Finding Fortune

by Caroline Lee

  He’d always liked his job, but sharing his love of Chinese cooking with the woman he loved…? He liked that more.

  Bernard’s warning came back to him, and in that moment, Brandon knew what he had to do. Since Lin told him she loved him as much as he loved her, he knew he wouldn’t be able to leave her. And he wouldn’t ask her to leave The Golden Palace and Mr. Lee. And now that Brandon had invested so much time into the restaurant’s success, and had quickly warmed to the elderly man, he found he couldn’t stand the thought of leaving any of them behind.

  “You know, Lin told me the restaurant was struggling. That people were bored with the menu.”

  The old man grunted in agreement, his eyes still closed.

  “I think this new menu for New Year will be a great draw, and allow us to see which items to keep permanently on the menu.”

  “’Us,’ eh?” Mr. Lee’s grin was slight.

  Brandon cleared his throat, ignoring the slip. “Have you considered dim sum as an addition to the menu?”

  “I am not a dim sum chef.”

  “No, and neither am I, not really.” It’s just that, besides the luo buo gao, his grandmother had taught him to make all of GungGung’s favorites…many of which were dim sum dishes. Of course, he didn’t want to bring that up, not when his future was uncertain. “But it’s a thought. If you stopped serving Saturday and Sunday lunch, and instead served dim sum to order—not on carts, that would require too much overhead—you could probably bring in a lot of new customers. It would be a different menu, at least.”

  Mr. Lee grunted again. Then: “It is another good idea. I will consider it. Even if I am not a dim sum chef, we can assume the people around here probably won’t notice.”

  Brandon grinned. “Exactly.”

  “I will ask Lin what she thinks.”

  The way the old man said it made Brandon hesitate. Then, figuring he didn’t have anything to lose, but not wanting to show disrespect, Brandon said, “You value her opinion.”

  It hadn’t been a question, but Mr. Lee grunted in agreement. “She is a smart girl, and has been with me for ten years. The Golden Palace is as much hers as it is mine at this point.”

  Ah. That’s what Brandon had suspected. Still, he needed to tread lightly. “But she’s only a server.”

  The old man’s eyes flashed open. “She is not. She does not cook, but most days she’s there when it opens and stays ‘til closing. She runs the entire restaurant.”

  “Does she know how much you value her?” Brandon asked gently.

  Mr. Lee’s eyes narrowed as he glared at Brandon. “I walked into your trap, didn’t I?”

  “It wasn’t a trap. I just wanted you to see that she is important to you, and to the restaurant, so you can treat her accordingly. She loves you very much.” Lin had been the one to rush to the hospital. She was the old man’s only family in the area.

  “I know.” He sighed against his pillows.

  “And you love her too.”

  “Of course I do.” Mr. Lee sighed again. “And I am remiss in not showing her that. Lin should have some ownership of the restaurant…”

  “Did someone say my name?”

  Brandon swung around in his chair, and his whole being lit up when Lin stepped fully into the hospital room and shut the door behind her. She had her parka thrown over one arm, and wore a simple red and black blouse…

  And around her neck hung the red jade pendant Brandon had given her last night. The meaning behind it, and the timing, were a reminder of his love for her, and the way she returned it. And that, more than anything else, made him smile.

  He stood, leaving his phone and the paper on Mr. Lee’s hospital bed, his arms outstretched before he could stop himself.

  “Good morning, honey.” He pulled her into an embrace she eagerly returned. “We were just going over tomorrow’s menu.”

  “Hmmm…” She peered up at him with a smile tugging at her lips. “So you weren’t talking about me?”

  He wanted to leave that to Mr. Lee, so he just said, “I talk about you all the time. To anyone who will listen. How could I not talk about the woman I love?”

  “Oh, Brandon.” She sighed sweetly. “That is total baloney, but you say the sweetest things.”

  He dropped a kiss to her upturned lips. “How’d you sleep?”

  “On my back, mainly. Sometimes on my side.”

