Now that I paid more attention, I realized she was dressed in a short black skirt, stockings, and a white blouse. The huge, purple faux-fur coat she wore on top was what had given me the wrong impression.
“My shift starts in twenty minutes, though,” she continued, rising to her feet, “so you better think quick. And get changed. You got something more restaurant-friendly in that big old bag?”
I nodded again, feeling like a bobblehead. “Yes, absolutely.”
“Great!” My new friend grinned, then stuck her hand out for me to shake. “I’m Liz, by the way.”
Offering a smile, I took her hand. “Billie.” Liz indicated for me to walk with her, and I hoisted my heavy bag over my shoulder. “Uh, I shouldn’t really look a gift horse in the mouth, but why are you helping me, Liz?”
She shot me a sidelong look. “Did you just call me a horse?” My eyes widened in horror, but she quickly laughed. “I’m teasing, Billie; chill. And technically, I’m not helping you,you’rehelpingme. We were so fucking short-staffed last night it was a joke. Thenwegot blamed for the bad reviews from customers because the service sucked.”
I winced, able to sympathize. Customers were brutal and didn’t care why there weren’t enough servers on shift, only that their drinks took too long. “I get it,” I murmured. “Well, I’m grateful, anyway.”
Liz’s smile was warm, and she offered a one-shouldered shrug. “Don’t thank me yet; I still need to convince my boss. But given the blasting I heard him get from the owner over the phone last night? Shouldn’t be a hard sell. Come on, it’s this way.”
She had a quick pace, and I hurried to keep up with her long legs as she led the way through the streets of Siena. As we hurried, she chatted a little about how the other servers had caught a stomach flu from a party they’d all been at. Liz didn’t get it, because she’d been stuck on the closing shift.
“That was lucky,” I commented, and she gave a throaty laugh.
“Was it? Now I have to pick up the slack for them. Then again, it worked out lucky for you.” She led me down an alleyway and past some dumpsters to a heavy door with chipped paint. “Here we are. Just… steer clear of the chefs. They’re assholes.”
I laughed. “Isn’t that a job requirement?”
She snickered, then pulled open the door. It led us directly into the back of the kitchen where all the ice machines, trash cans, and spare stock were kept, and Liz directed me to a tiny staff restroom where I could get changed.
“I’ll go let Gary know you’re here to save our asses tonight,” she told me as I squeezed inside. “Then I’ll give you the tour.”
I’d been so caught up in my crappy day, in the emotional rollercoaster of being evicted and then saved by Liz’s job offer, I hadn’t even asked what sort of restaurant she worked in. But as I changed into my black skirt and white blouse, the mouthwatering smells of rich tomato and melted cheese rolled under my nose.
“Oh shit,” I whispered, sniffing again. Maybe I was mistaken? But it definitely smelled like Italian food. “No, I can’t be that unlucky. Surely.”
Siena, Illinois, had such a dense Italian population there was an Italian restaurant on every street corner. I must have seriously screwed up in a past life if my “saving grace” had brought me full circle to a Ricci family restaurant.
“Hey! You look great,” Liz told me with a wide smile as I emerged. She stood with a stressed-looking middle-aged man in a bow tie. “This is Gary.”
I gave the manager a tight smile and offered my hand. “Hi, thank you for—”
“You know how to waitress?” Gary snapped, not interested in my hand or my pleasantries. “You know what? I don’t even care. Just do what you’re told, and I’ll give you cash at the end of the night. Tips are all yours.”
My brows rose, and Liz just nodded encouragingly.
“Told you we were desperate.” She laughed as Gary stomped away into the kitchen. “Come on, I’ll show you around before we open.”
The second we stepped out into the dining room, I knew my desperate hope from before was long gone.
“Giovanni's?” I said in a high, squeaky voice. “This is a Ricci restaurant?”
Liz turned back around to give me a puzzled frown. “Yeah. Didn’t I tell you that already?”
I shook my head frantically. “No. No, you definitely didn’t. I’m so sorry; I can’t—”
“Bullshit,” she snapped, propping her hands on her slim hips. “You literally have nowhere to go, Billie. What does it even matter who owns the restaurant? Gary’s going to pay cash, and you can crash on my floor until you speak to Mrs. Glass tomorrow.”
She was right. Of course she was right. The Ricci family owned thirty restaurants in Siena and countless other businesses. The odds of one of themactuallycoming into this exact venue on the one night I worked was so improbable…
So I put on my brave face and let Liz carry on with her tour—all the while repeating to myself that it would be fine. It wasjusta job.
It didn’t take long to see why Liz had been so quick to offer me a job. There were only two other servers working that night, and with how many customers they catered to, there should have been at least seven on the floor. On the upside, though, as the night progressed the workload kept me so busy I could barely give the Ricci family even a second thought.
