going to make money. Iâll be rich, rich, rich!â
âYou mean youâll be able to pay for your insurance, insurance, insurance,â Lisa teased.
âWell, that, and maybe a little bit more. People give tips, you know.â
âFor good service,â Lisa said.
âYouâre being the voice of reason, and Iâm not at all sure I like that.â
âIâll try to do better,â Lisa said. She stood up and threw her trash in the can. The two of them headed for the door. âWhen do you start?â
âTonightâfive oâclock sharp,â Stevie said. She reached for the door.
The manager hurried out of his office. âOh, Stephanie, I forgot to give you this,â he said. He handed her a package. âItâs your uniform.â
âUniform?â
âWell, really, just a hat and a T-shirt. You can wear your own jeans or skirtâwhatever you want. But when youâre knocking on strangersâ doors, you must have something to identify yourself as the delivery person from Pizza Manor.â
âSure,â Stevie said. She opened the package. The T-shirt was simple enough. It had the storeâs logo, a cartoon character dressed as a medieval knight. That was why it was called Pizza Manor. The hat, however, was not so simple. It was like the one the little cartoon character wore. It was made of felt, with a brim that was rolled up along the edges but pointed in frontâlike something Robin Hood might have worn on a bad hair day. Worst of all, feathers sprouted from the headband.
âIsnât it cute?â the manager asked.
âVery,â Stevie said, hoping she was keeping her voice even. She didnât want him to sense her rising panic.
âSee you later!â he said cheerfully. He retreated to his office before Stevie could reply. She turned to Polly Giacomin, who was still standing patiently behind the counter.
âNobody told me about this!â Stevie exploded.
âDidnât you wonder why he was so worried about having to make the deliveries himself tonight?â she teased.
Lisa began giggling. âPut it on,â she said. Stevie donned the hat and slipped the elastic band under her chin. She grimaced.
Lisa adjusted the hat to a jaunty angle. âItâs you!â she declared. Polly grinned.
âItâs a good thing there arenât any mirrors in this place,â Stevie said. âI have a feeling Iâm better off not knowing how I look. Now, Polly, tell meâare there any other nasty surprises in store for me?â
âNo,â Polly said. âWe make good pizza, so people are usually happy to have it. And they do give good tips, so all of our delivery people in the past have been pleased with thatâOh, there is one thing.â
âUh-oh,â said Stevie.
âNot that bad, but I just ought to warn you. Mr. Andrews is a really nice guy, but heâs totally gung ho about this placeâlike itâs his life. Heâs always worried that one of us is going to do something to upset a customer. Thatâs when he tells us to âMind your Pizza Manors.ââ
âIâm not sure I need insurance this badly,â Stevie said.
âOh, yes you do,â Lisa said.
âYouâre just afraid Alex will have to pay all of it,â Stevie accused her.
âNo. Iâm just afraid youâre going to want to borrow money from me and Carole,â Lisa said. âWell, weâre both broke, so you are going to have to wear a dumb hat and earn it. Or let Alex have the car all the time, which might be okay, too. Come on. I have to get home. Say good-bye to Polly, um, politely,â she said.
Stevie turned to Polly, slid the silly hat off her head with her right hand, brandished it gallantly, then placed it over her heart while she bowed, her left foot in front of her right one. âMilady,â she said.
âAnd you havenât even taken the
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