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Last night I was so close to showing Theo how good we could be. He needs to view me as more than a friend before he’ll be able to understand how good we could be together. I’m worried I’ve lost him for good now. Who knows what will happen on his trip to Lake Tahoe.
I pull up into the first empty space I see in front of Keith’s Kitchen. It’s cooler outside than it was only fifteen minutes ago when I first stepped onto my porch. I still don’t regret my thin layer of clothing because waiting tables will have me sweating in no time. I enter the restaurant, tugging on my apron as I walk to the back.
“Hey, you’re early,” John, one of the cooks says, smiling my way.
“Yup. Needed some time to mentally prepare myself,” I say, pinning on my name badge.
He laughs. “I hear that. Too bad it won’t help much. It’s a madhouse out there today.”
Pressing the wrinkles out of my apron, I twist my lips. “I can always count on you to lift me up in a time of need, you know that, John?”
He cracks a smile and slides his phone in his pocket. “Happy to help.”
I mouth his words, wearing an annoyed expression, and his laughter fades behind the break room door. Another long day and I left my fucking taco in the car. I’m still unsure if I have the appetite for it. The uneasiness from early hasn’t gone away and every time I think about Theo, I feel queasy.
“Hey, Finn,” my manager, Michael, greets me while putting away a few menus. “Here to clock in early?”
“Sure. I’m going to grab my food from the car first and then I will clock in.” I walk toward the front double doors.
“Sounds good to me,” Michael says, rubbing his face.
Cold air stings at my cheeks as a rush of heavy wind blows my way as I’m closing in on my car. It’s cooler every damn minute. Where the fuck is spring at? I guess the Easter bunny has the day off this year. Who enjoys snow during spring break? Not me. Hopefully it continues not to stick.
White flurries fall around me as I open my car door. I grab my food and scarf it down on my way to clock in. A few more employees greet me while I type in all my info on one of the work computers. I’m assigned a few tables by Michael before I can reach the front of the restaurant. The first few hours go by slowly and are painful. The rush doesn’t make it feel like it’s going by any faster and I’m running low on energy when nearing the end of my shift.
I skipped my lunch break so I could leave an hour early and I’m regretting my decision now.
“Excuse me, sir. You think you can bring some napkins? I made a huge mess over here,” someone says from behind me.
I blow out a puff of air in annoyance. “Sure.” I walk toward the front without looking back at the customer and he calls after me again.
“Make sure you bring it out because it’s really big and there’s white stuff everywhere.”
I stop in my tracks. “White stuff?”
“Yeah, and it’s squishy too.”
A laugh falls from me and my heart expands in my chest. My little bird is here. Did he come to see me? Why else would he choose this restaurant?
I spin around, smirking. “Are you sure it’s food related?”
Theo cocks his head. “Of course. This is a restaurant, not a brothel.”
“Good because I would be in the wrong place if it was.”
He chuckles and opens his menu. “So what’s good here? What would you recommend?” I’ve worked here for a few years now and this is the first time he’s stopped by. Late is better than never.
“Anything on the menu next door.”
He snorts, running his finger over the lunch options. “Just when I was worried you might be horrible at your job.”
“Please. This place would fall apart without me.” As I walk closer, I notice a paper bag by his feet. “What’s that?”
“You told me to save you a piece of cheesecake so I did. After all, it’s the least I can do after all your help yesterday.”
Bending down, I wrap my fingers around the bag’s handles. “You could have left it at the house. You didn’t need to come all this way.”
“I wanted to deliver it personally. Plus, I wanted to see where you worked. I can’t believe this is the first time I’ve been here.” He glances around, his face beaming.
