Vic, my sous chef, nodded and scurried toward the big walk-in cooler.
“Not the small-batch,” I said. “Grab the big one.”
He returned with a cupful a few moments later, so I added them to the batter and took it over to the griddle to cook them up.
Once I got that batch out the door, I immediately began mixing another. Three more orders had come in for them. I hummed as I cooked, simultaneously preparing a mess of eggs, some home fries, and the salmon. This was one of the best days of my life. Aside from having my children, I couldn’t think of a day I’d been happier. Maybe my wedding day, but that seemed lackluster lately.
These people were here to buy my food, and from the sheer volume of what had gone out the door already, there was no way this was all people who knew me well enough just to come to support me. I wasn’t sure I’d ever met enough people to keep my kitchen this busy, which meant that most of Mystic Hollow had probably come out for my big grand opening.
Yeah, it’s true our small town doesn’t get a lot of new businesses. But our people were loyal to their favorite restaurants. The fact that they chose my place, and kept ordering food, was a really good sign.
If every day was going to be like this, I was going to have to hire more staff. Wouldn’t that be the best? Open a new restaurant and immediately have to expand. Just the thought of it made me want to giggle. Harry had warned me over and over again that most businesses failed. He’d made sure I saved up every penny from my other job to open this place before he’d even consider the possibility that I was actually going to do this. And now, based on my first day, I felt like this was all worth it.
My adrenaline carried me through another huge batch of orders until one of the servers came in and peered through the pickup window. “Hey, Deva?”
I set a plate of home fries on the window. “Order up.” Then I gave her my attention as I wiped my hands on my apron. “What’s up?”
“Someone out here wants to compliment the chef.” She beamed at me, one of my newer servers. I’d been a little worried about how she’d do, but I hadn’t had anyone come give me horror stories, so she must’ve been doing okay.
I looked back and Vic gave me the thumbs up. “This is what we trained for,” he said. “Go.”
With my heart full, I gave him a big grin. “Okay. You’re right.”
As the owner, I wouldn’t always be able to be in the back of the house. Especially tonight. But the kitchen was rolling, and we really had trained for this, repeatedly. Vic was my sous chef for a reason. I’d chosen him because he worked well under pressure and knew my recipes inside and out.
Before I stepped out of the kitchen, I took off my apron, straightened my hair, and brushed the flour off of my black slacks. I wasn’t a messy cook, but flour got everyone, always.
Finally feeling confident… just kidding, I was terrified and nervous, but I forced myself out the door and out into the dining room.
Holy schmoly. Every table was full. I looked around at my brightly lit restaurant. Every external wall was windows, letting in all possible natural light from the setting sun. It lit the whole place in a golden glow, making it feel even homier, with the pale wooden tables, paintings of Mystic Hollow on the walls, and plants on every table and in the corners.
People sat around, talking, laughing, andeatingall my beautiful food! My gaze moved over all the familiar faces of people in my town. Some were my friends. Some were little more than acquaintances. But they all seemed to be here, tonight, supporting me. It was an incredible feeling!
“Who wanted to see me?” I asked the hostess quietly.
Before she had a chance to answer, my gaze connected with a very familiar face, and I knew. “Deva,” one of my best friends, Carol, squealed. She jumped up from a table in the front and ran over to me, closely followed by our other good friend Beth. If only Emma, who moved away a long time ago, could be here, then it’d feel like I had my whole support system here for my big night.
Beth and Carol wrapped their arms around me and we swayed back and forth, one step away from jumping up and down and laughing. They had been with me, the countless hours I worked overtime as a receptionist to save for this place. They were there with me, tasting my recipes and giving feedback, going over the designs for the restaurant. Even taking my calls late at night when my confidence wavered.
I owed so much of my success to them.
“Deva,” Carol said in my ear. “It’s all so wonderful!”
When I finally pulled back, it was to face my two beaming best friends. “Thanks! But you guys didn’t have to request to give your compliments to the chef,” I said with a laugh.
But Carol frowned and shook her head. “It wasn’t us.”
“That was me,” a deep, alluring voice said. A voice I knew all too well.
“Marquis,” I whispered as I turned around. “You came.”
Marquis was every woman’s dream. A tall, black man with hair neatly trimmed, deep brown eyes, and a smile that was meant to break hearts. But more than that, he was kind. Ridiculously kind. As the town doctor, dealing with all the annoyances of a small town, I’d expect him to be a little harsher or more callous at this point. But he wasn’t. He was gentle, patient, and everyone loved him.
If he hadn’t gone off to college in another town after graduation, I could imagine my life might have gone a little differently, even if I’ve never told anyone that. Even in high school, I’d felt a pull to him, but he’d always been so shy, and I kept to myself, so we were never anything more than acquaintances.
My heart pounded both in appreciation and in hurt because Marquis had come to my big grand opening, and my husband hadn’t. I tried really hard not to compare the two men when Marquis would spot me in the store and come help me get something down from up high, while my husband sat beside me on his phone, not even noticing, but sometimes it was impossible not to.
Especially tonight.
