Page 5 of Flirting With Forever
She didn’t linger and headed out again, feeling much better. On her way toward the pier house, she saw a shower along the bridge leading over the dunes and made note of it. Though she was sure it didn’t have hot water like the ladies’ restroom. That had been an unexpected delight.
There were fishermen on the pier and a few early morning walkers and runners already up and out. Dressed and wrapped in her sweater, damp feet squeaking with every step, she made her way back to her vehicle.
She needed to find a Laundromat and wash the few clothes she had. It paid to travel light. Fewer things meant less expense, and she’d found a surprising amount of name brands in thrift stores to make up her limited yet decent wardrobe. She never stayed in one place for very long, but maybe she could find a waitressing or housekeeping job that would pay cash for a few weeks.
Her stomach growled, and she decided food topped the to-do list.
After another phone search, she got moving. The laundry wasn’t open yet, which meant she needed to find a place to park so she wouldn’t get towed. Preferably one that wouldn’t charge her a fortune.
Her last job ended abruptly without her getting paid, and her meager savings dwindled fast between gas and food. But was this the place she wanted to stay?
The quiet streets of the coastal town held a lot of appeal. But it was the offseason, which meant jobs might be scarce.
After taming her crazy natural curls, she climbed behind the wheel and buckled her belt. Twisting the key didn’t get the results she wanted though. The interior lights brightened then dimmed and she heard a clicking. “Come on,” she breathed. “You can’t do this now.”
She tried again. And again. Nothing.
She slammed her head against the rest behind her twice in frustration. She’d need a jump. And who knew what that might cost her unless she found some good Samaritan to help her—preferably before the guy from last night returned.
She wouldn’t find help hiding behind the building, though. But on the way back to the car, she’d noted the gas station and convenience store next door. Maybe she could find someone with jumper cables as well as a cheap breakfast?
Sloane retraced her steps to the street. There was a bakery across the road, but while the scent of yumminess filled the air, she didn’t think it within her budget, given the fancy look of the showcase window. She needed substance and protein to tide her over. Not yumminess and empty carbs.
Sloane trudged into the convenience store and headed to the premade sandwiches and then grabbed a drink before moving toward the counter. That’s when she saw a Help Wanted sign and paused.
“You interested?”
She turned her head and realized the dark-haired guy at the counter watched her taking it in. “The job? Maybe.”
“You any good with customer service?”
“I can handle people. What’s it pay?”
He gave her a starting wage that wasn’t great. “That’s during the training period. You pass the training and prove you’ll stick around, and the pay gets better. We take care of our employees.”
She put her sandwich and drink on the counter. “When do I start?”
A smile split the guy’s handsome face. The ring on his left hand meant off-limits though. Not that she was looking. She didn’t have the luxury of a relationship, and personal ties could be dangerous—for them both.
“You have references?”
She thought about her last job and wrinkled her nose. “Not really. I did a great job, but my boss decided he wanted extra benefits and fired me when I didn’t agree to his plans. I doubt he’d give me a good reference, you know?”
“Was that your only job?”
“Pretty much.” Because the job before that? And the one before that? And the one before that? Yeah, not going there either. “I move around a lot, so I’m just looking for something to see me through. I have some college training. Didn’t graduate, though.”
The man studied her for a long moment, and she forced herself to hold eye contact. She got the feeling he was sizing her up, and she wanted to make the cut.
“Come back in thirty minutes. I’ll introduce you to Cole, and he can interview you to see if you’re a fit. He just put the sign up, and you’d be training with him, but I’m not sure he’s looking for someone temporary. Still, he might give you some work and help you out.”
She smiled and shoved her items across the counter. “Sounds great. I’ll be back in thirty.”
Sloane ate her breakfast while sitting on a boardwalk swing facing the water. Once she’d finished, she went back to the public restroom and washed her hands and brushed her teeth before adding a little mascara and gloss. She still had quite a bit of tan remaining from the summer she’d spent further up the coast, which meant freckles galore across her nose and cheeks and chest. But love them or hate them, they gave her some color.
She stared down at her clothes. She really needed to do laundry, but her dress was clean and would work for the interview.
Her nerves kicked up more than a little as she walked back to the gas station and went inside. There was a man standing near the counter, opposite from the clerk she’d talked to earlier, and being on the receiving end of both their intense stares left her stomach fluttering.
