Chapter 51
Chapter Fifty-One
I t was probably the first time that Anna had arrived early to a party – but after spending a day and a half battling with her business plan, she just wanted to get out of the house.
Carla always claimed New Year’s Eve was her favourite night of the year, so Anna had fully expected to find her at the hotel bar when she got there, but she was nowhere to be seen.
After giving her a glass of wine, Ivy told her she should finish her shift soon, before moving away to serve more customers.
A quick glance around the dining room told Anna that most people were on dessert.
That meant Warren should also finish work before long.
She glanced at her watch and fought the urge to go into the kitchen looking for him – she’d already messaged him to say she was on her way, so he’d join her when he could.
The worst thing about sitting at the bar on her own was the speed at which her wine went down. At the rate she was going, she’d be drunk by the time anyone joined her.
Thankfully, it wasn’t long before Warren appeared.
“You look good,” she said, running a hand down the front of his dark shirt .
“Thanks.” He gave her a kiss, but failed to focus on her. “Have you seen Lewis?”
“No.”
“I’m going to check and see if he’s in the office.”
Anna clenched her teeth. “Nice to see you, too.”
“Sorry. I just really want to talk to him before the evening gets into full swing.”
“Fine. I’ll just continue sitting here on my own.”
“Where’s Carla?”
“I don’t know. I’ll message her.” She fumbled in her bag, then let out a low groan. “I think I forgot my phone.”
She’d messaged Warren just before she was about to set off, and vaguely remembered setting her phone aside to put her coat on.
“You don’t need your phone. Everyone you want to hang out with will be here soon.”
He was right, but it did nothing to make her feel better. “Why do I feel as though this night is going to be a disaster? I was fed up with being at home, but now I’m wishing I hadn’t left my couch.”
“What’s wrong?” he asked with a frown.
“I just had a stressful day. Apparently, working on a business plan isn’t my happy place.”
“I don’t think it’s many people’s idea of fun.” Again, he seemed distant, and he caught Ivy’s eye across the bar. “Have you seen Lewis?”
“No. I thought he and Erin would be here by now.”
“I’m going to check the office quickly,” he said.
“Why don’t you just wait and talk to him another time? Maybe when I’m not hanging out at the bar on my own?”
“I want to get it over and done with.” He gave her arm a squeeze. “Carla will be here soon. And I won’t be long.”
“Fine. But I’m annoyed with you. ”
He gave her another quick kiss, apparently undeterred by her emotional blackmail.
Finding the office empty, Warren made a hasty decision to catch Lewis at home.
It would be easier to speak to him there anyway – away from the bustle of the hotel.
After deciding to grovel to Anna later, rather than go back and tell her of his plan, he made a dash for the front door, then almost collided with Carla, who was coming the other way.
“Is the party that bad?” she asked. “You’re running away already?”
“No. I just need to nip over to Lewis’s place. I’ll be back soon.”
“See you later,” she said flatly.
He felt a pang of guilt, despite Anna insisting that Carla’s recent low mood wasn’t because of him. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah,” she said, continuing inside without glancing back at him.
He blew out a sigh, which fogged in front of his face and made him debate going back for his coat. It was only a five-minute walk, though. At a brisk pace, he could be there quicker than that.
He shivered as Lewis answered the door, dressed smartly in a pair of jeans and a shirt.
“Hey!” His forehead wrinkled in confusion as he opened the door wider. “I thought you’d be at the hotel. We’re heading down there soon.”
“I just came from the hotel,” he said, swallowing hard as he stepped inside. “But there’s something I want to talk to you about, and I wanted to do it before the party.”
Lewis shook his head as he closed the door. “If you’re handing in your notice on New Year’s Eve, I’m going to be so annoyed with you.”
“Of course I’m not handing in my notice,” Warren said, struggling to comprehend that was a genuine concern. When Anna had mentioned it, he hadn’t taken it very seriously.
“Today? Or generally?”
“Generally,” he said with force. “Why would you think I’m quitting?”
Lewis sucked in a breath and led the way to the kitchen.
“Because you’ve been in a bad mood recently.
More so than usual. And I know you weren’t happy with me for commenting on the way you run the kitchen.
Also, because I’m reasonably certain that at least one restaurant owner around here has been trying to poach you. ”
Warren lifted his eyebrows.
“They have, haven’t they? If they’re offering you more money, you know I’ll match it.”
Warren sank into a chair at the kitchen table. “I’ve had job offers. But I never considered any of them.”
“Really?” The relief was clear in the sag of Lewis’s shoulders. He opened the fridge and pulled out two bottles of beer. Without bothering to ask, he popped the tops off and handed one to Warren.
“Did you come to talk to me about Anna?” Lewis asked after sitting and taking a long swig.
“No. Well, yeah, but that wasn’t the main thing.”
“What then?”
Warren rubbed the back of his neck. “I lied on my CV.”
“What?” Lewis asked, squeezing his eyes closed in confusion.
“When I applied for my job, I lied on the application.”
Lewis stared at him. “That’s what you want to talk about?”
