by Natalie Ann
Supply and demand. It was a fine line and Fierce was good at walking the tight rope.
The last thing he wanted to do was burn his staff out. Not the ones that he relied on the most in the restaurant. They were paid well and only worked six hours a night, but some worked six days a week, others part time because they were compensated well enough to allow that. Even his full-time staff worked fewer hours than most chefs worked in this industry.
The pub kitchen was still going strong finishing up orders. After ten, all that was offered was a smaller snack-type fare in the bar or pub. Two people were all that normally needed to be staffed during the week for that. Sometimes three on the weekends.
He’d found the right staff that would stay an extra hour if needed, and they were rewarded well for that flexibility.
Rather than go home, Aiden went back to his office and started to look over menus for the next week and check on supply orders.
He’d lost track of time until Brody popped his head in the office at eleven thirty. “What are you still doing here?”
“Just finishing up a few things,” Aiden said, yawning. “I didn’t realize it was so late.”
“Late for you. Still early for me,” Brody said, laughing.
Brody closed Friday and Saturday nights at two. Of all his siblings, Brody had always been the night owl. Even knowing he had a fiancée and a stepdaughter at home wasn’t enough for Brody to leave early now. Aiden wasn’t much farther behind, but far enough.
“I thought you were going to cut back your hours,” Aiden said.
“I am. I’m coming in a little later now and again, and taking every Sunday off.”
“Family day?” Aiden asked, only slightly jealous. He might not work as many hours in the building as Brody, but he was here seven days a week most times. No one needed to know the amount of time he spent creating dishes at home.
“Yeah. I thought it’d be hard to step away, but found it’s not. You should try it sometime.”
“I’ve got no reason to right now. Unlike you, I’ve got a cold bed waiting for me.”
Brody laughed. “That’s your problem.” Brody grabbed a burger that a young female plater walked over to him while sending him a mischievous flirty smile that Brody ignored, resulting in her walking away frowning. Brody sat in the chair across from Aiden’s desk. “You might loosen up some if you got laid.”
Aiden was used to his brothers talking like this, but not normally here at work. There wasn’t anyone but the two of them at the moment though. Aiden could see the kitchen from the big window in his office, but no one could hear him, and he was glad for it. His dismal personal life could stay private.
“Who has time?”
“Really, Aiden. That’s just sad. There’s always time for women and sex.”
That was easy for Brody to say. He had women throwing themselves at him all the time in the bar. Now he was deflecting everything with a grin and a good reason. He had something better at home.
“Like I’d tell you if I did have someone.”
“You were always secretive that way. You and Mason. Why is that?” Brody asked.
“It’s not a competition. Besides, Mason and I aren’t you and Cade. We don’t need a woman hanging all over us and telling us how wonderful we are.”
Brody just grinned at him. “Sure you do. It’s the Fierce ego we’ve got. Of course, we all know how awesome we are. Even Ella.”
“Please,” Aiden said. “I thought we agreed years ago to not talk about Ella with any guy. To not even think of her with a man.”
“You and Mason did. Me and Cade decided that any guy that comes near Ella has to get through the two of us.”
Aiden shook his head. Brody was always the leader of the group. “How’s that working out for you?”
“You haven’t seen Ella with anyone lately, have you?”
“Do you think that’s right?” Aiden asked, wondering why he cared. Still, Ella was their baby sister; it was their job to torture her that way. Any way, now that he thought of it. She’d been bossing them around from the moment she could talk…and talked earlier and faster than the rest of them combined.
“Sure, it is. I need all the practice I can get for when Sidney starts dating in, oh say twenty-five years or so.”
Sidney was Aimee’s two-year-old daughter who had Brody firmly wrapped around her little finger. Aiden stood up and stretched. “You can practice all you want. What I need is my bed for sleep right now and nothing else.”
“Like I said…just sad.”
Aiden left out the back door and climbed into his car, then drove home and let himself into his dark silent home. He didn’t even bother to turn any lights on, just made his way to his bedroom, then the bathroom, stripped and climbed in the shower, then into bed naked.
If he had visions of Nic in his mind as he dosed off, he wasn’t going to admit it to anyone.
There was nothing wrong with going to bed alone. It was pathetic how good he was getting at lying to himself.
***
Sunday morning Nic was up and dressed hours before she needed to be at work. Her body was stiff and sore and it was slightly mortifying.
Maybe it was because all she really did was stand around the day before. She was used to moving, not just being a statue for the most part.
Did she learn a ton on her first day? Absolutely. Did she want to learn more? Always.
But she’d much rather do. She’d much rather get her hands on some food and learn that way. Maybe next weekend.
Instead, she went into her grandmother’s kitchen and started to pull out ingredients.
“What are you making, Nic?” her grandmother asked when she walked in.
“Cannoli. Ella said that she remembered them from when she visited the store as a kid, and I thought I’d bring her some. It’s been awhile since I’ve made them.”
“That’s sweet of you.” Her grandmother looked around the kitchen. “You’re making chocolate ones too.”
