Page 75 of The Chef

I lower my gaze so that I appear as a berating schoolteacher glaring at Cliff like he’s a naughty schoolboy. “Then why have you written it with two Ts?”

“Let me have a look.” He snatches the menu off me and scans through it. I watch his eyes flicker across the words. “Oh, shit.”

“Yes. Shit.”

Cliff shrugs. “Who’ll notice?”

“I’m guessing all those food critics you’re inviting, that’s who.”

“If we lose a star because we misspelled posset then they’re just being pedantic.”

I sigh. “That’s not it, Cliff. Everything just has to be perfect. Don’t you get it?”

His lips form into a wide smirk. “I do get it.”

I playfully punch him on the shoulder. “Can you just be serious for a moment, Cliff?”

“Oh, I am serious.” Cliff reaches over and takes my head in his hands. And then he kisses me deeply. I lose myself in his touch, unable to keep up my anger at his spelling mistake when he’s so goddamn gorgeous. Not when he’s so goddamn good at kissing.

“This is serious,” I repeat, breaking off from his kiss. “We need to make sure everything’s good for tomorrow. We can’t afford any mistakes.”

“How about you forget all about this for the night. I’m sure everything’s good, you’ve been at this for the last few days practically twenty-four-seven.”

He’s right, but there’s a reason why I’m working so hard.

I can’t afford to lose this job.

I can’t afford to lose Cliff Finn.

“No, I can’t let this be,” I say. Cliff reaches back over and starts kissing my neck tenderly. I gasp at his lips touching my exposed neck. His lips on my skin make my body hot, but I try to power through. “I have to keep working until the party to make sure everything’s ready.”

I can’t give in to temptation. Not now.

“Stop for the night,” Cliff moans as he continues kissing my neck. My hand grabs the back of his head to try and stop him, but it’s a feeble attempt and he easily swats me away. He is biting at my flesh like he’s consuming me. I gasp again as his mouth nears my ear. He begins nibbling at my earlobe and I feel so bright inside. His lips are wet with the red wine, and I know he’s leaving a dark red trail up along my skin as he ravishes me.

“I… can’t do this… gotta keep… working.”

But it’s useless trying to resist him. I embrace his touch. His lips. His wandering hands as they circle my breasts greedily. I moan when his fingers squeeze my erect nipples when he forcefully grabs my tits in each hand.

“Admit it, Bay,” Cliff whispers. “You want this.”

“I do,” I breathlessly say, shivering at his touch. “I want this. And I want you.”

Cliff stands up and, without a warning, picks my entire body up in one go. He lifts me into his arms and carries me out of the manager’s office, careful not to bang my head on the doorframe on the way out and he takes me into Rockpool’s kitchen. I giggle in excitement as his muscular body treats me like nothing. He carries me like I weigh no more than that glass of red wine he brought into the office. He takes me right into the kitchen and lays me against the main counter. I open my lips to breathe in after the surprise of being taken like that but before I can do anything his lips are around mine and I’m sucking him in totally.

His hands reach down and part my legs, his fingers strong against my thighs.

He can do whatever he wants with me.

Whatever.

He.

Wants.

I’m all his.

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