“I know you need one. I’m going to go find Jenny. Thanks for everything, Rachel.”
“No problem,” she calls after me as I make my way to the ladies room.
“Jenny?” I say softly as I push open the door. I find her standing in front of the mirror applying lipstick.
“Hey, Kiara, that was a crazy shift! I’d forgotten how busy it gets around here,” she greets me happily.
“So everything went well?”
“It was perfect.” She grins. “Rachel said I can probably start taking tables on my own tomorrow. Which means money in my pocket sooner rather than later. I know I didn’t love the idea of working here again, but I’m so glad you talked me in to it. I think being around people is just what I need.”
I study her for a moment, looking for any sign that she’s trying to hide her real feelings. She seems genuinely content, so I don’t bring up the family Rachel told me about.
“I’m glad that you’re enjoying yourself. Are you ready to run to the café for lunch?”
“Would you mind terribly if we just eat here?” she asks. “There are a couple of new things on the menu that I’m dying to try. Have you had the Kailua pork? It looks delicious.”
“It is delicious, and there’s plenty in the walk in. You go grab us a table, and I’ll heat some up.”
We leave the bathroom, and I rush to the kitchen to get our food. Paul could show up at any minute, and I don’t want Jenny to have to deal with him on her own.
“What’s going on? I was about to leave to meet you at the café,” Chase says as I step into the kitchen.
“Jenny spotted the Kailua pork and won’t be satisfied until she tries it,” I tell him with a smile. “We’re just going to eat in the dining room.”
“You go join her. I’ll make us all a plate and join you in a few minutes,” he insists. “I know you want to be with her when she sees Paul for the first time.”
“It bodes well for you that you can read my mind like that,” I reply with a suggestive grin.
“Whatever gets me ahead.” He laughs. “I’ll see you soon.”
I walk back to the dining room as Chase sets off for the walk-in. I push through the swinging doors just as Paul walks through the front entrance. Jenny’s facing me, and I make my way to the table quickly.
“Where’s our food?”
“Chase is getting it. Jenny, Paul just walked in,” I warn her.
Jenny takes a deep breath and sits up straight in the booth.
“You’ll be fine. You’ll feel much better once we get this over with,” I assure her.
Paul spots us on his way through the dining room and heads for our table. “Jenny,” he greets her with a curt nod. “I take it your first shift went well?”
“It did, Paul, thank you,” she replies with confidence. “I owe you an apology. I owe you a lot more than that, really, because saying I’m sorry doesn’t begin to make up for what I’ve done. But I want you to know that I truly regret everything I did before. I appreciate you giving me another chance, and I’m going to prove to you that I deserve it.”
That was pretty good. Her voice didn’t break once. I wonder how long she’s been practicing.
“You’re right, Jenny, an apology doesn’t even begin to make up for anything. I understand that you’re in danger right now, a danger that you brought upon yourself. But Kiara is determined to protect you, and I really am shorthanded. I trust that once Robbs is behind bars, you’ll want to move on to a job with fewer complications,” Paul replies harshly. “While you are here, there will be no need for you to step in to my kitchen.” He turns on the spot and continues on to the kitchen.
“I’m so sorry, Jenny. He was completely out of line,” I say quickly.
“No, it’s fine,” she assures me. “I didn’t expect him to roll out a welcome mat. I’m lucky he’s giving me a chance at all. He has no reason to trust me. Ah, there’s Chase with our food.”
I turn and see Chase approaching with a huge tray. “I’m going to go grab a salad,” I tell them as Chase distributes our plates. “I’ll be right back.”
“You’re going to go confront Paul about his attitude,” Jenny corrects me. “It’s not necessary, but I know better than to try and stop you. Just take it easy on him, he really is doing us both a favor.”
“What’s going on?” Chase asks.
“I’ll explain,” Jenny insists. “You go get your ‘salad’.”
