Page 3 of Miles. Alton & The 9:04
“Okay fine,” he said.“I bought a lot of vintage horns.They are in New York.I can't go pick them up, but if you could, I'd pay.”
Thom sighed.Favors for Mateo were never simple.Each request was multi-layered and required several chunks of effort to make it happen.This mission was a no win for Thom, and he didn't want to do it.
“Nope,” he said, ready to end the call.
Mateo wouldn't give up that easily.He wanted to sweeten the pot.He lowered the octaves of his voice.
“I will pay the fee for the Matchmaking lady and set you an appointment if you go to New York to pick up my collection of horns for me,” Mateo said.
“Excuse me; what?”
“The service we used to get our perfect matches, I will pay the fee for you if you go to New York and get my horns,” Mateo said.
“Isn't that like ten grand or something?”
“Or something.I want those horns for the school.I need those horns for the school,” he said.
“That's an 18-hour drive,” Thom said.
“I have an additional RV in New York,” Mateo said.“Get the RV from the storage unit; I’ve already had it serviced.Pick up the horns, drive the RV back and think of it as a mini vacation.Plus, I'm paying for it all.I need the horns.”
“I don't think I like you, Mateo,” Thom said.“There are always these layers of bullpuckey in your requests, which you lace with this false sense of added value for the sucker you reel in.”
“Am I reeling you in?I mean, I am setting an appointment for you with the matchmaker.She will work her green-eyed magic and find you a little woman who actually likes lamb chops with mint jelly and will happily dust your train collection.Hey, she may even find you a goofy little woman who is okay with your alarm clock being a mini train set that arrives like it's coming from the Village of Make Believe.”
“Hey, watch yourself.I paid a lot of money for that train set fromMr.Rogers' Neighborhood,” Thom said defensively.
“I know, and with a plane ride and an RV drive from New York to Arkansas, it can be a whirlwind of a day, and you get a woman,” Mateo said.“If you want, I will even spring for the train ride from Little Rock to Chicago, and you can get your train fix in as well.Whaddya say, my brother?”
“Sometimes, I don't I like you, but fine,” Thom said, looking at the calendar on his desk.“When does all of this need to happen?”
“How does tomorrow sound?Too soon?”
“You want me to fly out tomorrow?”
“Yes, the appointment with the matchmaker will be tomorrow afternoon, you pick up the RV and horns the day after, and you can be in Arkansas by Sunday and home by Monday,” Mateo said.“Do we have a deal?”
Thom looked around his office.It had been a while since he'd taken a vacation.His last trip away from his home had been to Iowa to help his foster brother Macalister with his home and mail order honey.She was a thoughtful lady, and they had a baby.The baby also had red hair similar to Macalister’s and was quite adorable.He imagined coming home to changing diapers and a flustered little woman.A smile eased across his lips.
“Sure.Why not,” Thom said, uncertain what he'd agreed to or why.However, it was possibly the best decision he'd ever made in his life and would forever change not only the way he saw the world but also how he saw himself.The turn his life took based on saying, “Why not,” to his foster brother created a chain of events, and he would later thank the universe for coming to his rescue.
The trip had been six months ago.This weekend, he would meet his potential new brides, and out of ten he’d corresponded with over the past one hundred and eighty-two days, he'd narrowed it down to three women.Three women would arrive in the next few days to look at his home, ask questions, possibly make out with him, and decide if he was an ideal candidate for procreating.
“What the hell have I gotten myself into?”Thom said, taking a deep sigh.