“I figured why not? I don’t know what she preferred. I’m only going to make the minis. Ella is just a tiny thing, so I’ve got to imagine that even though she loves them, she probably doesn’t want to stuff her face with a full one.”
Her grandmother pulled her hat off the back hook and said, “I’m going to weed the flowers now. Make sure you say bye to me before you leave for work.”
Three hours later, Nic arrived at work with the box in her hand, then waited while Bill let her in. He seemed nice enough yesterday when she met him, and she was guessing she’d be shadowing him today. “What do you have there?”
“Something for Ella. Do you know if she’s here? I saw another car in the parking lot, but wasn’t sure.” A pricey luxury vehicle that Nic was guessing couldn’t have belonged to anyone other than an owner.
“She is. That girl never takes a day off. It’s Sunday. It’s not like the office needs to be open today, but every Sunday morning she’s here until around noon.”
“Thanks,” Nic said. “I’ll be right back.”
“No rush. You’re still fifteen minutes early.”
Nic ran up the stairs and then knocked on the doorframe. Ella was sitting at her desk, and her head popped up behind her computer. “Sorry to bother you.” Nic could see a wall unit that held another few monitors, multiple screens showing the bar, the pub, the restaurant, and even the brewery. They obviously didn’t shut down on Sundays either.
“No problem. Come on in. What can I help you with?”
“Nothing. I’ve got something for you. Just a little thanks for being so helpful with all the paperwork yesterday.”
Nic hadn’t realized how confusing it would be to fill out insurance and retirement forms. She’d never had them before and they were all foreign to her.
“You didn’t need to get me anything,” Ella said.
Nic walked forward and placed the box on the desk. One of the few leftover Moretti pastry boxes that were stored at her grandparents’ house and not dest
royed in the fire. Too bad her most treasured possession hadn’t been home that day. So stupid to have left it at the bakery because she was running late and rushed out the door.
“Oh. You didn’t. Is this what I think it is? Hope…” Ella lifted the lid. “Oh my God, you’re going to make me have to hit the gym today and Sunday is my day off.”
“I wasn’t sure which one you liked, so I made them both.”
Ella picked up a chocolate one and took a huge bite. “I’m having one of each. They’re both my favorites. Making them smaller just means I’ll eat more. You even dipped the ends in chocolate and sprinkled the chocolate shavings in the filling rather than chocolate chips. Go, get out of here before I yell at you. Take the victory and run.”
Nic laughed and left, feeling pride in herself. Another needed boost for the day. Maybe her life would finally start to turn around.
***
“You need to put these on the menu,” Ella said when Aiden walked into her office. She wasn’t normally here when he came in on Sundays, and he was surprised when she called and asked him to come earlier.
“What?” he asked, walking forward. He narrowed his eyes and saw chocolate on the corner of her lip, but didn’t say a word. She could walk around like that all day as far as he was concerned.
“These. I had four. I’m going to be sick. I don’t know what she was thinking bringing over this many. Take them away from me, please.”
He looked at the box, took note of the name, and then flipped the lid. Ella had a weakness for desserts. They didn’t serve a lot of desserts in the restaurant. Just a handful of cakes or pies. Someone came in and baked each day then left. And nothing like this.
Ella slapped his hand when he went to pick up a chocolate one. “No, those are mine. Take the other one.”
He laughed and did as she said, then popped it in his mouth whole. It was two bites worth, but they smelled too fabulous for him to not eat it all at once.
“Damn,” he said around a mouthful. “I remember these now too. Nic brought these in for you?”
“Yep. For me. Be happy I’m sharing,” she said.
“You just told me to take them away from you,” he said, reaching for another and dodging her hand. Damn, she was fast when she wanted to be. He’d forgotten that.
“I did. I’m sorry. I’m so weak. Seriously take them. Please put these on the menu. What a hit they’d be. At least do it for the next time you have an Italian week.”
He picked the box up. “I’ll think about it,” he said. The idea had merit though. What would it hurt to try?
After he placed the box in his office, he caught someone walking by his office door and asked them to go get Nic for him.
“You wanted to see me?” she said a minute later.
“Yes, come on in. Shut the door, please.”
Her eyes started to dart around the room and he felt bad that he was probably making her nervous, so he smiled, trying to ease her concern. “Have a seat.” When her eyes landed on the box on his desk, she paled and he thought that was odd, but laughed lightly, hoping to get her to smile. “Ella just yelled at me to take these away while she recovers from her sugar coma upstairs.”
“Oh,” Nic said, her shoulders relaxing. “She liked them.”
“Ate four of them.”
“Really? Wow. Three has been my limit without getting ill.”
“I just shoveled two in my mouth,” he said. “I had to dodge swatting hands as she begged me to take them away, but whined that I was eating them.”
Nic giggled and the sound was something out of a fairytale to him. Not one he’d heard often in life and never in his kitchen. Maybe annoying female giggling when someone was trying to hit on him, but not a genuine carefree sound that escaped before someone could stop it. Not one that sent chills up his arms and butterflies in his chest. Definitely not one that made him pause and try to remember his train of thought.
