Catering to Love (6 page)

“Want this cart too?”

“I didn’t ask for the cart, did I?”

“No sir, you did not, but it’s probably not a good idea for you to be sarcastic.”

“Sorry,” he said coolly. “You can work with Leslie in pastry. She could use all the help she can get.”

“Okay. I can do that,” Gabi responded, trying to pretend his aloofness didn’t bother her. “It sounds like you’re from New York.”

“I am.” He turned. “If you’ll excuse me, I don’t have time for chitchat right now.”

“Oh, sure,” she said, her confidence dwindling a little further. She did some self-talking and headed toward Leslie. Gabi knew it wasn’t going to be easy taking over a kitchen staff that had been working together for a while, especially with this Corey guy, who’d been running the show when the boss wasn’t around. And from the sounds of it, the owner hadn’t been involved in the kitchen all that much. Gabi needed to put herself in his place. He wanted to buy this
restaurant, and instead she bought it. She didn’t know what his financial background was, nor did she want to know. But it did appear giving him the benefit of the doubt about just having a bad day had been a little too generous.

He gave a slight smile and turned away. She headed in Leslie’s direction. “Hi, Leslie, are you ready for tonight’s menu?”

“Not yet, but I would like some help. The only thing is… well, I think you’re going to make me nervous.” Leslie was a young girl in her early twenties, taller than Gabi. Her dark hair was pulled into a ponytail and braided down her back.

“You don’t need to worry about that. Just pretend you’re in class. You know, I used to teach cooking classes.”

“You did?” Leslie’s eyes widened. “Okay, well then maybe you won’t make me nervous. I’m not perfect yet, but I’m working on trying to be.”

“The first thing you need to remember is you don’t need to be perfect. If you’re making something and it doesn’t turn out exactly the way you hoped, you figure another way to make it work.” Gabi looked at the recipes she had sitting on the counter. “What are you doing with this one?”

“Mrs. Carter wanted something a little different tonight for the special dessert, so I thought I’d make something chocolate…”

“I have a recipe for a dense chocolate cake that’s to die for. Want to try it?”

“Sure. Will it make me a star?”

Gabi grinned. “It’s certainly a start. I’ll get the ingredients.”

“Do you know where to get them all?”

“I don’t think it’ll be too hard to figure out.”

“You know the recipe without looking it up?”

“I do,” Gabi smiled, “and you will too.”

“I hope so.”

“Practice makes perfect.” Gabi left and headed into the walk-in, pulled a tray from the rack and filled it with eggs, milk, butter and sour cream, then made her way back out to the dessert station.

“Okay. So how many people are on the books for tonight?”

“I don’t know,” Leslie said, looking mortified. “Am I supposed to know that?”

“It sure helps. I’m sure you have other desserts, but this cake is so good, what will you do if you don’t have enough?”

“Tell them we’re out of it?”

“Hmm, probably not a good idea, but what if you made two of these cakes and only frosted one of them? You could freeze the other so it would be ready for when you needed it.”

“Yeah,” Leslie said, nodding, “I get your point. I’m sure I learned that in culinary school, but I’ve forgotten a lot of it.”

“I’m sure. Hands on is a lot different than answering questions on a test. Pretty soon procedures and remembering recipes will all be second nature to you.”

“You think so?”

“I know so.”

“Thanks, Gabi. I’m not nervous anymore.”

Gabi grinned. She was happy to receive some encouragement from a staff member. “And just so you’ll know, checking the reservations is one of the first things you should do. So starting tomorrow, you take a headcount and
then check again later to see if the number has increased or decreased.”

“I will definitely do that.”

Gabi noticed Corey glancing in their direction every once in a while. His scowl deepened, but she wasn’t going to let his attitude ruin her good mood. Changing his mind about her would be like running against the wind. Not many people liked change, but she had strong shoulders and was ready for the challenge.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Okeydokey, it’s easy to see you’re going to have some tough sledding with this dude. That scowl on his face will be hard to overcome. Just make sure you keep your back to the wind to propel you forward and not knock the starch out of your sails.

Now keep your eye on the goal by adding the sugar and butter to a bowl. Using an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugar by beating the crap out of it until it’s light yellow in color and all puffed up. Beating the crap out of Corey might be more fun, though. Either way, getting into the beating will simultaneously alleviate the stress he’s creating that’s making you feel so insecure.

You never know, though, your charm might just allure him to your side. And then again, maybe not. But go for it anyway!

Okay, so slowly mix the remaining dry ingredients into the puffed-up butter mixture. And speaking of
puffed up,
that’s just like Corey’s ego, don’t ya think? Now, in a separate bowl, blend the wet ingredients all together before you take the next step. Blending is a good thing—you just need to show him how that works. Once all the wet ingredients are mixed together, pour into the dry ingredients and whip until thoroughly incorporated.

