Feels Like Family

by Sherryl Woods

  “Something tells me the impulse has been coming on for some time. There’s something in the air every time you two are in the same room.”

  “Tension,” he suggested.

  “Sexual tension, I think,” she retorted, a glint in her eye. “Why haven’t you done anything about it before?”

  He rolled his eyes. “Helen and me? Are you crazy?”

  “I don’t think so. You’re an incredible man. She’s an incredible woman. Both of you deserve someone special in your lives.”

  “I don’t know about Helen, but I’m not looking for a relationship,” he said.

  “You used to say you wanted me,” she reminded him.

  He grinned. “Because I knew there wasn’t a chance in hell you’d say yes.”

  “So you claimed to want me only because I was unattainable?”

  “Exactly.”

  “Not buying it. If you like the challenge of the unattainable, then Helen’s an even better bet. Think of the fun you could have trying to change her mind.”

  “And then what? Tell her it was all just a game?”

  “No, you idiot. Then you fall madly in love and marry her.”

  Erik laughed. “I don’t see that happening. Somehow I just can’t picture Helen’s designer duds hanging next to my Levi’s in the closet.”

  “After that kiss tonight, I can see it,” Dana Sue told him. “And judging from the way Helen ran out of here, I think she can see it, too.”

  “Stop meddling, Dana Sue. She’s your friend and that alone is reason enough for me to stay away from her.”

  “Why? I’m giving you my permission to pursue this. In fact, I’m encouraging it.”

  “And what happens when one of us gets our heart broken? Whose side do you take?”

  She looked vaguely disconcerted by the question. “It would never come to that,” she declared.

  “Really? You can see into the future?”

  “No, but I have faith in both of you, and I saw something tonight, a spark, that hasn’t been there before in either one of you. Passion—the real deal that leads to love—is a rarity. I’m here to tell you that a spark like that shouldn’t be ignored.”

  “Well, I’m ignoring it,” he said flatly.

  “We’ll see,” she taunted. “I’m sure I can think of some way to change your mind.” She shrugged. “Or Helen’s. It’ll only take convincing one of you to get this ball rolling.”

  “It’s not up to you,” he said, even though he could see he was wasting his breath. He was just going to have to be on high alert from now on.

  Damn. That meeting tomorrow. He’d have to be in the same room as Helen and Dana Sue when the memory of that searing kiss was just a little too fresh in his mind.

  3

  Karen’s heart was in her throat all during the first part of her shift prior to the meeting Helen had scheduled for two in the afternoon. Erik kept shooting daggers at her, as if he was really ticked off about something. She got the impression he’d been against the meeting. Dana Sue was trying to overcompensate by being extra nice, but the tension in the kitchen was really beginning to take a toll on Karen.

  Added to that, they’d had one customer from hell, who’d sent her meal back three times. Erik and Dana Sue had finally drawn straws to decide which one of them would go into the dining room to deal with her and take a stab at making sure she left Sullivan’s happy. Dana Sue had drawn the short straw. Free champagne and dessert for everyone at the table finally soothed the woman, but the whole exchange had ruined Dana Sue’s mood. It was now as dark as Erik’s.

  At precisely two o’clock, Helen sashayed in, wearing one of those power suits she favored, a pair of Jimmy Choo shoes that probably cost more than Karen made in a week, maybe even a month, and designer sunglasses that she didn’t remove.

  Pointedly ignoring Erik, she smiled at Karen, then turned to Dana Sue. “Where do you want to meet? It’s going to be a little crowded in your office, unless Erik has decided to skip the meeting.”

  There was a cool, antagonistic note in her voice that Karen didn’t recognize. Something told her it didn’t bode well for the discussion to come.

  “Not a chance,” Erik replied tightly, adding to the tense atmosphere.

  “The last of the customers have gone. We can sit in the dining room,” Dana Sue said briskly. “Karen, you want a soda or something? Helen?”

  “I’m good,” Karen said, too nervous to even try to swallow something while her future was at stake.

