Healing Bear
Love Laid Bear Book 3
By
Amber Belmont
Disclaimer: This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.
Copyright 2016 by Amber Belmont - All rights reserved. No part of this publication or the information in it may be quoted from or reproduced in any form by means such as printing, scanning, photocopying or otherwise without prior written permission of the copyright holder.
Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
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Chapter One
“Oh my goodness – I really am a genius!”
I closed my eyes to savor the taste of the canapé I’d just tried, enjoying the sensation of the flavors exploding on my tongue. I’d tweaked my recipe for salmon blinis and I wanted to make sure that they tasted as good as they had back in the kitchen. In fact, they were even better than I remembered and I couldn’t help but feel a sense of pride as I lined them up in my display for the wedding show I was at today. If the brides-to-be liked my samples half as much as I did, I was going to have more bookings than I knew what to do with by the time the show was over.
“I have to say that I agree with you, Abi,” nodded Haley, my assistant, reaching out to help herself to a second. “These are delish!”
“Hey!” I lightly slapped her hand away, frowning at her. “Those are for the potential clients, remember? If you stuff your face with them, there’ll be nothing left for the hordes.”
“Speaking of which…” Haley jerked her head towards the doors, which were swinging open to let in the brides. “Incoming!”
I plastered on a welcoming smile as a mother and daughter came to stand next to my stall.
“Can I interest you in a sample?”
I lifted up a plate and the two women both picked up a Parma ham and mozzarella bite. I watched their faces as they tried the food. In my experience, although some clients tried to hide how much they liked my cooking, thinking it might help them negotiate a lower price, their initial reaction was impossible to fake. Sure enough, I saw a little shudder of delight cross over the bride’s face, a sure sign that she loved my creation.
I could tell from her haughty demeanor that her mother was going to take a little more persuading, though, and I knew how important it was to convince everyone that I was the right caterer for their wedding, especially when it was likely that her parents were the ones paying for it.
“That’s amazing!” gushed the bride. “Do you mind if I try another one?”
“Of course not,” I beamed. “Have one of the hoisin glazed chipolatas – they’re my favorite!”
“Wow!” She nodded in satisfaction after trying all the different samples I had out. She turned to her mom. “Mom, we seriously have to get these people to do all the wedding catering. I’ve never tasted anything this good in my life!”
“Don’t go with the first person you talk to,” sniffed her mom. “There are plenty of other caterers here you ought to try before you make up your mind. You don’t want to make any rash decisions. Remember what happened to your cousin Bethany? The entire wedding party suffered horrific food poisoning because she didn’t bother to check out the caterers she was hiring to see how much experience they had.”
“Why don’t you take one of our menus and my card?” I suggested, handing over some literature. “You can always come back to me later after you’ve checked out my website and seen all the testimonials from happy couples. We’re offering a 10% discount to anyone who books during the wedding show.”
“Thanks.” The bride smiled at me over her shoulder, giving me a surreptitious thumbs up as her mother pulled her away to browse the other stands.
“Do you think we’ll get their business?” asked Haley.
“I don’t know,” I shrugged. “To be honest, there’s a part of me that would be very happy if they went with a different caterer. I’ve had more than enough of nightmare moms! For once, it would be nice to do a relaxing, stress free wedding.”
“Good luck!” Haley snorted. “I don’t think they exist.”
“No, you’re probably right,” I agreed, bringing out some more food from storage to replace the samples already eaten.
“Hey, Abi. I was hoping to see you here.”
I looked up to see a familiar friendly face making her way over to my stand.
“Hey, Shelby,” I replied. “I hear congratulations are in order.”
Shelby blushed. “Yeah, Caleb and I are getting married in the fall.”
She held out her hand to show me a stunning diamond solitaire.
“Oh my!” I gasped. “That’s beautiful. Caleb’s a lucky man.”
“I’m the lucky one,” Shelby corrected, but I noticed her slight blush. I was delighted for her. If anyone deserved a decent man in her life, it was Shelby Roberts. Working in the wedding industry herself as a florist, we’d met many times when we’d been hired to work at the same wedding and although she’d always sworn that she was perfectly happy to be single, I had always known that, deep down, she was a romantic, looking for her soulmate.
“But who are you going to get to do the flowers?” I asked. “There aren’t many florists around who are as talented as you are.”
“I think I’m going to let Jess take over,” Shelby told me. “She’s really talented and I think she’d love the opportunity to prove herself. But right now, I’m more concerned about who’s going to cater for me…”
She bit her lip and cast a sly look in my direction.
“Of course I’ll cater for you!” I beamed. “It would be my honor. Just let me know when and where and I’ll be there.”
“Awesome! How are you fixed for this Friday?”
“Friday?” I did a double take. “I thought you said you were getting married in the fall?”
