10. Lennon
10
LENNON
“W
e’re getting so many complaints already,” Jessica whispered as she dashed into the kitchen. “Rock, paper, scissors for who has to go ask Cassandra to do something about it.”
I laughed as I scooped spoonfuls of butter and herbs onto the beautifully caramelized New York strip, basting it to perfection. “You’re the front-of-house manager. Ergo, customer complaints are your problem. I only deal with complaints about dead cows. Not live ones.”
“Ms.Powell,” a server said as she pushed into the kitchen. “All the rooftop tables are requesting to be moved to the dining room.”
Jessica sighed. “Pull Terry to help you set the dining room tables and reseat the rooftop guests. We’ll tell walk-ins and the rest of our reservations that the rooftop has to be closed for maintenance.”
“Offer the re-seats a free dessert,” I told the server, then looked over my shoulder. “Javi, we’re about to have a lot of sweets going out.”
“Yes, Chef,” he hollered back.
“I’ll deal with the customers if you talk to Cassandra,” Jessica begged. “She scares me.”
She still scared me too, but I had learned long ago that pretending I wasn’t scared was necessary for survival.
“Ms.Powell, there’s a cow in the lobby,” a flustered server said.
The kitchen became too crowded for my liking. Employees kept coming in with customer complaints about livestock.
I handed the steak in my pan off to the expediter to let it rest and started untying my apron. “You handle the situation here,” I told Jessica. “I’ll deal with the cows.”
More like I would deal with the man in charge of the cows.
The proximity of the ranch’s cattle herd to the front doors of the restaurant was not a coincidence.
“Zach, keep things moving until I get back,” I shouted.
“Yes, Chef,” Zach Simmons, the saucier that Chef DeRossi had poached from a local competitor, said as he shifted to cover my station and his.
Julian scoffed. “Seriously?”
I looked Julian dead in the eye as I balled my apron in my hand. “You want my respect? You have to earn it. Chef Simmons stepped up yesterday when we had a rush. He has my trust.”
And with that, I strode out of the kitchen. I was past caring if I hurt Julian’s feelings by calling him out in front of everyone.
Sure as shit, there was a cow with pool noodles on its horns, taking a nap in the middle of the restaurant lobby.
Waiting guests were both horrified and a little curious.
“You have got to be kidding me,” I gasped, then immediately cupped my hand over my mouth.
The stench was putrid. Piles of shit dotted the neatly manicured lawns and pathways. Cows with rusty-brown and white patches roamed the lodge property, dotting the land all the way to the lake and beyond.
A handful of cows had indulged their curiosity and were seeing what the parking lot was all about.
A shadow of a man on a horse loomed in the distance.
I’d know that Stetson anywhere. It had covered my ass when I was being fucked against the wall of a bar.
“Unless these animals are going to walk themselves into the smokers, they need to leave,” I shouted as I stormed over to where CJ lingered beneath a tree.
The obnoxiously large black horse he was riding turned and glared at me.
A slow, nefarious smile curved like a sickle beneath the shadow of his hat. “I’m just giving the people—what’s everyone been calling it?” He snapped his fingers. “That’s right. The immersive cattle ranch experience. ” He sucked in a long breath, then blew it out. “Take it all in. You smell that? Smells like putting food on the table.”
I laughed in disbelief. “You are such a fucking asshole. Get the goddamn cows out of here.”
He let out a loud, caustic laugh. “And why would I do that? My cows gotta eat. How else are you gonna get those fancy, overpriced steaks to cook and serve? Or do I need to explain the food chain to you?”
I glanced down to make sure I hadn’t accidentally stepped in shit and pinched the bridge of my nose to stave off the stench. “There’s a cow inside the restaurant.”
CJ grinned. “Inside? That’s probably Mickey. He’s my niece’s pet. Kinda goes where he wants. He’s a people person. Might have gotten lonely in Cassandra’s office. He probably went hunting for some attention.”
He was saying all that as if it were normal.
“I don’t give a flying fuck that your pet cow?—”
“Gracie’s pet cow,” he corrected with a grin that annoyed me to the core.
“I don’t care whose pet cow it is!” I screamed. “Get it out before someone calls the health department and gets us shut down!”
He looked down from his literal high horse. “And what a shame that would be.”
“I don’t know what your fucking problem is with the restaurant, but it’s above my pay grade. Take it up with someone other than me and stop fucking around.”
The horse took a menacing step toward me. My head snapped in its direction, and I glared until it backed away.
CJ bristled.
I stabbed a finger up at him. “I swear, if I see a cow within fifty yards of the restaurant or lodge, I will draw and quarter you and hang your body on a meat hook in the walk-in cooler.”
“I’d love to see that, actually.”
I jumped, whirling around at the sound of Cassandra Griffith’s voice. Her cold demeanor was downright arctic today.
“Three things are going to happen, children.” She counted them off one by one on her fingers. “First, all livestock will be removed immediately. Second—” she turned to me “—I will see you in the office at my earliest convenience. And third—” she glared at CJ “—we are not playing chess with cattle, Carson. Christian is coming up to help you move the herd since you apparently cannot do your job, and then the two of you are going to have a chat.”
