Read Online Wake Up Call by Victoria Ashley - Free Book Online Page A

the computer and pointed over to the heated counter right outside the kitchen. That sucker was so hot that I could feel the heat radiating off it. Either that or it was just Jace. Either way, I started to sweat. "That there is where Winston will leave the food when it's ready."
          I looked around, confused as to how I was going to manage to pull everything off and make it through the day. I waved my arms in front of me to cool off. It didn't help. “I don’t know-“
          "Don't worry.” Jace cut in. He smiled and looked me in the eye. He always looked me in the eye, making me nervous. In some ways, I believed that he meant to.  “I'm sure that it will be a lot to take in, but Stacy will be here to help you."
          I glanced up at him feeling a bit overwhelmed. My eye twitched and I secretly tried shaking it off. "I'm going to guess that Stacy was the waitress that messed up my order the other day," I questioned
          I felt the presence of someone behind me before a hand gripped my shoulder and squeezed. I swiftly turned around me to see the young girl from the other day. Her blue eyes gleamed with joy as she pushed her blond strands out of her face. "I'm Stacy," she said. "I'm sorry about the other day. I would like to start fresh." She smiled at me revealing her small set of dimples.
          I carefully looked her over taking in her cheerful attitude. She gave off a totally different vibe than the first time I had seen her.
          "Yeah sure," I replied, unsure of how to act around her. "Everyone has a bad day once in a while." I smiled small and twisted a finger in my hair. “Thank you.”
          She gave me a satisfied smile before leaning in and wrapping her arms around me. I instantly stiffened up feeling uncomfortable. "It's okay." She laughed, and something in her laugh told me that she was used to that reaction. "You will get used to me soon enough." She dropped her arms away from my stiff body and walked away with a small smile. "Follow me."
           An hour later, I took on my first table, which happened to be an elderly couple that could barely move without my assistance. I was terrified of accidentally hurting them. However, they didn’t mind when I made a few mistakes and understood that it was my first day. I had to admit that I got lucky to get them. They helped to ease me in and relax me before taking on the busy day.
          Three plates dropped, and six hours later, I somehow managed to make $68.38. It wasn’t the hundreds of dollars that I was used to but the business was a lot better than my last job. I had managed to make it through the whole day without some pervert trying to grope me. I could get used to that.
          I leaned into the last dirty booth with a smile as I calmly washed off the table. The clock above me read 4:28 p.m. The hours at the diner were Sunday: seven o'clock a.m. to four o'clock p.m. and Monday-Saturday: 8:30 a.m. - 6:30 p.m. It seemed reasonable enough for me. I could actually get back to my old sleeping habits or at least try.
             Jace strolled over from out of nowhere, grabbing the towel from out of my hand. I jumped, unaware that he was even close by. He smiled sweetly before bending over and wiping off the table, taking over my job. "How was your first day," he questioned. "Did you do well on tips?"
          I clumsily reached into my apron and pulled out my bundle of cash, hoping that he wouldn't laugh. I had no idea what a good waitress made. "I made around $69.00. Is that good?" I questioned.
          Jace looked up and over at Stacy as she gathered up her things and headed for the door. "Thanks Stacy," he said smoothly. “We’ll see you tomorrow.”
          Stacy shoved her keys into her mouth while juggling her belongings. She was quite talented. “Sure,” She mumbled. "Bye, guys."
          Jace stood up, reaching out a hand. “Do you want help?”
          Stacy nodded her