Chloe shrugged. "Just now. I thought it sounded fun and made an even bigger hero than you are on a daily basis."
Seaton heard the truth in Chloe's voice. She really did like her boss.
Yun Abe sighed and rolled his eyes, but Seaton could tell he liked Chloe a lot. He'd probably been on the receiving end of a number of nicknames. He set down a plate in front of Sam. When he spoke again, he spoke to both of them.
"I heard you two were helping out here while Margo went to get our mail."
Seaton's first reaction was to demure and not admit to it. When her mother or her ex started saying things like that, it wasn't good.
They were usually about to say something cutting or mean. The best she could get was a back-handed compliment, but even those became yet another reason to shrink away from taking credit for anything.
Sam put his hand on her shoulder, giving her a gentle squeeze. "Seaton has experience working in food service like I did years ago."
Chloe had just finished pouring two glasses of iced tea when she turned to look at Yun.
The cook turned and looked back at Chloe before they both nodded at each other slowly.
You turned back to look at her.
Seaton shrank back a little, her eyes looking at one and then the other.
Yun was the one to speak and the way he had his arms crossed over his chest and lifted his chin in a proud smile made him look a little like Mister Miyagi from the Karate Kid films. A character she had secretly wanted in her life. Someone who was stern, but helped and uplifted others.
"Any chance you're looking for a job?"
Seaton felt her heart flutter in her chest.
At first trepidation and then... hope?
She nodded. "I'd love one."
She'd been trapped at home for so long she didn't think anyone would give her a job with the gap in her job history.
Could it be this easy?
Seaton turned and looked at Sam, shaking her head to clear it of the fog that had settled in. She leaned in closer, whispering to him. "Is this real?"
Sam looked up at Yun and she turned her head to follow. "This is real, right?"
Yun nodded. "It is. I saw the stack of plates that Chloe took out, and I started to follow her to help." He looked straight at Seaton, and she was amazed that his frank stare didn't make her shrink back. Instead, she felt more confident. "I mean it. You stepped right up and helped. It's obvious that you'd either done work like this before or that you're a natural with all the instincts you’d need. Either way, we just had a waitress leave. Her husband is stationed at Lackland and they're transferring him out of state. The whole family is going. That's why we're short of help today."
Chloe rushed in with her words. "You don't need to start today, but we have a gap in the schedule two days from now."
Seaton swallowed and felt something akin to sunlight soaking into her skin. "Yeah. I can do that and pretty much whatever space you have in the schedule. I'm happy to help out."
Chloe held up her hand for a high-five from Yun who grudgingly gave it to her.
Yun rolled his eyes, but his smile said that he really liked her silly behavior. He looked at Sam. "Caddo? Can you get together with Lincoln? He has the paperwork for new employees."
Sam reached for her hand where it lay on the tabletop, and he gave it a squeeze. "Sure," she heard him say the name like Abe Lincoln and Seaton smiled at the way they'd turned his last name into a firehouse nickname, “I'll call Abe and ask if he wants to come over for dinner tonight with us and," Sam turned to look at her, "you can meet him and get your paperwork taken care of."
Seaton nodded at him, blinking in a vague stare.
She'd gone out for a meal, almost in her PJs, and ended up with a job and dinner.
Her head was swimming from the rush of activity, and it was, in a word, amazing.
CHAPTER 5
