Page 4

Leo

And yep, I’m pretty sure I’m officially fucked when it comes to my new sous chef.

Fucked in that whole, I think she’s really hot and I seriously want to get in her pants kind of way. I am not supposed to be thinking about my sous chef like this. And I’m especially not supposed to be thinking of her in this way when she also happens to be the sister of my friend.

But I am and fuck me, if I don’t want to lean in and kiss her right now.

We are standing only inches apart; her hands are resting on my chest and my hand is lingering near her neck after I actually tucked some strands of hair behind her ear, like that is a totally normal thing for a boss to do to his newest employee.

And fuck my life, but all it would take now is me leaning in, closing the gap and my lips would be on hers and I could find out exactly what she tastes—

My dirty and highly inappropriate thoughts are suddenly cut off by the sound of something smashing on the floor. Hannah and I jump apart, as though we’ve both been sprung doing something naughty, which is sort of true. But when I glance around, no one is looking at us.

“Shit, sorry, Leo,” Tony, my third-year apprentice says, looking up from where he’s crouched on the floor, a broken plate and spilled food at his feet.

“All good,” I say, walking over. “You okay?”

“Yeah,” he says with a sheepish grin. “Didn’t realize the plate was hot.”

I tip my head toward the counter. “Heat lamps didn’t give it away?

” I ask, smirking so he knows I’m only giving him shit.

I could care less about a broken plate or some spilled food.

In the grand scheme of things, this kind of thing is nothing.

The only thing I care about is fuck ups when it comes to the actual cooking of food.

“Yeah, yeah,” he says, his cheeks reddening as he stands, the broken plate in his hands.

I laugh. “All good, throw that out and get a replacement out quick,” I tell him. “And here,” I add, handing him one of the plate cloths, “you might need this.”

He laughs at that, shaking his head as he throws the mess away and turns back to the food prep area. Knowing I don’t need to stand over him while he prepares a replacement dish, I make my way back over to where Hannah is working, both grateful and weirdly annoyed at the interruption.

Stopping in front of her, I notice Hannah has been watching the whole incident, a strange look on her face.

“You okay?” I ask, confused.

She shakes her head. “Man, if that had happened in my old job, it’s…wow.”

I chuckle, grabbing a spoon from the drawer. “Wouldn’t have been good?”

“Shit no,” she says, her cheeks flushing a little as she adds, “I mean, I’m pretty sure my boss’ head would have exploded and the person would’ve been immediately fired. But that…you, that was just—”

“Inspiring?” I tease with a wink.

Her cheeks darken as she bites on her bottom lip. And just like that, all those dirty thoughts I was having come flooding back. Fuck me, I want to bite that bottom lip.

“Yeah,” she eventually whispers, her eyes dark as they stare back at me. “Something like that.”

The rest of the night passes without incident and even though I don’t spend much time chatting with Hannah, I do discover that not only is her soup perfect for the upcoming seasonal menu, but also that she isn’t afraid to jump in and help with the boring tasks, like chopping onions or garnishing dishes, when we get a sudden rush on orders.

She’s exactly the kind of addition I want to my kitchen, from a completely professional point of view, obviously.

“So,” she says, as I wander over to where she’s wiping down the huge stainless-steel counters of the prep area.

“So,” I reply, leaning my hip against the counter as I cross my arms over my chest.

Hannah straightens, a smile on her face as she meets my gaze and holds it. “Do I make the cut?”

“Do I?” I immediately throw back.

She laughs now, mirroring my pose. “Um yeah, I’d say that was a definite yes.”

I nod, trying not to show how happy that makes me, even as my heart gives a hard thump in my chest. “And my kitchen?”

“Uh huh, also a definite yes.”

“The hours?”

“Yep,” she says with a nod.

“Start date?”

Another nod.

“The pay?”

She laughs again, shaking her head a little. “Hell yes, it’s a yes to everything, Leo.”

Now it’s me chuckling as I push off the counter and hold out a hand to her. “In that case, welcome to Somerville’s, glad to have you as part of the team.”

Hannah’s gaze drops to my hand before lifting to mine again. Stepping around the counter so she’s standing right in front of me, she slips her hand into mine and fuck me if a lightning bolt doesn’t shoot up my arm.

“Thanks,” she says, her voice lower now, huskier and totally sexy. “I’m really glad to be here.”

I nod, swallowing hard as I mentally tell myself to drop her hand so I don’t haul her against me and kiss the shit out of her.

“You gotta drive back to San Fran tonight?” I ask, still not letting go of her hand.

She gives me a strange look that I can’t decipher as I add, “I know you worked there, so I assume you live there too?”

A smile tugs at her mouth as her eyes sparkle with amusement. “I do, yeah, but I’ll crash at Dylan and Tessa’s tonight. I’ll probably need to move closer now if I’m working here.”

My dick is practically screaming at me to tell her she can crash at my place, even as my brain tries to tell it to calm down because it has no place going anywhere near my employees. Shaking my head at my idiotic thoughts, I say, “Yeah, it’s a long commute, so would probably be good.”

Hannah continues to watch me, our hands still joined as this weird tension crackles between us. I know she feels it too, that whatever this is, it isn’t one-sided. It’s written all over her face.

“Okay, we’re clear,” Holly, the head server shouts from the kitchen doors. “Staff drinks!”

Hannah’s eyes widen as I suddenly drop her hand, not wanting any of my staff to see us and get the wrong idea.

