Friendship is sure to bloom between a chef and a good Samaritan after she returned more than $1,200 to the man after finding it on the roadside outside their children's school.

Raj Natarajan - who used to work at Bombay Bicycle Club but is now at Memory Lane Deli - was grateful yesterday after getting his wallet from former colleagues at the Bombay Cycle Club.

They in turn got the wallet from Dwaynette Hughes who found it outside Victor Scott School, on Parsons Road, where both Mr. Natarajan and Ms Hughes's children attend.

"I haven't met her. I am desperate to meet her," he gushed. "She did this lovely thing for me, I almost cannot believe it at least there should be a lovely couple of dinners for her. She has a beautiful mind."

Mr. Natarajan said he was not even aware that he had lost his wallet, when Dwaynette Hughes returned it. On Wednesday afternoon Mr. Natarajan said he took his daughter home then went to visit with friends. He said that when he got back home his wife said she needed some money to go shopping.

"When I went to reach for my wallet it wasn't there but I told her that I must have put it down somewhere in the house. That's when she told me that I had lost it and that it had been found."

Mr. Natarajan still had a blank cheque from Bombay Bicycle in his wallet. He said Ms Hughes found it and figured she would return the wallet straight into his hands. But when she got to the restaurant she discovered he no longer worked there.

"I have maintained a good relationship with the owner Geraldine Rodriquez," he said as he explained that Ms Hughes left the wallet with Ms Rodriquez. "She (Ms Hughes) counted all the money out to say this is how much was inside when she found it," he said.

"And it was all there down to the last cent. I had $1,230.40 cash, credit cards, my licence and the cheque from Bombay Bicycle was there."

Ms Hughes said of her act: "Actually, it was my six-year-old, Charkayla, who found it outside Victor Scott - she brought it to me.

"It had a lot of money in it. I didn't want to look through it - but I had to to make contact with whoever it was that owned it. I saw his licence and the money and I saw the cheque," she said.

"I called the restaurant, and told them that I had it, but I still wasn't satisfied.

"I just couldn't have slept last night because I wasn't going to be satisfied until he had it. I have lost money too so I know what it feels like. It's a blessing. Thank God. It was the right thing to do. I know how it feels. I am glad to know that he got it."