by Terri Osburn
“Where you from?” the inquisitive one asked.
“I grew up in Boston. Where are you from?”
The boy blushed. “Right here, silly.” Turning, he spotted another little girl coming their way. “Oh, no,” Lauren heard him say. “Not Pilar.”
So this was the unofficial namesake of her restaurant.
“Who are you?” the new arrival demanded as she stopped beside the boy. “Why you holding my cousin?”
Lauren was starting the think the universe was messing with her. Why else would she suddenly find herself the center of every child’s attention?
“Manners,” Sid said to her daughter. “What have I told you about how to talk to adults?”
“You said to be nice. I am being nice,” the girl defended. “She’s got Daphne.”
“She isn’t stealing her.” Sid took a seat next to Lauren. “I don’t know where she gets this bossy attitude.”
Beth burst out laughing. “It’s a total mystery.”
“Nobody yanked your chain, curly.”
Lauren doubted she would ever get used to the dynamics in this group.
“Is everyone here?” Will said upon returning with Mary Ann.
“Henri is missing,” Callie replied. “She said she had to make a stop on the way.”
“Here she comes,” Roxie said, nodding toward the parking lot.
The woman in question exited a blue Volkswagen Beetle and Mia climbed from the passenger seat. Lauren heard Roxie say, “About time,” under her breath.
Before she could ask what that meant, the women joined the group and Will disappeared back inside only to return seconds later with a plump older woman draped in a ruffled pink apron. Her bright-blue eyes went right to Lauren.
“We have a newcomer, I see.”
“This is Lauren Riley,” Sid said. “She’s the new chef over at Pilar’s.”
“That’s my restant,” cut in the little one with the same name.
“I heard,” Opal replied. “Nice to meet you, Lauren, and welcome to Anchor Island. We’re happy to have you.”
“Thanks. I’m happy to be here.” She hadn’t been able to say those words and sincerely mean them in a long time. If ever.
“Does everyone know what they want?”
Lauren glanced around for a menu. “Do I need to go inside to see the options?” she asked.
“Oh, you need a menu.” Opal whipped a small laminated sheet from the pocket of her apron. “The rest of these ladies are regulars so I guess they forgot you haven’t been here before.”
“Prepare yourself,” Sid said. “Opal makes the best desserts you’ll ever have in your life.”
She’d sampled dishes from some of the best pastry chefs on the East Coast so Lauren doubted that could be true. Still, a sweet was a sweet and she had a deep abiding love for anything chocolate. Which is what drew her to an obvious choice.
“Is the chocolate heaven cup as good as it sounds?” she asked.
“Better,” Sid assured her.
“Then that’s what I’ll have.”
The rest of the group placed their orders, and then Sid and Will took the kids to see a dog at the other end of the patio in order to keep them entertained until the treats arrived. Lauren caught Henri whisper something to Mia, who looked as if she wanted to be anywhere else. The next thing Lauren knew, Mia had moved to Sid’s empty seat beside her.
“You must be excited for the opening,” she said.
Excited, panicked, and totally freaked the hell out were more like it. “I am. We’re just about ready, but I almost wish I’d done a soft launch.”
Mia cut a quick glance to Henri and then looked away. What exactly was up with these two?
“A soft launch?” she said, only half listening.
“It’s when a restaurant opens without a lot of fanfare in order to test things first. Then a large scale opening happens once they work out the kinks.”
“We could still do that,” Will said, interrupting their conversation.
Lauren hadn’t seen her return to the table. “We could do what?”
“Have a trial run.” Will waved a hand to indicate the group around the table. “If everyone here brings their significant others, we could have a pre-launch meal to help you test the food and staff.”
“I bet Tom and Patty would come, too,” Beth offered.
These were not names Lauren knew.
“If we can get a babysitter for the twins, Sam and I will come,” Callie said.
They were only four days away from opening. How were they going to get a pre-launch dinner in and still have time to adjust for any issues?
“I’m not sure we’ll have time. We’d need a period after to address any necessary changes.”
Will lifted Pilar onto her lap. “What about tomorrow?”
“You’ve got the meeting with the Ferrero family tomorrow night,” Roxie reminded her.
“Crap. How about Thursday?” She looked to be asking Roxie, who smiled.
“You’re free Thursday night.”
“Can we bring the kids?” Beth asked. “If Tom and Patty come, then that would eliminate our babysitters, but I wouldn’t want them to miss it either.”
This was moving way too fast.
“There’s a kid’s menu,” Roxie said. “If you’re going to test the food, you might as well test all of it.”
Lauren couldn’t believe these women were willing to drop everything on such short notice just to help her out. Could they really do this? The staff was ready, and the dishes had almost been perfected. Front of house had started training yesterday morning and since most had worked at the Marina, they’d picked things up quickly. All she needed were the fresh ingredients, and Wyatt would likely help her out with the fish if she showed up at the pier at dawn.
“Are you all sure about this?”
“We’re talking about after five, right?” Callie said.
An evening service would give the most time to prep.
“Sure. How about six thirty?” Lauren asked.
