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He nodded as he continued to chew and then swallow. His eyes shifted to the woman as Alina poured. “Not bad, Meg.”
Meg’s deep, warm laugh returned. “Shit, you just think she’s cute. Fine, I’m tired today anyway.” Her face turned serious again as she studied Alina. “You can cook and get the tips from the counter, but that’s just today. I’m not guaranteeing any long-term thing.” She took the coffee pot from Alina and rounded the counter to head toward the table.
One of the other men, this one with smooshed hair and a ball cap next to him on the counter, called Meg soft as she passed, though she told him to shut up.
Only one other person at the counter didn’t have food, and Alina approached him. This man was clean-shaven, but his face was more wrinkled than the others’, and his white hair was thin on top.
“Can I cook you something?” she asked.
The older man didn’t smile, but he nodded toward Frank. “What you made for him, but I like my eggs over easy.”
The term wasn’t familiar to Alina, and doubt began to creep in.
Frank wiped at his mouth before leaning forward over his plate. “That’s like mine, but leave them runny.”
Meg’s stare was back, judging her, which was fair enough.
Alina nodded as she returned to the stove.
Not many other customers came in, but the few she cooked for didn’t complain or grimace when she served them food.
Frank was the only one with such a ready smile. He pulled out a larger bill than Alina had ever expected and placed it on the counter with a two-finger tap when he rose. “You take care of yourself, girly.”
She thanked him, and his gaze lingered as he left.
“Frank is always way too nice,” Meg said, her free hand on her hip as she shook her head, watching him leave. Then she nodded toward the money. “Like I said, that’s yours.”
Alina’s fingers twisted together. “Don’t I have to ring up his food first?”
Meg turned away without answering. “Oh, and make yourself something to eat. I heard your stomach growling from across the room.”
Alina made herself scrambled eggs and toast. Meg waved her toward the counter, taking over the stove again when Alina sat to eat.
Most of the customers had cleared out. The morning had passed, and breakfast switched to lunch. Meg called to a couple of guys that entered to take any table they wanted, rounding the counter to bring them menus.
Alina concentrated on eating. It had been a while since she’d eaten real food, and her stomach wanted to rebel. She sipped at her water, forcing herself to swallow.
As she was finishing, Meg dumped a few slices of bacon onto her plate. “You’re too pale. Need some meat on your bones.” She moved off, cleaning as she went. No one else was at the counter anymore.
When Meg returned, she tossed some bills near Alina’s hand before leaning on the counter. “You weren’t bad. Gotta learn the different ways to make eggs, though.”
“Sorry,” Alina murmured. When she had cooked for herself in the small house, she’d rarely had eggs. The woman hadn’t brought a lot of fresh food. She forced herself to reach for the bacon. It had a nice crunch, even if the meat smell added an extra twinge to her gut.
“You apologize too much. Second time today, and you haven’t even done nothing.” Meg’s brown eyes focused on her, making Alina shift on her stool. She tapped the cash on the countertop. “This gonna be enough?”
Alina swallowed as she stared down at her almost empty plate.
Meg sighed. “I figure you don’t want me asking too many questions. And no cops. Am I wrong?”
Alina shook her head as her throat closed.
“You still in trouble?”
She didn’t know how to answer that. The man who had hurt her was dead. She just had nowhere to go. She slid off her barstool anyway.
Meg slid the money closer to her. “You need more, you come back tomorrow, you hear?”
“Thank you.” Alina forced herself to take the money and left the diner.
