Chapter 26Stella
Chapter Twenty-Six
Stella
It had been one holy hell of a week, with tension knotted in every corner of Orchid after Marjorie’s visit. But now I clutched the new inspection report to my chest like a winning lottery ticket, its clean white edges crinkling under my grip. The kitchen hummed around me, stainless-steel surfaces gleaming in the afternoon sun that peeked through the window. Marjorie had given us one week to rectify all her findings. And now, after days of scrubbing and training and double-checking every inch of this space, we’d emerged triumphant—or rather, spotless.
“Folks, we are officially a top-notch kitchen!” I called, unable to keep the elation from spilling into my voice as I waved the paper at Rea, busy arranging desserts in the display case.
“Back and better than ever,” she called back, her smile a mirror to my own relief.
I should have been basking in our success. But instead, a single nagging thought tugged at the corners of my mind—how had I let this happen ?
When I’d delved into the cause of the scare, it turned out to be a simple, silly mistake—an employee’s misguided attempt at being thorough in the dishwasher area. Innocent intentions with potentially disastrous consequences. She’d used the wrong kind of cleaner, one not approved for food surfaces, and it had left the germ-attracting residue that Marjorie discovered. The same employee hadn’t realized how often she needed to clean the area, another training error. She’d been in tears after her mistakes came to light, and I’d taken her under my wing to make sure she felt valued.
I’d even worked personally with the prep staff, who were there hours before the main dinner shift showed up. I had a soft spot for Matt, who listened closely and took all my suggestions to heart. All were an indispensable part of Orchid’s success, and I needed to make sure they understood that.
This afternoon, Marjorie had come back for her reinspection and hadn’t been able to find a single infraction. She’d even given me a begrudging compliment on my thorough follow-up.
Now I leaned against the cool metal of the prep table as everyone returned to their tasks. “I should have caught it sooner.” Frustration simmered in my chest, a slow burn of disappointment in myself. How could I have missed something so fundamental?
“Hey, you can’t see everything,” Luis chimed in, his hands never stopping as he chopped a fresh batch of herbs.
I shook my head, a strand of hair escaping my ponytail. “But that’s just it, isn’t it? I’m supposed to catch these things before they become issues.”
“Stella, you trained us well. This was a fluke. Besides, look at this place now.” He gestured expansively with his free hand. “You couldn’t eat off the floor because it’s so damn shiny, you’d slide right off.”
A laugh escaped me despite the residual annoyance, and I glanced around the kitchen. He wasn’t wrong. The place was practically gleaming, a testament to the hard work and dedication of everyone here .
“Okay, point taken,” I conceded, allowing a smile to break through. “Just don’t actually eat off the floor, please.”
“Well, there goes my break.” Luis’s eyes twinkled as he winked at me.
The victory was sweet, yet incomplete, overshadowed by the gnawing guilt of having neglected everything—and everyone—else during this fiasco. Including Aiden. I hadn’t meant to shut him out. It was just… when crisis mode had hit, my world narrowed to the four walls of Orchid and the challenge at hand.
I slipped out the back door, pulling my phone from the pocket of my chef’s coat. Aiden’s name sat at the top of my missed calls list—a glaring reminder of conversations deferred and connections missed. My thumb hovered over the call button, and I hesitated. After a week of self-imposed isolation, reaching out felt like taking a risk all over again. But Aiden had always been so understanding. Hopefully, we could pick up right where we left off. My heart thudded a rapid beat against my ribs.
“Hey, it’s me,” I said as soon as he picked up, my words tumbling out in a rush. “I’m sorry for going dark these past few days. We’ve been working on the inspection issues all week, and I’ve been?—”
“Busy. I know,” he interrupted. His voice was tight and low, a sharp contrast to his usual warmth.
“The good news is we passed our reinspection. Things are settling down, and I promise I’ll make it up to you, okay? Maybe I’ll make you dinner. Cajun seafood pasta?”
