AllFreeNovel
Share Us
"I meant what I told my grandmothers. I'm certain that you’ll rise to the challenge."
"I plan to. It's always been my dream to move to New Orleans. Working in a restaurant like this one is more than I could’ve hoped for."
Even though she was full of exuberance, I detected a note of sadness in her voice. I wondered why that was.
It's none of your business, Chad. None. You've already crossed so many lines, it's not even funny.
When we finally reached the third floor, I opened the door to the corridor for her. She paused slightly, looking up at me in surprise before walking in. Because I’d opened the door for her? She was in for a surprise. We did things a bit differently here in the South.
"I read that you've got a lot of businesses. Do all the executives work from this office?" she asked.
"Not really," I said. “Some of the management is here, but my brothers have their headquarters and teams elsewhere. They come here often, though, so you might run into them. By theway, once you've settled in, I’d like to have you join us for a marketing meeting."
“Why?"
"We like to involve our chef in strategic decisions. You, Joel, and whoever else you want to have designing the menu. We won’t get involved in that unless we get bad feedback from customers, but we like to be informed so everything is reflected in our marketing."
"That's so smart," she said and then flashed me a brilliant smile.
I really couldn't spend too much time with this woman or I was liable to lose my mind. Was there any such thing as instant attraction? The answer was clearlyyes.
Donald came out from his office just then. "Thought I'd heard your voice, Chad. And you must be Ms. Jones."
She nodded. "Yes, I am."
"Okay. We just have some paperwork to go through, and then I’ll let you get your day started."
"Wonderful."
He glanced at me. "Chad, I'll take it from here."
"Sure!" I felt oddly disappointed. "Scarlett, it was nice to meet you. I look forward to seeing you at the marketing meeting."
She nodded, averting her gaze. How could she be so beautiful?
Julian’s words flashed through my mind.
"Celibacy is a shit idea," he’d told me when I'd shared my plan with him over one too many Sazeracs. "You're going to lose it when you least expect it."
Up until now, I’d managed. Work kept me busy enough, and all the free time I had went to my daughter. And I'd never been truly tempted.
Yet right now I could barely take my eyes off Scarlett.
Chapter Four
Scarlett
"Joel, did I mention that I love you?" I told him at the end of my shift.
He grinned. He was like a huge teddy bear, and though I liked the rest of my sous-chefs, too, he’d already become my favorite.
"Not every day will go as smoothly as this one," he cautioned as I yawned.
The kitchen was well staffed, and I had to give credit to the previous chef. They’d done a great job setting this up to work very smoothly. I did want to tinker with the menu, though. The current one was exquisite, but I wanted to put my own mark on it.
"So, can you walk me through what Chad said about me attending a marketing meeting?"
Seeing Chad again today was a shock to my system. He seemed even sexier than the glimpse I’d caught of him last night. I’d texted Ariana to fill her in, and as expected, she told me “it’s a sign”.
