His mouth thinned with displeasure. “You’ve got a lot to learn.”
“Perhaps I do, but this is my restaurant and I’m going to learn it my way. Am I making myself clear?”
“Perfectly!” He turned on his heels and stormed out the door.
Gabi’s pulse raced from the altercation. Was he even worth keeping on staff? She lowered her head into her hands and closed her eyes. She had some serious thinking to do. True, he was egotistical, but was that due in part to having had his own business? His aversion to female bosses? There was no doubt he was a valuable asset. Some of his comments were right on target, but his attitude was what bothered her the most. He was an excellent chef. She liked that he thought outside the box. Gabi sighed and rubbed her forehead to relieve the headache just beginning to form between her brows. She dropped a couple of ibuprofen into the palm of her hand, put them in her mouth, and washed them back with the water left in the bottle sitting on her desk.
Ten minutes later and she had convinced herself she was being too emotional, that making any decisions in her current state of mind would not be in her best interest. As a new resident of Pennsylvania, it wasn’t like she had a circle of chef friends from which to choose a replacement. The business was doing well, better than she’d anticipated given the problems that can occur with new ownership. Was she willing to risk firing him and possibly not finding a suitable replacement? What if she did make a switch and the person turned out to be a nightmare? A move like that could destroy her business. She sucked in a deep breath and expelled the air from her lungs. It was in her best interest to give him another chance. But was she being blinded by his good looks? No, she wasn’t that dumb. Or was she? The fact was, he was always on her mind. Was that because she was falling for him, or because he demanded so much attention?
She shook her head and pulled a tube of lip balm from her pocket and smeared a coat across her dry lips. Adjusting her jacket, she walked out into the kitchen. In the back of her mind, she wondered if he’d even be at his station.
“Nice job today, everyone,” Gabi said at the close of business. “How did you guys feel about the changeover?”
Joey was the first to respond with a loud whoop. “God, it felt so good to be doing something different.”
“I liked it too,” Steven said.
“And I like having him help,” Leslie offered. “Actually, Steven knows a lot more than I do, and it’s nice having a partner to bounce ideas off.”
Gabi smiled. “Awesome, guys!” She watched them gather their belongings and head toward the door. “Hey, you guys want to celebrate tonight?”
“I can have a fast drink,” Steven said.
“Okay, let’s finish cleaning and we’ll be on our way. By the way, I want to try a new recipe tomorrow. Fruited duck breasts.”
“Mmm,” Joey said. “Do we get to do a taste test?”
“Of course. How else will you know what it’s supposed to taste like?”
“See, I knew there was something I liked about this woman the minute she walked in the door,” Leslie said.
Gabi turned and continued cleaning her area when she noticed Corey’s workspace hadn’t been cleaned. She huffed out an annoyed breath and continued to finish her chores. The fact that he’d been quiet after their altercation had her wondering if he was angry and lamenting over their conversation. Maybe he was planning to quit. Even though she pretended it didn’t bother her, she knew that losing him would leave her without backup support. But deep down she also knew that problem would be secondary to the sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach at the thought that she might never see him again.
She emptied the dish drainer and attempted to hang the pots back on the overhead rack when she heard him clear his throat.
“Here, let me get that for you.”
She turned abruptly, shocked to hear his voice. “Oh. I thought you left without cleaning your station.” Her heart rate increased when she saw the first spark of warmth in his smile.
“No. I was actually outside blowing off steam.” She gave him a raised brow. “And that’s why I stuck around, because I want to talk to you.”
A knot formed in her stomach. “What do you want to talk about?” she asked, putting her hands on her hips.”
“I want to apologize for being such a jerk today.”
“Joey’s the one you need to apologize to, not me. But…”
He held his hand up. “I already did.” He moved toward his station and began cleaning up. He scoffed. “I don’t know why I’m telling you this, but even one of my closest friends walked out on me the other night because of my attitude.” His lips tightened.