There were nods all around as cell phones were pulled from purses and pockets to text spouses. Fifteen minutes later, all had confirmed while, as Sid had promised, Lauren enjoyed the most decadent chocolate cupcake she’d ever tasted in her life. Not until an hour later on her drive home did the reality set in. Pilar’s would seat a party of fourteen plus four kids in less than forty-eight hours for a full menu tasting.
She could only pray the staff didn’t kill her when she told them the news.
Nick assured himself that he was only checking in with a friend. The fact that during the check-in he could find out what was happening at Pilar’s was a minor coincidence. He hadn’t heard from Lauren since Monday morning when he’d made the short walk back to his place. Granted, that was only thirty-six hours ago, and they’d made no plans for when they would talk or meet up next. Why would they? She was busy trying to open a restaurant.
And Nick was busy imagining all the things that could be going wrong that he could help fix. A fact Lauren would likely resent.
Her ambition and independent spirit were two of the traits he liked most about her. There was also her complete lack of pretense as well as the unexpected displays of vulnerability. Nick had glimpsed the woman behind the wall. The woman with nerves of steel and a heart full of scars. She could talk a mean game, cook like a master, and bring a man to his knees. All of which she’d done on Sunday evening.
The simple fact that he hadn’t been able to get her out of his head ever since should have sent him running, but Nick was tired of running.
“Hey, man,” Jackson said as he joined Nick at the end of the bar. “How’s it going?”
“That’s what I was going to ask you.” The crowd at O’Hagan’s Pub was quiet on a Tuesday evening, which was why Nick had picked this location. “Four days and counting?”
“It’s been tough but things are coming along.”
“Tough?” Lauren had made it sound as if things were easi
ly falling into place.
“She’s hard to please, man.” The bartender approached and Jackson ordered a beer. “We must have made some of these dishes fifty times now, and she finds something wrong with all of them. I don’t know what she wants. Hell, none of us do.”
Nick understood the situation from both sides. No chef sent food out of the kitchen that didn’t meet their standards, but the staff couldn’t read her mind either. And there was a good chance the food she was rejecting would more than meet the customers’ expectations.
“I thought things got better after the adventure park.”
“You know about that?”
Well aware of his friend’s fear of heights, he leaned away and confessed, “That was my idea.”
Jackson spun on his stool. “You’re the reason I hauled my ass up a hill blindfolded?”
“It worked, didn’t it?”
“That’s cold, buddy. I’ll remember this.”
“Forget about the park. What about now? Is anyone thinking about walking?”
“No. She’s actually pretty cool to work for. Calm. Patient. We just don’t know how to get what she’s wanting.” The bartender returned with his drink, and he said, “Thanks, Cal,” before continuing. “When she tests the individual components, there’s no problem. But then we put them together and she either doesn’t like the flavor combination or the balance is off. The menus are printed and ready, but she keeps talking about making changes. If we have to start over, there’s no way we’ll be ready by Saturday.”
The woman was her own worst enemy.
“Maybe this is nerves. As the time gets closer, she’ll calm down and run with what you’ve done so far.”
“I don’t know, man.” He shook his head while lifting his beer. “She gets more anxious every day. This morning she started talking so fast that none of us understood a word she said.”
Just as she’d been on Sunday when she’d greeted Nick like a human tornado. This time, he couldn’t talk her down without revealing this visit with Jackson, and though his intentions were in the right place, Nick doubted she’d appreciate his efforts.
“Keep trying is all I can say. She’s bound to relax eventually.”
“That’s what we’re hoping.” The older man leaned his elbows on the bar. “After she pulled my scared black ass up that death hill, I’m willing to follow her into the fire. I just hope she doesn’t get us all scorched.”
That made two of them.
15
Lauren had no idea how long she’d been sitting on his front porch, or even how exactly she’d gotten there. All she knew was that on her way home from the bakery, she’d started to panic. Once she’d parked in front of her cottage, her brain had told her to go find Nick. So she did. Except Nick wasn’t home.
Growing cold, she lifted off the top step, ready to give up, when headlights appeared before her, forcing her to cover her eyes to block the glare.
“Lauren?” Nick said, bounding from the truck. “Are you okay?”
“I just stopped by,” she said, suddenly feeling like an idiot. “You’re probably tired. I should go.”
Before she took two steps, he cut her off. “What’s wrong?”
Heart racing, she shook her head. “I shouldn’t bother you.”
This wasn’t like her. When the anxiety hit, she dealt with it on her own. Men didn’t like messy, and if she wanted to keep whatever casual thing they had going, then Lauren needed to keep her mess out of sight.
“You aren’t bothering me. Come inside.”
She really wanted to do that. Conflicted, she crossed her arms, uncrossed them, then crossed them again. “Are you sure? I know it’s late…”
Nick pried her arms loose and took her by the hand. “I’m sure.” Tugging her toward the cottage, he added, “Let me help.”
How could he know those were the words she needed to hear?
Clinging to his hand, she followed him inside and Nick pulled her to the couch. “Sit down while I’ll get you some water.”