  “Nothing for me,” Helen said.

  “Then let’s get started, shall we?” Dana Sue said with obviously forced cheer, leading the way.

  “Could I see you for a minute first, Helen?” Erik asked, his expression grim.

  Dana Sue tucked her arm through Karen’s and immediately steered her through the door into the dining room. “We’ll give you a minute alone,” she said to the two of them.

  “What’s that about?” Karen asked in a hushed voice.

  Dana Sue grinned. “They had a little disagreement last night. Trust me, it’ll be a whole lot better if they work it out before this meeting.”

  Almost before the words were out of Dana Sue’s mouth, though, Helen appeared right behind them, her expression as grim as Erik’s.

  Karen leveled a worried look at Dana Sue and leaned close to whisper, “That’s not a good sign, is it?”

  Dana Sue sighed. “Not especially,” she said, frowning when Erik emerged from the kitchen right on Helen’s heels, his own expression even stormier than before.

  “Okay,” Helen said when they were all seated. “Remember, this is just a conversation among friends. The goal is to work out a solution all of you can live with. Karen’s well aware that her absences lately have put a real strain on the two of you. Karen, why don’t you tell them what’s been going on and why you haven’t spoken up before now?”

  Swallowing hard, Karen avoided Erik’s unyielding expression and focused on Dana Sue as she explained about the kids having the measles, the babysitter quitting and the financial stress she’d been under with Ray not sending child-support payments.

  “I haven’t told you before because my personal problems shouldn’t be your problems,” she said. “I know I’ve been unreliable and that it’s unacceptable. But I swear to you if you can just bear with me a little longer until I can make permanent arrangements for someone responsible to watch the kids for me, I will be here every single minute I’m supposed to be. I won’t have to hunt for someone new every day.”

  Helen held up a hand. “Don’t make promises you can’t keep, Karen. Let’s face it, being a single mom is unpredictable. Dana Sue, you certainly know all about that. Here’s what I suggest, especially after being here last night. Isn’t it time you considered hiring another chef, or at least some prep staff who can be trained just the way you’ve trained Karen? That way if Karen does have another one of these inevitable crises, you’ll have some backup.”

  “Why should Karen’s problems force Dana Sue to hire additional staff?” Erik demanded.

  “Because you need the help, anyway,” Helen said before Dana Sue could answer. “Karen wasn’t scheduled last night and it was crazy in the kitchen. If I hadn’t shown up—”

  “We’d have managed,” Erik interrupted. “We always do.”

  “Come on, Erik, Helen’s right,” Dana Sue cut in. “We really are understaffed for the size of the dinner crowd lately. I’ve interviewed half a dozen people for prep work and given two of them a trial run, but neither one was right for us. I really need to accelerate that search. I’ve been putting off doing anything about it, because I wasn’t sure the popularity of this place would last. That sometimes happens after rave reviews. The kitchen can’t keep up for a few weeks and then people go back to their usual routine and you’ve got more staff underfoot and counting on you than you need and you have to let people go.”

  “Hiring someone to do prep work is one thing,” Erik conceded. “But as long as we’re still coun
ting on Karen to be here, how does that solve the problem if she bails?”

  “Another trained person can come in if Karen has an emergency,” Helen said.

  “And be paid overtime wages?” Erik asked. “How is that fair to Dana Sue? She has to think about costs, you know. And prep work is a far cry from being her assistant or sous chef. We need someone who can move into that position, now that I’m assistant manager.”

  Karen studied Erik and Helen and knew there was something going on between them that had nothing to do with her. It was clear, though, that this discussion wasn’t going to work in her favor unless she stepped in with a solution of her own. Fortunately sometime in the middle of the night she’d actually come up with one. Until now she’d been hesitant to offer it, but it was beginning to seem as if she had nothing to lose.

  “I have an idea,” she said quietly.

  All three of them looked at her in surprise, almost as if they’d forgotten she was there.

  “Go ahead,” Helen encouraged.

