by Caroline Lee
Copyright © 2018, Caroline Lee
[email protected]
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. This book contains material protected under International and Federal Copyright Laws and Treaties. Any unauthorized reprint or use of this material is prohibited. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system without express written permission from the author.
First edition: 2018
This work is made available in e-book format by Amazon Kindle at www.amazon.com
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Cover: EDHGraphics
Brandon Chin is one lucky man. He’s got an awesome job working with the production company putting together the new TV show at River’s End Ranch, and he owes his sense of surety to the way his Chinese grandparents raised him. He’s even ready to take his grandmother’s advice and look for love...even though she says it’ll happen when he least expects it.
Such as over lunch at the tiny Chinese restaurant in Riston.
The Golden Palace is failing, despite Lin Dryden’s best efforts. Apparently the people of Riston are bored with the menu after all these years, and it’s up to Lin and her mentor Mr. Lee—the owner—to come up with a way to save the restaurant. Luckily, the lunar New Year is approaching, and that’s the best time to make a new beginning, assuming Lin can talk the intriguing Brandon into helping her.
Between cooking for Valentine’s Day and cooking for Chinese New Year, plus handling some emergencies that pop up, these two learn what real teamwork is about. But is it enough to save the restaurant? And can someone whose license plate says “4CHIN8” possibly consider giving up the lucky life he’s known to find some fortune of his own at River’s End Ranch?
Contents
CHAPTER ONE
CHAPTER TWO
CHAPTER THREE
CHAPTER FOUR
CHAPTER FIVE
CHAPTER SIX
CHAPTER SEVEN
CHAPTER EIGHT
CHAPTER NINE
CHAPTER TEN
EPILOGUE
Recipes
Other works by Caroline Lee
River’s End Ranch:
Check out Caroline’s bestselling historical romances:
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Finding Fortune
River’s End Ranch
Book Forty-Four
Dedication:
For Gen Lee, for letting me be part of his family and, in a small way, part of his culture.
Love you, Dad.
CHAPTER ONE
“You really think it can be done for that little per episode?”
Brandon Chin held the restaurant door open for his good friend Steven, a producer he’d known for years and enjoyed working with. Right now, Steven’s concerns seemed valid. The number Brandon had just quoted was ridiculously low, compared to most TV shows being filmed right now.
“Well…that might be an optimistic number, but this show is unique, in that it doesn’t require an early layout of money.” Much, he added silently. It was his job to know how much networks could and would pay, and how much to search out from backers. And Legacy seemed too good to be true.
When Steven had emailed him with the proposal for this show, Brandon had been intrigued. Sweet, old-time westerns were seeing a come-back, and Legacy would be poised to get in on that upswing. It would be based on the bestselling romance novel about the people who started this town—Riston—and he could pretty much guarantee three successful seasons, if this trend followed previous trends—epic fantasy shows, quirky detective shows—and probably a lot more seasons. So he’d handed his current project off to an associate and driven up here to Riston, Idaho, to meet with Steven in person…and see the proposed location.
This place was gorgeous, even if it was a billion degrees below zero out there. The mountains, the snow, the ice on the river…he could see why people loved it here. Unfortunately, with his inability to grow a beard, he was in very real danger of his face falling off.
The conversation was put on pause while the two men stamped the snow off their boots. Brandon had purchased a pair of super high-tech, cold-resistant hiking boots just for this trip, but he was still certain his smallest toes were black from frostbite after this morning’s hike through the ranch and Old Town. He had been impressed with the insulated knit cap’s performance, but now he peeled it off and shoved it in the pocket of his parka, along with both pairs of gloves. The scarf he shoved down one sleeve of the parka, but he left the buff around his neck, so his neck didn’t freeze during lunch.
Yeah, he probably wasn’t cut out for this whole “winter weather” thing.
Steven seemed to be doing much better, or maybe he was just better acclimated. Of course, as Brandon heard it, the way his friend had acclimated to the ranch was by falling down a mountain. After the initial scare, Brandon had teased him mercilessly.
But now, seeing how lovey-dovey Steven and his new wife Michelle were, and knowing he only met her because of the injuries he sustained, maybe falling down a mountain and lying up to your neck in snow for an hour didn’t sound that bad.
Get a hold of yourself. The dating scene hasn’t been that terrible.
Well actually it kind of was that terrible. Brandon had been raised in San Francisco, but the studio’s office was down in LA, and he had to travel as much as Steven did for their jobs. It hadn’t left a lot of time for dating, but Brandon had still tried to do his best. When he was younger, he’d gone to bars in the city without much luck, then tried his hand at online dating. PohPo had always told him he’d find the right girl when he least expected it, but at thirty-five, he was beginning to wonder if that would really ever happen.
Of course, the entire point of “when you least expect it” is that it happens…well, when you least expect it.
