“What happens when Max goes off to college?” I asked.
“You ask a lot of questions.” He blew a smoke ring.
“Sorry. I’m trying to figure this out. You’re tall, handsome, athletic, and easy to talk to.”
Teddy was gazing up at the stars. When he did that, he was ready to say goodnight or change the subject. He surprised me when he took out two more cigarettes, lit them, and handed me one.
“Did any of your summer romances make it past the last day of camp?” I asked.
“There was one woman, but in the end, she was more interested in someone else—Mike.”
His eyes glazed over.
“She picked Mike over you? There’s no accounting for taste.”
Teddy shrugged.
“I guess she’s the reason for the animosity between the two of you.”
I could tell this wasn’t a subject he wanted to talk about. And there I was, teasing him.
“Was she the one who got away?” I asked.
“No . . . yes . . . maybe. That was a lifetime ago.”
“You’re the whole package. Some lucky woman is going to snap you up.”
“Who knows?” He took another drag, stubbed out his cigarette, and flicked it into the fire bucket. “In the meantime, I’m here, enjoying your company.” He paused for a second as if he wanted to say more but held back. “Shall we call it a night?”
21The Pizza Joint
The next day, Mindy informed me that our nighttime meetup was being moved into town. I jumped at the chance to get off campus.
I was surprised to see Bob behind the bar when I walked into the Pizza Joint.
“Moonlighting?” I asked.
“A couple of times a summer they let me tend bar—it’s like a dream come true.”
“Well then, I’ll have . . .”
“You’ll have the usual Tanqueray and tonic with a twist of lime.” Before I could say anything, Bob said, “Yeah, I know, no diet crap.”
“You’remydream come true, a bartender who knows my name and my drink order.”
Bob grinned and winked. “Look at us, satisfying each other . . .”
“And to think, a few weeks ago we didn’t even know each other’s name.” I took a sip and gagged. “Are you trying to kill me? There’s way too much gin in here.”
“Please, I’ve seen how hard you work. If you can handle the campers, you can handle a little extra gin.”
I was wondering how much of a tip to leave when Mindy grabbed my hand and waved her credit card. “Drinks are on metonight.” Bob looked across the room to the table where Bethany and Gilda were sitting, waving at him.
We clinked glasses. “To letting loose,” Mindy toasted.
I had heard that Wednesdays were notorious for the mischievous events that always seemed to happen when the specialists went out, and everyone else who had off eventually made their way to the Pizza Joint by the end of the evening. It had been a Wednesday when I stayed up late signing counselors in from their night out and was called a bitch. Well, this bitch was excited to be partaking in the legendary Wednesday night antics.
I’d heard that several summers ago, a group of lifeguards tore a toilet from one of the local dive bars and threw it out the window, and the owner had immediately banned all camp staff from his establishment. A bill for the damages was sent to Jack.
