My clothes? Who cared about those when I’d upturned someone’s meal and flattened someone else’s dessert?
“How’s your burn?” he asked.
I followed his gaze to my hand. I’d nearly forgotten about my throbbing fingers. “Fine.”
His smile was small and sad. “Why don’t you change, then I’ll treat the burn? It won’t take long, and I think you’ll feel better in fresh clothes.”
I looked down at myself, stained with mashed potatoes and meat sauce. “Okay.”
When I opened the door again, I found Lucas waiting outside.
He peeled himself away from the wall and gave me a thorough once-over. “Better.”
My eyes were red and swollen from crying, but I nodded.
Lucas led me to a small employee lounge with a metal table, chairs, and a kitchenette. He opened a cabinet and removed a first aid kit.
I sat at the table and waited.
My neck and shoulders ached with tension. If Robert were here, he’d lose his shit and berate me for my lack of attention to detail. For not hearing the oven’s timer, for not putting the oven mitt on properly, for backing into someone who was doing their job correctly, and for not using the swinging door in the way I was clearly instructed. On top of all that, I’d let my emotion get the best of me and left someone else to clean up my mess.
And I’d gotten hurt to boot.
Lucas approached with a mug of water. “Put your fingers in here to cool the burn.”
I obeyed, unable to meet his eyes.
“That was a rough welcome to restaurant life.” His tone was kind and a little playful, probably hoping I wouldn’t cry again. “I’m sorry I wasn’t there to help sooner,” he said. “I should’ve been there to prevent the whole thing. I planned to stay by your side this week while you became acclimated, but the hostess’s daughter missed the bus for preschool.” He chuckled softly. “Not the first time. Won’t be the last. Kenzie is an adorable typhoon in pigtails. Anyway, I was greeting guests when I heard the screaming.”
I closed my eyes. “It was horrible. I tried to apologize but the server I ran into just left.”
“Protocol,” he said. “She wasn’t injured, so her priority was to clean the floor before anyone else slipped or fell.”
I thought of her pushing the mop and bucket toward the kitchen as I ran to the ladies’ room.
“That was Kara. She told me what happened and wanted me to check on you,” he said, drawing my gaze to his.
“Yeah?”
“Yeah. Everyone here has been where you are. The new member of a kitchen where everyone else seems to know exactly what to do.”
My lips pressed into a remorseful smile. “Thank you.”
Lucas arranged his first aid supplies on the table. He pulled out a chair beside me and took a seat. “The staff said you were killing it in there. John was impressed, and nothing impresses him.”
“In the red chef’s jacket?”
“Yep.”
John yelled at everyone, like a tall, cooking drill sergeant, but they’d all obeyed without hesitation. The fact he hadn’t screamed at me all day was the only thing holding me together when the orders came in at full force.
“John said you kept up through the busiest part of the hour, accommodating all requests from customers or staff, and remained absolutely unfazed by the chaos.”
I nearly hooted in laughter. Clearly I still excelled at pretending things were great when they were not. I’d had many years of practice. I smiled at the ridiculousness anyway. “I was completely freaking out,” I admitted. “Honestly, I’m surprised I didn’t take out one of your servers sooner.”
Lucas snorted. “You did well, Soph,” he said. “Five stars. And for the record, we’ve all wiped out at least once in that kitchen, and some of us weren’t on our first day when it happened.”
I studied him, waiting for the inevitablebutthat never came. “You’re not mad?”
