“Oh, that!” The woman, whose nametag read Jolene, returned the coffee pot to its warmer than brushed her hands on her apron as she grinned up at Harmony. “It’s been there forever.”

Harmony forced a smile until it hurt. “Are you not hiring anymore?” she asked as if the answer didn’t have the power to determine her future happiness.

Luckily, Jolene talked fast and freely, putting Harmony’s doubts aside almost as soon as they’d surfaced. “Oh, no. We are! We’d just kind of lost hope. That is, until you showed up. What’s your name, sugar?”

Harmony introduced herself to Jolene, all the while wondering if this would be the easiest job she’d ever landed. It seemed the waitress was ready to hire her based on the fact that she’d simply shown up and asked.

“Well, Miss Harmony King, the boss isn’t in today, but he trusts my opinion and he likes everybody besides. If you want the job, it’s yours.” Jolene caught her reflection in the stainless steel backsplash behind the coffee counter and fluffed her hair.

Was it really going to be this easy? Harmony shifted awkwardly from one foot to the other. “Um, don’t you want my references or employment history?”

Jolene waved her off. “Nah, those don’t matter so much. The best way to find out if you’ve got what it takes is to put you on the floor. Be here at five thirty tomorrow and we’ll get you started.”

They shook on it, and Harmony jotted down her number and address on the back of a placemat just in case Jolene needed to get in touch with her before then. That was all it took to put even more roots down in Charleston.

It hadn’t been this easy in a long time, and Harmony knew her streak of good luck couldn’t last. Yes, the coffee cup was definitely half-full, but at least she had something to drink.

Chapter 13

Harmony

Harmony returned to the house and pushed her new key in the lock. A joyous fit of barking sounded from just on the other side of the door. Had Muffin managed to escape her room? She hoped he hadn’t destroyed anything in the short time she’d been out, especially since she’d kept her promise and brought him a rawhide to celebrate her new job at O’Brien’s. She’d also ordered a bit of takeout for herself so she could try out the restaurant’s fare for herself before peddling it to customers.

When the door didn’t open, she twisted the key the other way and gave it a good jiggle.

When finally she gained entry, she found Virginia waiting in the entryway. “Oh, I never lock it. I suppose I should, but I’ve always found it best to believe the best of others.”

She chuckled, and Harmony bit her tongue. It was as if the old woman were rolling out the welcome mat for any robber within a hundred mile radius. Luckily, Harmony herself had nothing worth stealing, especially among all the many beautiful things the Clementines owned.