“Yes.”
“ Now? After four years working for me?” He snorted in amusement and leaned back in the chair. “At this point, I assumed we were never going to have this conversation, but if you feel the need, go ahead.”
Warren let his words sink in. “You already knew?”
“Of course I knew.”
Stunned, Warren struggled to find words. “I asked you if you’d checked my references…”
“Yeah. If I recall correctly, I told you your cooking spoke for itself. I never said I hadn’t checked your references.”
Warren’s eyes widened. “So you did check them?”
“Do you think I’m stupid?” Lewis cocked his head. “I wouldn’t employ you without speaking to your previous employers.”
“Oh my god,” Warren said, dragging his hands through his hair.
“Your former employers spoke highly of you. I was only surprised to learn that you weren’t the head chef at your last place. Or anything close.”
Warren winced. “What did he say?”
“That you were hardworking and ambitious. His main issue with you was that you were too ambitious. He said you wanted to run the place.”
“Why the heck did you hire me?”
“I liked you. Your food was far better than anyone else I’d interviewed, and I thought being overly ambitious probably wasn’t a bad quality.”
“But you knew I’d lied…”
“I thought being under-qualified would mean you’d work extra hard to impress me. Honestly, I thought you’d confess eventually, but you were great at your job and the restaurant was getting rave reviews, so I didn’t think it was a big deal. After a while, it felt irrelevant.”
Warren rested his elbows on the table and hung his head. “It never felt irrelevant to me.”
“Why did you suddenly feel the need to tell me? ”
Warren huffed out a humourless laugh. “Because I’m in love with your sister. I had to tell her the truth, which meant I had to tell you. Also, I think I just got sick of feeling like I was living a lie.”
“That seems a little dramatic. At the end of the day, you’re great at your job.”
“I always felt as though I was faking it and was waiting for the day I got found out.”
“I feel the same about the hotel,” Lewis said. “I had big aspirations to manage a hotel one day, but owning the place still feels surreal.”
“You actually have qualifications in the hotel business, though.”
“Yeah. But the hotel fell into my lap.” He shrugged. “As far as imposters go, I think we’re both doing a great job of fooling everyone. Maybe we know what we’re doing after all.”
“Maybe,” Warren conceded.
Lewis’s mouth twitched at the corners. “Did you just say you’re in love with my sister?”
“Yeah. But I haven’t told her that yet, so you can keep it to yourself for the time being.”
“She’s going to be really impressed that you told me first.”
“Maybe don’t mention this conversation. At least not until your best man speech. She might think it’s cute then.”
“Best man speech!” Lewis grinned. “Are things that serious?”
“Do you really think I’d get involved with your sister if I wasn’t serious?”
“No. Which is partly why I’d never have any issue with it.”
“Partly?” he asked.
“I think you two are well suited – in a weird, opposites-attract kind of way.”
“I don’t think we’re all that different. Not really.”
Lewis nodded.
“She’s not dating Hayden, by the way,” Warren said, grinning.
“Yep.” Lewis fought a grin of his own and took a swig of his beer. “Sorry about that. Apparently, I had bad information.”
“It seems like it.” He paused. “What were you saying before about matching any offers I’d got from other restaurants?”
“I thought you might bring that up again.” He heaved in a breath and looked suddenly serious. “You know, if you ever wanted to move on to something else, I’d understand… I wouldn’t like it,” he added quickly. “But I’d hate to think of you staying purely out of loyalty.”
“I’m not going anywhere,” Warren said.
“I know you think you can’t get a Michelin star if you stay at the hotel, and if that’s something you want to pursue, it’s understandable.”
“That’s not why I think it won’t happen.”
“Why then?”
“Because I don’t have any significant formal training. Restaurants with self-taught head chefs don’t generally get awarded Michelin stars.”
Lewis’s brow wrinkled tightly. “Most self-taught chefs probably aren’t as good as you.”
“It doesn’t matter, anyway. I don’t care about Michelin stars. I’m happy I get to do what I love for a living.”
At the sound of footsteps, they both looked towards the door as Erin appeared.
“You could have told me you were starting the party already,” she admonished with a smile. “I thought we were going up to the hotel.”
“We are,” Lewis said. “We were just having one drink here first. Do you want one?”
“I actually need to get back to the hotel.” Warren drained his beer. “I’m already in trouble with Anna. I need to go and grovel. ”
When he stood, Lewis did too, and they embraced tightly. “Good talk,” Warren said, chuckling as he released him.
“Wait, what did I miss here?” Erin asked.
“A lot of stuff,” Warren teased, earning himself a playful punch from Erin.
Then her eyes widened. “Did you and Anna get together?”
“Yes,” he said beaming.
She hugged him tightly. “I’m so excited, but I’d rather hear about this from Anna. Is she already at the hotel.”
He nodded and they moved towards the door. Despite having said she wanted to hear about it from Anna, she still bombarded him with questions while they walked.
As he answered them, he grinned so widely that his cheeks ached by the time they reached the hotel.