Free Starstruck - Book Two by Gemma Brooks Page B

hanging. They didn’t owe me anything.
     
    “Brynn!” I heard Sarah squeal from behind the cash register
as I walked in. Thank God she didn’t hate me after what I’d done.
     
    I didn’t realize how much I’d missed her until I saw her
smiling face. She was genuinely happy to see me. Out of everyone I’d run into
since I’d been home, Sarah had easily been the most excited person to see me.
It was both sweet and depressing.
     
    I ran up to her and hugged her tight. She was about ten
years my senior and a single mom with two small children. We had absolutely
nothing in common besides working together at the diner, but I didn’t realize
how good of friends we’d become until that moment.
     
    “It’s so good to see you,” I said.
     
    “I know,” she said. “We were all wondering about you. There
are so many rumors going around. And of course we see the pictures on the
internet sometimes.”
     
    I smiled and rolled my eyes. “I hope you guys don’t believe
everything you hear.”
     
    “Nah,” she said as she swatted her hand. “Don’t worry. We
know how you really are. We don’t believe any of the bullshit. Trust me.”
     
    “Good,” I said. “Is Marge here?”
     
    Marge was the owner of the diner. Our boss. She wasn’t the
warmest or friendliest person in the world, but if I wanted to get my job back,
she was the only person who could make that decision.
     
    “You want to talk to…Marge?” Sarah said as she bit her
nails.
     
    Marge was a very intimidating person. She was a rather large
woman with big gray curls and frequently wore red lipstick and blue eye shadow.
To anyone else, she’d appear comical, but we knew how she really was. She was
ruthless and scary and domineering, which was ironic since her husband, Marty,
was the chef. Marty was one of the sweetest people I’d ever met. I always
wondered why he settled for Marge. She didn’t deserve him.
     
    “I was thinking about seeing if she’d let me pick up a few
shifts while I’m back,” I said. “I don’t know how long I’ll be back, but if you
guys need help, I’m here.”
     
    Sarah looked apprehensive before nodding back towards
Marge’s office. “She’s in there. Have at it.”
     
    I walked to Marge’s office, swallowed the lump that was
forming in my throat, and knocked on her door. She was either going to be happy
to see me or she was going to kick me out on my can and tell me never to
return.
     
    “Marge?” I called out softly. I cleared my throat.
     
    She spun around in her swivel chair, all three hundred
pounds of her, and looked me up and down. She didn’t recognize me at first, but
the second she did, she stood up and braced herself on her desk and looked me
square in the eyes.
     
    “Brynn,” she said. “What brings you here?”
     
    “I just wanted to say that I’m sorry for quitting before,” I
said. “Sorry for doing it the way I did it. With no notice.”
     
    She said nothing, which made me feel even worse. I couldn’t
get a read on her. I never could.
     
    “Everything just sort of happened so fast,” I said. “I had
to make a choice, and the plane was leaving the next morning.”
     
    She sat back down and leaned back in the creaky chair that
was about to give out beneath her. She pursed her red lips as she looked me up
and down.
     
    “You look different,” she said. “Good, but different.”
     
    “Thanks,” I replied. “So as I was saying, I’m sorry for the
way I ended things here. I’m back in town for a bit. I don’t know how long I’ll
be back, but if you need help, I’m available to pick up any extra shifts you
want to throw my way.”
     
    She cocked her head back and scratched her chins as she
looked deep in thought. She probably didn’t want to rehire me but I was sure
she needed the help.
     
    “We are short staffed,” she sighed. “I guess you can pick up
a few shifts this week if you want.”
     
    She pulled the schedule book out from under the mess