Page 34 of Things We Need to Say (Second Chance Love Stories #2)
‘Not too bad. It’s just certain things that set me off.’ She reached for a glass and turned on the water tap. ‘I’ll just stick to the hard stuff.’
Jay laughed. ‘I’ve nearly finished the prep for tonight, then I’m all yours.’
‘I’ll give you a hand.’ Liz took off her jacket and lifted an apron from the hook on the wall. ‘What can I do?’
‘Coriander needs chopping and the ginger needs grating. Those smells don’t get to you, do they?’
‘No, that’s fine.’ She reached for a large Sabatier knife and began chopping the coriander. ‘I didn’t realise just how debilitating being pregnant would be. I naively assumed I would sail through to the last month when I was too big to work comfortably.’
‘You’ve had a rough time of it,’ Jay said. ‘But hopefully you’re entering an easier stage now.’
‘Here’s hoping. I’m just sorry it’s put more pressure on everyone else.’
‘It hasn’t helped that I’ve been tied up with the competition either,’ Jay said. ‘Are you going to be okay next week? I’m afraid I’m going to be away for most of it.’
‘Yes, I’ve got it covered. We haven’t got a great deal on, just a couple of functions at Diva’s.’
‘And talking of Diva’s, how’s Tia?’
‘Not too bad. She seems to have calmed down a bit since we’ve been using this kitchen more, but I still think something’s niggling her, so I tend to mostly keep out of her way.’
‘I don’t blame you. And what about Alex? Did he know anything about a charge for rent?’
‘No. He knew she was obsessing about us using the kitchen, but he wasn’t aware of her threat to charge us rent. He wasn’t happy about that and I gather Roberto isn’t either. They’ve decided they want to have a meeting with her to discuss a strategy for the future, but she’s being elusive.’
Jay took the chicken that was marinating for tonight’s main course out of the fridge, gave it a good stir, re-covered it and placed it back in the fridge.
‘I find that really strange. Maybe she needed them to help set things up, but now that everything’s running smoothly she wants to be in complete control.
She always was a bit of a control freak. ’
‘I agree, but I still think there’s something more. I just can’t put my finger on what.’
‘Hm, well, I guess we’ll just have to let Alex and Roberto sort it out and see what happens when the contract comes up for renewal.’
‘You know, the more I think about it, the more tempted I am not to renew the contract at Diva’s. Once the baby is born, I’m not sure it will work being at Tia’s beck and call, especially if I don’t have a business partner to lean on.’
‘What do you mean?’ Jay shut the fridge with a thump.
Liz stopped chopping and looked him in the eye. ‘What I mean is that we have to face facts. Both of us. You’re doing really well in this competition. In fact, I’ll suspect you’ll go all the way.’
He blushed. ‘Thanks.’
‘And if you do, you’ll have all sorts of offers. I wouldn’t want to hold you back. It’s always been your dream to open your own restaurant and I wouldn’t want your loyalty to me to get in the way.’
‘I’ve been thinking about that, actually.’ Jay began to pack up the utensils he would need for that evening into large plastic boxes. ‘In fact, I was talking to Angela about it the other day.’
‘I still can’t believe Angela Markham is one of the judges. I’ve always thought she was a brilliant chef.’
‘She is and she’s a really nice person too.’
‘I envy you.’
‘She said she thinks I’m a really good chef, but that I need more experience in the business side of things.’
‘Okay.’
‘I mean, there would be no point in rushing into owning my own restaurant, getting the numbers wrong and quickly going bust, would there?’
‘That’s very true.’
‘And when you have your baby, you’ll have your hands full, especially at first.’
‘Yes, I can imagine I will.’
‘So once the competition is over, could you show me what I have to do and I’ll take as much as I can?’
‘Okay, yes, I can see that working. But what about the functions, Jay? You can’t do everything.’
‘No. We’ll need get some extra staff. And I think I might have found a chef for us. I haven’t spoken to her about it, so it might just be pie in the sky, but she’s said she wants some experience working for larger numbers, so she might well be interested.’
‘And who is this chef, then?’
‘Her name’s Chloe — she’s one of my fellow competitors. She’s got talent and we get on well. She’s the one who saw off Louis.’
‘I see.’ Liz raised her eyebrows. ‘Well, she’s obviously got your approval, so you’d better sound her out and, if she’s interested, then we can fix a date for me to meet her.’
Jay grinned. ‘Great.’ His phone started to ring and, as he looked at the screen, the smile slipped from his face. He answered it. ‘Mum?’
‘Sorry to bother you, Jay. I know how busy you are.’
He frowned even more at the sound of her voice. ‘That’s okay. Is everything all right? You sound—’
‘Not it’s not. It’s your nan. She’s been taken into hospital. They think she’s had a heart attack.’
‘Which hospital?’ Jay asked immediately.
‘The Royal London.’
‘Are you there with her?’
‘Yes.’
‘Then I’ll be there as soon as I can.’ He put the phone back in his pocket and turned to Liz. ‘I’ve got to go. Nan’s in hospital. They think it’s a heart attack.’
Liz gasped. ‘Of course you must go. I’ll finish up here. And I can do the function tonight too.’
‘Would you? That would be great. Sorry, I’m not much use to you at the moment.’
‘Don’t be daft, Jay. Family comes first. Especially your nan.’