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“Absolutely.” Drew and Sonya weren’t coming today, though I half expected them to send someone else in their place. Or Daniel to have a bodyguard watch over me.
Normally, that invasion might bother me, but with Huxley still out there . . .maybe I should ask?
“I can find my own stuff to do,” Cricket said with some backbone in her voice.
“Of course,” Mrs. Quinn said diplomatically. “We try to help each other around here, and I know Trish has been a little shorthanded.”
Cricket stared at me, attempting to decide if Mrs. Quinn was telling the truth. We all knew exactly what she was feeling. No one wanted to be a charity case, and even more than that, no one wanted tofeellike one.
“My help from yesterday can’t come. And I’m expecting a big rush today.” Fridays were always huge. “I’d be grateful for an extra set of hands.”
“Don’t you have employees?” Cricket asked.
“Not yet.”
“You have a business and ain’t got no one else working for you?”
“I’m still finding my feet,” I said truthfully. She seemed to understand that.
“I guess I could help.”
“Fabulous.” Mrs. Quinn clapped her hands in front of her. “Marlow, come with me. We’ve got lots to do today.”
Marlow shot from her seat but turned to me before she left. “Give me your number. I think my little one might have fallen in love with yours,” she said dryly.
We exchanged phone numbers, but I did so with a pit in my stomach. Once Andrew told her the truth, there would be no playdate.
“I gotta jet,” Baker said. “Cricket, I hope we can hang out later.”
Cricket said nothing, just stared blankly at her.
“See you tonight,” I said.
Baker’s eyes softened. “You’ll be okay.”
I forced a smile. “I know.” Cricket shifted her backpack from one shoulder to the other. “Let me show you to your room, and then we’ll get started.”
“I can’t do this.”Cricket shoved away from the iPad with the POS system to take orders.
“Sure, you can,” I encouraged. We had a line down the sidewalk. The woman at the window was impatiently waiting. “Try again.”
“This was a mistake.” She turned her back and folded her arms around her middle.
“Take a minute. Have some lemonade. You’ve got this.”
I half expected her to walk out the door, but she just stood there, rocking back and forth. I’d wanted to do the same thing my first day, but I hadn’t quit. I wouldn’t let Cricket either.
I beamed at the woman in the window. “That was a special with an iced tea?”
“Yes,” she returned sharply.
“$11.72.”
Once she’d paid, I took another order and began working on the two.
“What would you like?”
I jerked my head up when I heard Cricket’s voice. She was back at the window, attempting to master the ordering system again. Pride for the girl filled me. I didn’t care how many mistakes she made as long as she put in a good effort.
