The Unlucky Waitress

The Unlucky Waitress Grumpy Billionaires Series Lauren Wood Copyright © 2023 by Lauren Wood All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review. Contents 1. Cassidy 2. Ethan 3. Cassidy 4. Ethan 5. Cassidy 6. Cassidy 7. Ethan 8. Cassidy 9. Cassidy 10. Ethan 11. Cassidy 12. Ethan 13. Cassidy 14. Ethan 15. Cassidy 16. Ethan 17. Cassidy 18. Ethan 19. Cassidy 20. Ethan 21. Cassidy 22. Ethan 23. Cassidy 24. Ethan 25. Cassidy Epilogue My Hot Boss (Sneak Peak) 1. Derrick Also by Lauren Wood About the Author Exclusive Offer 1 Cassidy Losing my bakery was just the beginning. My life quickly spiraled downward and now here I am, hiding under a blanket on my best friend’s couch, pretending to sleep. “Cas? I know you’re awake,” Beth says, gently tapping my shoulder. Beth had been a godsend through all this. From the very beginning she was there, packing up the bakery and making sure I ate, slept, took a shower and thought about something other than how I had gone from living my dream to living through my worst nightmare. I peek over the edge of the blanket and see Beth and Lizzy smiling down at me. Something must have happened to get Lizzy here so early in the morning. I sit up quickly and brace myself for another blow. “What’s happened?” I ask, not ready for any more bad news. Beth offers me a steaming cup of coffee and sits down with Lizzy on a couch across from the one that’s been my bed for the past few weeks. I sit there blinking and sipping as they smile like Stepford Housewives. Grinning, waiting, unblinking. “Well?” I prompt. My suspicion is further piqued by how good the coffee tastes. Beth always tries but never gets my coffee exactly how I like it, until today. It’s creamy with vanilla and cinnamon. Something is up and if the coffee didn’t make it obvious, their nervous laughter does. They both hold their hands neatly, but awkwardly in their laps, tapping their feet anxiously. And Beth’s lips are pressed tightly together. “Look, Cassidy, you can’t go on this way. None of us can,” Lizzy says with practiced straightforwardness. “What she means, Cas, is that it hurts to see you struggle like this and neither of us really knows how to help you,” Beth adds gently. Beth turns to a nodding Lizzy and then back to me. I search the floor for the right thing to say. “It’s not your scene, I know. It’s not mine either, but I’ve bought tickets. Don’t say no,” Beth prattles. She has been waiting for a chance and now she took it. “Tickets to what?” I ask. She’s clearly so nervous to ask me that she leaves out the most important detail. “Okay,” Beth says, taking a deep breath and steeling herself. “I know, I know, we’ve laughed at these self help videos together. I get it, they’re a joke, but I saw this clip the other day and this one’s different. It’s just what you need,” Beth’s voice grows higher and higher with every pleading word. She’s desperate, just as desperate as I am to get my life back. Turns out, Cameron Robinson is giving a talk about starting over today. The video that popped up on Beth's screen while she was reading the news hooked her enough to buy tickets. Beth is convinced Cameron knows exactly what I’m going through. That somehow she has all the answers. “I’m telling you, Cas, the video was incredible! Cameron has so much confidence that it’s almost impossible to imagine she’s been in the same position not so long ago herself,” Beth says. She’s so excited, I immediately feel guilty about letting her down. I have to be there. I have to try. Sitting in the front row of the seminar furiously taking notes, I realize that maybe I expected too much. There’s too much that I need, and even though life has never given me any reason to, I have always believed I'd get all the things I want if only I work hard enough. “Life owes you nothing,” Cameron says, pausing for dramatic effect. “Every breath, every day, and everything big or small is a gift.” I stare back at Cameron, her wide brown eyes lock with mine as if she knows something about me, has seen through me somehow and just knows I need to hear this more than anyone else in the room. “What would happen if you were grateful for every small gift?” Cameron asks. “What if you didn’t waste away the life you have by dreaming of the life you may never live?” I swallow hard. What if, indeed. Cameron’s intense stare makes it seem as if she expects a response even though I’m sure the question is rhetorical. “The key to your happiness is in realizing you’re always exactly where you’re supposed to be,” Cameron says finally, walking across the stage to stare down at some other helpless member of her audience. “Exactly where I’m supposed to be,” I repeat. I’m only this unhappy because I believe I deserve more from life. I’ve never seen life for what it is. It’s always been the big dream I was chasing instead of living in the moment. “What did you think?” Beth asks as we walk back into her apartment. I don’t answer right away. Something has changed in me, like the color is back in my world. I can see clearly, a weight lifted. It’s the biggest cliche, but it feels right. “She was right,” I smile. “I’m right where I need to be.” Cassidy stops rustling about the kitchen and comes back to see me sitting on the couch. “My couch?” she asks. “Is this where you need