AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I was confused and hurt that Archer hadn’t made any attempt to contact me in weeks. Surely he must be back from his mission by now?
Carter left, going back to his position at the bench set in the shade of a tree. The orchard was on a hill, and the view was incredible.
William still insisted on keeping Carter with me. The one time I tried suggesting that maybe he was wasting his money, he hung up the phone. And that was that.
So I still had a bodyguard, even though I’d barely left the property except to apply for jobs. I had officially filed for divorce, opting to do it without a lawyer. I’d signed an ironclad prenup, and I knew if I walked away now, I wouldn’t get a cent. I was okay with that.
My phone vibrated in the back pocket of my jeans, and I hoped my mother wasn’t calling me again. She’d started up again a little over a week ago, sending messages when I didn’t pick up. But I didn’t want to know what they said, so I just deleted them without reading a word.
I seemed to be following the road of avoidance in all aspects of my life lately.
When I checked my screen, it came up with an unknown number. I let the phone ring out, waiting for whoever called to leave a message.
A beep showed that whoever called had left a message. Before I had too much time to think about it, I opened it.
“This is Barney from Barney’s diner. If you’re still interested in the waitressing job, it’s yours.”
I’d interviewed there last week. It was a small diner in Bostonia, which meant it was only about half an hour to drive there from Everleigh’s. Not that I planned on staying here for much longer, but a short commute would help with fuel costs.
“Be here at one tomorrow. You’re on the evening shift.”
The message finished, and I let out the breath I’d been holding. He hadn’t been the most pleasant person during my interview, but I didn’t get any creepy vibes from him, which was more than I could say for a lot of the other places I’d applied at.
Rushing off the ladder, nearly dropping my satchel filled with apples, I took a moment to dump the fruit into the tray of the quad bike I’d driven out here.
“I got a job,” I called to Carter, who looked like he was half asleep.
He came over, giving me a high five. “Congratulations. Does that mean we’ll be leaving the property more than weekly?”
“It does, because I’ll try to get as many shifts as I can.”
Once everything was put away, I drove back to the house, cursing the slow speed. I could run faster than the damn thing. As was evidenced by Carter, who was walking along next to it with long strides.
I’d barely turned off the engine before sprinting into the house.
“I got the job,” I squealed, skidding to a stop in the kitchen, where Everleigh was standing in front of the stove. She looked up at my loud entrance, her face relaxing when she saw me.
“That’s awesome.” She hugged me with one arm, the other holding a dripping spoon. “What’s the job?”
“Waitress. But I don’t care what it is as long as I’m finally earning money.”
“I hope you don’t think you have to get out of the guesthouse. You can stay there for as long as you want.”
Sitting down in one of her comfortable kitchen chairs, I grinned at her, still riding the high of being offered a job. “I know. But I need to pay my own way, and this is the first step.”
“Then congratulations. We’ll celebrate tonight.”
“But not too much, since tomorrow is my first day.”
She chuckled and turned her attention back to the stove to continue frowning at dinner. “I’m happy for you. They’re lucky to have you.”
* * *
“That’s notwhat I ordered. I wanted a tuna sub without the tuna.”
Turned out they might have been lucky to have me, but I wasn’t lucky to have the job. I felt like I’d come full circle, ending up right back where I started: at a greasy diner, getting abused by customers.
My excitement at having found a job faded about ten minutes into my first day. I wasn’t one to dwell on the little things, but nothing had gone right so far. The other waitresses were catty, the cook was handsy, and the owner was absent.
