Catering to Love (5 page)

Outside, the engine was already creating smoke in the air. As Gabi walked across the lot, the feel of snow scrunching beneath her feet seemed surreal. She hadn’t seen this much snow since the last time she and the gang had gone skiing in Vermont a few years ago. She pulled her gloves out from her other pocket, slipped her hands inside, smacked her hands together to get the blood flowing through her veins, and hoisted herself up into the cab of the truck. “I need to stop by to see Nell first. Do you mind driving me over there?”

“No, ma’am,” Trevor said. Putting the gear into drive, he pulled out of the lot and headed for the inn. Stephanie followed the truck the couple of miles to the inn’s driveway.

“Okay, Trevor, stop here. Thanks again for doing this.” Gabi jumped down off the running board and rushed inside using the side door. The minute she walked through the side door, her heart started pounding. Was she doing the right thing? She pushed the silly thought aside and inhaled the smell of pastries and bread baking. Her stomach growled. Nell Carter was already folding napkins for the day’s customers, and the lively waitstaff chattered while
setting the tables. She waved to the young man who’d carried their luggage up to their room when she was visiting with Cassie and Jamie.

“Hi, Brian.” He waved back and smiled.

“There she is,” Nell said. “You’re right on time. How was your trip here from the city?”

“Pretty uneventful. Not a lot of traffic, the weather was fine—”

“And you’re raring to go,” Nell finished her sentence.

“I am,” she grinned, barely able to contain her excitement. “I’m on my way to the storage unit, but wanted to stop in and let you know I was here.”

“Welcome to New Hope. Did you bring anyone who can help you?”

“I did. Stephanie from the Crown Motel has graciously offered the services of her brothers, so I’m all set.”

“Good. And you’re all set to start work on Wednesday?”

“I am, and I’m very excited,” Gabi said, then pressed her hands against her stomach.

“Are you okay?”

“Yes. I’m just a little nervous, that’s all. I’ll be fine.”

“That’s bound to happen. But that nervous energy will keep you goin’. We’re excited too. I haven’t said anything to anyone yet, so prepare yourself for an interesting day on Wednesday.”

“Ooh, is that a good thing?”

“Don’t even give it a second thought,” she said, her hand slicing through the air.

Nell’s phone rang. “Oh shoot. I need to get this. I’ll see you bright and early Wednesday morning.” She waved and answered the phone.

Gabi took in a satisfied breath and released it. Although she had much to do, starting on Wednesday excited her.

Gabi closed the doors of the storage unit and locked them with a combination lock. “Boy,” she said, turning to Stephanie. “I was getting nervous there toward the end thinking I needed a larger unit. Thank God it all fit. Hey, where are your brothers?”

“They’re on the way to return your U-Haul and then we’ll go back to work at the farm.”

“Oh, darn. I wanted to at least buy them coffee or something.”

“That’s not necessary. They do stuff like this all the time.” She latched onto Gabi’s arm. “So let’s head on over to the inn for a good cup of coffee.”

“That sounds like a wonderful idea.”

Gabi sucked in her breath and walked behind Nell into the restaurant’s kitchen, anxious to meet the staff for the first time. Nell had called earlier in the morning, suggesting she come in a day earlier to meet Corey, the sous-chef who had wanted to buy the inn, so he’d get used to the idea before she started on Wednesday. When Nell pushed on the double doors to the kitchen to call him into the hall, he was on his way out to see her. Gabi stopped in her tracks when Mister Tall, Dark, and Handsome emerged from the kitchen.

“Oh good,” Nell said, “I’d like you to meet Corey, our sous-chef.”

“Your what?”

“Our sous-chef… Corey Edwards.”

When their eyes made a connection, Corey made a face. “What? You followed me here?” he asked. “What is it with you people?”

Nell looked at Gabi. “Have you two met before?”

“No. We saw each other at Cupcakes yesterday,” Gabi said. Corey glared at her.

Nell seemed beside herself, shifting her eyes from Corey to Gabi. “Corey, this is Gabi Johnson, the new owner.”

Corey stopped in his tracks, his mouth agape. “The what?”

Is it against all odds that Mister Tall, Dark, and Handsome will suddenly turn into a sweet peach, or even a mango, knowing you’re his new boss? Methinks you’d better batten down the hatch and brace yourself for a turbulent ride with that spineless, colossal shrimp in your kitchen—that’s if you let him stay. But you are going to need a sous-chef. Perhaps you can teach him some manners and, just maybe, he’ll turn into a Prince Charming? Nah, I wouldn’t count on it.

So go ahead and mix all the salsa ingredients together to macerate for a day to allow the flavors to mingle in a friendly manner, not at a distance, like Corey would prefer.

Next, clean 20 extra-large shrimp by peeling them completely. Run them under water to remove the black vein that runs down the center of the back. Don’t worry if there is a stubborn shrimp that won’t shed its black spine. One
annoying shrimp doesn’t necessarily mean it will ruin the whole bunch. Now, take the good shrimp and place them in a bowl and add 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Toss to coat evenly.

Now, add one shrimp at a time to the plastic bag and shake to coat.

Fire up the grill until very hot, and try to resist spearing that annoying shrimp you left over on the side with the long fork. Grill the good ones for approximately 1 1/2 minutes on each side. Remove and divide the shrimp between four plates. Spoon the fruit-veggie salsa over the top and allow it to scatter around the plate. Garnish with chopped cilantro and serve. Makes 4 dinner-size servings or 10 appetizer-size servings.

“You are not going to believe who’s part of the kitchen crew,” Gabi said breathlessly when she saw Stephanie at Cupcakes.