His sudden change of attitude so soon after she’d laid her cards on the table made her suspicious of his intentions. What was he trying to do? Throw her off her game? Was he now killing her with kindness? “We’re all going out for a drink if you’d like to come along.”
Later that night, Corey pulled his car in front of the restaurant and cut the engine. “Thanks for driving,” Leslie said. “See you both tomorrow.”
“I’m right behind you,” Gabi said. She put her hand on the lever to open the car door.
Corey pulled on her arm. “Wait. Can we talk now?”
“Okay. What’s on your mind?”
“Despite my tantrums, I do think you’re an okay boss.”
Gabi shot him a cynical side-glance, and something in that look of hers caused his heart to beat faster. And all he could do was imagine her in his arms.
“I’m really sorry for my behavior.”
“I’m curious about something—is yelling at the employees in front of others something you did in the restaurant you managed?”
“Yeah,” he stammered, unable to look directly into her eyes, “I guess I’m guilty of that. I just wanted everything to be perfect. Although I’m not… not by a long shot, but I’ve always expected those around me to be. Maybe it’s because I thought it would make me look good. I don’t know.” He scrubbed a hand through his hair. “I guess it’s a carryover from my childhood. My parents were very successful in their line of work and expected their children to be the same. I fought them too,” he shrugged, “even ran away from home once when I couldn’t live up to their expectations.” He shook his head. “And when I finally found my passion for cooking, something I was really good at, that was taken away from me too. I lost everything and couldn’t turn back. I’m not very proud of my behavior, but lately, it seems like no matter what I do, it turns to crap. As a result, I’m frustrated and push away the very people I love.” He snorted. “I don’t know why I’m telling you all of this, except I do want you to know I’m sorry, and I promise to try very hard not to do it again.” The expression on Gabi’s face told him she wasn’t buying it. “I know you don’t believe me. So I guess I’ll just have to show you.”
“I guess you will.”
“Well, I’d better head on home. Thanks for inviting me. Thanks, too, for allowing me to clear my head.” She extended her hand. When their hands touched, the warmth emanating from her skin made his heart race, and he thought he could see a sparkle in her eye. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”
Gabi closed the door and released a shaky breath to relieve the strange feeling inside her. What was wrong with her? This guy had been an absolute jerk, yet she couldn’t stop the burning attraction she felt for him. What? She’d suddenly become interested in bad boys? And an employee to boot? So what was wrong with that? she reasoned. Everything. She ambled toward her bed and undressed. Maybe what she needed was a shower. The warm water always helped release anxiety. Yep, that was definitely what she needed now. But did she really want to stop dreaming about him just yet? Her hand went up and touched her mouth. She so missed being around a bunch of flirty guys who were always laughing and having fun. At least in New York, she’d had lots of men around her when she and the girls went out. She snickered. It was good for her ego. Yeah, that had to be it—her ego needed stroking. Gabi heaved a deep sigh and ste
pped in under the steamy water and held her face up to the deluge, telling herself this would wash away the feelings. Nothing good ever came from an employer dating an employee. But she had to admit, the growing feelings she felt for him were tantalizing. Maybe too much.
She was kidding herself if she thought this could turn out to be anything but a disaster. She increased the heat of the water, deciding erasing this ridiculous thought from her mind was probably all for the best. She remained under the water for a long time, trying not to think about him or what it would feel like to be in his strong arms. She had a business to run, and she didn’t need this guy distracting her in that way. He’d already become a fixture in her mind. Certainly more than she’d wanted. Gabi wondered what it would be like tomorrow when they were together again. She glanced down at her hands and remembered the heat from his touch. Her expressions were always so easy to read. Had he realized she’d wanted him to kiss her? And the fact that she’d leaned slightly forward as though she was going to kiss him instead. Geez! How awkward was that? Well, she was a hugger by nature. Always wanting to make people feel better. That was it, wasn’t it? She dug back into her mind and convinced herself it might have just been her nurturing side taking over. Is that what she’d been thinking at the time? She couldn’t remember—her thoughts were cloudy. Right! But wasn’t it interesting that the image of his slight smile afterward wasn’t? He had to have known. She humphed. “Hell,” she said aloud. She wasn’t fooling anyone but herself.