The horse opened its freakishly wide teeth and made a move for Cassandra’s hair.
“I swear to God, Anarchy—” Cassandra hissed.
The horse backed away.
CJ clenched his jaw, working it side to side. Finally, he tapped the horse with his boots. “Let’s go, Anny.”
Cassandra turned to me. “Office. Now.”
“I was trying to get him to move the cows,” I said as I headed back to the building.
Cassandra snapped her fingers. “Not your office. Mine .” She spun on her heels and strutted off through the field.
I had to jog to keep up with her pace, taking in the scenery as I was death-marched to my termination meeting. There was no way I was getting out of this, even if it wasn’t my fault.
He was family, and I was the help.
We rounded the bunkhouse and cut through the grass until we found a dirt path leading to a group of barns and outbuildings.
The trespassing cow wearing pool noodles had been shooed from the restaurant lobby, and was now making its way back to the livestock-friendly part of the ranch.
If I wasn’t in the process of being escorted to my own execution, it would have been a beautiful afternoon walk. The land was gorgeous. Grass rolled on for miles and miles on end. I hadn’t explored anything beyond the restaurant because I had no reason to. But after a short walk, it felt like we were in another world entirely.
“Are you coming in?” Cassandra asked.
It took me a moment to realize she was talking to the cow. I waited behind her as the massive beast lumbered into the office, where it plopped down on a dog bed.
“What are the pool noodles for?” I asked, lingering in the doorway as Cassandra and her animal friend got comfortable.
“It keeps him from breaking things. Mickey still thinks he’s a calf.”
“You have a cow that thinks he’s a dog.”
She cracked a smile. “It gets less weird the longer you’re here. Not much less, but a little. Have a seat.”
I eased inside and dropped into the chair across from her. “If I’m getting fired, can we make it fast? It’s a long drive back to New York.”
“You’re not getting fired,” Cassandra said as she reached down, yanked open a drawer, and pulled out a bottle of whiskey and two shot glasses. Without missing a beat, she opened the door to a mini-fridge and pulled a pint of mint chocolate chip ice cream from the freezer compartment.
She poured two shots, slid one to me, then knocked hers back and chased it with a spoonful of ice cream.
I tossed mine back and hissed at the burn as it slid down my throat. “I could get used to these kinds of staff meetings.”
Cassandra pointed her spoon at me. “Stick around long enough and you’ll find your coping mechanism. I would kill for this family, but sometimes they drive me batshit crazy.”
“So weaponizing cows is normal behavior?”
“No,” Cassandra said. “That was definitely a first.”
I tapped my shot glass. “In that case, I’m going to need another round.”
Cassandra tucked the whiskey back in the drawer and put her ice cream pint back in the freezer. “No can do. You’re still on the clock.”
“Then why are you feeding me shots?”
“Shot,” she clarified. “One shot to loosen you up before this chat.”
I narrowed my eyes. “You’re not HR, are you?”
She snorted. “Does it look like we have HR? Lord knows we need it. Then again, it would just be me sending the boys to the principal’s office all day long and then nothing would get done. Now, what’s going on with you and CJ?”
“I already had a talk with Chef DeRossi after the incident at the grand opening dinner. I’ve done what’s required of me.”
“I’m aware of the conversation you had with Mr. DeRossi. I want to know what happened between you and CJ that started this little battle of wits.”
“He doesn’t like me.”
“I know why he doesn’t like you working here. He’s not a fan of the lodge or the restaurant. What happened between the two of you? He ignores everyone else who works for the development, but you two go at each other like cats and dogs.”
“We had a—” I hesitated, trying to choose my words carefully “—previous interaction before I started my job here.”
Cassandra’s eyebrows lifted. “Here on the ranch?”
“No.”
She sighed. “I’m trying to help you, but you have to trust me. I’m not sure if you’re aware of what my job entailed before I came to work for the ranch, but I am very, very good at keeping secrets.”
I didn’t make a sound. Snitches get stitches.
Cassandra pulled open a drawer and yanked out a thick file. My name was on the tab that jutted out from the top.
She huffed and laced her hands together. “I cannot run interference to protect you if I don’t know what’s going on. I’m perfectly aware of everything in here,” she said, tapping a manicured nail on the file. “So, unless you literally murdered someone, just tell me what happened. And if you did murder someone, blink twice and I’ll call our attorney.”
She had a point. It wasn’t like I had done anything wrong.
“We hooked up at a bar. Didn’t exchange anything more than first names, so I didn’t know who he was, and he didn’t know I was coming to work here.”
To her credit, Cassandra didn’t flinch. She didn’t even look fazed. “Workplace hookup. Yeah, that tracks for the Griffith boys.”
“It wasn’t a workplace hookup. We didn’t know?—”
She held her hand up to silence me. “I’ll be frank. CJ doesn’t like the restaurant. Ergo, he doesn’t like you. Keep your head down and let Christian and me handle him.” Her posture softened a bit. “Chef DeRossi hasn’t been back because I’ve been sending him glowing praise about your job performance. As long as you keep doing good work, I’ll have your back.”