Lauren would have preferred whiskey, but alcohol would only make this worse. Her efforts to drink the demons away had always ended badly. While he fetched the water, she focused on her breathing. One breath at a time. In and out. Deep breath. Hold. Exhale.
“Here you go.” He put the glass in her hand and then sat down beside her. “Take your time.”
The man was a freaking saint. All the more reason she shouldn’t be here.
“It’s nothing, really,” she said. “I’m fine.” Her voice hitched and she took another deep breath.
“Why don’t we go out back? The moon should be bright on the water and we can sit and listen to the waves. That always makes me feel better.”
Sitting quietly in the dark sounded like a good idea so she nodded her agreement and followed him to the sliding glass door.
Once outside, he led her to the Adirondack chairs, then said, “Have a seat and I’ll be right back.”
Lauren didn’t want to be alone, but he was gone before she could stop him. Holding her drink with both hands, she perched on the edge of the chair and focused on the waves crashing in the distance. The moon was bright and glared off the water as if it were a shifting mirror. The rhythm of the ebb and flow matched her breathing and she felt herself begin to relax.
“Sit back,” Nick said, returning with a blanket. She did as ordered and he draped the heavy material across her lap, then tucked it in along her sides. “Good?”
The simple gesture nearly made her cry. Speechless, she nodded, and he settled into the chair beside hers. They stayed that way, in silence for several minutes. As time passed and the ocean continued to roll in and back out, Lauren’s lungs expanded and her heartbeat eased back to normal levels.
“Thank you,” she finally said.
“For what?” he asked.
Lauren looked his way. “For being so nice to me. I know I’m not easy to deal with sometimes.”
Nick leaned his head back against the chair. “Everyone has their quirks. That’s what Nota says anyway.”
“Nota sounds like a wise woman.”
“There has to be some benefit that comes from eight plus decades on this planet. Do you want to tell me what happened?”
This was the reason she was here. Lauren knew that now.
“I went to a girls’ night thing with Roxie tonight. When I made an off-the-cuff comment that I wished I could try the food on a few customers before we opened the doors, they all volunteered.”
“Volunteered?” he repeated.
“Yeah. I agreed to serve fourteen adults and four kids a full tasting menu on Thursday night.”
Saying the words aloud brought the anxiety back.
“That’s good. You can get some feedback before Saturday and have a day in between to make any changes.”
If only it was that easy. “There’s one problem.”
“What? Is the staff not ready?”
She sighed and closed her eyes. “I’m not ready.”
A warm hand wrapped around hers. “Lauren, if you aren’t ready in two days, you aren’t going to be ready in four.”
“What if I’m never ready?”
Nick kissed the back of her hand. “You’re an amazing chef, and you’ve put together a talented team. Now all you have to do is share your food. That’s it. We don’t save peoples’ lives or right the wrongs of the world. We feed people. So do that, Lauren. Feed people.”
“You make it sound so easy.”
“It can be.”
He had a point. “What was it you promised the other night? To unstress me?”
Nick glanced up to the stars. “I did.”
“Then now would be a good time to do that.”
His deep laughter made her smile. “I thought I just did.”
Lauren tossed off the blanket and rose to her feet. “Not as thoroughly as you did on Sunday.” After setting her glass in the sand, she lowered onto his lap. “I’m still feeling a bit tense in places.”
Leaning in for a kiss, she said, “Yes. Yes, you should.”
Nick could get used to this. A thought that scared the shit out of him. He’d never been the cuddle-after-sex type, but that’s exactly what he was doing. And doing it willingly. If Lauren knew what he was thinking, he might never see her again.
The purpose for taking their conversation to the bedroom had been for Nick to help relieve her stress, but the treatment had gone both ways. If Lauren practically purring in his arms was any indication, she’d forgotten—at least temporarily—about her earlier fears. But Nick was feeling pretty relaxed himself. And content. Something he couldn’t recall ever experiencing before. At least not since his father died.
Between the revelations Nota had shared and his growing feelings for Lauren, Nick found himself picturing a real future, with all the possibilities he’d never allowed himself to dream of. A development he needed to keep to himself for now.
“What did you do after your restaurant closed?” Lauren asked.
He considered giving a vague answer, but was truthful instead. “I didn’t know what to call it at the time, but now I know that I grieved the loss the same way that I grieved for Dad. Only losing his business brought an added layer of guilt.” Nick twirled a lock of her hair between his fingers. “I drank. A lot. Mia would say I became unbearable, and she’d be right.”
“But you’re still cooking so you didn’t give up,” Lauren pointed out.
“By then there wasn’t much else I could do. I had one marketable skill and once I crawled out of my own pity party, I went back to the kitchen.” Working for someone else had been an eye-opening experience, and he’d wanted to quit every day for the first year. Eventually, he stopped looking back and began moving forward. “I worked my way up until I finally landed an executive chef position in Atlantic City.”
Lauren leaned up on her elbow. “You were an executive chef?”
She didn’t have to sound so surprised. “I was. Three kitchens and fifty or so staff. I oversaw the daily operations for all of them, and I don’t think I slept for three years.”