She exited the shower and toweled off. With the clean smell of lavender lingering in the air from her body wash, she smoothed scented lotion over her body. Lavender always made her sleep better. She slid under the covers and released another shaky breath to relieve the butterflies fluttering inside her, then tossed around trying to find a comfortable position. She shook her head. Sleep wasn’t likely to come so easily tonight.
Gabi shuffled down the stairs a little later than usual. Her sleep had been disturbed by conflicting dreams about love and romance and someone shoving a whipped cream pie in her face. Her stomach felt queasy, but she told herself she couldn’t hide any longer. She had to see how Corey acted today. Maybe he was feeling it too. She sucked in her breath and blew it out before entering the kitchen, wondering what he’d have to say. Preparing what she might say if he brought up last night didn’t help. Her mind went blank when she saw him.
Corey never looked up when she entered. He was removing the capons from the oven and set them down on the counter to cool.
“Good morning,” she said.
He released a grunt and made his way over to the walk-in. Feeling relieved, she practically skipped around the room. This was just what she needed from him to nip those ridiculous notions in the bud. At least now she wouldn’t have to deal with it. She quickly decided that Corey Edwards was a complication in her life. When he returned, she made her announcement.
“Okay, guys, today’s the day we decide on what we’re going to serve for our open house. Remember, I want each of you to come up with a dish that could be a possible contender for our new menu, but focus on simple so it doesn’t dry out in the chafing dishes. Other, more intricate types of dishes can be served as specials during the dinner hour. But let’s focus on the buffet we’ll be serving for the time being, and we’ll wait and see what the locals think about it. I have a call into a printer to make up bulletins to be distributed throughout town and postcards that local shops have agreed to display for us.”
“When did you do that?” Corey asked.
“Oh, I called yesterday and didn’t think to mention it because… to tell you the truth, I forgot. Anyway, mark your calendars for the twentieth. That’s two weekends away, which means you have a week to come up with something and try it out on all of us.”
“That sounds fair,” Joey said.
“Now, don’t try to butter me up, Joseph,” she joked.
“I wasn’t,” Joey shot back with a toothy grin. Holding his hand up, he said, “Honest.”
Gabi laughed. “I knew you weren’t. I was just trying to bust you.” When she glanced over at Leslie, she could see her panicked expression. “Dig out the cookbooks, kiddo.”
“Okay,” she huffed, “I just panicked for nothing. I can do this.” Steven poked her with his elbow, and she grinned.
“Of course you can,” he said. It was obvious he’d taken on the role of a father figure. “We’ve got this covered, girl.”
“I’ll need to know by Wednesday what you’ve come up with. Once you decide, let’s discuss it and we’ll work on the ingredients. We’ll begin our trials on Thursday and keep doing it until we’re satisfied with the results.”
“And what happens if what we’ve chosen flops?” Leslie asked.
“Then you have a real challenge on your hands. I have no doubt you’ll make it work.”
Corey watched as Gabi inched her way over to her station and gave her an odd look.
“What?” she asked.
“That’s an interesting concept, but it’s slightly unfair for those who haven’t been in the business as long.”
“That’s a strange thing to hear from your mouth,” she said, cocking her head to the side.
“I told you, I’m trying to change.”
“So you said. I want to teach them to think outside the box instead of coming up with old standbys that lack creativity.” She scrunched her face. “C’mon, I’m sure you did the same thing in your restaurant.”
“Nope. I didn’t.” He smirked and put his head back down, focusing on what he was doing. “I think you taught cooking way too long.”
“Why? Do you think the learning process stops just because you’re a graduate of a good culinary school?”