  “I worked with another cook at the diner ’til she had to leave. She had the same problem I’m having now. She was a single mom and her kids had to come first. Doug fired her, just the way I know you two have been debating about firing me. Anyway, Tess was really, really good, but she took a job telemarketing, so she could work at home. I know she hates it and would love to get back to work in a restaurant.”

  Erik’s scowl deepened. “If she’s already been fired for being unreliable, why would we ask for more problems by hiring her?”

  “Because, frankly, she’s got exactly the skills you need,” Karen told him, determined not to back down in the face of his skepticism. She needed to fight for herself. To do that she had to convince them to at least give Tess a try. “She’s fast. She’s a quick learner. She’s creative. She doesn’t get rattled in a crisis. And she already knows her way around a kitchen.”

  “That still doesn’t address the key problem,” Erik said.

  “Let her finish, for goodness’ sakes,” Helen snapped.

  “Well, pardon me all to hell for wondering how this solves anything,” Erik retorted, his gaze locked with Helen’s.

  Suddenly Karen got it. Whatever tiff those two had gotten into, it was because something personal was going on between them. She hadn’t heard anything about them dating, but that didn’t mean it hadn’t happened. There were enough sparks bouncing around to set the tablecloth on fire.

  Biting back a grin, she waved a hand to catch their attention. Dana Sue looked equally amused.

  “Here’s my idea,” Karen said. “Let me and Tess share the job as sous-chef.”

  Helen looked startled, but to Karen’s relief Dana Sue looked intrigued.

  “How would that work?” Dana Sue asked. “Don’t you both need a full-time job?”

  Karen nodded. “But you’re open six days a week, right? And you’re open more than eight hours a day. One of us could work three days, the other four, and you could schedule our shifts to overlap. You need the extra help anyway on weekends. The sharing part would be that Tess and I would adjust that schedule between us if one of us had an emergency, so you’d never be left without a sous-chef. You’d have two trained people and you’d be covered all the time. The odds of both of us having an emergency on the same day are slight.”

  “I like it!” Helen said eagerly. “Dana Sue, what do you think?”

  Karen held her breath.

  “It could work,” Dana Sue said slowly. “We do need the extra coverage. I’d have to meet Tess and see if she can handle the job or if she even wants it, but it would solve a lot of problems. Erik, what do you think?”

  Though his expression remained grim, he nodded. “It has potential, as long as at least one of you shows up, no matter what,” he conceded grudgingly. For the first time, he actually looked at Karen. “That’s one of the traits I’ve always liked about you. You do think outside the box and you’re not afraid to try new things.”

  Karen smiled at him. “Thanks. This time it was mainly out of desperation, but I really do think you’re both going to love Tess. She’s bright and energetic and loyal. She’d fit in perfectly here. And I know she and I can work things out so you’re never short staffed.”

  “Okay, then, have her call me,” Dana Sue said. “We’ll get her in here and give her a try.”

  Helen sat back, a satisfied smile on her face. “A win-win solution. Good job, Karen. Thanks, Dana Sue.”

  Karen noticed she pointedly ignored Erik as she stood up. “I need to get back to the office,” Helen said.

  This time Erik shot out of the booth. “I’ll walk with you,” he said in a determined tone that silenced any argument. “Back in ten minutes, Dana Sue.”

  Dana Sue stared after him. “Take all the time you need.”

  After they’d gone, Karen met Dana Sue’s amused gaze. “Are those two…?”

  “Not yet,” Dana Sue said. “But I predict it won’t be long.”

  “My, my,” Karen murmured, laying on a thick Southern drawl, “I do believe I could use some iced tea. It’s gotten a little warm in here and I’m parched.”

  Dana Sue laughed. “Isn’t that the truth? Come on. I’ll join you. Something tells me we’re going to be on our own for a while in the kitchen.”

  Helen was sorry she’d walked over to Sullivan’s from her office. If she’d driven, she could have gotten in her car and slammed the door in Erik’s face. Instead, he was walking along beside her in an increasingly awkward silence. Finally she could stand it no longer.