  He was smiling when he kissed her again. “Good, good. Sounds like me. Except I sleep on my stomach too.”

  “Weirdo.”

  “And I slept really well last night, thanks for asking.”

  She poked him in the side, but she was smiling when she said, “I didn’t ask, but I’m glad to hear it. I slept like the dead, after the last two days we’ve had.”

  “Mmm. And tomorrow’s going to be another busy day.”

  “It should be! It’s the new year!”

  From the bed, there came the sound of a raspy throat-clearing. “I am still here, you know. I’m awake and not dead. But if you two lovebirds kiss each other again, I may be sick.”

  Chuckling, Brandon released her. Lin moved around the other side of the bed to take Mr. Lee’s free hand.

  “How are you feeling today, GungGung? The nurses said you raised a fuss about your tea yesterday.”

  “They don’t know how to properly prepare it.”

  She patted his hand. “I’ll make you some while I’m here today.”

  Brandon thought he saw the old man squeeze her hand.

  “You are a good girl, Lin.”

  The pair shared a sweet smile, and Brandon smiled too. Maybe his nudge would result in a change for the restaurant. With Lin invested in The Golden Palace, not just emotionally but financially too, they’d surely be able to make a success of it. Lin was intelligent and knew how to please customers, not to mention she was a hard worker. She’d make sure Mr. Lee kept the place running.

  And if Brandon’s plans played out, he’d be there to help, as well.

  “I’m heading over to the restaurant to work on prep for tomorrow and talk to José about divvying up the work. We also need to hang the big banner out front.” He smiled at Lin. “Want to come?”

  She hesitated, then said, “I’ll be over there in a bit. I came by to talk to GungGung about something.”

  “Got it.” Brandon nodded and scooped up his phone and notebook. “I’ll stop by the food store and pick up a few bags of turnips,” he said to Mr. Lee. “I can get started on the turnip cakes this afternoon, actually.”

  Mr. Lee nodded in return. “Be sure to save me a few.”

  “For you, GungGung,” Brandon teased, “I’ll make some fresh.”

  “See that you do,” the old man said sternly.

  “I’ll see you both later.” He blew Lin a kiss, then turned back to Mr. Lee. “Don’t give her any trouble, and be nicer to the nurses.”

  “Go away, Brandon.”

  He was chuckling as he walked out the door. From behind, he heard Lin say, “I need a favor, GungGung.” He closed the door on the pair of them, hoping whatever they had to say to one another would result in stability for The Golden Palace.

  As for him, he had work to do. Not just at the restaurant, chopping turnips…but on his computer. He had a very important email he needed to send.

  CHAPTER TEN

  “The monkey?”

  “No.”

  “The…horse!”

  “Nope.”

  “The cow!”

  “It’s an ox, and no.”

  “Oooh, the snake! It’s the snake, isn’t it?” Lin was having fun pretending to guess which animal represented the new year in the Chinese zodiac, and watching how fired up Brandon got in his frustration with her was hilarious.

  “No, and I wish you’d let me help do the dishes.” Brandon sat at the table in the back of the restaurant, now that all the patrons had left, and was finally eating his own dinner.

  “Don’t be silly. You don’t know where anything goes.” Lin wag
gled a big spatula at him, before plunging it into the hot water. “And you haven’t eaten yet. I got to sneak bites all night. It was yummy!”

  The Golden Palace’s Chinese New Year dinner had been a rousing success. They’d taken reservations, but people who hadn’t called ahead had been willing to wait sometimes up to an hour for a table. An hour! She still couldn’t believe it! Every single table had been filled, for the five hours they’d served. She and Jared had been run ragged, making sure everyone got their food on time, and listening to the compliments. It seemed like the diners of Riston liked the restaurant’s new menu as much as Brandon had guessed!

