Chapter 15 #2
“So much so that I just got a job here,” I explained. “Which means you’ll see plenty more of me. I plan to work my way through every item on the menu, starting with the lobster rolls, lobster bites, and crab-stuffed lobster tails.”
He chuckled at that and sat a coaster in front of me before returning the menu he’d been about to pass me to the stack of those resting on the edge of the counter.
“How about you double everything he said?” Robbie replied. “And hook us up with a big side of macaroni salad and a couple rolls.”
“You and those rolls,” he chuckled.
“Man, I don’t know what it is about those things, or if it’s just the way you bake them in that old oven of yours, but they are addicting, with or without a dab of your special spicy pineapple butter.”
“If you ever bottle that, just know that I would stand in line for half the day just to get one,” I said. “I could see myself putting it on so many things.”
“Flattery just might get you a bottle one of these days,” Ezekiel said.
“You’re not the only one to suggest that I find a way to sell it and a few of the other sauces we make here at the shack.
I’ve got Willie looking into it, so who knows, sometime here in the new year you might be able to buy a few take-home bottles. ”
“I am already looking forward to that day,” I declared.
“You better hang on to this one, Robbie, or someone older, wiser, and handsomer just might swoop in and lure him away with a platter of lobster cakes drizzled with creamy lemon butter sauce.”
“Oh my god, how have I not spotted those on the menu?” I asked, drool collecting at the corner of my mouth as I squirmed in my seat.
“I haven’t added them yet,” Ezekiel declared. “But I can certainly hook you two up with a test batch.”
“Please,” I begged, folding my hands beneath my chin and giving him puppy dog eyes.
“You got it,” he said shaking his head at me before setting glasses of ice water on the coasters.
“I’m serious Robbie, you let this get away from you and I will swoop in on my board and snag him right out of the surf,” Ezekiel threatened while Robbie and I chuckled as we read through the drink menu, trying to decide which mocktails we’d like tonight.
“Nova feels like forever,” Robbie said. “So don’t even think about trying to swoop in on your board. If I screw up I’ll make it right, but I plan to keep him tethered to me for the rest of my days.”
“Awe, man, you got it bad,” Ezekial said, chuckling at him.
“Damn right I do.”
“It’s a good look on you.”
“Thanks man. I think I’m going to go with a Paloma tonight,” Robbie replied.
I leaned over to get a better look at the drink, immediately piping up when I saw a beautiful, sparkling drink with a wedge of grapefruit resting over the rim of the glass in the photograph on the menu. “Oh, whoa. I’ve never tried one of those.”
“Do you like grapefruit soda?” Robbie asked.
Brain screech.
It was a good thing the stools we were sitting on were carved out of solid wood and as sturdy as anything I’d ever come across, or I’d have tipped it over, in my haste to study Robbie to see if he was messing with me.
“Wait, what? They make grapefruit soda?”
“Yup,” he said, chuckling at me.
“I’d like to try a Paloma,” I declared. “But would it be possible to get a grapefruit soda too?”
“Absolutely,” Ezekiel said. “Shocked Robbie doesn’t have a refrigerator full of them.”
“Ech, someone’s been buying them up as soon as they hit the shelf at the market, and you know how I feel about the big grocery store; I only go in there when I have to.”
“Ahh, gotcha. Well, let me get this food going,” Ezekiel said. “You picked a good time to drop by; we were just coming off a rush.”
“No worries, we’re not in a hurry,” Robbie declared.
“You never are, my friend; that’s one of the many reasons I loved it when you stopped by.”
“How have I never known about grapefruit soda?” I muttered as Ezekiel stepped away to prep our food.
“It’s not as common a flavor as lemon-lime or grape or even pineapple,” Robbie said.
“Even peach is easier to find these days, thank goodness; that’s another of my favorites.
If I could find a good sour apple soda that didn’t taste like liquid candy, I’d be all set.
I want crispness and flavor, but I don’t want it to taste like syrup. ”
“Does that mean you’ve found a sour apple soda that didn’t live up to your expectations?” I asked.
We were shoulder to shoulder, with the scent of buttery lobster drowning out the sea salt smell of the ocean and Judas Priest pulsing from the radio.
“Once or twice,” he explained. “Though I have come across a sparkling apple soda that was downright amazing. I love trying new things, though, so the journey is as much fun as discovering one I want to stock the fridge with.”
“I can’t wait to share in those journeys with you,” I said.
He slid his arm around me and tugged me as close as he could without pulling me off my stool.
“May all of our journeys be spicy, flavorful, and packed full of memories we’ll reminisce about for years to come.”
We clanked our water glasses together in a toast commemorating our declaration, and I giggled when my gurgling, grumbling stomach picked that moment to agree with the sentiment.
I hoped that this would be the first of many celebrations at Ezekiel’s crab shack.
Until today, I’d forgotten how much I missed commemorating even the littlest triumphs, not to boost my ego, but because it was nice to take a moment, smile, and let myself feel good about the things that had gone right.
Seeing Robbie so happy for me and having him remind me that we all deserved a bit of joy and fun made me feel like I was back in college again: unjaded, enthusiastic, and eager to see what the future had in store for me.
Resting my head on his shoulder, I melted into the hug and nearly fell over, but it was worth it to feel like the old me again.
One with a bright, shiny, hopeful future ahead.