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Zoe patted her messenger bag, holding her notes. “Got it. I can add my adjustments via your computer, as well.” She frowned. “Or maybe I’ll bring my own. No chance it could have been corrupted.”
Julia narrowed her eyes at her friend. “No one touches my computer besides me,” she said.
“Are you sure of that?” Zoe shot back. “Is your computer in your sight the whole time you’re at the restaurant?”
“Of course it’s not. But they’d need my password to log in to my computer.”
Zoe nodded slowly. “Maybe we should check this computer for spyware. If someone got into your home computer, they could get into this one, too.”
“They’d have to get into the restaurant, first. And they’d need the password,” Julia said.
“But you don’t know how they got the password from your home computer,” Zoe pointed out. She tugged on her messenger bag. “I’ll try to have this done for you tomorrow. What you need is pretty basic, so unless there’s a fire I need to put out, I’ll start on it this afternoon. I’ll call you when it’s done, and I can come over whenever you’re available.”
“The sooner, the better,” Julia said, some of her anxiety easing. She nodded at Nico. “If he hadn’t been paying attention last night, I wouldn’t have suspected a problem. But now that I do, I need to find out if it’s true as soon as possible.”
Zoe nodded. “Got it. It sounds as if your problem could be costing you a significant amount of money.”
“Yeah,” Julia said, blowing out a breath. “Money I can’t afford.”
Zoe put her hand on Julia’s arm. “If this has been going on for a while, no wonder Madeline’s is struggling.” Her face hardened. “I’d like nothing better than to help you nail the bastards who are stealing from you.”
“Thanks, Zoe,” Julia said, giving her friend a fierce hug. “You’re the best.”
Zoe grinned. “Just tell that to Mel. That’s all the payment I need.”
“You’ve got it,” Julia said, feeling lighter than she’d felt since her conversation with Nico over breakfast.
Zoe headed for the back door. “See you tomorrow, I hope. I’ll call you.”
* * *
Nico was setting up tables at four o’clock when Carole walked into the dining room. He was immediately aware of her, but he pretended to concentrate on what he was doing. He’d let her make the first move.
To his surprise, she walked right over to him. “Hey, Nico,” she said, and he turned around. “May I have a moment?”
She sounded serious, and he wondered if she was going to try and fire him. But he set down the bar tray loaded with set-ups and turned around. “Sure, Carole,” he said, careful to sound non-threatening. Deferential.
“I need to apologize to you,” she said. “I forgot to give you your tip share yesterday.” She reached into her pocket and pulled out some folded bills. “Here you go.”
No busser would refuse his tip share. He reached out to take it. Shoved it into his pocket, then said, “Thanks, Carole. I figured bussers went through a probationary period before they got tip share.”
“No,” she said, shaking her head. “You work, you get paid. I’m sorry I forgot you last night.”
He nodded. “Thanks. I appreciate it.”
“You did very well for your first night,” she said, studying him. Was she wondering where he’d worked in the past? Where he’d been trained? “When you’re finished with the setups, we can talk about your schedule.”
He nodded. “Okay, but Ms. Stewart said I could work as much as I liked, and I’d like to work every day. Since I just relocated to Seattle, I don’t know anyone in the city to hang out with. And I have to furnish my apartment, so I’d rather keep busy and make as much money as possible.”
Carole frowned. “You moved here without knowing anyone?”
Carole appeared bewildered, as if she’d never consider moving to a place where she knew no one. For Nico, coming from the military, moving frequently was a given. But Carole was a civilian. “I visited a friend here a few years ago, and I loved everything about the city,” he explained. “My friend moved away, but I never forgot Seattle. I’ve lived near the ocean in the past, and I knew Seattle would be a good fit for me. So far, I love the city.”
“Okay.” The hostess studied him for a long moment. Finally said, “We normally don’t let anyone work six days. Everyone needs some down time.”
“I get that,” Nico said, nodding. “I’ll eventually want more time off. But right now, making money has to be my priority. So I’d like to work every day.”
Carole frowned, and Nico was sure she was going to refuse. But finally she nodded. “Not what I normally like to do, but if it’s okay with Julia, it’s fine with me. We’re short a busser, so we have shifts to fill.”