  And the coolest part had been sharing some of the things he’d taught her about Chinese tradition and culture. She’d answered questions and taught guests how to say “Happy New Year!” in Cantonese, and explained how most Chinese restaurants in America served southern Chinese—Cantonese—food, because that’s where most people immigrated from a century ago. When diners had complimented her beautiful new jade pendant, she’d explained the significance of the stone and the color. She’d even given pointers on using chopsticks—remembering what Brandon had told her—but had to confess she couldn’t use them herself. She’d passed out the little red envelopes with the coupons, and delivered heaps of fortune cookies and sliced oranges—a new addition to their “dessert” tray since Brandon had explained they’re considered lucky—and generally felt like she was running at top speed all night.

  And now? Now she was exhausted and glowing and still full of so much energy, it felt as if it might burst out of her in a kaleidoscope of vivid colors at any moment. She jiggled in place while she washed, glad for the peace now that José and Jared had gone.

  Brandon had worked hard all night too—probably harder than she did. Every time she’d gone back to pick up an order, he’d been “in the zone” and she’d been amazed to realize how well he fit in back in the kitchen. He’d never worked as a chef before, but he and José meshed well, and he’d picked up on the lingo too. There hadn’t been any dropped orders or confusion, and he’d added his own delicious flair to the menu.

  He was perfect here, and that was one of the reasons Lin felt like she was walking on a cloud right now.

  “So what was your favorite dish?” he asked, slumped over his plate of leftovers, a proud but tired smile on his face.

  She could tell he was fishing for a compliment, and couldn’t help teasing him more. “The fortune cookies! I love the way they crinkle in their little plastic bags!”

  When he frowned, she felt like giggling.

  “Oh, the rooster!”

  “That was last year.” He waved a bit of fish at her with his chopsticks. “I can’t believe you haven’t seen the decorations I put up all over the place!”

  “I have!” And she had—there was a giant banner out front, after all. But Brandon was so cute when he didn’t realize she was joking. “I want to say…it’s a four-legged animal?”

  Brandon snorted and turned back to his dinner. “There’s twelve animals in the zodiac, and all but two have four legs.”

  The rooster and the snake, I guess. “What about the monkey? He’s got two legs and two arms.”

  “Fine,” Brandon grumbled good-naturedly. “All but two and a half of ‘em have four legs, okay?”

  Lin smiled and pretended to think. “Is it the horse?”

  “You said that already!” He tossed down his chopsticks in irritation. “Are you doing this on purpose?”

  She had to stifle her giggle as she leaned over the sink. “The bunny? The lion—I mean, tiger? The pig? The giraffe?”

  “No, no, no the pig is next year, and giraffe? Why would a giraffe be in the Chinese zodiac?”

  Lin lost her battle and burst into giggles at his exasperation.

  “It’s the dog! The dog!” Brandon threw his hands up. “2018 is the year of the dog, and how did you not know that?”

  Her giggles turned to guffaws, and soon it was all she could do to prop herself up on the sink. “I don’t know!”

  The laughter turned into that desperate sucking-air feeling, and she wasn’t sure if it was because the situation truly called for it, or she was just overwhelmed and exhausted from the last few days.

  But then his arms closed around her, and she threw herself into Brandon’s embrace, wrapping herself—wet gloves and all—around him and laughing into his shoulder until her giggles subsided to hiccups.

  When they did, he kissed the top of her head. “I love you, Lin.”

  She melted. Tonight had been hard—the last few days had been hard—but having him and his love had made it possible. Anything was possible with Brandon’s love.

  Toni was right; she needed to keep him with her, always.

  “I love you too, Brandon,” she said against his shoulder, slowly exhaling and allowing the tension to ease out of her. “Thank you for everything you’ve done over the last week.”

  He squeezed slightly. “I was honored to do it. Thank you for allowing me to help.”

  With her face still buried against his neck, she felt bold enough to say, “And more than just your help, my favorite part was how much I’ve learned. Not just that it’s the year of the rat—she squealed with laughter once more when Brandon slapped his hand over his face and groaned—“I mean dog! And it’s not just because I learned how to make sticky rice and all the other recipes you’ve taught me…but it’s how you’re always full of little tidbits about Chinese culture and stuff. I feel like you’ve opened me up to this whole side of me I never knew. I didn’t think I was lacking, before…but now I feel whole. Wholer, if that’s possible, if that’s possible, or even a word.” She squeezed her eyes shut. “I think that’s because of what you taught me. And…and because of you,” she added in a whisper. “Loving you.”

