Page 27 of The Chef

Dominika takes the bottle from me and has her own sip. “He’s not always like this,” she explains. “He’s just very stressed at the moment.”

“Right.”

“You know he really likes you, right?”

My eyes widen and I shake my head. Likes me? “What are you, Dominika? Insane? Of course, he doesn’t like me.”

“Oh, he does. I know him very well, so I know when he likes someone.”

“What?”

“He likes you.”

“Well, if he does like me then he has a very strange way of showing it.”

“Cliff’s had a bad few months.”

I lean against the kitchen counter, no longer feeling dizzy. “Is this about his ex?”

Dominika perks up at the mention of his supermodel ex-girlfriend. “How do you know about that?”

“I overheard his cousins talking about her, about how she was a supermodel and is now going to be a big famous actress or something. Do you know anything about her?” I ask.

Maybe Dominika can tell me more about Cliff’s love life. It sounds interesting.

She laughs. “He’s very private about that kind of stuff. You probably know more than I do about it now.”

“Right.”

She hands me the bottle and I take another long gulp of the fine liquid.

So.

He’s had a supermodel girlfriend. And she might’ve dumped him. No wonder he’s in such an aggressive and rude mood, he’s probably devastated. Still trying to get over his failed relationship.

I can’t relate. I’ve never had a boyfriend. I’ve never even been on a proper date before, just a few drunken one-night stands that never led anywhere.

I suspect Cliff’s probably ripped up inside over his ex.

So, there’s probably more to Cliff Finn than meets the eye.

Maybe I was too quick to judge him.

Or maybe I should just quit now. Maybe he is a total dick, and I should get out now before he goes crazy on me. There’s enough red flags here to tell me so.

But what Dominika said to me still rings in my ear.

He likes you.

10

CLIFF

I open the front door of Rockpool and feel the cool nighttime air softly brush my cheek.

It’s late. The main street of New Water is quiet, it’s always eerie this time of night. The only sounds are the crashing of waves on the shore just around the corner. The sounds of any typical Australian small town.

I turn and lock the restaurant door behind me. Inside, Rockpool is dark. Silent. Even more empty than it was tonight with customers, and that’s saying something.