I cross the dining room and throw open the kitchen doors. Paul is sitting at the butcher block island, studying a newspaper.
“What the hell was that?” I demand.
He looks up at me and scowls. “In my office, Chef Sands.”
I follow him into the office, and he quietly shuts the door behind me. “Don’t you ever speak to me like that in my kitchen again. You are my employee, that is all. You’ve made that abundantly clear on several occasions. And if any of my other employees dared to address me the way you just did, I’d toss them out on their ass.”
“I’m sorry, Chef Weston,” I reply mockingly. “But if you don’t mind, could you please explain to me why you had to be so rude to Jenny? Did you let her come back because you’re willing to give her another chance? Or did you just do it so you can torture her?”
“I let her come back as a favor to you, which I believe I’ve already explained. I never promised to be nice to her. That wasn’t part of the deal.”
“I’m sorry, I didn’t realize that I’d have to ask you to act like a decent human being. Call me crazy, but I thought you’d do that all on your own. She just lost her child. Don’t you think that she’s been punished enough?”
“I think that it’s time you went back to your table. You’ve only got twenty minutes until I need you back in the kitchen and the same goes for your little boyfriend. And by the way, since the regular employee rules now apply to you, those pork plates will be coming out of your check. At the employee discounted price, of course.”
“Of course,” I reply angrily. “I’ll be back in the kitchen directly, Chef Weston.” I back out of the office and slam the door behind me.
I was right. Coming back here was a terrible mistake. Now how in the world am I going to get out of it?
Chapter Seven
I wake to my blaring alarm, roll over, and slap the snooze button. It’s nine a.m., two weeks since Jenny’s first day back at Fission and our first full day off together. Jenny’s scheduled to meet with her orthopedic surgeon in an hour, and Chase and I are meeting for breakfast. I roll out of bed and stumble into the bathroom.
Before I strip down to take my shower, I search every nook and cranny of the room to make sure that there are no hidden cameras. This has become my normal routine when I’m alone in the apartment. We haven’t seen any signs that Robbs has been in the house, but I don’t want to take any chances. I still haven’t told anyone that he’d watched me in New York. I think that in some ways keeping the information to myself makes it less real, and I don’t want to give Jenny and Chase anything else to worry about.
I’m satisfied that the bathroom is camera free, so I strip out of my pajamas and step under the steaming water. I shower quickly and return to my bedroom to survey my wardrobe. I’m still not completely ready to take things to the next level with Chase, but I want to look nice for him. I decide on a pair of skinny jeans, brown boots, and a white, gauzy peasant top that sets off my dark hair. I highlight my green eyes with gold liner, glide on some lip gloss, and head for the living room. Jenny’s already dressed and ready for her appointment.
“Good morning,” I greet her. “Are you ready to go?”
“Yes, are you sure that you don’t mind me taking the car?”
“Not at all, I’m riding with Chase to the diner. He can bring me home before he goes in to work.”
“I hate that we couldn’t all have a day off together.”
“It works out pretty well for me.” I smile. “I can have quality time with him over breakfast, and we can
have girl time tonight.”
“You look fantastic. Can I take that as a sign that you’re finally going to give that poor boy a chance?”
“I’m close,” I tell her. “I know that Chase would never hurt me. And he’s been fantastic through all of this. I’m just not sure that I trust my own judgment. I remember how happy I was when Paul and I first got together and now, when I think about how wrong I was…”
“You wonder what else you were wrong about,” Jenny finishes. “I feel the same way, in some respects. But you have to move forward. You can’t punish Chase for Paul’s mistakes. And you need to forgive yourself for yours.”
“You’ve been paying attention at the meetings,” I say with a grin. Jenny and I have gone to two of the domestic abuse survivors meetings together, and she’s gone to three more on her own. I’ve been amazed at how much progress she’s made in such a short amount of time. It was the meeting leader who finally convinced her to see the doctor again, and I’m thankful that someone was able to make her see reason.