“We are,” laughed Shelby. “But we’re having our engagement party on Friday. I know it’s short notice, but if you’re free, I’d love it if you could handle the catering. We were going to hold it at Caleb’s friend’s new restaurant. Nick’s place should have been open by now, but he’s had a few setbacks and he’s not going to be able to host the party, which has left us scrabbling around to find somewhere at short notice. Caleb’s parents have said that we can use the family property, but if you could do the catering, that would be fabulous. Nick did offer, but he’s not really geared up for working outside of his own kitchen.”
“I’d love to,” I smiled. “Luckily for you, I’ve had a last minute cancellation, so I’m free on Friday. Just give me the details of where I need to go. We’ll need to have a talk about your menu as well – what kind of thing are you looking for? Finger food or a full sit down meal?”
“We were thinking maybe tapas?” suggested Shelby.
“Perfect! I’ve got some chopitos on the stand.” I looked over at the food I had spread out to find the fried baby squid I thought she might like. “Here – try one.”
I passed the plate over to her.
“That’s divine!” exclaimed Sh
elby, as she bit into it. “If you ever wanted to set up a restaurant, you could give Nick a run for his money.”
“Thanks, but I’m happy working without the stress of managing a restaurant,” I replied. “I much prefer the freedom of going wherever my clients need me.”
“Oop!” Shelby quickly swallowed the last of the chopito as she caught sight of her assistant frantically waving to her. “Looks like Jess is getting overwhelmed at our stand. I’d better go and help her out. I’ll call you later in the week to firm up the details, okay?”
“Sure.” I watched her go back to her stand, aware of the goofy smile on my face. I always was a sucker for a happy ending, even if I was too busy for romance myself.
“Warning! Gorgeous guy at three o’clock!” Haley elbowed me, trying and failing miserably to be discrete as she pointed out the man she was talking about. “Such a shame that he’s gay.”
I glanced over and immediately saw who she was talking about. You couldn’t really miss him. It wasn’t just that he was the lone man in a sea of women. He was tall and ridiculously good looking – and I could tell that he knew it. It was in the way he held himself, self-confident to the point of arrogance. Still, if I was as attractive as he was, I’d probably walk around as if I owned the place too.
“What makes you think he’s gay?” I asked Haley.
“Come on, Abi,” she retorted. “A man here on his own without his fiancée on his arm? The only men who ever come to these things without a woman are gay, more’s the pity. How am I supposed to find a boyfriend when I only ever meet men who are already taken?”
“If you wanted to spend your time flirting with the customers, you should have chosen a different job,” I pointed out.
“Do you think his fiancé is as fine as he is?” Haley mused, undeterred by my warning glare. “I bet they make a beautiful couple. Maybe they have some good looking straight friends they could introduce me to.”
“Probably,” I shrugged. “I’m more concerned about getting enough bookings to justify paying you to be here today. Here. Take this tray and go mingle. And DON’T eat all the samples yourself!”
“Yes, boss,” grinned Haley. I shook my head as she headed straight towards the guy she’d noticed. In Haley’s world, no man was off limits, not even if he was engaged and she wasn’t his type. Some of the stories she’d told me about her nights on the town were enough to make me blush and I wasn’t exactly a prude.
Still, there was something about her that customers warmed to and she knew not to cross the line when it came to clients, so if she could flirt her way into a booking, I wasn’t going to stop her.
As Haley worked her magic, an increasing throng of interested brides gathered around my stand and I found myself frantically handing out menus and business cards as potential customers wanted to know more about my business.
“Yes, I can definitely put together a custom menu for you,” I told one young woman. “If you look at my menus, you’ll see that I have hundreds of options for you to choose from. You’re very welcome to put together a number of different dishes to suit your taste, but if you have a specific favorite recipe or cuisine you’d like me to make especially for you, that’s no problem at all.”
“Great,” she beamed. “Because I was thinking that-”
“Are you Abigail Palmer?”
My jaw dropped as the man Haley had seen earlier rudely shoved his way in front of the bride I was talking to.
“I am,” I replied, barely managing to keep my tone civil. “And I was right in the middle of a conversation, so if you could kindly wait a moment-“
“No, I could not,” he snapped. “I’ve wasted enough time in this hellhole as it is.”
I frowned. A wedding show might be many things, but I’d never heard anyone describe it as a hellhole before!
“Shelby tells me that you’re the caterer I need to speak to,” he went on.
“Shelby told you that?” I arched an eyebrow, making a mental note to have a word with her later. If she’d sent him over to me just to get rid of a rude customer, I might have to rethink whether I was available on Friday.
“She did,” he confirmed. “She seems to think that you’re some kind of amazing cook, although if your samples are anything to go by, average is more how I’d describe it.”
“Is that right?” I murmured, making a mental note to double any quote I put together for him, assuming I could even be bothered to go there. I immediately felt sorry for any man foolish enough to marry him. “Well, much as I appreciate Shelby’s recommendation, I was dealing with this lovely lady here, so-“
“No, no, it’s all right,” said the woman, clearly intimidated by his abrupt manner. “I think I’ve got all the information I need. Thanks, anyway. I’ll call you.”
