A Pizza to Die For Read Online Free

walked into the dining room with it myself. I handed it to Maddy so she could deliver it to the proper table, and as I did, I asked her, “You just had to drag him into this, didn’t you?”
    “Are you crazy? I’d never do anything against your direct and express wishes. He volunteered.”
    As she delivered the pizza, I chuckled. “Do you honestly expect me to believe that?”
    When Maddy came back, she said, “You’d better. When push comes to shove, he’s got his own self-interest at heart.”
    “Do you mean he’s willing to do all this work just to keep you happy?”
    “Think about it, Eleanor. There’s more reason than that,” she said as she walked back into the kitchen with me. “What happens if you have to shut down?”
    I’d never really given it much thought. “I’m not quite sure,” I admitted.
    “As much as I love you, Eleanor, you can be a little thick at times. If there’s no pizzeria for me to work in, there’s less reason for me to stay in Timber Ridge. Trust me, Bob’s not doing this for you. At least that’s not the only reason.”
    “Would you leave town again, Maddy, if I had to shut the restaurant down?” I’d grown so accustomed to having her there with me that I couldn’t imagine my life without her again. I’d leaned heavily on Maddy when Joe had died, and I was just beginning to realize that I needed her more than I’d ever imagined.
    “Let’s not worry about that right now, okay?” she asked. “We’ll burn that bridge when we come to it.”
    I wasn’t all that pleased with her reply, but there was nothing I could really do about it. “That’s fine with me. But Maddy, you should know one thing.”
    “What’s that?”
    “All things being equal, no matter what happens with the pizzeria, I want you to stay.”
    She gave me a quick hug, and smiled at me. “I know you feel that way, but it’s nice to hear it every now and then.”
    Greg came into the kitchen, and when he saw we were hugging, he started to back out.
    “Come on in,” I said as I broke free from my sister.
    “I don’t want to interrupt,” Greg said.
    “You’re not,” I said. “What can I do for you?”
    He looked at my sister and said, “Maddy, if you’re finished wrapping things up in here, I could use a hand out front.”
    “Why, have we suddenly gotten crowded?” she asked.
    “You tell me,” he said as he held the door open. Coming into the restaurant was a long stream of people, each one sporting a green baseball cap with blue and cinnamon stripes prominently featured.
    “Who are they?” I asked.
    Maddy laughed. “Can’t you tell by their caps? They’re fans of the Sparrows. Did you know they were coming, Eleanor?”
    “I don’t even know who they are,” I said. “How could I know they were on their way here? I assume by Sparrows you don’t mean actual birds.”
    Greg shook his head. “How long have you lived in Timber Ridge, Eleanor? They’re the middle school soccer team.”
    “I can’t keep track of every sports team and group in town,” I said in my defense. “But at least they look hungry.”
    “Then we’d better get busy,” Maddy said as she and Greg went out to face the crowd. I wondered how long I could count on getting so much patronage from the townsfolk with a competing pizzeria just down the promenade, but I was determined that no matter what, I was going to enjoy it while I could.

    A dozen pizzas later, all of us were worn out from the intensity of the Sparrows fan-club visit. I glanced at the clock and saw that it was nearly two, the start of our own lunch break, before we had to get ready for our dinner crowd.
    “Why don’t you go ahead and lock the door,” I told Greg as our last customer paid his bill. “We could use an extra few minutes to get a jump on things.”
    I didn’t have to tell him twice. He flipped the sign over, engaged the lock, and stood by the door until our last customer left. Greg never said anything, but it could be a little