“I’m so glad that you convinced me to go. You’d be surprised how many of the women there have been in my exact situation. We like to think that all of our babies are up there playing together in heaven.”
It’s the first time I’ve heard Jenny mention her lost daughter with any sense of peace and I wrap her in a hug.
“I’m sure they are. And I’m sure that Maggie will be the first one in line to greet you when your time finally comes.”
Jenny wipes a single tear from her eye. “Enough of all this emotional nonsense, I have an appointment to get to, and you’ve got a hot man waiting across the hall. See you back here in a few hours?”
“Sure,” I agree as we walk into the hallway. Jenny steps into the elevator, and I knock on Chase’s door.
“Hey,” he greets me with a wide smile. “You look beautiful. I’d almost forgotten what you look like out of your Fission uniform.”
“You clean up pretty good yourself.” Chase’s broad, well-defined chest is covered by a fitted blue button up and khaki shorts reveal his toned calves. The shirt sets off his clear blue eyes perfectly and a rush of attraction courses through my body.
“Thank you,” he replies. “I’ll have to change before I go to work, but I thought it would be nice to put on real clothes for a change. So where would you like to have breakfast? Claire told me about a great new Jewish deli that opened on Central. Want to check it out?”
“That sounds fantastic, unless their bagels suck. That’s the one thing I really miss about New York.”
“We’ll try them out and if they don’t measure up, we’ll make a batch at home. Sound good?”
“Sounds perfect,” I agree.
Chase locks his door, and we step into the elevator. He reaches for my hand as we step out into the lobby, and I don’t pull away. We walked to his car, and he opens my door for me.
He really is a true Southern gentleman.
We ride to Central Avenue in a comfortable silence, and I’m amazed by how at ease I feel when I’m around Chase. The feelings I have for him are unlike anything I’ve ever experienced, which is why I’m so hesitant to rush things. The last thing I want to do is mess this up.
Chase pulls in to a parking spot right in front of the deli and takes me by the hand again as we step inside. We take seats at a small two top and a plump, elderly woman approaches the table.
“Good morning, can I get you a pot of coffee or some hot tea?”
“I’d love some tea, thank you,” I reply. “Do you make your bagels in house?”
“Of course we do.”
“Great, I’d also like an everything bagel with lox and cream cheese.”
“The same for me please, but I’d like coffee,” Chase adds.
“Perfect, I’ll have it right out.” She smiles.
“So, Jenny’s at her appointment now?” Chase asks once we’re alone.
“Yes, finally. I thought she was never going to see reason but she came around. I hope that he tells her good news. She really did try hard to rehab that shoulder on her own.”
“I’m sure she’ll be fine. Have you heard from the cops lately?”
I shake my head. “No, Delco still checks in every couple of days, but no one has any news. I don’t want to get my hopes up but I’m starting to think that Robbs finally got tired of the game and disappeared.”
“From your mouth to God’s ears,” Chase replies as the waitress delivers our drinks.
“Your food will be right up; we’re just toasting those bagels,” she tells us before leaving again.
“So no news on the Robbs front. Have you heard anything back from the college?”
I blush and lower my eyes.
“Kiara, what is it?” Chase asks, his voice full of concern.
“Ruby left another message on my phone yesterday. She said that I’ve missed too many meetings and that the Board won’t reschedule again. I haven’t been to a class since the week Jenny was attacked back in New York. Even if they did reinstate my scholarship and approve my transfer, there’s no way I could catch up now.”
“There has to be a way,” Chase insists. “I’ll call Madison again and see if she can do something. She knows what you’ve been dealing with. I’m sure that she can explain it to the Board.”
“You don’t have to do that, Chase. I know that Madison is new to her job. I don’t want her to alienate herself from her coworkers by going to bat for me. They’ve made it pretty obvious that they don’t want me at the school, and I know how to take a hint.”