Still, falling down a mountain was beginning to sound intriguing. Brandon wondered if there were any other single chiropractors in Riston…
“Hey, do you think we’re supposed to seat ourselves?“
Steven’s question pulled Brandon out of his musings, and he looked around the little restaurant. The Golden Palace was the only Chinese restaurant Riston boasted, and he frankly wasn’t expecting much. Having been raised by Chinese grandparents, Brandon knew good food…and expected this place to be a cheesy wannabe. Although not “cheesy” in the literal sense, because Asian food and dairy? Yuck!
Still, it had been his turn to choose the lunch place, so that’s why they were here.
He shrugged. “Usually not.”
There were a few other patrons scattered throughout the place, but mostly it seemed like the lunchtime rush wasn’t much of a rush. Was the restaurant struggling? Maybe Chinese food wasn’t a real draw in such a small town.
He snorted silently. The Chinese population has to be practically zero, from what I’ve seen.
Beside him, Steven shifted his weight. “Well, all these smells are making me hungry. I’m going to grab a menu and find a seat if— Oh! There we go.”
Brandon followed his gaze, and when he saw the hostess hurrying towards him, both of his dark brows raised.
Looks as if there’s at least one Chinese person here in Riston after all.
She was petite, and her straight black hair was cut short in the back but had been left a little longer in the front in order for her to be able to tuck the strands behind her ears. She wore a black T-shirt with the restaurant’s logo across the front, and the poor w
oman appeared really harried.
He stepped back as she reached for two menus at the hostess station and gestured impatiently for them to follow. “This way please. Two?”
Her voice was a surprise in its total…normalness. She didn’t have any kind of accent. Having been raised in a Chinese community, Brandon expected to hear Chinese voices in a Chinese restaurant.
Riston, remember? He reminded himself. Where the Chinese population was apparently one. Besides, it was fairly small-minded to think only people from China look Chinese. The wild west had had quite the connection to Chinese immigrants and it made sense there would be some who lived here for generations. One thought led to another, and soon Brandon was considering the possibility of casting some Chinese actors and actresses for Steven’s show.
Next thing he knew, the pretty little hostess was back with their glasses of water, and was answering Steven’s questions about the menu. Brandon hadn’t even realized he’d sat down!
“Mushrooms? Beef? Oh, I don’t know.” Steven slammed the menu down and scowled at Brandon. “Shouldn’t you be doing the ordering here?”
“Shouldn’t you stop making assumptions based on people’s race?” Brandon teased back
“Not when you’re the one who insisted we eat here!”
Brandon conceded the point with a grin. Steven knew Brandon would try any Chinese restaurant available when they traveled, and knew he could order without a menu.
Brandon smiled up at the pretty hostess, who was apparently also their waitress. ”One order gui fei chicken, and one order walnut shrimp. And some dumplings.”
She didn’t write down his order, but nodded as she went. When he was finished, she repeated it back. “Okay, that’s an order of gui fei chicken, one order of walnut shrimp, and a small plate of dumplings.”
“Yep. Good memory,” he complimented her.
She smiled sweetly as she gathered the unused menus. “Well, good work with the secret menu.”
She winked right before she swept back into the kitchen, and Brandon’s mouth hung open. Had she just teased him? She barely knew him, and she was already teasing?
I think I might be in love.
“Secret menu? What’s all that about?”
Brandon cleared his throat and looked back at his friend. “Ahhh. Well, any Chinese chef worth his salt—or rather, his hua jiao pepper—knows how to make all that stuff, even if they don’t put it on the menu. Places like this have the basic Americanized food on the menu, but you can usually ask for other dishes if you have favorites.”
“The secret menu.”
Brandon shrugged. “It’s not so much a menu, as just betting that the chef is good at his job. You’ll like the food, I promise.”
“Well, you’ve never steered me wrong.” Steven reached for his water, and began to relax in the booth. “It also explains why you never bothered to pick up the menu when we go to these places.”
“You’re welcome.”
Steven laughed and flicked water across the table. “Meanwhile, what’s up with the way you’re looking at Lin?”
“Lin?” Brandon’s gaze turned back to the kitchen. “That’s her name?”
“Yeah,” Steven chuckled. “Weren’t you paying attention when she gave the introduction spiel? She said her name was Linda, but everyone called her Lin. What’s up with you? You’re out of it.”
Still looking towards the kitchen, Brandon murmured, “I was thinking about your show…”
Steven snorted. “Man, I’ve seen that look before. Stop thinking about the show, and start thinking about her.”
“What look?” Brandon dragged his attention back to his friend. “When did you see it before?”
Steven laughed. “Every day in the mirror, my friend. Ever since I met Michelle.”
“Yeah, but you’re married to Michelle. I haven’t even officially met her—Lin, I mean.”
“Yeah, but you both know about the secret menu, so you’ve got that in common.” Steven winked.
Funny, his wink didn’t seem particularly special to Brandon…whereas Lin’s wink had made his insides all fluttery.
