When she gets back from her singular task, things are suddenly very awkward. She has no idea how she’s supposed to move forward from here. Alexander, to be fair, looks no better off. She’s half-tempted to break his PDA rule and make out with him in the walk-in to pass the time.
Unfortunately, Hector walks in, and it’s suddenly so much worse. The redhead glares at the two of them, grumbling something under his breath that Eden’s sure isn’t anywhere close to a ‘hello.’
Freddie and Peter are the next two to show up. They’re chatting about some kind of vet appointment for their cat. Rina arrives not long after, and then the rest of the kitchen staff arrive, immediately putting away their coats so they can get to their opening duties.
Alexander takes the food out from the oven and sets it down on the counter, scooping a small portion of the now creamy, cheesy, bacon-sprinkled potatoes into a smaller bowl for Eden. She doesn’t waste time and takes a bite. It’s piping hot against her tongue, but the slight burn is totally worth it.
“What do you think?” Alexander asks, looking very much like a child seeking approval.
“This isamazing,” she says, already moving in for a second bite. It’s honestly so good that she’s speechless. She just wants to eat and eat and eat because it’s just that heavenly.
He has an undeniable gift. Maybe they both do.
He tilts his head to the side. “How would you improve it?”
Eden smiles. “If you hit it with a bit of thyme and garlic, I think this could be a hit. I think you should add it to your new menu.”
His smile is shyer, almost discreet. Eden wonders if it’s because everybody’s here now and he’s not used to being anything but a hard-ass head chef around them. She thinks it’s sweet, like his smiles are a private little secret just between them.
When Freddie, Peter, and Rina come over, he simply nods at them in greeting and walks away, getting ready to man the front of the line before service starts.
Freddie rubs his hands together. “What do we have here?”
“Can we try?” Rina asks.
Peter doesn’t even ask. He’s already stuffing his mouth full. “Yum. Did the boss man make this for you?”
The only reason she doesn’t respond ‘yes’ with the utmost pride is because Eden’s too busy trying to get a few more bites in. Some of the other chefs show up, curious and eager to give the dish a try.
The whole thing is devoured within a minute, not a scrap left over.
A definite hit.
Something’s different.
Alexander isn’t quite sure when it happened, but he realizes now that he’d been working beneath the heavy weight of a thick fog for years. It left his body languid and his mind cloudy. Unable to taste, unable to see, unable to care. But now?
Now he’s excited, and he’s starting to suspect his sous chef has something to do with it.
He almost breaks his own rule on numerous occasions throughout tonight’s service. Eden’s impossible to ignore. She’s honestly the best kind of distraction, orbiting around him like his own personal comet. He finds surprising comfort in her proximity, assured by her constant presence like the rise and set of the sun.
Alexander doesn’t think it’s a problem until he realizes he’s accidentally called out desserts before appetizers for table seven—a seriously amateur mistake in terms of timing—because being around Eden makes his whole body feel dopey. Maybe if she’d stop grazing up against him while he worked, he’d be able to focus.
On the other hand, he doesn’t actually want her to stop.
As a matter of fact, what he really wants is to take Eden into the walk-in and kiss the ever- loving daylights out of her. What he really wants is to take her to the kitchen office, shut the door, and bend her over his work desk. What he really wants is to strip her down and see her in nothing but her chef jacket—
“Chef?” Peter asks.
“Huh?”
“We’re closing up. You coming?”
Alexander blinks twice, suddenly realizing that the kitchen is quiet and the last few chefs are headed out the door. He can’t remember the last time he got through a shift this easily.
Everything went smoothly, minor issues popping up here and there, but nothing he and Eden couldn’t handle in an instant.
We make a pretty good team.
