The man frowned as he studied the receipt. “I have you down for two large pizzas - a meat lover’s pizza and another with ham, onion and mushrooms, plus an order of garlic knots.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yep.” The man held out the boxes of food. “This is your lucky day. Two for the price of one.”
She watched the delivery man disappear into the alley before climbing the steps. Carlita balanced the pizzas on her hip and reached for the doorknob when Sam Ivey’s apartment door opened and he stepped into the hall.
“Hey, Sam.”
The top pizza box began to slide. Sam lunged forward and grabbed it.
Carlita smiled gratefully. “Thank you, Sam. You always seem to be in the right place at the right time.”
“It’s a gift,” Sam joked. He eyed the pizzas and sniffed appreciatively. “Monster Pizza. I would recognize those boxes and smells anywhere.”
“They have the best pizza in all of Savannah. I only ordered one, but there was some sort of mix-up and they gave me two.” She gave her new tenant a quick glance. “Mercedes and I won’t be able to eat two large pizzas. Would you care to join us for dinner?”
Sam started to shake his head. “I don’t want to impose.”
“I insist. We have plenty of pizza.”
“Are you sure?”
“Positive.” Carlita nodded her head firmly. “We would love the company.”
At least Carlita would love to have Sam to join them. Mercedes might be another story.
She pushed the front door open, and Sam followed her inside. “Look who’s joining us for dinner?”
“I…you.” Mercedes glared at her mother.
Carlita ignored the look. “The timing was perfect. Monster Pizza accidentally gave us two pizzas instead of one. I ran into Sam in the hall while I was struggling to bring the food inside, so I invited him to dinner.”
“How thoughtful.” Mercedes forced a smile and hurried to the kitchen.
“Have a seat at the table, Sam.” Carlita took the pizza box from her tenant. “Would you like water or tea? I don’t have any sodas.”
“I’ve got a liter of Coke in my fridge. I’ll go grab it.” Sam disappeared into the hall.
Mercedes waited until he was gone. “Why did you invite him to dinner?” she hissed.
“Why not? We have extra pizza. He looks hungry.” Carlita placed the pizza boxes in the center of the dining room table. “I thought you two were gonna start over and you were gonna give him a chance.”
“I am. That doesn’t mean I’m thrilled about him being in our house, sitting at our table and me being forced into polite inane conversation.”
“Then we’ll let him do the talking. He has a fascinating job. I’m sure he knows all about Savannah’s history, which I, for one, can’t wait to hear.”
Sam returned to the apartment and carried the large bottle of Coke to the kitchen. “I’ll pour the drinks.”
Carlita directed him to the cups and the ice in the freezer.
“I feel like I owe you for the pizza.”
“Mercedes and I were just saying you must have some fascinating stories on Savannah’s history. Maybe you can entertain us with a story or two.”
“Of course.” Sam finished pouring the drinks and carried them to the table.
“We also ordered the garlic knots with the special dipping sauce.” Mercedes removed the lids on the sauce. “You know what, Ma? Tierney never sent me her grandma’s marinara recipe.”
“Tierney Grant?” Sam asked.
“Yeah. We were over there sampling some of The Ghost Roast’s appetizers. Tierney has an amazing marinara sauce,” Mercedes said.
“They have delicious grinder sandwiches I highly recommend.” Sam waited for Mercedes and Carlita to have a seat before sitting down. “Thanks again for inviting me for pizza. I was on my way out to grab a bite to eat.”
“You must get lonely living alone,” Carlita said.
“My job keeps me busy.” Sam shrugged. “I’m perfectly content by myself.”
The trio loaded their plates with slices of pizza and buttery garlic knots.
Sam took a big bite of pizza. “It’s been awhile since I’ve eaten Monster Pizza. This is delicious.”
Mercedes remained silent while Carlita and Sam chatted about life in Savannah and living in Walton Square. They discussed the upcoming tourist season and how Sam worked twelve-hour days during the height of the season.
“Holidays are busy, too. St. Patrick’s Day?” Sam shook his head. “It’s crazy busy.”
“What’s your favorite Savannah story?” Carlita popped the last bite of crust in her mouth and reached for her glass of Coke.
“I have several favorites. The most popular ones with guests are the ghost stories. Since you’re in the landlord business, I’ll share the one about the Foley House.”
“I heard about the Foley House, but not the history.” Mercedes tore off a piece of her garlic knot. “I want to take the Foley House haunted tour one day.”
“The Foley House is a great tour. I also recommend the haunted trolley tour that stops at the Parrot House Restaurant. It includes a behind-the-scenes tour of the underground passageways,” Sam said.
“We already toured some of the tunnels,” Carlita said. “In fact, we’ve got one under our pawnshop. It leads out to the river.”
“Really?” Sam raised an eyebrow. “I would love to check it out someday.”
Carlita and Mercedes exchanged a quick glance. “We sealed it off for safety reasons.”
“I see.” Sam didn’t press the issue. “I best be getting to my storytelling, so I can earn my meal.”
Sam’s voice softened as he began to tell the tale of the Chippewa Square haunted house. According to Sam, the house was actually two joined structures. The eastern part was built in 1896 for Honoria Foley, the widow of a wealthy Irish immigrant.
“I’ve been by it many times,” Carlita said. “It’s a beautiful
