Yes Chef, No Chef - By Susan Willis Page 0,67
Sort of a go between?”
Tim felt like they were back at school and his big sister was fighting off the bullies and the hair on the back of his neck prickled with annoyance at her. Who the hell did she think she was, waltzing in here with the pretence of having lunch and pestering him about Kate as though she alone always held a magic wand?
“No!” he snapped and then took a deep breath. Remembering the other diners he lowered his voice, “That won’t be necessary, Jenny. I can fight my own battles thank you very much.”
Her eyes blazed with temper now and between clenched teeth she hissed, “You idiot, you’re crazy to let her get away. You should be round there on your knees begging her to forgive you.”
He leant forward over her shoulder and very close to her ear, he growled, “It’s none of your bloody business.”
He was seething but knew causing a scene in the dining room wouldn’t do his reputation any good. Straightening up he forced a tight smile onto his face and shook hands with Greg. “Great to see you, Greg,” he managed to say. “Hope you enjoy the food.”
Turning to walk away from the table he didn’t speak to Jenny but saw her slowly shaking her curls in disbelief.
He practically slammed the office door from its hinges and stood with his back against it breathing deeply and fighting to stay in control of his temper. It had been a while since his temper had been tested and he’d forgotten how uptight he was capable of becoming. His heart was racing, he could feel his face flushing, and he was sweating profusely. Briefly, he thought of how much relief a glass of wine would give, ‘but no,’ he declared loudly, he wasn’t going down that road again and certainly not because of his god-damn sister.
Grabbing his jacket he called across the kitchen to the new chefs, Simon and Jessie, “If you can manage OK I’m popping out for fifteen minutes?”
As he hurried through the door he heard Yes Chef, answers called back to him and he strode down Great Marlborough Street with his hands pushed deep inside his pockets. He was determined to walk the temper out of his system. Why did she have to be so bloody interfering he raged, and like he’d done with his father he racked his brains to think where the aversion to Jenny had come from? He remembered their schooldays and how she’d always been daddy’s little golden girl and specifically the one who won every family argument hands down. Was it jealousy, he wondered? And if it was, he sighed heavily, how pathetic and juvenile did that make him. Maybe he was jealous because the small amount of time dad had spent at home was always commandeered by Jenny and not him – she’d always had his full attention. He turned the corner down into Soho reasoning that if he could forget the resentment against his father and put it behind him then surely he could do the same with Jenny.
His breathing was calmer now and his heart rate back to normal when he stopped to look at a shop window in Soho with a display of the most incredible cupcakes he’d ever seen. The window was black and dark with a glass four-tier cake stand which was lit in pink and green neon lights and held every variety of cupcake possible. The display was amazing and he decided to take a selection back to the restaurant for his staff - it would help to show how much he appreciated their hard work.
The interior décor of the shop was all black granite quartz which sparkled enticingly on the full length cabinet crammed with cupcakes. It wasn’t a typical cake shop as such because it only sold cupcakes and he whistled appreciatively through his teeth at the unique marketing tool behind the shop.
“Hi,” said the tall blonde assistant behind the counter. “What can I get for you?” She was dressed in black T-shirt and trousers with a long brown leather apron tied around her slim waist.
Tim smiled. “Er, could you do me a selection of ten? Definitely the lemon, chocolate and vanilla, and then any others that are good?”
She looked at him full in the face and he gaped into the deepest, bright blue eyes he’d ever seen. Christ, but she was gorgeous, what a stunner and then immediately glanced at her left hand. No ring, he noted but