An ear-splittinghowl erupts from the kitchen.I sprint from my office to find Mrs.Nelson bent over, clutching her hand to her chest.“What happened?”I gasp.
Sweat beads on her brow as she grimaces.“Burned my damn arm on the edge of the grill.”
Shit.The closer I get to her, the lower my stomach sinks.The skin from her wrist to her elbow looks red-raw.
I hurry to find the first aid kit, grabbing the burn spray to take away the sting.I’m pretty sure she’s going to be fine, but I want to be certain.
“Willow!”I shout.My friend sticks her head into the kitchen, her eyes bulging when she sees us.“Mrs.Nelson accidentally burned herself.Can you take her to urgent care?”
Mrs.Nelson shakes her head, still clutching her arm to her chest.“Oh, no.There’s no need for all that fuss.I’ll be fine.”
“I’ll not hear no for an answer.”
Willow heads back out front, then returns a moment later, her apron gone and her purse in hand.She helps Mrs.Nelson out the back door just as I hear the front door open again.
Okay, Chloe.Think.
Without our cook, we can’t serve hot food.
That’s fine—there are plenty of pastries out front.Those should tide us over until the lunch rush.Mrs.Nelson will either be back, or we’ll close in the lull between breakfast and lunch.Not a huge deal.If she can’t return, though, I’ll need to find someone to cover the kitchen tomorrow, but we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.
I push through the kitchen door to find Ethan waiting at the register, and the tension in my shoulders evaporates.I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of seeing him walk through the door.“Coffee?”I ask.
“Please.”He glances out the side window to my new picnic tables, the stack of surfboards for the pergola roof waiting patiently beside them.“Your dad’s not here yet?”
Two more folks wander into the café, and the tension returns.Maybe they’re only here for drinks.
I’ve been so busy, I didn’t even realize Rick hadn’t arrived yet.“He’ll be here in a bit.”He’s probably waiting until the hardware store opens so he can pay that bill first.“Don’t feel like you have to stick around, though.He doesn’t need a babysitter.”
Ethan opens his mouth like he’s got something on his mind, then closes it again as I fill the closest mug with coffee and set it down in front of him.He looks from the mug to me and back again.
The poop emoji.Crap.
“Are we good?”he asks, his thumb tapping against the black handle.
“Yeah, sorry.I’m just preoccupied.”Another customer strolls in to join the other two behind him.Curse this coffee of mine for being so delicious.
“You sure you’re all right?”he asks, studying my face.
“Yes.”
You don’t have to do everything for everyone.
You don’t have to smile through absolutely everything.
This is Ethan.He knows better than anyone that sometimes things aren’t perfect.
Sometimes they’re shit.
I blow out a breath, letting my smile slip so he can see the truth behind it.“Actually, no.I’m not.”He stands up taller, his brow creasing.“Mrs.Nelson burned herself, and Willow took her to urgent care, so I’m a little understaffed and a lot overwhelmed.”
He glances over his shoulder right as the belldingsand another woman gets in line.“You’re here on your own?”
“For now.Tilly comes in at eleven.”
He picks up his mug, takes a long sip, then rounds the counter.“How can I help?”
“You don’t need to—” His eyes narrow.“Okay, fine.The grill is closed, but I could use a hand running the register while I fix drinks.It’s not hard.”