She walked off, putting back the card I’d given her.
I folded my arms and narrowed my eyes, glaring at the man who’d just cost me a client. “And what exactly did you need to speak to me about that was so urgent that it was worth chasing away business?”
“She was a time waster,” shrugged the man. “She would have kept you talking for hours, acting all enthusiastic about your ideas, but the second it came to signing on the dotted line, she’d have disappeared. Trust me. I can spot her type anywhere. I’ve just saved you from her.”
“Really?” I liked him less and less the more time I spent around him. Alright, so his eyes were so dark you could lose yourself in them and his chiseled jaw had just the right amount of stubble to make me want to rub my hand against his cheek, but that didn’t make up for the fact that he was the biggest pain in the butt I’d ever met – and I was used to dealing with tough customers.
“Really.” My sarcasm washed over him unnoticed. “Anyway, I’m looking for a caterer for my parents’ vow renewal.”
“Your parents are renewing their vows?” Haley would be delighted at the news. The man of her dreams wasn’t here to plan his wedding after all.
“Yes. They’re renewing their vows.” He said the words slowly, enunciating them carefully as if I couldn’t understand a word he said. If I was the queen of sarcasm, I’d just met the king. “It’s apparently what you do when you’ve been together thirty years and are still madly in love with each other.”
“That sounds wonderfully romantic,” I remarked, trying to remain professional in the face of his rudeness.
“What it sounds like is a waste of time and money,” tutted the man, “but mom’s got her heart set on a woodland ceremony and since my kid brother Caleb decided to get married this year as well, I’ve been told that I have to help out with the arrangements.”
“Caleb?” I did a double take. “Do you mean Shelby’s Caleb?”
I couldn’t believe that this jerk was going to be my friend’s brother-in-law. Caleb must have been the one to get all the charm in the family.
“That’s right. That’s why I’m here talking to you,” the man nodded. “It’s the only positive thing about my being here. Shelby seems to think that you can handle catering for a few hundred people at my family’s home. If she’s right, then it will save me a lot of hassle of wading through this place, fending off over-eager salespeople desperate to get my business.” He pulled out his cell. “I’m busy all this week, but perhaps we can agree a time to talk the following week? Unless you think you’ll be able to spare me half an hour during Caleb and Shelby’s engagement party? I hear that you’re going to be doing the food for them, so it would make sense for us to liaise there. The sooner we can get this over with, the better as far as I’m concerned.”
“Wait a minute.” I shook my head, stunned at the speed with which the man seemed to be closing the deal. “You seem to be assuming that I’m going to accept the job.”
“Don’t be ridiculous. Of course you are,” laughed the man. “You’re not exactly inundated with potential clients, are you?”
He made a big deal out of gazing around, indicating the lack of people wanting to try samples.
; “That’s because you chased them all away,” I pointed out. “So if you think that I’m going to work for you out of some mistaken belief that I’m desperate, you can think again. I have a policy of only working with nice people. I can’t make good food for clients I don’t like. I’m sorry, Mr…”
“Love. Nathan Love.”
I almost snorted at the irony. There was nothing loveable about Mr Love.
“I’m sorry, Mr Love. You’re going to have to ‘wade through this place’ and find another caterer because there’s no way I’m going to work for you.”
“I should have known.” Nathan sighed. “All right. Name your price.”
“Excuse me?” I put my hands on my hips, glaring up at him. “So you think that you can just buy me?”
“You are in business, aren’t you?” Nathan seemed unfazed by my annoyance. “I’m sure we can agree a price that will make it worth your while to put up with having to work with someone you don’t think is ‘nice’.”
“You just don’t get it, do you?” I shook my head in disbelief. “Every single time I cook, I pour my heart and soul into the food. I go out of my way to create something that tastes amazing with every single bite. This isn’t just a business to me. It’s my passion, something I care deeply about. I pride myself on the quality of my food. There’s absolutely no way I could risk my reputation just because you’ve thrown a few dollars at me. Now if you don’t mind, I’ve got decent clients to meet. And to think you had the gall to call that bride earlier a time waster. The only person who’s wasted my time today is you. Please go and bother someone else. I’m done here.”
Nathan stared at me and I could see a muscle in his cheek twitch as he clenched and unclenched his jaw.
“You’ll change your mind,” he promised before turning and stalking away.
Chapter Two
When I’d held the pre-party meeting with Shelby and Caleb, they’d told me that his family’s property could be hard to find, so Caleb had hired a van and driven my team there himself, while Shelby had traveled in my catering van with me, following his lead. I’d never been somewhere that my GPS couldn’t find, but he’d insisted and it certainly made life easier knowing that none of my staff were going to be late if we all arrived together.
Healing Bear: A BBW Paranormal Shape Shifter Romance (Love Laid Bear Book 3) Page 1