He took off his coat, slipped the apron on, and washed his hands at the sink Kyla had just finished using.
Maggie got into work mode, directing the two of them to where she wanted them, and the next couple of hours passed by in a blur as Tanner stood at a long table in between Kyla and a girl who couldn't have been more than sixteen, and they proceeded to dish up dinner to a seemingly never-ending line of people.
"Bless you."
Tanner woke up from his daze to find in front of him a petite, dark-haired woman with a small child clinging to her leg. What in the world was a woman like her doing homeless - and with such a young boy? He wanted to ask, but he held his tongue.
"Merry Christmas," he replied instead, surprised by the number of people he'd served who didn't seem at all the type he would classify as homeless.
"Not everything is as it appears," the woman said, as if reading his mind.
"I'm not judging," he said quickly, feeling like an ass, knowing full well that's what he'd been doing.
"You are, but that's all right. I used to be exactly the same way while I worked for a prestigious law firm. My husband died and then my boss decided that since I was single, I must be a merry widow and I'd make a great plaything. When I didn't give him what he wanted, he fired me. I tried filing a sexual-harassment suit, but they didn't become the top lawyers in the area because they were stupid. I soon found that not only was I out of a job, but I also couldn't get another one anywhere else - my former boss had been smearing my name. Nice guy. Anyway, just because people find themselves running out of options doesn't mean they chose that life for themself."
Weird. She sounded strong but still defeated. At the same time.
The boy tucked in at her side couldn't have been more than three or four. He was wearing warm clothes and good shoes. It was obvious that all she had went into caring for the young lad.
"I'm sorry," Tanner said. He hoped he didn't look as foolish as he felt.
"I'm used to it now. All of that began a year ago. We recently ran out of money and lost the house. My husband was a good man, but he didn't make a lot of money and our savings were small. I tried to make what we had last, but it could only go so far. I won't stay down for long, though. I have my son to worry about."
Before Tanner could say anything more, she moved on, and the line continued. When the last of the people got their plates, Tanner found himself gazing at the empty trays and the smiling faces of the patrons.
Though some were obviously disheartened to be in this situation, they were still grateful to be in a warm room with a bunch of people who, for this night at least, were their family. Even though they were strangers.
Tanner found it humbling.
Kyla went out among the people, taking them extra biscuits and filling their glasses with water. Other workers were passing out candy to the children and small items such as new toothbrushes and toothpaste.
The people's eyes lit up as if they were receiving priceless gifts. How long had Tanner taken everything he had for granted? He'd grown up wealthy, never having a thing to worry about. He knew that he'd always get his next meal, that there would always be a warm bed for him to crawl into. His life had been easy.
Well, it had been tough since the beginning of the month. And what if it became like one of those lives he was seeing now, and for the long term - what if his luck suddenly ran out, and fate just kept throwing him curve ball after curve ball? He'd been thrown a few in his life, but never to this extent, never to the point that he had to worry about keeping a roof over his head or food in his stomach.
Wandering around the tables set up for people he was only beginning to understand, he didn't take long to find the woman and her small child. She was smiling as she unwrapped a chocolate bar for her son and handed it to him. The boy took a bite and grinned so sweetly that it took Tanner a moment to clear the lump in his throat.
"What's your name?" he asked when he could finally speak. Then he sat next to her.
"Morgan," she said somewhat warily.
"What did you do for the law firm, Morgan?"
She looked in his eyes, as if assessing his motives for asking. Tanner wondered how many people had tried to take advantage of her since she'd been on her own. He probably didn't want to know.
"I'm a paralegal, so just about everything. I miss the hustle and bustle of the business world, but I try to look at the positives. I have a so much one-on-one time with my son, after all, even if it has to be done in a shelter."
Tanner recognized that gleam in her eyes, that desire to be at the top of your game. Without any hesitation, he reached into his pocket, pulled out his wallet, and retrieved a business card.