Junior Year Box Set

“He and Dad are mucking stalls. I’m sure they’d like some help,” Zoe urged.

“Thanks, but I’m good. I’ll just hang out with you guys,” Phil said.

We stepped inside and found Mrs. Pearson taking homemade buttermilk biscuits out of the oven.

“Breakfast is ready. Go get the men from the barn,” Mrs. Pearson said. “Where’s Yuri?”

“He went to get Jan,” Zoe said.

She had us set another place at the table. Soon everyone was seated. Mr. Pearson said a short prayer of thanks for the food, and we dug in. Mrs. Pearson had made a cracked black pepper gravy to go with the biscuits, eggs, ham, and hash brown potatoes. I’d get fat if I ate like this every day.

“That was a nice event your family put on for your awards. We had a good time,” Mrs. Pearson said.

“It took me by surprise. I guess we’re having a prelaunch party for the new restaurant this Friday, and we’ll open the doors on Saturday. I was told that Eve Holliday has offered to play both nights. You’re all invited to Friday night. It’s free, but if you have drinks, you have to pay for those,” I said as I handed out invitations. “Just call, text, or email Caryn and let her know how many. The plan is for two seatings, one at six and the other at eight.”

“They will close at ten the first night so the staff can talk about what worked and what didn’t,” Jan said.

She obviously knew more about it than I did.

“Why’d you name it ‘Our House’?” Mr. Pearson asked.

“Dad said it was because of all the free advertising we would get at our football games when they chanted ‘Our House.’ Mom said it was so people could say they were ‘going to Our House’ and not be obvious they were going out,” I explained.

“Which seating are you going to?” Phil asked.

“Both. Granny said I had to greet everyone.”

“That’s right, you partnered with her,” Mrs. Pearson said.

“With her and Mary Dole, Tracy’s mom. Mary’s dad is a chef and owns several restaurants. He gave her recipes that she brought with her. She’s in charge of the kitchen, and Granny handles the front of the house for us,” I explained.

“I hear you’ve taken cooking lessons from Mrs. Dole,” Jan said.

“She’s taught me a lot about technique and following a recipe so it comes out the same each time.”

“The only time I follow a recipe is for baking,” Mrs. Pearson admitted.

“I was the same. My dad taught me to cook for the family, and I thought I was pretty good, but Mary showed me I had a lot to learn.”

“I might be interested in taking cooking classes from her.”

“Hey, that’s a great idea,” I said, and then blushed when Zoe smacked my arm. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to imply anything. In fact, I think you’re a great cook. I believe I’ve proven that by coming back so many times. What I meant was it would get people to come to the restaurant when they weren’t busy.”

“I was afraid I would never see you again,” Zoe admitted.

“I think on that note, I’d better change the topic as to why I invited you here—besides eating this scrumptious breakfast,” I said, hamming it up.

“This doesn’t sound good. He wants something,” Phil said.

“It’s not what you can do for me … it’s what you can do for your country.”

Even I thought that was a bad line, but how often do you get to say something like that?

“For USA Baseball, we have batboys and girls. Up to this point, they were either local kids or players’ siblings—brothers or sisters of the players. Unfortunately, none of those players made the final cut, so they need fill-ins. The coach asked me if I could find some people to take their spots. I wondered if you three would be interested in going with me to Houston and then Mexico?” I asked Phil, Roc, and Yuri.

“You’re asking all three of us?” Yuri asked.

“Yes. They would take care of room and board. You would need to bring some spending money for any extras you might want,” I said.

“What about the farm and yard work?” Roc asked.

I was impressed he thought about it before just saying yes.

“The Bauer brothers have offered to fill in for both jobs,” Mr. Pearson said.

“I take it from that answer you’ve talked to our parents,” Phil said.

“Yes,” I admitted.

The only fly in the ointment was we’d miss the first week of two-a-day football practices. I’d talked to Coach Hope, and he wasn’t happy when I told him I planned to take Roc, Yuri, and Phil with me. He threatened to bench them for the first game.

I’d tried to reason with him, but he was as stubborn as always. He agreed he would review it when we came back, but as of now, they wouldn’t play if they all traveled to Mexico to support me. At least he’d agreed earlier I could go, or I think he would have included me in that threat.

“Before you decide, I need to tell you that you’ll miss the first week of football practice. Because of that, Coach Hope has told me he might sit you for the first game.”

“That’s crazy. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” Phil said.

“When do you need to know?” Yuri asked.

“Soon. If you decide not to do it, I either have to find someone else or let them know so they can get replacements.”