Chapter 1
Sadie
“I will have…”
I poised my pen over the notebook where I wrote orders in restaurant shorthand.
The woman I was waiting on tapped her bright red fingernail against her lips as her gaze roamed over the open menu. She hmmed. She sighed. She clicked her tongue.
I stifled my frustration as I waited, silently willing her to pick faster.
I had one table waiting for their check and two more whose food would be ready any minute. The boss had a thing about food being under the warmer for too long, and, while I agreed with him, I couldn’t excuse myself mid-order and run off and deliver an order.
The man gave me a look—like I was the reason his wife couldn’t decide what to eat. I tried to tell him Hey, I don’t make the menu, I just serve it with a shrug of my shoulders. I thought we’d had a moment of camaraderie, and then he made a derogatory sound—a little pfft—and rolled his eyes at me.
I covered my shock by glancing away and clearing my throat.
It wasn’t like I hadn’t given them ample time to decide what they were going to eat. I’d waited exactly fifteen minutes since they were seated and had their drinks delivered before I approached the table to take their order. I was good at my job.
So why did I feel like I was in the deep end without my floaties on as I ran out of patience?
Probably because I’d stayed up way too late last night and my son was a morning person.
“Do you like red sauce?” I asked sweetly. Maybe narrowing down the type of Italian food she liked would speed this up.
She wrinkled her nose and flipped a page in the menu. “Not really. I’m not into tomatoes.”
Then why come to an Italian restaurant? I screamed silently.
“We have to-die for alfredo sauce,” I said as I leaned forward to tap the picture in the menu. I’d grabbed more than one customer by offering that up.
She shook her head. “I’m not into fatty foods. I’m on a diet.”
A growl escaped my lips, and I tried to hide it with a cough. I needed this job. Seth, my manager, had already spoken to me about my attitude. I didn’t mean to come off as having one. After all, I was a nice person. I just got annoyed with customers who picked out their food like they were making a lifelong commitment. It was one meal for heaven’s sake.
“Just pick something, Rosa, so we can all move on,” the short, stout man said as he narrowed his eyes at her.
She glared at him then sighed as she flipped the menu shut. “Fine, I’ll have the Caesar salad—dressing on the side and no croutons. Also, can you tell the chef I only want half the cheese?”
The man lifted a hand and gestured to me. “She’s not a brain surgeon—keep it simple.”
That was uncalled for. I may not be a surgeon, but I was planning on being a nurse. If he thought that was an easy path, he could kiss my—
“You got that, right, sweetheart?” Rosa’s tone told me that she also doubted my ability, and if it were anyone else, I would care. But right now, an order meant I could leave, and I was going to take my out.
“You bet.” I took her menu, thanked them, and scurried away. If she was going to change her mind, I wasn’t going to be around to hear it.
Once I was safely behind the kitchen’s swinging doors, I sighed as I leaned against the wall and closed my eyes. This is what I left Parker with a sitter for? A night of crappy tips and insults?
I took in a deep breath as I opened my eyes, put the menus away, and then entered their order into the computer. Once I got the confirmation that it had been logged, I rubbed my temples. Lilly, my lifelong friend and probably the only good thing about this place, walked by.
“Stressed?” she asked.
“I think Seth hates me.” My other orders weren’t up, thank goodness. I had a rare moment to chill.
Lilly snorted as she swiped her card and began to plug in her table’s order. “He doesn’t hate you.” Then she stopped and turned. “Actually, I take that back. He probably hates you.” She shrugged. “But he hates everyone.”
I filled a glass with Diet Coke and took a long drink. “That’s comforting.”
Lilly chuckled as she patted my shoulder. “Well, college girl, school starts, what, next week? Then our little waitress will become a big-city nurse, and you won’t have to deal with Seth or annoying customers. Instead, you can change catheters and bedpans.”
I eyed her as she wrinkled her nose and then finished logging her order. True, come Tuesday, I was headed back to college. It was a dream I’d given up years ago when I married Adam. Despite my protests, Adam always volunteered. If there was a job to be taken, he was the man for the mission. I knew going into the marriage there was a chance he wouldn’t come home. And with each deployment, we tempted fate.
Until the day two uniformed officers knocked on my door.
The day Adam was killed in action.
The day I became a widow.
A year had passed since his death, and even though being a single mom trying to make things work was hard, I was getting used to it. And going back to college was the first step I’d taken for me. Up until now, it had been all about Parker. Helping him through the transition of his father’s death. Adam had been deployed more than he’d been home, so Parker didn’t know any different. And really, adjusting to his death had been hard, but deep down, I’d felt the same as my son.
I always joked that there were two wives in Adam’s life—me and the Army. It wasn’t until he didn't come home that I realized how true that was.
My phone chimed, pulling me from my thoughts. My heart began to race as the worry of something happening to Parker rushed through my mind. I pulled my phone from my apron and glanced down.
“Who is it?” Lilly asked as she filled herself a glass of Diet Coke.
I shrugged. “Nicky.”
“Nicky? What, the lady you rent from?”
I nodded as I unlocked my phone and pressed on the text.
You have termites. We need to tent the place. Move your stuff out tonight.
“I have termites?” I asked as I glanced up to study Lilly like she was going to have an explanation for the strange text.
She furrowed her brow as she stepped up next to me and glanced down at my phone. “Termites?”
I nodded, the pit in my stomach growing larger by the second. “I have to move out.”
Another text came through. Could be a month, maybe two. We can let you out of your lease.
Umm, yeah.
“And go where?” Lilly prodded.
Anxiety rose up inside of me as I tucked my phone back into my apron and covered my face with my hands. “I should have known that things were going too well. I ticked off fate a while ago, and she’s been biding her time, ready to pounce.”
“Fate is not out to get you.” Lilly scoffed.
I felt her wrap her arm around my shoulders. I glanced over at her and gave her a weak smile. “Thanks, but I think this”—I pulled my phone out and shook it in front of her—“proves otherwise.” I took a long pull of diet soda. “What am I going to do? Parker and I both start school on Tuesday. It’s Friday! How am I going to find a new place to live—LIVE—on Labor Day weekend! We can’t get back in for months.” I gritted my teeth.