Chapter 25Stella
Chapter Twenty-Five
Stella
I stood before my open closet, sifting through a sea of fabric, searching for the perfect dress that whispered romance under the tropical sky. The one I chose was a coral number, its hue rivaling the most vibrant reef fish that darted beneath the waves surrounding Calypso Key.
With careful movements, I slipped into the dress, enjoying how the fabric clung to my body. Tonight, Aiden and I would sit under the August stars at an outdoor play in Key West, and I was amazed he’d been able to procure tickets. My pulse quickened at the thought of him sitting next to me in the dark.
A final glance in the mirror, and I was satisfied. My earrings, a simple pair of silver drops, were the last touch. They were as ready to catch the moonlight as I was to see Aiden again. We hadn’t been together in nearly a week, and I had a feeling this special date was his way of gently prodding me to be more available.
And I felt a pang at that. I didn’t mean to be distant, but this summer had been unusually busy at the resort, thanks to a quiet hurricane season. Without thinking, I reached down and knocked on my dresser top. As much as I enjoyed being with him, I refused to apologize for wanting to succeed at Orchid. And I was—my early misgivings and fears had slowly given way to confident assurance. With a sigh, I smoothed my hair as I examined the pains I’d taken to look good tonight. Maybe I did need to make more of an effort.
My phone’s sudden ring split the air, jarring against the evening’s anticipation. Luis’s name flashed across the screen, accompanied by the accompanying photo of him in his black sous-chef uniform, his dark eyes glinting with mischief. I lifted the phone to my ear.
“Stella”—Luis’s voice was tense—“you need to come down here. Now.”
“What’s wrong?” I tried to keep the worry from my voice. I’d taken tonight off partly to let him shine, and he knew how much I needed this break.
“Health inspector,” he practically hissed, each syllable laced with urgency. “She’s here, going through everything with a fine-tooth comb.”
I nearly dropped the phone. “What? Now?”
“I know! I can’t believe she came in the evening, after her usual hours.” His voice was tinged with panic. Of all nights, it had to be tonight. I could feel the romantic bubble of the evening pop.
“Okay, okay. Keep everything running smoothly and show her whatever she wants. I’ll be right there.” I ended the call, the phone feeling like a lead weight in my hand.
I stared at my reflection, the woman in the coral dress a stark contrast to the one bracing for battle. My mind raced as adrenaline coursed through me. I swapped heels for flats, practicality taking precedence over style.
I snatched my phone again and called Aiden, already dreading the conversation.
“Hey, beautiful! All set for tonight?” His voice was warm and brimmed with anticipation.
My heart squeezed. “Aiden, I can’t believe this is happening, but I’m going to have to cancel tonight. A health inspector showed up out of nowhere at Orchid, and Luis is freaking out. I need to take over.”
A pause, then a sigh. “Oh, shit. That’s… that’s horrible timing.”
“I know. I’m so sorry. I was looking forward to tonight.” My words rushed out, and not just because I could feel the clock ticking.
“Can I do anything to help?”
I marched down the hall, already mentally preparing. “No, no, it’s my kitchen. I need to deal with this.”
“Well, if you need me, I’m here, okay? Even if it’s just to talk after.”
“I know you are. Thank you.” I clutched the phone tighter, hating that I had to do this to us.
“Seriously, Stella. Let me help,” Aiden pressed.
But my mind was already a whirlwind of checklists and procedures. “We’ll talk later, okay?” Without waiting for his response, I hung up, guilt gnashing at me as much as urgency did.
I dashed out the door, leaving behind the promise of a romantic evening. The night air was balmy, but I hardly felt it, my thoughts on the ticking time bomb that was Orchid’s kitchen. I rushed down the hill, and before I knew it, I was barging through the back entrance of the kitchen.
Luis stood there, wringing his hands. “Stella! Thank God you’re here. The inspector is in the dining room.”
I nodded, steeling myself. “Okay, everyone, listen up!” My voice cut through the clamor like a knife through butter. Kitchen staff paused, their expressions fraught with anxiety. “Just do your job like any other day. We do things right, and we’re going to prove it.”
