Page 25 of Roommates' Alpha
He smiled and closed his eyes again, relaxing against me. “I can see why Ryan likes this so much. I feel safe like this. A little bubble of warmth and security.”
“I’m just me.”
“And that’s enough.”
His breathing evened over the next couple of minutes and I realized that he’d fallen asleep.
When the washing machine buzzed, I decided it was worth it to have to rewash.
There was no way I was moving while Micah was still curled against me.
Chapter 7
~December~
“Order in!” I called, snatching the ticket from the printer as soon as it was done. “Large three-cheese, medium mushroom, meat calzone, veggie calzone, two kid pepperoni, and a chicken alfredo.”
I listened for the chorus of confirmations, then turned my attention to the plates awaiting pickup from the pass. “Where’s that spaghetti and meatball for eighteen? I’ve got pizzas dying here.”
“Coming now boss!” shouted back one of the line cooks. Sure enough, a plate appeared about thirty seconds later.
“Order up!” I called. “Table eighteen,” I stated as one of the waitresses began grabbing the plates and pizza pans. She nodded and bustled out, tray laden with food. I took the break to glance at the next few orders due up.
The restaurant was slammed, a common enough sight leading into the holidays, but there had been several reservations for company parties, which meant that it was crazier than normal.
Marco, the night manager, hadn’t even needed to ask for me to stay late. I’d taken one look at the reservation book and known they’d need at least one extra person.
By some miracle, I’d found two. Myself, and a new waiter: Eric. I’d hired him as my temp for the day shift. But he’d offered to take any extra shifts he could, and had actually appeared when I’d asked if he could come in. I would have to talk to Gerald, but I anticipated making him full-time after New Year’s.
His presence that night was a godsend. Large parties took a lot of attention, and that could lead to grumpy diners if a server was stretched too thin. Sure, somebody might start the shift complaining about having to split tips with another person, but usually by the end, they were grateful for the extra help.
The hostess popped her head around the corner. “I just seated the twelve top. But you should get a bit of a break once their order is in. They’re the last really big party tonight. We have a six in an hour, but other than that it’s all fours and under.”
“No walk-ins on anything bigger than six for the rest of the night,” I replied.
She laughed. “I don’t even know where I’d be able to fit a six. Seems everybody is visiting with friends for the season. It might be the end of the big parties, but any walk-in is looking at at least an hour’s wait. The smart people made reservations weeks ago.”
“Key word there being smart. If a big party tries to walk in and argue, I’m more than happy to tell them no. And no, we can’t just turn on the patio heaters. It’s too cold and people will sit out there and complain.”
She roared with laughter. “And this is why I love working here. You know how to tell pushy customers ‘no’.”
I chuckled and grabbed another ticket as the machine finished printing. “Order in! Easy one. Two senior spaghetti and meatballs.”
“Heard!” called back the cook on pasta.
There were a few more hectic minutes, then I finally got a chance to breathe after announcing the order for the twelve top.
“Have I told you you’re a lifesaver yet?” asked Marco. “You and that new guy—Eric.”
“Only a few times,” I replied, ladling some marinara into a monkey dish and setting it beside a basket of breadsticks.
“Well, I mean it. We would have been drowning tonight without the two of you. It’s like all of Valle Granja decided to go out to eat.”
“The holiday season is always crazy. It was supposed to be a big night at the Winter Village too. Mariachi Extravaganza or something.”
“That thing just gets bigger every year.”
I laughed. “Seems to be good for the city though. People like it.”