“No. I’m just saying I think you’re still in that mode and not in the restaurant-owner mode. Some people resent being told to do things a different way.”
“Actually, Corey, I think you’re the only one who feels that way.” Gabi left her station and headed for the walk-in to get the cart filled with the leftover garnishes. She needed time alone to clear the frustration. But this was good. It appeared her thoughts had been delusional after all. Regardless, she did find being around him was even harder than she thought. Despite his disrespect, the one thing it did was to stop the conflicting thoughts—like when he opened his fool mouth and shoved his foot in, it helped to clear her mind. He wasn’t the fool. She was, for having such thoughts. Her fingers clenched into a fist when she entered the walk-in and leaned against the shelving. Maybe the cool temperature in the walk-in would help to diffuse the burning anger she felt in her chest.
She thought about firing him on the spot—but he had impressive skills. Oh hell, why was she vacillating so much? Most bosses would have sent him packing at the first abusive comment he’d made. Had she already fallen for him and wouldn’t admit it?
Her fingers subconsciously touched her lips, and a rush of heat filled her cheeks. She told herself to stop the fantasy. Gabi knew she was acting like a desperate female and didn’t want to give him another opportunity to make a fool of her. If he came near her, she was going to tell him to beat it.
Gabi’s “Beat It, Buster!” Lemon Soufflé
4½ tablespoons butter
4½ tablespoons flour
1 cup whole milk
6 tablespoons sugar
⅛ teaspoon salt
6 egg yolks, beaten
1 lemon, zest and juiced
9 egg whites, stiffly beaten
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Lemon soufflé sounds sweet, but remember, people: It’s made of lemons! It’s bound to be sour! Oh, sorry, wrong lemon soufflé.
Concentrate now, and melt the butter in a saucepan. Yeah, we know, you’re melting every time he gets close to you. No question about it, he radiates heat. Okay, use the medium-high heat and melt until foamy. Add the flour and whisk until blended for approximately 1 minute. Whisking not only gives you exercise, but it helps clear your mind of a certain hot-lookin
g guy. Add the sugar and salt into the milk and stir. The sugar might sweeten him up a little. Now, lower the heat to medium-low and gradually pour the milk mixture into the flour, stirring constantly until thickened and smooth. This will give you time to take a deep breath while the mixture thickens. Remove the pan from the burner, add the lemon juice and zest, and stir. Allow the mixture to cool before folding in the stiffly beaten egg whites. Using a spatula, scoop the egg whites into the pan. Do not be tempted to whip the egg whites into the mixture or you’ll have a flat soufflé. Fold them in. Folding means lifting the spatula up in a circular motion and back into the mixture until it’s incorporated. It’s all in the wrist action. Yeah, it’s just like the song, knowing when to hold them and knowing when to fold them—Corey, that is.
Grease and sugar 6 ramekins and fill each one equally. Bake in the oven until they’re browned and puffed up, approximately 25 minutes. Serves 6.
Corey was surprised Gabi hadn’t fired him after he’d just opened his mouth again. Was she waiting until the weekend was over? Remorse filled him. The fact was he couldn’t help himself. She was beautiful, and he was falling for her. But why?
Having her sit next to him in his car, she was so pretty, relaxed and smiling. He pictured her hair glistening under the overhead light, and when he watched her perfectly plump lips move as she spoke, she’d reeled him in like a magnet. He wanted to kiss her so badly, and he was sure she felt the same thing, from the expression on her face. And when she’d leaned in slightly, maybe she was going to kiss him instead? That was wishful thinking on his part. Nevertheless, he was grateful he had finally listened to the little maggot’s voice shouting inside his head, telling him it was a dumb idea. Gabi was too darned irresistible for her own good. But he was convinced if he moved forward with this urge, he’d receive the gold medal for stupidity and a quick boot out the door. He was glad she’d walked away when she did before he acted on it.
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