  “If there’s something on your mind, just say it,” she demanded. “Otherwise, leave me alone.”

  “I’m trying to figure out what to say,” he admitted.

  “‘I’m sorry’ has a nice ring to it. Or ‘I was wrong.’ That’s a good one.”

  “Okay, both of those,” he said, his lips twitching.

  She stopped and whirled around to look him in the eye. “That’s it? I throw you a couple of options and you don’t even repeat them or put your own pitiful spin on them?”

  “But you’re the one who’s so good with words,” he returned dryly. “I figured you put it exactly the way you wanted to hear it.”

  Helen rolled her eyes. “Oh, for heaven’s sake, do you even know what you’re apologizing for?”

  “The kiss?” he suggested uncertainly.

  The hint of vulnerability in a man who’d always struck her as supremely confident cut through her defenses. “That would be a good place to start,” she agreed.

  “There’s more?” he asked.

  Though his tone was perfectly serious, she thought she detected a hint of teasing. “You’re darn straight, there’s more. How about the fact that you were behaving like a horse’s behind about Karen?”

  “I was trying to look out for the restaurant’s best interests,” he said. “Something I thought would matter to you, you being Dana Sue’s good friend and all.”

  “Of course that matters to me,” she retorted. “So, don’t you think the solution we worked out in there is the best thing for everybody?”

  “Possibly,” he said. “But by Karen’s own admission, her friend was fired for being unreliable. In my book, that’s not a terrific recommendation, no matter what her skills are.”

  “Not only a horse’s behind, but stubborn as a mule, too,” Helen muttered under her breath.

  “I heard that,” he said.

  “As I intended,” she replied, then studied him curiously. “I thought you liked Karen.”

  “I like a lot of people I don’t want working in my kitchen,” he said. “Not if they’re not going to show up when they’re supposed to.”

  Helen’s lips curved in a small smile and she resumed walking. “Does that also mean you don’t mind having someone you dislike working in your kitchen?”

  “If they do the job well,” he said, his gaze narrowing as he strode beside her. “What’s your point?”

  “You don’t seem overly fond of me at the moment
.”

  “Because you’re annoying the hell out of me right now.”

  “And last night?” she teased.

  “And last night,” he agreed.

  “And yet we worked so well together. Interesting,” she said thoughtfully.

  “What’s so interesting about that?”

  “The way your mind works. Can I ask you something else?”

  “I don’t imagine I can stop you, interrogation being one of your primary work skills.”

  “How did the kiss fit in?” she asked, clearly catching him off guard. Color bloomed in his cheeks.

  “I apologized for that,” he reminded her.

  “I know, but what sparked it? A sudden attack of lust, the heat of the argument, a desire to get even because of the pie I’d tossed at you?”

  “I wish to hell I knew,” he said.

  “Come on. Think about it,” she prodded, stopping to look at him. “I just want to know so I can avoid triggering that particular response again.”

  “You and me both,” he said, then studied her intently. “You seemed to be into it at the time.”

  “I most certainly was not!” she replied indignantly.

  “Bet I could prove what a liar you are.”

  Now there was a challenge that was best avoided. And since she seemed to be increasingly off balance around Erik, maybe it was time to turn the tables. After all, the man was seriously cute when he was befuddled. Feeling downright daring, she reached up and pressed a kiss to his cheek, hoping to throw him even further off-kilter.

  “Let me know when you figure out how we wound up with our lips locked,” she said. “We walked past my office five minutes ago and I need to get back there. See you.”

  “Hold it!” he commanded before she could leave. “What about the apology you owe me?”

  Helen frowned. “Excuse me?”

  “That pie you tossed in my face,” he reminded her.

  “You deserved it,” she said.

  “Maybe you deserved that kiss,” he said. “Maybe I should take back that apology. After all, it could happen again.”

  Helen gave him a hard look. “Don’t even think about it.”