“Uh-oh, don’t tell me it’s Coffee Boy, the nasty one we ran into yesterday.”

“Yep, you’ve got it. I almost died when he walked out of the kitchen.”

“So what are you going to do?” she asked.

“I’m going to need a sous-chef. If he’s as good as Nell tells me, I’d be a fool to let him go just because I don’t like him. We’ll see how things play out, now that I’ll have a front-row seat to see how he functions in the restaurant. I may just have to swallow my pride and give him the benefit of the doubt. Maybe he was just having a bad day. He’ll be following my kitchen rules anyway. One of those rules will be to treat everyone with respect—bad day or not.” Gabi shook her head. “If he can’t comply, then we part ways.”

Stephanie handed Gabi a container of coffee. “Listen, I’m the one who has to run today. I have to split. I’m needed at the motel. Our resident hypochondriac called in sick
again, and they’re shorthanded.” She tightened her lips. “Sorry about that. Can we reschedule?”

“Sure, after I find out when I can steal a minute. But I’ll let you know.”

“Well, are you ready to start working today?” Nell asked when Gabi appeared.

“I am. I have major anxiety.”

“Don’t worry about a thing. You’ll do fine.” A sudden change in Nell’s expression told Gabi that Nell was feeling a bit melancholy. She patted the woman’s shoulder. “I know how hard this must be for you. You’ve owned this place for many years.”

“This is all going to work out fine,” Nell said, as if reassuring herself. Her cheeks turned pink. “I’m sorry. I tell myself this is the right thing, and then I think about having to leave a place I call home. Letting go is going to be the hardest part. I’ve known some of these kids since they were born. It’s going to be like leaving family.”

“I totally understand,” Gabi said.

“All right,” Nell said, “enough of that. My husband, John, normally makes the introductions, but since he couldn’t be here this morning because he had a doctor’s appointment, I’ve been appointed as his fill-in.” Gabi acknowledged with a nod of her head. “All right. Let’s do it. Don’t forget, until we close, Corey’s the boss,” Nell said.

“Understood.”

Walking through the double doors, the first thing Gabi noticed was no one was wearing a chef’s uniform, just casual
wear. She’d always been of the mind that if you dressed the part, you felt the part and therefore were the part.

“Can I have your attention for one minute,” Nell said. “This is Gabrielle Johnson, the new owner.”

No one seemed surprised by the announcement. She figured Corey must have told everyone.

Nell turned to Gabi. “Let me introduce you to everyone. Of course, you’ve already met Corey yesterday. Next to him is Joey; he’s been here for a year now. He comes to us from The Frenchtown Inn and works on meats.”

“This is Leslie.” Leslie gave Gabi a welcoming smile. “Leslie’s fresh out of culinary school and she’s on desserts, and Steven over here runs the fish grill. Okay, let’s go into the dining room so I can introduce you to the waitstaff,” Nell said and guided her through the door. “Right now, we only have three waiters. This is Dan, he’s a newlywed, so that bright smile of his isn’t about to diminish anytime soon.”

She motioned for Brian, who was polishing the silverware, to join them. Gabi recognized him as the young man who helped with their luggage when she brought the girls to New Hope to see the inn. She was certain this was his first job because he didn’t look any older than nineteen or twenty.

“Hi, Brian. Nice to see you again.” He smiled and gave a slight wave.

Pointing to a woman, Nell continued, “And this lovely lady is Rosemary. She’s slightly distraught we’re leaving, but she’ll be okay. Right, Rosemary?”

Rosemary’s mouth twisted to the left. “Yeah, I guess so.”

“Yes, I remember Rosemary,” Gabi said. “She was the one to tell me you were interested in selling the inn.” Rosemary simply shrugged. “It’s nice to see you again too, Rosemary.”

Gabi walked away, uncertain as to whether Rosemary would be under her employ for very long.

“Okay, that’s the staff. I’ll let you get to work now,” she said, walking back into the kitchen. “Now, you all treat her nice.”

Everyone nodded, but it was obvious they were a little apprehensive about her. Hell, she was apprehensive too. She hid her shaking hands and hoped no one saw them. It was important for her to show them she was easy to work with. Despite her growing excitement, she thought it might be a good idea to practice a bit of decorum before she made a fool of herself. Otherwise, she’d be dancing around the kitchen celebrating. While that might have been a cute sight to see, it wouldn’t have garnered her any respect.

After Nell left the room, Gabi gave a quick scan of the room. It was a regular-size kitchen that was typical of old homes. With four employees in various parts of the kitchen, excess tables and disorganization, the room appeared smaller than it actually was. She made a mental note to reorganize the kitchen for easier access, but she wouldn’t make any changes until she actually closed on the property. Gabi could smell bread baking and watched as Joey inserted two trays filled with ducks inside the big oven and shut the door. Four sets of expectant eyes stared at her, but it was Corey’s expression of disgust that caught her attention. She saw a muscle flicker in his jaw when he noticed she was looking directly at him. He gave a slight nod and headed toward the walk-in.

“Wait,” she said, “before you leave, where do you want me to work?”

“Give me a minute. I need to get something from the walk-in.”

“Well, I’ll help you,” she said, rushing up behind him. He shot her a look over his shoulder, but she continued to follow despite the insecurity she was feeling. What was happening to her? She’d always been a strong woman, yet this good-looking jerk’s face was taking control of her mind. She shrugged it off by telling herself showing any weakness was not in her best interest. “Grab that tray of vegetables,” he said, grabbing the precut garnishes.