My team rallied, nodding and murmuring affirmations. I started barking orders, assigning tasks with military precision while simultaneously reviewing every inch of the kitchen. Stainless steel surfaces gleamed under the harsh fluorescent lights, but I checked them anyway, looking for anything amiss. “Check the storage temperatures, rotate the stock, and make sure labels are up to date! Health codes are no joke, folks. Cleanliness, food safety, cross-contamination, we know this. Let’s show them how it’s done,” I called out, moving from the fridges to the prep areas, eyes darting over every detail.
“Sorry about your evening,” Luis said with a miserable smile. “Nice dress.”
“Thanks. Where is the inspector?”
He pointed through the double doors into the dining area. “She went to the pass right before you got here.”
Just then, the doors opened again, and my heart sank as the inspector walked through. I recognized her immediately.
Oh, shit. Shit!
The woman examined this side of the pass, her pen scratching against her clipboard as the bright lights reflected off her short brown hair. The sound seemed to echo off the stainless-steel surfaces. Her face was impassive, but I knew her sharp, critical eye firsthand.
“Marjorie,” I greeted, a knot forming in my stomach as I recognized the stickler from my culinary school days. She had struggled as a chef and had taken a dislike to me. Instead, she’d gone to work for the health department, though I hadn’t realized Calypso Key was part of her territory.
“Stella,” she acknowledged, her voice flat as she raised a hand to adjust her black framed glasses. She looked me up and down, a slight gleam of triumph in her eyes. “I hope you didn’t get dressed up on my account. I’m not keeping you from anything, am I?”
“Not at all. I was just finishing.” I kept my face professional and bland, though I was already itching to throttle her.
Her gaze panned to take in the large kitchen. “I see you’ve moved up in the world.”
“I’m back where I belong,” I replied, forcing a smile while wondering if there was a hint of sarcasm in her voice. Marjorie had been known for her meticulous attention to detail, and I could tell by the way her gaze lingered on the corner of the counter and the undersides of shelves that she was searching for any reason to mark us down.
“Let’s hope your cleaning standards have risen along with your ambitions,” she said dryly, making a note that felt like a foreshadowing of doom. “I’ve already found one expired food worker’s permit.”
My stomach lurched. That was a stupid mistake, but one that was easily correctable. If that was the only infraction she found, I could live with it. We headed to the dishwashing station, where Marjorie got out her thermometer. After letting the hot water faucet warm up, she held the probe under the stream of water. When she read the result, a smug smile rose on her face. “This is below the acceptable range for hot water.”
I assured her we’d remedy that immediately, but when she ran a pale finger over the stainless-steel dish sorting counter and came away with a sticky coating on it, the knot of tension in my gut turned to raw acid.
Marjorie slowly turned her head to me and raised a brow. “What kind of kitchen are you running here, Stella?”
The next day, sunlight streamed through the kitchen window of the Big House, casting beams across the wooden table where an inspection report lay before me like an unwelcome guest. My hands shook slightly as I picked it up, reading the grade that might as well have been etched into my skin.
FAIL.
“Improper cleaning procedures?” I muttered to myself, my cheeks flushing with indignation. “How can that be possible?”
Evan chose that moment to walk in, his footsteps quiet on the tiled floor. After the inspection, he’d still been up, and I’d taken a moment to fill him in. “From the look on your face, I’m guessing the verdict isn’t good.”
“Look at this!” I thrust the report toward him. “Marjorie gave us a fail. It’s ludicrous.”
He sat next to me and took the report, his blue eyes scanning the contents before meeting my gaze. “We all know you run a tight ship, Stella. But we can’t ignore this. Especially not when our reputation is on the line.”
“Of course we can’t,” I snapped, more at the situation than at Evan. “She’s doing this out of spite.” I told him about my history with Marjorie.
Evan’s expression softened, but his voice remained firm. “Maybe. But we also can’t dismiss this outright. If there’s even a kernel of truth to these claims, we need to address it.”
“Deanna just forgot to wipe down that counter. She would have done it within half an hour. Are you doubting how I run my kitchen?” The question hung between us, charged and heavy.
“No,” he replied quickly. “But we need to be thorough. You’re great at what you do, Stella, but sometimes…” He hesitated, choosing his words carefully. “Sometimes you become very single-minded. You get so focused on the trees that you miss the forest.”
“What forest? Evan, I?—”
“Look, we’ll get to the bottom of this, okay?” He offered a supportive smile, which I returned half-heartedly. “Start by investigating each infraction she found.”
