Page 20 of Silver Sanctuary
“Fine. Monday through Thursday. Dishes. Trash. Busing the tables if they need it. That’s all I have for you,” Rudy called out to her just before she reached the door.
Her shoulders relaxed and she nodded. “I’ll take it.”
With Rudy giving her early week shifts at Davney’s, it left open the weekend to work at Dolly’s. She hated knowing she’d be leaving Embrie with the sitter most nights during the week, but maybe Dolly would give her an early afternoon shift on the weekend and Embrie could tag along.
Lacy made her way down the street, crossing in front of her shop before continuing on to Dolly’s Diner. She ran her fingers over her windblown hair, praying she looked somewhat presentable as she pushed open the door to the diner.
Jessie Ford’s smiling face greeted her as soon as she stepped inside.
“Hey, Lace. You here for breakfast?”
“Morning, Jessie. I was actually hoping to talk to your mom. Is she here?”
“Yep, just in the back helping with the breakfast rush. I’ll have her pop out in a minute. Grab a seat at the counter. Can I get you anything while you wait?”
“No. It always smells so good in here, but I already had breakfast at home.” The rumble in her stomach, which, thank goodness, was covered by the loud clang of dishes in the back of the restaurant, nearly gave up her lie. But being hungry was nothing new. It wasn’t the first time, and until things turned around, it wouldn’t be thelast.
“All right. Give me a minute to get her.”
“Thanks, Jess.”
Lacy fiddled with a menu, trying to not let her gaze wander into the dessert display case. What she wouldn’t give for a slice of key lime pie. It was her favorite and just the thought of the tangy pie with cold whipped cream was enough to make her drool.
“Hey, sugar. What can I get ya?” Dolly bustled behind the counter, wiping down the spots next to Lacy.
“Oh, um, nothing for me this morning. I was just wondering if… well, I know you have Jessie here, but…”
“Spit it out, love. I won’t bite.”
Lacy smiled, running her hands down her shirt. “I was hoping you might need another server, even if it’s in the early morning. Maybe in the afternoon on the weekends? Just Friday and Saturday nights would work too.”
Dolly’s eyes filled with concern and Lacy wanted to slide off her stool and melt into the floor. “Honey, is everything okay?”
“Oh, yeah. You know how business is. Things just aren’t picking up with the flower shop as much as I thought they would be, and Embrie’s class is going on field trips and asking for parent contributions for fun days, plus she has soccer and mentioned wanting to try dance. We have a hot water heater on the fritz and I just need something to balance the scales for a while.”
“Well, I don’t have much, but I was just telling Jessie I’ve been thinking about taking the weekends off. Wasn’t going to just leave her here to deal with everyone on her own, but if you have the time, then we can make something work. You okay with serving?”
Was she really about to get two jobs in the span of an hour? “Yes, anything works, I promise. I’ll make it work. Do you think… would it be okay for Embrie to come with me. She’s incredibly well-behaved and can just sit in a booth when it’s quiet and be in the office when it’s busier. It would help to not have to pay for a sitter.”
“We’ll figure it out, honey. Oh, now here’s a sight for old eyes.” The bell above the entry chimed and Lacy turned to see who had caught Dolly’s eye. “You boys haven’t been here in too damn long. I almost forgot what all those muscles looked like.”
“Hey, Dolly.” Gunner’s gruff voice had Lacy slipping off her stool and stepping to the side, hoping to slide past them without being seen. “Lacy.”
She held back her sigh.
“Hey, Gunner.” Her heart dropped as she watched the Montgomery Defense team walk in. And of course, there making his way through the door last, was Nash.
Lacy took the opportunity to look at him before he saw her. He ran his hand through his hair, blue eyes bouncing over the booths, and the counter, before landing on her.
“Lace.” His smile bloomed almost as fast as his hand fell from his hair. “I thought you’d be at the store already? I was gonna bring you some breakfast.”
“Oh, she was just?—”
“Getting my own breakfast. Thanks for a delicious meal, Dolly, I’ll see you this weekend.”
Dolly’s eyebrows pulled together, but she smiled, and gave Lacy a curt nod. “Sure thing, sugar. We’ll see you then.”
Lacy tried to slip past the group, but Nash’s hand caught her waist before she could get by.