Pour the batter into two 9-inch cake pans that have been greased and dusted with cocoa powder. Bake in your preheated oven for approximately 35–40 minutes or until the cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean. Allow cake lots of time to cool before frosting.

Blend together until smooth and creamy. Frost the top of one round, place the other round over the top, and frost the entire cake. Refrigerate for no less than 1 hour before serving. Serve with a dollop of whipped Corey—err, cream.

Corey Edwards gave an internal groan when he saw her walk into the kitchen. Sure, she was adorable. He’d give her that. Petite in height, she came right up to the top of his shoulder when she stood next to him. And forget that short blond hair that framed her angelic face or that curvaceous figure of hers that would make any guy drool. But not this guy. Nuh-uh, not this guy! He was too smart to fall for that. She wasn’t fooling him with that appealing smile that curved just at the right angles and made her caramel-colored eyes sparkle. No. It wasn’t happening. He didn’t care how many times she batted those long, thick lashes; he would not be drawn into her world. Not this time. She was a woman, and women couldn’t be trusted.

Corey scrubbed a hand over his face trying to ignore the fact that Gabi was even in the room. “Yeah, how’s that going for you, bud?” his subconscious mind asked. “
No
,” he mentally shouted. Even being remotely interested in her was not an option. He’d already been involved with one pretty little thing and look where that got him. In a very deep hole that he was having a hard time getting out of.

Sure, Victoria Brenner had the same kind of cuteness this broad did, and it had been way too easy to fall in love with her. The
New York Times
had even labeled them a power couple. He shook his head. Their friends were envious. She had a budding career in journalism; he had a restaurant on the rise in the heart of Manhattan. Corey swallowed hard, the bitter pain still chiseling away inside his chest as he remembered the day he closed the doors at Le Petit Chateau and walked away. It had been the hardest thing he’d ever had to do—to walk away from a dream. It had been Victoria’s restaurant review and her gossip behind his back that had slowly destroyed what he’d painstakingly built. He still couldn’t believe she could do something so mean, but she had done it to get even with him because he’d broken it off with her. She’d been pushing the marriage card a little too hard for his taste. Corey shook his head, unable to understand. At the time he’d asked her to be patient and she seemed fine with it, but she must have spoken to her friends or someone, because she started placing demands on him and that’s when he’d decided she wasn’t the right woman for him after all. After growing up with demanding parents, he wasn’t looking for a wife like his mother.

And that’s what had brought him to New Hope. He liked the name, and it did give him new hope that he could rebuild his dream without the influences of New York City or anyone who knew him. But now it was this broad who had put the kibosh on him buying the place from the Carters. The fact that she’d be his boss was really sticking in his craw. Yeah, just what he needed, another woman making demands on him. He released a heavy sigh, annoyed that he’d done a two-step trying to get the Carters to float a loan for him. He’d been banking on them helping him get back on his feet, but they’d
sold the place without so much as a warning. He could feel the tension building in his shoulders. He raised them up and down a few times trying to alleviate the tightness. In fairness, he couldn’t really fault the Carters for refusing. Having a bankruptcy on his credit record didn’t make him a good credit risk. Gabi’s voice cut into his thoughts, causing him to glance her way as she conversed with Leslie. Resentment filled him.

No. Getting close or trusting another woman was not in the cards for him—not anymore.

Joey leaned over. “Pretty little thing, isn’t she?”

“Yeah? You really think so?”

“Are you blind?”

“No, just weary of cute little things who walk in and out of your life. If she’s who you’re after, watch before you leap.”

“I didn’t say anything about being after her, man!” Joey shot back. “I said she was a pretty thing, and having someone who appears to be enthusiastic is just what this place needs. Fresh eyes and someone who’s excited about having her own place will promote harmony in the kitchen,” he mumbled. “We’ve never had that with Nell or John.” Joey grinned as he cut the fat off a large roast. “Yeah, I’m looking forward to having a new boss.”

“I guess you have a point there, but I don’t like working for women. Fortunately, I dealt very little with Nell, except when she had a bug up her patootie.”

“Yeah, well, I guess you’re about to get used to it if you want to keep your job.”

Gabi groaned from exhaustion as she eased her aching body into bed. Despite the ache filling her body, the excitement
still bubbled inside her over having a productive day. She gave a deep sigh of satisfaction and allowed the tension to release into the mattress as she stared at the ceiling and recapped the day. The filtered light peeking through the small opening between the drapes reflected on the ceiling and seemed to dance to the beat of her heart. She smiled to herself, remembering the childhood games she and her sister would play when they were too excited to sleep. She rolled over into a more comfortable position. She’d forgotten what hard work felt like. But this was a different kind of tired, one that said fulfillment was back on the rise in her life.