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T he next morning, she decided to wear her hair down and put on a black skater dress with a thin black-patent belt. She slid on her black pumps, grabbed her bag from last night, and then drove down to the city.

Once again, she managed to park in almost the same spot. Walking down and into the courtyard Lucy was greeted warmly by Roger.

“Hi, Lucy. Boss should be back early this arvo. He’ll probably drive you crazy.”

Lucy laughed. “That’s okay. Everything’s organized. Just have a couple more reports to print out. I’ll do a last-minute check to make sure everything’s ready to go.”

“Boss called me late yesterday and again this morning worrying.” Roger grinned. “It’ll make him one happy man to know it’s under control!”

“I hope so.”

“Want a coffee to take with you?”

“Love one.”

“Come on. I was just on my way to get one.”

Together, they walked into the coffee shop. The staff were busy, but Roger slipped behind the counter. He touched the enormous coffee machine.

“You got a license for that?”

“Yep. Fully fledged barista. What can I make you?”

“I’d love a latte, two sugars please.”

“One latte coming up.”

Intrigued, she watched Roger deftly make her coffee then hand it to her with a vast flourish. He’d even made a pretty fern leaf design on the top.

“Such talent!” She grinned at him as she took the mug. “Thank you.”

“He’s just showing off,” one of the girls behind the counter said with a grin. “Normally he makes us brew him one.”

“Ah, now I see. Well, thanks anyway, Roger.”

“You’re welcome. Catch up later. Remember when you’re ready for lunch just pop down and see Brad.”

Lucy thanked him again, smiled at everyone, and left. Thinking it wise to see Brad first, she called into the restaurant.

“Lucy! How’s it going?”

“Fine. I hope I’m not too much trouble for you. It looks so busy.”

“Nonsense. This is just the normal Friday prep time. Besides, I’m not one of those ogres who hates visitors in my kitchen. This is one big happy family.” He leaned down and whispered, “Anyway, I make them do all the work. In any case, there’s no rush until around twelve-thirty.”

Relieved, Lucy said, “That’s good to hear.”

“Got Barramundi on special today.”

“Mm, sounds delicious.”

“Good. You can be the official taste tester.”

Thanking Brad, Lucy climbed the stairs. She threw her bag on a chair in the corner of the office and dived into work.

By eleven-fifteen, she had everything organized, reports generated and printed out, bank statements, ledgers, and payrolls all checked. She figured it was time to have lunch, then do a final check before the owner showed up.

Feeling a little self-conscious, Lucy wandered down to the restaurant and went into the kitchen. One of the cook staff greeted her and gestured to Brad that she was there.

There were people yelling out orders, and chefs running to and fro, it looked like a mad house. How anyone made sense of it all was beyond her.

Brad directed operations in the kitchen like a symphony conductor. He waved at Lucy and then continued to beat time to the troops.

Someone shouted to a sous-chef, and Lucy tried to shrink against the wall to keep out of everyone’s way.

Brad was back in a few minutes with a steaming plate for her. Taking it from him, she carefully slipped out between staff.

Lucy found a seat outside to enjoy her meal and enjoy it she did. Fresh, snow-white fish with a crust of macadamia nuts was perfectly steamed along with sautéed fresh vegetables. The sprinkling of herbs complemented everything.

Lucy was sorry when she finished. Picking up her plate, she carried it back into the kitchen and gave Brad the thumbs-up. He grinned at her as she left as quickly as she could without getting in anyone’s way.

For the next few hours, Lucy triple-checked everything. By three-thirty, confident everything was in order to send across to the accountant, she wondered if she should pile all the folders up together or wait until the owner showed up so she could go through things with him.

“Probably the best way to go,” she muttered to herself.

She’d grab a coffee while she waited for him to arrive. Going down the hall, she made her drink, took it back to the office, and tried to relax for a little while. Just before four, she heard voices down the corridor getting closer and figured it must be the mysterious ‘boss’ arriving back.

It was always a little nerve-wracking to meet an owner.

And this one seemed to be completely stressed about the work needed for the audit—not that she blamed him.

Her tummy kind of knotted nervously, and she wished she hadn’t drunk the coffee.

She stood and put her empty mug on top of the back cabinet just as the door opened.

Turning around, she got the biggest shock of her life when two men walked in.