Folk Around and Find Out (Good Folk: Modern Folktales #2)(36)

“How can I help?” April asked. “Do you want me to move the food? Or should I stay here by the door?”

“I can get the fruit. But, uh, do you know if anyone is allergic to nuts? Or strawberries? I have a few different dips, but I don’t want to break out the peanut butter if it’s going to send someone into anaphylactic shock.”

“No. No nut allergies and no strawberry allergies. Hope and I can’t have wheat, Fiona is lactose intolerant, and I think Piper can’t eat apples and pears. But I made dairy-free, wheat-free peanut butter cookies for the cookie exchange two years ago. Everyone partook. But thanks for checking, gorgeous.” April winked at me, letting the door start to close. “I’ll be right here when you ring the bell.”

With one last smile, I strolled to the breakroom with a spring in my step. I really liked April, and Everly, and Hope, and Piper, and all the ladies. Not for the first time, I worried what would happen when I left. I hoped Hank would keep FastFinance and be open to learning the program and running payroll himself. I didn’t want him hiring another out-of-touch bookkeeper and mucking everything up again. I’d been working day and night to fix the mess Fred made, and those ladies deserved someone looking out for them.

Distracted by the weight of these thoughts, I stepped into the breakroom without paying attention to the conversation coming from the table by the corner until the voices abruptly ceased.

Hannah and Hank.

I halted, taking in the scene. They hadn’t been in here a few minutes ago when I’d dropped off the tray, but whatever they were currently discussing looked serious. A knot of worry twisted in my stomach. I hoped she hadn’t said anything to Hank, not yet. Not until I found Heather and finished convincing him to adopt FastFinance.

Some of my fears were eased as Hannah sent me a small, watery smile. She looked miserable, and that made me worry for completely different reasons. Hank, meanwhile, didn’t look up as I entered but instead stared at Hannah like she was an unsolvable problem, or she had an unsolvable problem.

“Everything okay?” I asked, hesitating by the doorway. “Should I come back?”

“It’s fine.” This response came from Hannah. She sniffled. Hank said nothing and continued staring at Hannah, scraping his teeth against his bottom lip, his leg bouncing with restless energy.

“I’m going to grab this tray and take it to the ladies,” I said, narrating my movements. “I’ll be out of y’all’s hair in a sec.”

“Actually, wait.” Hank finally glanced my way while kicking a third chair out with his booted foot. “You might be able to help us.”

“Okay.” I sidestepped around the table where I’d placed the fruit, but I didn’t sit in the chair he’d offered, instead placing my hands on the back of it. I didn’t want to leave April waiting for me by the door to the dressing rooms. “How can I help?”

“Go ahead.” Hank nodded to Hannah. “Tell her what you told me.”

Hannah sighed and glanced down at her hands. I noted she held a crushed, used tissue. “I’ve been applying for some office jobs.”

My gaze darted between Hank’s fierce glare and Hannah’s wobbly chin. “Is that a problem? I don’t—I think—I mean, if you want to work in an office, then . . . what’s the problem?”

“She got a job. A good one. But then one of the guys she’d be working with turned out to be a regular here. He recognized her and they let her go after a week.”

Hannah’s face crumpled and she dabbed at her eyes with the tissue. “I’ll keep applying, I guess.”

I knew Hannah had graduated with her associate degree two years ago and was almost finished with her four-year degree, set to graduate at the end of the fall semester with a bachelor’s in business administration. She’d been working toward this for a long time, and my heart broke for her.

I swallowed around a swell of emotion and sat in the chair, hesitating a second before reaching over and holding Hannah’s hand. “That sucks. You earned that job.”

“It’s okay.” She sucked in an unsteady breath. “I guess I’m glad I didn’t stop picking up my shifts here. Lesson learned.”

Hank made an impatient sound and folded his arms, hunching and looking like the world’s handsomest troll.

“It’s not okay.” I squeezed her hand. “And this might sound hollow, but it’s their loss. Truly. Years from now, when you look back, you might even be thankful they let you go. Who wants to work for a place where they treat people like that? They might’ve saved you a bunch of heartache in the end, if you’d invested your time only to find out later how awful they are.”

“I know.” She closed her eyes. “I know.”

I released her hand and sat back. “This is something I used to tell all my new hires when I was in charge of staffing at the Buckley company back in Vegas. When you apply for a job, it’s not simply them interviewing you. You should be interviewing that company, too. You might be the best candidate for a particular position, but if their culture and priorities don’t align with yours, then they aren’t a good fit for you. Clearly, they aren’t a good fit for you and are undeserving of your talents. Good riddance.”

Hannah chuckled, peering at me and shaking her head. “Okay, Momma.”