Maybe PohPo was right about least expecting it…
Or maybe he only thought that because he’d been thinking about his grandmother’s advice on finding love just before Lin had approached them. Either way, he scowled at his friend. “What’s your point?”
Steven pretended great interest in unwrapping his chopsticks, even though Brandon knew the man couldn’t use them to save his life.
“All I’m saying is” —Steven shrugged— “you shouldn’t ignore those feelings. I learned that the hard way.”
“What feelings?” Brandon practically growled.
Steven pointed the chopsticks as if they were a wand. “You should ask her out.”
“Who? Michelle? I thought you two were pretty exclusive. I mean, since you married her and all.”
Now it was Steven’s turn to scowl at Brandon’s teasing. “Not Michelle—she’s mine! I mean Lin. The way you were looking at her clearly showed you want to know her better. You’ve already got something in common—”
“Knowing the menu of the Chinese restaurant is not something in common.”
“More than a lot of couples start out with.”
Brandon snatched the chopsticks out of his friend’s hand and broke them apart. Then he hurled them at Steven’s chest. “Before you go hooking up two people, just because they happen to be the same race, maybe you should show some respect and learn to use those chopsticks.”
Steven was laughing when he held up his hands in surrender. “Okay, okay. Let’s talk about the show instead. Tell me why you think it’ll be so cheap.”
Glad for the change in topics, Brandon sighed. This, he was more familiar with. “Well, you showed me yourself. With the Old Town sitting in the middle of River’s End Ranch, we don’t have to lay out a lot of money at the beginning to build a set. Pilots are always done on the cheap, so that’s not a problem. Once we get a network to pick up the show—and I’m pretty sure that’s going to happen—we’ll be able to start construction on the offices and housing for the crew…which the Westons have already agreed to build, I might add.
Steven was nodding in agreement. “It is pretty convenient that, not only do the Westons already have the perfect set built—with their Wild West town to attract the tourists—but some of it is actually original to the ranch their ancestors built.”
“The ancestors which you are basing your show on! That’s pretty amazing. I can’t think of a single other TV show filmed where it took place. Miniseries docu-dramas about battlefields notwithstanding, I mean.” Brandon thought back to the notes he jotted down during the morning’s tour. “Without the initial outlay, and knowing we can get our costumes and props cheaply from the other shows the studio has done, I really think this should be a real moneymaker for us. Assuming the pilot is successful and a network picks us up, the ranch has agreed to all of the improvements and renovations you asked for?”
Steven nodded and toyed with his water glass. “Yep. Wade Weston and I agreed that a lot of the stuff we were asking for would end up being beneficial to the ranch in the long run anyhow. He had some other caveats—one involved another of my other shows, and one was us having to audition his cousin—but all things considered, the contract went really smoothly.”
“Good, good,” Brandon murmured distractedly, as he pulled out his smartphone to make notes. “You’ve got the actors all lined up for the pilot, right?”
“Yep,” Steven said again. “Only a few of them are big-name, and of course, we didn’t want the cast to be too big, just in case. All things considered, it’s probably a good thing that the pilot was delayed because of the weather—it’ll give us a chance to work with the actors we do have. Assuming the show gets picked up, we’ll have a lot more freedom to hire secondary character actors. Wade suggested offering guests at the ranch the chance to play some small parts, and I really like that idea. It will give th
em a thrill, and be good publicity for the ranch. Plus, we won’t have to pay them!”
“Not having to pay them is always a good thing,” Brandon agreed with a chuckle. It was his job to come up with the money to make this show work, and he already had some investors on the line. He was determined to make Legacy a success.
As the conversation turned towards the projected budget, Brandon felt more and more comfortable. This is what he was good at. This is what he understood. Focusing on numbers and how to meet investors’ goals was much more familiar territory than Steven’s teasing about asking strangers on dates.
Even if that stranger’s wink had been really alluring.
He’d actually managed to completely forget about Lin while they compared numbers…right up until the moment she returned with a tray full of food.
Her presence tied Brandon’s stomach up in knots, and he scowled at his friend across the table as they both hurried to move their waters out of the way. Without Steven’s teasing, he wouldn’t have treated Lin any different than any other waitress, even if he had been surprised by her. But Steven had started him thinking all sorts of inappropriate thoughts, and now he was nervous in front of a woman he’d exchanged, like, four words with.
“Here’s your chicken aaaand your shrimp.”
“Awesome!” Steven was smiling happily down at the plates of food. ”The secret menu looks much better than the regular menu!”
Lin’s low chuckle made Brandon’s chest tighten, but he kept his gaze firmly on the gui fei chicken. He didn’t want Steven to see how badly he was rattled.
“Well, the reason it’s secret is we can’t let everyone know about it. Only the very, very special patrons.”
At the way she emphasized “special”—like he was special, Brandon’s gaze jerked up. He realized he was holding his breath, wanting her to think he was special. But when he met her eyes, he realized she’d only said it like that to tease him. She winked again, saucily this time, but Brandon didn’t care.