.“Is he okay?”
“I think he’s just tired.”He looked at the man next to him.“I’m sure that whole thing with Mike threw him for a loop.Brought up some bad shit for him.”
“He looks exhausted.”
“He is.”Joesph nodded.“You want some toast?”
“Are there any eggs left?”
“I have no idea.”
“Good, you found the bread,” Jamie said, holding out his hand for the plastic-wrapped loaf, coming back from the toaster.
“Are there any eggs?”Salzy asked again.
“No.I used them all yesterday,” Jamie answered.
“Damn.”Salzy slurped his coffee.
“I’ll go to the store today.Think about what you guys might like to eat.”Jamie took the bread over to the toaster.“There’s some butter,” he called over his shoulder.
“I know where there’s some blackberry jam,” Salzy said as he walked towards the alcove behind the staff room, where the pantry was located.
When Jamie came back, Joesph asked, “How about some gumbo.You make the absolutebestgumbo I’ve ever had.That’s just one pot, isn’t it?”
“That sounds good.”Jamie nodded.“I also thought about making some gazpacho.”
“Ooo, yes.”Joesph smiled.“With the shrimp in it?Like what you made at the Peasant?”
Jamie smiled and nodded.“I’ll pick up some decent bread to go with both.Anything else you’re little heart desires?”
“Surprise me.”Joesph almost bounced.“I doloveyour cooking.”
“Jam,” Salzy announced, holding up a jar.
“Let’s eat and get started on that counter,” Jamie said, draining his coffee and handing the mug to Joesph.
“When did I become a server?”He asked, his voice scratchy.“I didn’t sign on for this.”
“It’ll have to be a group effort.”Jamie had a plate for the toast.“It’s going to be a wild ride for a while, I’d say.”
Jamie took the big sledgehammer, while Salzy dealt with cleaning up, and hammered it down, busting the remaining frame of the old counter.It took several tries to get it to break apart.He huffed from the exertion.“They sure built this thing to last.”
“I think saving the old countertop was the way to go,” Joesph said as he measured it out, then wrote it down.“It will make sure that it matches the other tabletops.”
