A few weeks have passed since a mysterious invitation to a book club arrived in the mail for me. It instructed me to pick up a novel and read it before tonight’s meeting. I love a good thriller and devoured it in a few days. Since then, I’ve been waiting for tonight.
A book club. Sweet! It will be nice to share my thoughts about books with someone other than my fiancé.
“Lachlan, I need to leave.”
“Have fun, babe.”
“Bye, Mommy. See you in the mornin’.”
“You too.”
“We’ll keep the fort up for sundaes tomorrow afternoon. Love you.”
Right before six, I knock on the door at Alannah’s house. It’s tucked in a secluded neighborhood with a gorgeous community garden.
Alannah throws open the door as I climb the stairs. “I’m so excited you’re here.”
Curious phrasing, but I ignore it. When I step inside, I’m greeted by Maggie, Willa Cappelli, if I’m recalling correctly, and Carly.
“How’s engaged life?” Carly inquires. “I’m sure you’re glad you decided against a fling.”
“Absolutely,” I reply.
“When’s the big day?” Maggie asks.
“We want a small, intimate wedding. It’ll probably be in the late spring.”
Once they’re comfortable, Carly calls for everyone’s attention. “Good evening, ladies. Welcome to our monthly book club meeting.”
Echoes of “welcome” and “nice to have you here” surround me. We spend the next hour-plus discussing the book in detail. We share our opinions and objections to the story and the crazy twist at the end.
Carly steps before the group and states, “I would like to call this meeting to order. When we were together last, we voted to allow those who are engaged to our list of members to join us rather than waiting for them to be legally wed. With that said, I would like to welcome Eva Washington soon-to-be Hagen to our group.
“Wait, working with Lachlan was a setup from the beginning?”
Maggie grins at me. “Maybe a little.”
“How could you know we would hit it off?”
“If anyone could break through the armor around his heart and daughter, it was you,” Maggie replies.
“Wow! You ladies have skills.” I’m not even a little upset that they saw my connection with Lilah at the party. Who knew a job interview and an invitation to a holiday party with my brother would lead to Lilah and Lachlan. I’m overjoyed.
A chorus of laughter surrounds me.
Carly asks, “Are there any motions to be heard?”
The room falls silent.
“No motions are set forth tonight. I request you consider names to be added to the new list for doctors and nurses. The same parameters would apply. There must be at least one woman included. We will vote on the inaugural members at our next meeting. I open the floor to discuss our next potential couple,” Carly states.
“How do you decide who to fix up?” I ask.
Kelsey replies, “We have the potential candidates, and we work from that. If we see an avenue to assist a person on the list, we do.”
I refocus on Carly.
“I will canvass the room for suggestions and set them up front. Please vote before you leave. Our next event will be the charity sports game hosted by the Gugliotti family. This year it’ll be a softball game in late spring.” She finishes by sharing the book for next month. “I shall read the names and adjourn our meeting for this month. The York Police Department list includes Donovan Davis, Piper Montgomery, and Esmeralda Garcia. Former honorees are William Ramirez, Grant Washington, Luca Cappelli, Santino Gugliotti, Zachary Smithson, and Callan Craven.”
She continues reading aloud. “The York Fire Department list includes Bradford Collings, Alden Rhodes, Aidan Madden, Landry Reed, and Mia Arden. No former honorees to date. Lastly, the EMTs in York County include Séamus Penn, Jude Pascal, Hollis Booker, Lexington Soren, and Lacey Ransom. No former honorees to date.”
We chat a little longer, and the guests leave slowly. It’s amazing that these women have been successful setting up their friends and coworkers for the last six years. I’m excited to be assisting them now.
Thank you so much for reading For Love & Cookies!
I hope you love the matchmakers. Find out which first responder they set their sights on next coming summer 2024!
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