My mind was already racing with plans to rectify the situation. I wasn’t about to let Marjorie question my competence. My half smile fell as heat rose in my cheeks. “We need to tackle this head-on, Evan. I want to call Marjorie out on some of these minor infractions. A potholder too close to an open flame? Really?”
“Whoa. Hold up.” He pressed his hand out like a traffic cop as his voice took on his General Manager tone. “Accusing her won’t help. We don’t want to make enemies with the health department.”
“Enemies?” I echoed, incredulous. “She made herself an enemy the moment she walked through my door with a vendetta.”
“Look, I’m not saying you’re wrong about the inspector.” Evan turned in his chair to face me. “But right now, our focus needs to be on getting everything up to code—whether or not the allegations are true. ”
“Fine,” I muttered, knowing he was right. My pride hurt more than anything, but Orchid couldn’t afford the scandal of a shutdown. Especially with a new head chef. And that made a hollow, twisting feeling roll through me. What if Evan was right, and I couldn’t see deficiencies that were right in front of me?
What if this was a sign I wasn’t meant to head up Orchid?
My brother was already scrolling through his phone calendar to schedule a meeting. “Let’s start by going over procedures again with the staff. We’ll document everything, every step of the way.”
“Sure,” I said, though my hands wanted to do more than just defensive maneuvers. They itched to wring Marjorie’s little chicken neck.
My phone vibrated on the table, lighting up with Aiden’s name. I glanced at the screen—a missed call and a string of texts asking if I was all right. If there was anything he could do. My chest tightened with guilt. He’d been nothing but supportive, and here I was, burying myself in work. I’d been too worn out to text last night, and after getting the emailed report, now I was too despondent.
“Everything okay?” Evan asked, noting my distraction.
“Everything will be soon,” I lied, the words tasting bitter on my tongue as I shoved the phone aside. Aiden would have to wait. For now, Orchid needed the iron-willed chef, not the woman who might just be falling for her ex-boyfriend again. I pushed my chair back and stood. “Let’s get to work.”
The scent of fresh orchids clung to my bedroom, a mocking reminder of the date night that never happened. I’d run home for a quick shower to hopefully wash off some of the surreal haze that had enveloped me during a day of planning with Evan. I put Luis in charge tonight, just so I could focus on our response. But above all, one sentence kept running through my head like a banner at the bottom of a television screen .
How could this have happened?
I dressed in fresh pants and a clean polo shirt. After pulling out my phone, I crossed the room and dropped onto my bed. I’d avoided this call all day, and the weight of the phone felt like an anchor in my palm. Aiden’s name still glowed on the missed calls list. With a deep breath that did little to steady my racing heart, I tapped on his number.
“Stella?” His voice was like a warm blanket I desperately wanted to wrap myself in, but I knew better than to linger in its comfort.
“Hey. Look, I’m sorry about not getting back to you.” Each word felt like pulling teeth, hard and painful. “The health inspection didn’t go well, and I’ve spent all day cleaning up the fallout.”
“Of course. I get it.” His tone was supportive yet laced with an unmistakable undercurrent of disappointment. “Why don’t I come over and we can talk about it over a bottle of wine?”
His genuine, kind offer was so tempting. But my old, familiar adversary—fear—had dogged me all day, whispering about my doubts and insecurities. I couldn’t fit in romance right now. “Thanks, but I don’t have time. I need to handle this problem myself.”
There was a long pause on the other end. “Okay, if that’s what you want.” The resignation in his voice came through loud and clear.
I filled the void with action plans and hurried words. “We’re meeting again first thing in the morning. I need to go over procedures, make sure everything’s by the book. I’m heading back to Orchid to work some more.”
“Stella—”
“Sorry, I have to go.” I cut him off, my focus narrowing on the battle ahead. “We’ll talk soon, okay?” I didn’t give him, or myself, the chance to say more before ending the call.
My reflection in the dresser mirror held a woman whose eyes burned with determination, even as the rest of her world wavered at the edges. The expanse of ocean outside whispered promises of romance and adventure, but within the walls of my restaurant, only challenge and self-doubt awaited me .
“I can do this,” I whispered, trying to convince myself. “I have to.”
After one last glance at my phone and Aiden’s promise of support, I turned away. Shutting the door behind me, I set off to steer this ship off the rocks.