“I’ve got a proposition for you,” he said. “Ella wants them on the menu.”
“For an Italian dessert?”
“That’s a possibility. I’m working on an Italian menu and that would play in well, but then I got thinking you probably have all sorts of Italian recipes and pastries up your sleeve. Things straight from Italy?”
“I’ve got a lot of things I’ve been making for years. Lots of recipes my grandparents brought over with them. Not everything that was sold in the store though. Are you asking for them?” she asked, looking both confused and shocked.
Oh man, the things he learned all those years ago traveling. “Right now, I’d like you to make cannoli. I’ll add them to the dessert menu for tonight. Our desserts change up daily and we’ll put this on it. I’m curious to see how it sells.”
“I can do that. Bigger ones though, right?”
“Yes. Full sized. Let me know what you need and I’ll make sure we’ve got the ingredients or I’ll send someone out to get them.”
“How many are we talking?”
“Five dozen of each.”
“You think you’re going to sell seventy-two cannoli?” she asked, looking at him like he was crazy.
“We could, but I doubt it. Whatever is left over I’m going to add to the bar special menu tomorrow. A dessert combo. I just got off the phone with Mason. He picked out a beer he thinks will pair well and we’re going to give it a shot. Something new.”
“You’ve never done a dessert combo in the pub?”
“Nope. But I just watched my sister, who never has a hair out of place, ignore the fact there was chocolate smudged on her lip. It got me thinking and I’m dying to know how it’ll play out.”
“I can do that,” Nic said, starting to look excited. There was a spark in her brown eyes now, lighting them up and sending currents of heat his way, making those chills die down, but the butterflies speed up.
“Can you show me the recipe, or am I not allowed to know it?”
“You want me to show you how I make them?” she asked, her excitement vanishing.
“Yes, is there a problem with that?” He had no idea what was going through her head.
“No. Not a problem. I mean, I work for Fierce now. Before it had more to do with me not working here. When do you want me to start?”
It still looked like a problem though. “Now.” He slid a pad of paper in front of her. “Write down your ingredients and how many it makes, then we’ll figure out the quantity and go from there.”
“What about shadowing Bill today?”
He laughed. “You can do that later. For now, I’m going to shadow you.”
Definitely Weird
She pinched herself again.
Aiden Fierce was not shadowing her.
He didn’t just say that, did he?
Why would he want to know her cannoli recipe? He had to have made them a million times. There was nothing special about hers.
Yet she felt the pain when she squeezed the skin between her fingers and knew that he’d be over to watch her once she was done lining up her ingredients.
Everyone in the kitchen had looked her way at one point or another, wanting to know what was going on. Why on her second day—as a part-timer at this point—she wasn’t learning her job but moving to a side corner by herself. She wasn’t saying a word.
She was so used to not drawing attention to herself, and right now, she’d pretty much had the curtain lifted and was ready to perform for all expectant eyes…naked. Exposed. Yeah, she was looking for a fast exit, but she couldn’t run. She had to stay and do what was asked of her.
There was an area off to the side that looked to be set up for baking. No one had addressed this with her yet, nor did she see anyone there yesterday. “Do you have a baker on staff?” she asked Aiden.
“Not like you think. I’ve got someone that comes in during the week and prepares desserts. She makes more on Friday to cover us for the weekend, or someone else on staff that has a good hand at baking is assigned to come in before the restaurant menu starts an
d prepares a few dishes.
“What do you do in the pub for dessert on those days?” she asked, lining up everything and trying to block out all the stares in their direction.
“Not too many desserts get ordered in the pub. We have simple things, sundaes and the like. Remaining desserts from the day before. Nothing lasts more than twenty-four hours before we rotate to fresh things. I refuse to have anything bought or frozen, but we have enough hands here that something fresh is made daily by someone.”
Once everything was ready to go, she was sifting her dry ingredients together when she felt Aiden’s breath behind her. She really had to start paying more attention to her surroundings. What was he doing now?
“Wouldn’t it be easier if you were standing next to me, or in front of me?” she asked, her voice cracking.
This was embarrassing. Should she be feeling heat in places of her body that had no business warming up right now? She looked down and noticed her hands were shaking. Heaven forbid he saw that.
Maybe he’d think it was nerves. Yeah, that’d be better than him knowing it was because he was standing so close to her and turning her on. Urgh, why was this happening to her?
“I like to see it from your view. You’re short; I can see over your head.”
She wanted to be insulted over his short comment but was too busy trying to push all her hormones in line and focus on the task at hand and not the hot boss standing behind her. She tried to ignore the fact that her body was betraying her and concentrate more on her baking. It wasn’t working.
What a sucky predicament. A hot man behind her and all he cared about was the ingredients on the table in front of her. That sound was her ego deflating.
Then she reminded herself that she had a job and didn’t want a man in her life anyway. Right? Yeah, sure. No man. Not now. Not her boss!
She leaned forward to grab the sugar and her rear bumped into him. Really? She didn’t even want to guess what she just touched, but unfortunately was pretty positive she knew. A glance up showed more eyes on them. Was there a hole for her to crawl in yet?