CHAPTER
TWENTY-ONE
Madison dragged herself out of bed.
She needed to get a grip. Life went on. So she wasn’t winning a star. That was out of her control. The only thing she could control was how she reacted. How many times had she picked herself back up? Only this time the star had felt so close some nights she could have sworn her fingers grazed it.
Stupid.
What doesn’t kill you, makes you stronger…
Blah, blah, blah.
She headed into the bathroom and looked in the mirror, taking in her perfect hair. She touched the thick waves falling in graceful lines on her head. Some women would be squealing at their hair luck.
This morning she wished it were her. But she didn’t want freaky perfect hair. She wanted that Michelin star, dammit. Forget about it, she told the pale version of herself staring back at her.
She left the bathroom and headed across the hall to her own bedroom, cocking her ear for noise. None. She dressed in all black—today she felt the funeral vibes strong. Forcing herself to open her desk drawer, she drew out her recipe cardand angrily scratched out the part about winning a Michelin star. Reading the recipe again, she drilled down on the positives. Kyle topped the list. On impulse, she added Spike as an ingredient on the card, along with Pierre, before tucking it away. She needed to go find her friend first and foremost after how upset she’d left him in Kyle’s office.
A high-pitched whine sounded, and she turned sharply to see Kyle and Spike watching from the doorway. “How are you feeling?”
“Getting there.” She pointed a finger to her hair and then to Kyle. “Some things in my life are still perfect. Isn’t that great?”
His mouth twitched, most likely at the false note in her voice, but those baby blues were as serious as the proverbial food critic sitting down at a table. “You don’t have to put on a brave face, you know. I’m upset. I’m sure you are.”
“Being upset doesn’t change anything.” She stomped her way over to an excited Spike, who leaped into her arms. “I blew hot last night, but I gave myself a talking-to this morning. A couple hours of chopping with my cleaver today will have me right as rain.”
That made her lift her arm and sniff herself. Yep, she still could smell the onions. Spike wormed his way up to her face and gave her puppy kisses, which she allowed. Then she realized she hadn’t kissed Kyle. He’d kissed her before leaving to take Spike out, but still…
He’d been gone. He’d returned. They were supposed to do the whole kiss thing.
She leaned in and lifted up, kissing his unshaven jaw—she wondered if he hadn’t shaved because he hadn’t the energy. “You guys have a good morning?”
Lifting her chin, he kissed her softly on the mouth despite Spike trying to get in on the action. “We did. I thought Pierre might benefit from a little Dean time, so I dropped him off.”
Her insides crawled with guilt. “I was just going to seehim, but spending time with Dean is probably a good idea. Did you…ah…happen to mention anything?”
“Like that fucker Dassault continuing his reign of terror on Nanine’s?” He nodded with a tight smile, running a hand through his ash brown hair. “You’d better believe it. I wanted to get Jacqueline’s take and see if she had any suggestions for how to fight it.”
Her stomach gripped. “There’s no fighting, Kyle, and trying will only perpetuate this string of suckiness.”
His brows drew closer—so not his usual calm veneer. “I told you to trust that I would figure out a plan. That’s my job. I’m not only doing it for you—although you’re top of the list. I’m doing it for Nanine, too, because she should never have had to deal with this crap in the first place. I’m also doing it for The Paris Roommates Group and our family.”
Family…the word thickened her throat and made her shift on her feet. The others were going to be so upset. She realized she would do anything to spare them.
“Speaking of… Do you plan on telling everyone? Because Thea needs to stay in her happy place. And don’t even get me started on what this would do to Nanine…”
Kyle’s flinty look would have made the bullies back in her neighborhood step back. “I want to protect people as much as you do. I told Dean I’d hold off on telling them, but I plan on bringing in Brooke and Axel. They’ll have ideas. I’m still wondering what to do about Sawyer. He’s also in a new relationship and painting his heart out for his gallery show. I don’t want to mess with his creativity.”
“Glad we’re on the same page.”
“We usually are,” he only responded, his gaze direct.
She was not going to feel guilty for being realistic. “I’m also not telling any of my staff. It’ll destroy their spirits.”
“I agree on the staff.” His voice held a tight edge that made her jittery. “I’ll only share my plan with those necessary.”
Plan? What good was a plan? She could feel herself wanting to fight him, but what was the point? Her focus needed to be on doing her job. She wouldn’t let this situation affect her performance. The restaurant would open again on Tuesday night, and she would hunker down and perform with just as much excellence as usual. It’s what professionals did.
