Instead, he let out a small laugh. “This is perfect,” he said, a wide grin spreading across his face.
“Perfect?” I repeated, confused. “How?”
“It’s an opportunity!” he exclaimed, snapping his fingers.
“An opportunity for what?” I asked, still in the dark.
“To set things right and get some great PR at the same time.”
Over at the bar, Mr. Caruso told me his plan to call a local news station and share the story. I wasn’t convinced it would work in our favor.
But before I could voice my doubts, a customer sitting nearby raised her hand, catching both our attentions.
“Excuse me,” she said in a friendly tone. “I couldn’t help overhearing. Are you talking about the family with the lady in the floral dress and the loud guy?”
I raised my eyebrows, glanced at Mr. Caruso, and then nodded. “Yes. Why?”
She smiled, dabbing her face with a cloth napkin. “I’m Nadine. I’m a food blogger, and I was filming my meal for a post. I accidentally caught them on video being rude to you.”
My jaw dropped. “You have a video?” I asked, astonished.
“I do,” she said, pulling out her phone. “I didn’t mean to film them, but they were so loud and obnoxious, it was impossible to ignore.”
I looked at Mr. Caruso, who was already leaning in to see the footage.
Nadine hit play, and there they were, in all their entitled glory. The video showed Mr. Thompson snapping his fingers at me, Mrs. Thompson dramatically shoving her soup away, and their kids completely ignoring me.
“You can use this if it helps,” Nadine added with a kind smile. “Give it to the news station. They’ll know how to incorporate it into the story.”
Mr. Caruso beamed. “Ma’am, you’re a lifesaver. What would you like for dessert? It’s on the house.”