Free Ask Me for Tomorrow by Elise K Ackers

friends. Where would they be in a week?
    Her job depended on her staying on good terms with her boss, and she needed the money more than she needed a mate, but she couldn’t seem to say no to Dean. She wanted to know more about him. She liked when he looked at her. Hell, it felt good just knowing he was in the adjoining room.
    Alice closed her eyes. Oh no. Beneath her feet, the world seemed to tilt.
    When she walked back into the reception area, Dean reached for his coffee with damp, clean hands – washed, no doubt, in the small sink just outside the door.
    ‘It’s black with two sugars,’ she said, feeling suddenly shy and unsure of herself. ‘But I can change it—’
    ‘This is perfect. Thanks.’ His smiling eyes followed her as she sat opposite him. When she was settled, he leaned forward in his seat. ‘I was wondering if I could trouble you for some advice?’
    She curled her fingers through the ceramic handle, thinking that none of the mugs here matched, just like at her house. She nodded, and blew on her coffee.
    ‘I have this customer. Les Marks. He’s a regular.’
    ‘Okay.’
    ‘The thing is, he visits so regularly that I’m running out of things to do.’
    ‘How do you mean?’
    ‘Les loves his Impala kind of like the way I love my kids, and he brings her in for a service every two months.’
    ‘Does he drive long distances?’
    ‘No.’ He waited as she considered what this meant. ‘I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve changed the oil, tensioned the fan belts and checked the tyres. The old man’s wasting his money.’
    ‘Have you told him this?’
    ‘I tell him every time I see him. He’s retired, he drives as far as the local bowling green and I’m worried he’s going to send himself broke, but he waves me off and keeps rolling up.’ He made a wide sweeping gesture with his hand then slumped back in his seat and drank, brows drawn together.
    For a moment, they watched each other over the rims of their mugs.
    Beautiful and morally sound, she thought. She said, ‘If you’ve told him, then he knows what he’s doing. Maybe it’s peace of mind. Maybe he doesn’t have anyone else to spoil with his money. It could be as simple as liking a routine and having something to look forward to.’
    Dean made a soft, considering sort of sound in the back of his throat. ‘You may be right. You know, that’s his car out there now. I swear I’ve done little more than poke at it for the last twenty minutes.’ He shook his head. ‘I can’t charge him for a service; it’s not right.’
    ‘So don’t. Have you tried giving him a firm next-service date?’
    ‘Often.’
    She laughed softly. ‘Then charge him or don’t charge him on a case-by-case basis.’
    They drank in silence again. The caffeine was elbowing ahead of Alice’s fatigue, overwhelming it, but with one work shift soon to finish and another soon to start, this was only the latest in what was sure to be many more coffees today.
    She wanted to sleep for a week. Pull the covers over her head and give the overworked battery inside her its first full charge in months. Years, even. Alice had juggled two jobs for a long time, but this was her toughest stint yet. Ben was old enough to be left at home now, however much she didn’t like it, which meant that she’d taken on longer hours, and more often.
    Alice didn’t work weekends though. On Saturdays and Sundays she was a full-time mum and running from place to place getting seven days’ worth of tasks done in two. Whenever she could, she did something fun with Ben, but the money hadn’t been stretching far lately – the cost of living was steadily climbing and Ben was always needing one thing or the other.
    She needed to prioritise a haircut. Another couple of weeks and he’d be able to tie a fistful of his hair back with an elastic band.
    All these expenses, and here she was having lustful thoughts about her boss.
    ‘You okay?’ The question was gentle, spoken