“Okay,” Nikki breathed. “Let’s hear it.”
It was a nervous occasion for them both, and although Nikki knew what Frank was about to say, she was still anxious about how Amy would react.
Frank read Trish’s request concerning Amy’s and Nikki’s acquisition of the Nestled Inn and the clause that Amy had to run the establishment for a year alongside Nikki.
“Wait, what?” Amy asked and turned to Nikki. “You knew about this, didn’t you?”
“Yes,” Nikki replied.
Amy scoffed. “Unbelievable. And here I was thinking that you had come to find me so we could ‘reconnect,’” she mocked, using air quotes. “You just wanted a pansy—someone to carry on the business becauseMomcan’t,” she said with disdain and crossed her arms. “No!” she said emphatically.
“Amy, it’s not like that,” Nikki tried to explain. “She didn’t want to lock you in for life, so she just wanted to give you a year to test things out. And that’s not the only reason she wanted to find you.”
“It’s just a coincidence that I wasn’t found until now, though, right? You know what?” she said and got up. “I don’t want anything to do with this. The two of you can go and find another daughter she might have given up.”
And with that, she stormed out of the office, leaving a perplexed Frank staring at an even more confused Nikki.
ChapterFourteen
Paul was getting ready to head out in his boat for an early morning ride when his phone rang.
It had to be the restaurant. That was his first thought.Or Sarah!
He made a mad dash for the device and breathed a sigh of relief when he saw it wasn’t Sarah.
“Hello?” he answered cautiously.
“Paul, sorry to wake you,” Ken, his head chef, said on the other end.
He knew it. It had to be the restaurant.
“You didn’t. What’s wrong?”
Ken chuckled lightly. “You were always so insightful.”
“It’s not every day I get a call from my head chef at six in the morning,” Paul replied.
Right away, a bout of coughing gripped Ken, and Paul knew why he had called. “You’re sick?”
“Yeah,” Ken replied. “I got bit by the flu bug. I’m afraid I’ll have to be out for a couple of days.”
“That’s alright, man,” Paul replied with understanding. “There’s nothing you can do about it.”
“Do you think you can maybe take over for me? For just a few days?”
“It’s too late to get anyone else anyway,” Paul replied. “Don’t worry about it. I’ll figure something out. Feel better.”
“Thanks, man,” Ken said and hung up in the middle of a cough.
Paul stood by the doorway as excitement and trepidations swirled inside him. It was far too late to get another qualified chef. He would have to take over at the restaurant. It wasn’t something he’d done full-time since he’d discovered he had a heart condition.
But it had to be done.
His hands shook as he put on his chef whites and prepared to go to the restaurant later that morning. He chose not to announce to his staff before he arrived, so they were surprised and elated when they saw him walking into the kitchen dressed for work.
“Aw, man.” Will laughed. “Don’t tell me you’re coming back,” he joked.
Paul chuckled. “Just for a couple of days. Ken has the flu.”