“Staff drinks?” she asks.

“Yeah,” I say with a smile. “We do it every Saturday after closing. You coming?”

She watches me for a few moments before her gaze moves around the kitchen, taking in the rest of the staff as they finish packing up, take their chef coats off and head out to the restaurant. It’s a relaxed vibe, always has been in my kitchen, but especially on Saturday nights.

It’s something I strived to do, having spent countless years working in the kitchens of egotistical pricks, and I’m proud that all of my staff are happy and hardworking and as result, loyal.

“Yeah okay,” she eventually says, with a shrug. “Why not.”

We finish our clean up and then ditch our chef jackets and follow the rest of the staff out to the restaurant. It’s filled with kitchen and front of house staff from both here and Somerville’s. We always get together on Saturday nights in the same place, alternating the restaurant each week.

Sometimes Jack and Lauren stop by, as do the tasting room staff and it’s always a fun way to unwind at the end of a long week, even if some of us sometimes have to get up early on Sunday for the brunch crowd.

“So this is a regular thing?” Hannah asks as I lead her over to the bar.

“Yep, every Saturday night,” I say, glancing over my shoulder. “It’s not a big night or anything, just a couple of drinks and a debrief of any shit that went down.”

Hannah laughs. “Everyone behaves themselves then?”

I smirk, meeting her gaze as I grab a cider, holding it up to her as if to ask if she wants one. She nods and I twist the cap off and hand it to her before grabbing one for myself. “Um, yeah,” I eventually say. “Most of the time, anyway.”

Her brows shoot up as she takes a sip of her drink. I watch, my gaze moving to her neck as she swallows. “I think I’m going to really like working here,” she eventually says, watching me.

I take a sip of my drink, giving her a wink as I say, “I think you will too,” even as my dick is practically raising its hand and screaming and we like you working here as well .

Fuck me.

“So, crashing with your brother huh, that must be fun?”

Hannah laughs as she takes a seat on one of the bar stools. “It’s not too bad. Tessa and I actually went to high school together,” she says as I move around and join her. “It’s been great connecting with her again, even if it is kinda gross to think she’s sleeping with my little brother.”

I chuckle. “Yeah, that would be weird,” I agree, even as my own dirty thoughts about fucking Dylan’s sister seem to be on permanent rotation in my brain. “They seem happy though.”

“Oh, they definitely are,” she says, smiling. “That’s also weird, for him anyway. He used to be a bit of a man whore and I don’t think I was the only one freaking out when he suddenly started settling down and getting all serious. And now he’s gonna be a dad, it’s like…god, it’s really weird.”

I nod, taking another sip of my cider as I glance at her hand, wondering if she has a significant other out there. She isn’t wearing a ring, but that’s not unusual given what we do for a living, so it’s not a guarantee she’s single.

It’s also not an excuse for me to continue thinking about her in that way or even consider asking her about it.

“So, anyone special for you?” I blurt out, because apparently my brain hasn’t got the memo to cut this shit out.

Hannah smiles as she takes a sip of her drink. “Not really a career that lends itself to relationships,” she says, giving me a coy smile.

“No, it’s not,” I agree.

“So, no one special for you then?” she asks, repeating my question back to me.

Now it’s me smiling at her, wondering exactly what this is that’s going on between us. It’s definitely more than two colleagues getting to know each other. There’s a flirtiness here, along with the obvious chemistry, which doesn’t seem to give a shit that I’m her boss and she’s my newest employee.

“Not really a career that lends itself to relationships,” I repeat with a casual shrug.

Hannah laughs, her eyes sparkling. “Well, unless you both work in the industry, right? Then it might work.”

I meet her gaze and watch as she pulls that bottom lip of hers between her teeth, her eyes locked with mine as we silently watch each other, almost as though we’re both daring the other to acknowledge what she’s just said or even to make the first move.

I want to, of that I’m certain, no matter how much I know it’s wrong, and the only thing that’s stopping me right now is the fact that this place is filled with Apple Jacks and Somerville workers.

God knows, I do not want to have to go through what Dylan went through, everyone gossiping and offering advice when he and Tessa were getting together.

“Well yeah, then it might work,” I eventually say, giving her a cheeky smirk.

She smiles now, a sexy smile that tells me she is so totally up for seeing where this thing between us could go. It’s dangerous and we both know it, but right now, I’m pretty sure neither of us gives a shit.

“It might,” she agrees, as she finishes off her cider.

I watch as she stands, my heart suddenly pounding in my chest as I wonder if she’s going to make a move, suggest we go back to my place or something. But she doesn’t, instead shooting me a smile as she says, “I guess I should get going.”

Disappointment curls through me, even as I know it’s the right thing for her to do. She just started working here, like literally six hours ago. How the fuck could hooking up with her boss be a good move?

Still, I can’t deny there’s a part of me that was expecting something different.

I stand, offering her a smile. “You okay to get home?” I ask, immediately thinking what a stupid question that is.

“Yeah, I’m good,” she says, smiling at me. “So, start Wednesday?”

“Start Wednesday,” I confirm.

She nods once. “Thanks, Leo. I really appreciate the opportunity you’ve given me,” she says, holding out her hand. “And I’m really looking forward to working with you.”

I slide my hand into hers, once again not missing the electricity that shoots up my arm. “Ditto, Hannah,” I say quietly. “Ditto.”