Page 49 of Babydaddy To Go

I roll my eyes. No one else in the class is this needy, but most everyone else is more talented than Samantha. This is what I get for getting involved with Alyssa. If we had never been together, she would still be in class and she’d be the one helping Samantha with menial tasks instead of me.

For the umpteenth time today, I miss Alyssa. She may have cheated on me and lied to me, but at least she was a good chef. She could have handled Samantha’s ridiculousness today far better than I am.

Samantha has the lobster dead and on its back with a slice cut down its stomach, which is exactly how I showed the class to do it earlier today.

“Find the liver, stomach, and intestines,” I instruct. Samantha gags while she searches the cavity. After a couple minutes, she locates the right organs. “Now toss those out and you’re ready to go.”

“Thanks,” she breathes.

“Is there anything else I can help you with?” I ask reluctantly.

Before Samantha can answer, my phone rings. I forgot to turn the stupid thing on vibrate before class started.

David’s name pops up on the screen.

“Class,” I shout over the commotion in the kitchen. “I need to take this call. Please don’t burn down the building while I’m in the hallway.”

A few students laugh. Others look genuinely terrified. How did I end up with half stars and half amateurs in the kitchen? No wonder the program has struggled to turn out lasting chefs for the last few years. The talent pool is lacking talent. I know I promised the school that I would try to better their statistics, but I’m not so sure I’ll be successful. I can only do so much with my students. Their success depends on how well they absorb the material and execute it in real life situations.

In the hallway, I answer David’s call.

“Hey, Nate,” he says, his voice sounding overly chipper. “I have great news! We closed on that property this morning. It’s all yours!”

This is the worst news I’ve heard all day.

“Un-close on it then,” I growl. “I don’t want it anymore.”

“Whoa, whoa, hold on a second,” David says. “What’s going on? Like three days ago we were both excited about this. What changed?”

“Everything changed!” I tell him.

The red-haired boy peeks his head out the door. “Mr. Glover, I just wanted you to know that your voice really carries and that that Samantha person keeps walking by the door so she can hear your conversation.”

“I do not!” Samantha calls from inside the door.

It’s like I’m teaching middle school, and not aspiring professionals.

“I’m going to take this call outside. I’ll be right out that door,” I tell him, pointing to the closest exit. “If anything happens, come find me.”

He nods and returns to the classroom. Once outside, I take a deep breath.

“Listen, David,” I start calmly. “I know you can make it happen. Just tell the sellers that we’re no longer interested in buying.”

“Did Alyssa find out about the deal and get pissed or something?”

I growl. “Don’t ever say that woman’s name again!”

Though he’s on the other side of the phone, I can practically see David taking a step back at my harsh tone. “Nate, man, I don’t know what’s going on but I need you to calm down.”

I attempt another deep, calming breath but it’s no use. I’m too wired and angry. “I don’t mean to take it out on you. Just make the building go away, David.”

“This building is prime New York real estate and it was a miracle we got it at that price. There’s no way the seller is going to reverse the sale now. The guy just wanted to sell and get out of town. His granddaughter is having a kid or something and he wants to be closer to her.”

“Frankly, I don’t care about his granddaughter. All I care about is that he takes the building back.”

“I’ll say this one more time: It’s. Not. Happening. Now tell me why you want it gone so badly.”

I groan. “Can we put it back up on the market? You said it’s prime real estate, so we can probably make money on the sale, right?”