  His arms tightened around her. “I know it’s the latter,” he said gruffly, “because I feel the same way. Loving you makes me a better person. Makes me feel more complete. And that doesn’t have anything to do with the signs of the zodiac or Chinese New Year.”

  “Gung hat fat choy,” she whispered against him, knowing her pronunciation was horrible.

  He chuckled a little. “Fun fact! That actually means ‘best wishes for happiness and fortune’ or something similar. It’s amazing how much of the stuff I’ve been teaching you can change just because of pronunciation.”

  “Like what?”

  “Well…” He pulled her away just long enough to peel the gloves off her hands and drop them on the counter next to the soapy sink. Then he steered her towards the table, where he fixed her a plate.

  “Okay, so the oranges are lucky, right?” He pointed to her plate as she ate. “That’s because one of the words for them is ju, which is a homophone for the word for lucky. Literally means lucky.” He grinned as she shoved a whole slice in her mouth. “Chinese has four different ways to pronounce vowels, which means every syllable can have four different meanings, depending how you pronounce it.” He demonstrated with the word “ju”.

  “That stinks if you’re a tone-deaf Chinese person,” Lin said as she fiddled with the chopsticks.

  He smiled. “Tonal languages like Chinese are great for teaching how not to be tone-deaf. Where I grew up, a lot of kids learned to play piano or violin early, because they had perfect pitch.”

  She pointed at him with a chopstick. “How about you?”

  He flushed slightly. “Piano. PohPo thought it’d be good for me, but I talked her out of buying one for the house. We lived in two bedrooms, for crying out loud!”

  Lin could see he was a little embarrassed, so she changed the subject. “What about these?” She pointed to the turnip cakes he’d been talking to Mr. Lee about the day before.

  “Luo buo gao. Its name is also the word for ‘fortune’ in Taiwanese, and it’s one of my favorites, especially with a little sweet soy sauce. Have you tried it yet?”

  Lin was peering suspiciously at the lump of fried food. “No, I’m not sure I want fort
une that badly.”

  He clicked his tongue in exasperation. “They’re delicious. But you have to eat them with chopsticks for the maximum effect.”

  Knowing full well he’d only added that caveat because he didn’t think she could, Lin decided to prove him wrong. “I’ve been practicing!” With haughty pride, she jabbed one chopstick into the middle of the turnip cake, squashed the other one on the outside, and lifted the whole thing towards her mouth, the chopsticks in her fist instead of held by her fingers.

  Brandon burst into laughter, those magnificent dimples on full display. “That’s how little kids learn to use chopsticks.”

  “Good! It works!” She took a bite of the cake, and her eyes widened. For a patty made out of turnips—turnips!—it was amazing. Mellow, but the sweet soy sauce added a nice flavor. She could see how it would be good with something spicier.

  “This is delicious!” she exclaimed once she’d managed to swallow.

  “I’m glad you like it,” he said with a chuckle. “Now try the greens. They’re impossible to overcook, really, so they symbolize longevity. You have to eat the whole thing!” he cautioned as she took a bite. “Same with the long rice noodles, but I didn’t make any today.”

  The greens were bitter, but the sauce made them palatable. Lin didn’t think they’d ever become her favorite, but they weren’t bad.

  “And the dumplings?” she asked. Mr. Lee made dumplings regularly for their appetizer menu, but Brandon had made a lot today. She poked one with a chopstick to eat it.

  “Dumplings and spring rolls are traditional for the same reason—they look like money. Or rather,” he added, chuckling, “they look like gold once they’re fried. So they’re supposed to bring you good fortune. Growing up, PohPo and I used to stay up late the night before the new year to make a whole bunch, because it was almost a contest to see who could eat the most. Eating a bunch meant you’d end up with a big fortune.”