“You can’t just give up. You’ve worked too hard. And you won’t want to work at Fission for the rest of your life.”
“That’s the truth.”
“It’s much easier for a chef to get a business loan if they have a culinary degree.”
“I’m aware of that, but there’s nothing more I can do about it right now. This semester is a lost cause, no matter what happens. I’ll reapply in the fall and hope for the best.”
“Okay,” he relents. “But if you change your mind about calling Madison, all you have to do is ask.”
“Thank you.”
The waitress reappears with our food, and we spend the next few minutes eating in silence. The bagel is chewy on the outside and soft in the middle, just like it’s supposed to be, and I know I’ve found a new favorite place to eat.
“Well, there won’t be any need for us to make them ourselves,” Chase says after he swallows his last bite. “That was delicious.”
“Good thing, too,” I agree. “It’s not like we have loads of free time for leisure cooking. I can’t remember the last time I made a meal at home.”
“I know, that’s the one part of this career that surprises me. I love cooking, but when I get home I just don’t have the energy for it.”
“Speaking of school, how long of a waiver did they give you to do the apprenticeship?”
“A year. I’ll go back to regular classes next summer.”
“That’s perfect. Now that Jenny’s earning a paycheck, too, I’ll be able to put some money back. I should have plenty saved by the time you finish the apprenticeship.”
“What will you need money for?”
“To quit my job, if I don’t find something else before then. I can barely stand to be around Paul now, I can’t imagine staying there after you leave.”
“Aww… that’s kind of sweet. But I thought that Paul was going easy on you? He’s certainly been more than fair about your salary.”
“He’s going easy on me, but he’s still being awful to Jenny and I can’t stand it. I don’t know how Jenny’s managed to keep her cool. If he talked to me the way he talks to her, I’d slap him in the face.”
“If another few weeks go by without Robbs showing up, it might be safe for her to find a new job. Though it’ll be hard for her to make the same money she’s making now.”
“That’s the problem we’re both having. We need the money, so we’re stuck there for the time
being.”
“You’re both talented women. I’m sure that other opportunities will pop up before you know it. Though I have to admit, I’d love to see you slap the shit out of Paul. I wish that I could help out with your bills… sometimes I think that I should have taken my dad’s advice. I could be making a small fortune right now if I’d gone out for the draft, and you and Jenny wouldn’t have to worry about money.”
“Chase, that’s the last thing I’d want you to do. You hated the idea of going out for the NFL. And with my luck, you’d have been drafted by some godforsaken East Coast team and I’d never get to see you. I’d much rather put up with Paul and have you here with me than be a kept woman who’s always alone.”
Chase smiles slyly. “Be careful. The way you’re talking it sounds like you think of me as more than a friend.”
I blush for the second time that morning. “Of course I think of you as more than a friend, Chase. You’re a very special friend, and I’m looking forward to seeing where this goes. I just don’t want to move too fast and mess it all up.”
“Like I’ve told you before, I’ll wait as long as it takes.” He looks down at his watch. “Are you about ready to go? I hate to take you home but I’ve got to get to work.”
“Sure,” I reply.
Chase moves to the cash register and pays our check while I browse the deli case. The pastrami looks amazing, so I order a pound to go. I add a bottle of wine, a block of smoked provolone, and a box of crackers at the register.
“This will be perfect for girl’s night,” I tell Chase as the waitress bags my selections. I pay with my debit card, and Chase carries my bag to the car.
“I’m going to miss you in the kitchen tonight,” Chase tells me as he pulls the car away from the curb.
“Not as much as I miss you when you’re not there,” I assure him. “I doubt that Paul gives you the same looks he gives me. I’m much more comfortable when we work together.”
“Kiara, do you want me to say something to him? I mean, we are in a relationship now. Granted, it may be the slowest-moving relationship in history, but I’d be completely within my rights if I told him to cut out his shit.”
Fifty Recipes For Disaster Page 6
