"This is good."
The surprised exclamation from Cale drew Alex away from her thoughts. She glanced curiously his way to see him lifting the top bun of his burger to peer at what was underneath as he enthusiastically chewed the food in his mouth. Smiling slightly, she said, "It's just a cheeseburger. Have you never had one before?"
Cale shook his head, too busy biting into the burger again to actually answer with words.
Alex chuckled softly and took another bite of her own burger, watching with amusement as Cale once again opened his burger to look at the fixings.
"A burger is beef, oui?" he asked, peering at the patty.
"Yes," she said with a laugh.
"And these little white things?" he asked, poking at the fixings on top.
"Reconstituted onions," she answered.
"Reconstituted?"
"They dry them out and ship them to the restaurant, where they're soaked in water to reinflate them before putting them on the burgers."
"Why?" he asked with surprise.
Alex shrugged. "Perhaps they feel real onions would be overpowering on the little burgers. They use real, fresh onion on the larger burgers."
"Hmm." Cale took another bite, apparently not bothered that these onions had been dehydrated and then rehydrated before landing on his burger.
Alex watched him for a moment, surprised by how much he seemed to be enjoying the simple meal. He was eating like a starving man, she thought, and then shook her head and turned her attention back to her own food.
"So," Cale murmured as he swallowed the last bite of his burger and turned his attention to the little packet of fries. He took one of the pale sticks out and peered at it curiously, then continued, "If you found someone who would manage both businesses at a low wage, you could return to cooking? "
"In my dreams," Alex muttered, and popped a fry into her own mouth. A good business manager to oversee both restaurants would cost at least twice what she was paying either of her head chefs, who while carrying the title head chef, were actually working as sous-chefs or even station chefs. She herself was still making all the decisions, creating the menu, managing the staff, handling scheduling and payroll and doing all the other things a head chef usually dealt with. She just wasn't getting to cook anymore.
"This would make you happy, oui?" Cale asked, and his accent was thicker than usual.
Alex glanced up to see that he was watching her solemnly as he awaited her answer. That, as well as the fact that his accent had thickened, made her suspect that her answer was important somehow.
"Of course it would," she answered honestly. "I hate the business end of things. I am not an organized type person by nature. I'm more a creative sort, used to chaos."
"Chaos?"
Alex nodded. "Flour and other ingredients everywhere, the clang of pots and pans, the clack of dinnerware, the smell of Italian seasonings or spicy herbs from the entrees competing with the vanilla and lemon from the dessert area." She shrugged. "It's usually controlled chaos in the kitchens every night, and I love it. Sitting in an airless little office trying to make the debit and credit columns balance is like some sort of torture to me." She sighed. "Besides, while I've always thoughtof myself as an easygoing, diplomatic sort, I've found that I'm really not very good in a crisis."
Alex grimaced, and told him, "I'm afraid I've been reduced to shrieking a couple of times this last week when things went wrong. I guess the stress is getting to me."
"Hmm." Cale cleared his throat and said, "Then I think I can help get you back to cooking, Alex."
"How?" she asked with surprise.
"I am not really a chef."
Chapter Five
"What? What did you just say?"
Cale considered Alex's expression, and said more slowly, "I'm not a chef. I am a businessman."
"But you-I hired you to-Oh my God!" Panic on her face now, Alex stood up and began to search her pockets.
When she came up with her phone and began to punch in numbers, Cale frowned and stood up as well. "Who are you calling?"