He heaved a long sigh. “Not tonight. I’ve had a long, rough day. You’re not the only one with work issues, you know. I had to tell one of my grade-school teachers she’s probably got cancer today.”
My good mood evaporated as I recognized the yawning divide opening between us. “Oh, God, Aiden. I’m sorry. Want me to come over after work? Give you a backrub?”
The line crackled with tension, as if even the phone connection sensed the chasm between us. I leaned against the restaurant wall, my fingers tracing circles on the surface in an attempt to ground myself.
“Stella,” Aiden finally broke the silence, his voice carrying a tinge of pain that knotted my stomach. “I don’t know what else to say. You’ve been gone for a whole week—no calls, no texts. A whole lot of nothing.”
“I’m sorry.” I sighed, feeling the weight of my neglect. “It’s just been… overwhelming here. The health inspection scare took over everything. I had to make sure Orchid came out clean.”
“I get that,” he said, and I could picture him running a hand through his hair, a gesture he made when he was frustrated. “But not even a quick message to let me know you were alive? That maybe I actually meant something to you?”
I wilted, closing my eyes momentarily. “I should’ve found a moment. I didn’t mean to ignore you. But don’t overreact here—this inspection was a huge deal. That’s not fair.”
“Fair?” He laughed without humor. “Stella, I was hoping we were past high school drama shit. This is about us. About being there for each other, even when things get messy. You can’t just ghost me.”
I gasped, my heart nearly stopping in my chest. Did he just use that word? My anger ratcheted up. No, my fury. “I ghosted you ? Are you kidding me? Because I was dealing with a work emergency for a week? You moved away and completely left me behind! Don’t you dare lecture me about ghosting!”
Aiden sighed. “Stella, I get it—your restaurant is your world. But I thought I was part of that world too.”
“Of course you are,” I snapped, frustration bleeding into my words. “But let’s be real, Aiden. We don’t know where this is going! You don’t even have a home. You live on a sailboat, for God’s sake. Ready to float wherever the wind takes you. It’s not exactly a foundation for… for anything permanent.”
There was a long beat of silence, heavy and charged, before Aiden spoke again. “You think that’s what I want? To just drift away? I’ve poured my heart into my practice here. I’ve rooted myself in this town. And I thought I was doing the same with you. My God, Stella. We’ve been together for months! I thought we had the kind of relationship where awful days actually made us want to see the other person. Maybe even lean on them a little.”
“I don’t know what we’re doing, Aiden.” My voice still had a hard edge to it.
“I’ve bent over backward to give you the space you needed. To be the man you needed. What do I need to do to convince you?” Frustration dripped from his voice as his question hung in the air like a sail waiting for the right gust of wind to catch it.
“I don’t even know if I can be convinced.” My voice wavered, and I cleared my throat quickly. “I’m not looking to be some housewife with two-point-five kids, Aiden. If that’s your dream future, then maybe?—”
“When have I ever said that?” I could picture his face, his blue eyes widening in shock. “Marriage, kids… none of that has ever been on our radar. I want you. Only you. Are you trying to find excuses because you’re scared?”
“Scared?” The accusation stung, more so because it rang true. I was scared—terrified of letting him in, only to be left shattered again.
“Look at what I’ve built here. Do you honestly think I’m looking for an escape?” His flat, angry voice cut through the static of my fears but did nothing to ease them.
“I don’t know what to think,” I said, the honesty scraping raw against my heart. “Maybe I am looking for reasons not to believe you’ve changed. Maybe I’m terrified of taking that risk.”
“Aren’t I proving that I’ve changed every damn day? By supporting you, even though you push me away at every turn. Stell, please…”
My heart felt like it was twisting in half. “I’m sorry I ignored you for a week. You’re right. I shouldn’t have done that. But I’m just not ready for… more.”
“Then what do you want? ”
“I don’t know, Aiden. I really don’t.”
After ending the call, I leaned against the building’s surface as I grappled with tension that refused to dissipate. A tension filled with unspoken fears and unresolved feelings, leaving us both adrift in a sea of doubt.