and they had been a hit.
Tinker, a man in his forties, leaned back in his chair and rubbed his belly. “I sure as Pete can’t pass up a piece of Miss Patsy’s pie.”
“We’ve got pumpkin, apple crisp, and pecan today. Miss Patsy seems to be in a fall kind of mood.”
Each of the men ordered a slice of pie along with a scoop of ice cream. I was about to head to the back with the ticket when the front door opened. The woman who walked in was tiny—barely five feet tall—and her platinum blonde hair was in two braids that hung a few inches past her shoulders. She had a youthful face with doe eyes, and she was wearing jeans and a bohemian-style blue shirt. A duffel bag was slung over her shoulder.
Max stopped in his tracks when he saw her, his arms full of dirty dishes, a scowl crossing his face.
“Well, I’ll be damned,” Tinker said, sitting up straighter.
Franklin had stilled as well, casting me a worried glance. “Lula’s back.”
Which meant I was out of a job.
Chapter Two
I’d known this job was temporary, but somehow I’d shoved that fact in the back of my mind. Max had always promised me that he’d keep me around when or if Lula returned, but the tavern wasn’t busy enough for three full-time waitresses.
Lula turned her attention to me, her already large blue eyes widening. “You replaced me, Max?”
The look in Max’s eyes softened just a touch. Lula’s flightiness was legendary—apparently she’d come and gone too many times to count, usually with no notice—and this last time, she’d gone off to Chattanooga with a truck driver who’d delivered food supplies for Tiny. Max had threatened to not take Lula back, saying she’d left one time too many, but the customers loved her. They’d only warmed up to me because Max and I had both assured them I was temporary.
Panic started to bloom in my chest. I was living under an alias and my father had a five-hundred-thousand-dollar bounty on my head disguised as a reward for my safe return. Wyatt—the only person in Drum who knew I’d been born Caroline Blakely—had convinced me that Drum was one of the safest places I could be…previous murder attempts notwithstanding. He had a point—it was a land lost in time with limited access to internet and even spottier cell phone coverage. It also had absolutely no CCTV cameras. Besides which, the people made me want to stay.
Nevertheless, I had to earn my keep, and Drum wasn’t exactly overflowing with jobs.
“He didn’t replace you,” I said with a wide smile. I stepped closer and offered her my hand. “I’m Carly Moore. I’ve been filling in for you.”
She glanced down at my hand, but instead of taking it, she wrapped her arms around me and pulled me into a tight embrace. “Well, aren’t you the sweetest thing!”
Max still stood to the side, and when she released me, she turned and gave him a soft smile. “Hey, Max.”
“Don’t ‘hey, Max,’ me,” he said, trying to sound gruff, but it came out forced. “You walked out on us, Lula. You left us in a bind. Again.”
“I know,” she said, casting her gaze on the floor. “I’m sorry. It won’t happen again.”
“Just because you came back doesn’t mean you still have a job. Carly has busted her ass to take up the slack for you. It doesn’t seem fair to punish her just because you decided to drop in for another month or two before you take off again,” he said in a harsh tone, but I saw the indecision flickering on his face.
He was still holding the dirty plates, so I took them from him.
“Maybe you should have this conversation in the back.” I nodded to the table of road crew guys, who were openly staring in curiosity and shock.
Franklin looked plain worried.
“Good idea,” Max said. His mouth turned down and he led the way, leaving Lula to follow.
“Hey, Lula,” one of the guys said as she walked by, lifting a hand in greeting.
“Good to have you back,” Tinker said.
And that was when I knew I’d lost my job. If Max fired Lula, half the men in town would treat me like a pariah. They’d revolt and start going to Watson’s.
Max shot them a frown as he kept walking, but Lula waved.
“Hey, Billy. Hey, Tinker and Tater, good to see you.” Then she disappeared into the back.
I took the dirty plates to the tray Tiny liked us to dump