Chapter Forty-Eight
LAUREN FELL BACK into her usual routine of visiting vendors with Paul Laine—the executive chef at Clarke’s—first thing in the morning for fresh ingredients they would need for that night’s menu, and then going for a run through the park afterwards.
She ate lunch at home with Jenks sitting on the table in front of her, and then tried her best to not stare at the clock as she waited for Grey to call.
After a week of falling asleep with the phone at her ear, she and Grey agreed to check in with each other during the late-afternoon, after Grey had moored the Veritas for the night and before Lauren had to leave for work.
There were days where the ability to call just did not happen, of course, that was the unfortunate truth of their situation, but for the most part it worked out nicely for each of them.
Lauren missed falling asleep in the early hours of the morning knowing that Grey was just on the other end of the line, but she comforted herself with the knowledge that at least Grey was getting a good night’s rest.
The holidays had come and gone in a blur, and it was strange for her to think that she and Grey had spent three times the number of days apart than they had together, but every day she found herself missing Grey more.
It would have been easier for both of them if their separation had dulled the connection they felt, but it only grew stronger with every passing day.
Christmas gifts had been exchanged via Skype, and New Year’s had been rung in over the phone as Lauren snuck off into the alley behind the restaurant at midnight to call Grey and wish her a happy New Year.
They had broached the subject of what they should do the week after New Year’s—but they had yet to come to any kind of an agreement.
The Veritas was booked for the rest of the season, which meant that Grey was stuck in the islands until at least July, and Lauren had heard her name being mentioned several times as a potential replacement for an executive chef who was on their way out.
The only thing they both could agree on, was that they were anxiously looking forward to the day when Lauren would pick Grey up at La Guardia. Their time together would be short, but after so long apart even four days together sounded like heaven.
Lauren was sitting on the couch in her living room on a Wednesday afternoon the week before Grey was scheduled to visit, listening to a nature track she had purchased off iTunes on repeat—pretending that the sound of the waves crashing from her speakers were real and remembering the way Grey looked standing at the helm of the Veritas as they raced over the waves under a full sail.
She smiled as her phone on the coffee table in front of her buzzed and came to life, rich violin slurs filling the room and announcing that it was Grey on the other end. “You’re early today.”
“I am,” Grey replied, her voice light with the sound of her smile. “Do you need me to call back later?”
“I want you to call whenever you can. Even when you’re drunk,” Lauren said, chuckling softly at the memory of the night of Grey’s seemingly endless drunk dials that had started with Grey confessing how much she missed Lauren and ended with phone sex. “How was your day?”
“The usual. Just kicked the last group off the boat in Charlotte Amalie, which is why I was able to call earlier than usual. You want to Skype?”
“Of course,” Lauren said. She sat up and reached for her laptop that was sitting on the coffee table in front of her.
She closed out her iTunes and smiled when a familiar rectangular box popped up on her screen.
“There you are,” she murmured when Grey’s face came up on the screen.
Grey was sitting at one of the tables on the back deck, and Lauren’s stomach lurched at the sight. God, she missed that.
“Here I am,” Grey said with a soft smile.
Lauren licked her lips and nodded, taking a moment to just look at Grey.
Even though Grey was smiling, her eyes were sad, and Lauren understood without having to ask why that was.
Technology was great and it made being apart at least somewhat bearable, but looking at Grey’s image on her computer screen also drove home the fact that they were thousands of miles apart.
Her fingers itched to touch, to comb through Grey’s hair, to wrap around the curve of her jaw and hold her close as she kissed her slowly, thoroughly, making her whimper, and Lauren cleared her throat softly as she forced herself back to the present. “Hi.”
“Hi,” Grey whispered. “How was your morning? Anything exciting happen at work last night?”
“Work was work. Jen and I went out for drinks afterwards, so that was nice, I guess.”
“Did you not have fun?” Grey asked, her expression clearly concerned.
“I did. It’s just…” Lauren rolled her eyes. “It’s just weird.”
“Why?”
Lauren shrugged. “I don’t know. I mean, we went to our usual bar after work, sat at our usual table, and had our usual drinks just like we usually do.
She talked about her husband and I talked about you—she liked that whale joke of yours, by the way—and it just…
it just made me miss you more. You would think that I would’ve gotten used to this by now, but I would rather be spending the time talking with you. ”
“Oh, Lauren.” Grey lifted her hand like she was going to reach for Lauren, only to end up running it through her hair instead. “I miss you too. But, hey, there are only nine days until I’ll be up there to see you.”
Lauren smiled at the thought. “I know. I can’t wait.”
“Me neither,” Grey whispered, her eyes dancing over Lauren’s face They talked for another half an hour about everything and nothing at all, comfortable silence filling the void between topics as they just looked at each other, their expressions conveying everything they were thinking.
Lauren let out a soft, regret-filled sighed when her phone on the table began to beep. “I’m sorry. That’s my work alarm. I’m going to have to get going.”
“It’s fine. Usual time tomorrow?”
“Of course.” Lauren smiled. “It’s the best part of my day.”
“Mine too,” Grey whispered. “Have a good night at work.”
“I’ll try. What do you have going on tonight? Anything?”
“Nothing special.” Grey shook her head. “Am just going to go over to Kip’s for dinner and hang out for a bit. Head out again tomorrow morning, but will be in Leinster in plenty of time to call. ”
Lauren nodded. “Have fun. Tell Kelly I say hello.”
“Will do.” Grey pressed two fingers to her lips and then touched them to the screen, and smiled when Lauren did the same. “Tomorrow?”
“Tomorrow,” Lauren promised, hating the way her stomach sank at the knowledge that she would not see Grey again until the following afternoon.
“Goodbye, beautiful,” Grey whispered.
Lauren smiled sadly and nodded. “Bye.” She blew out a loud breath as she closed up her laptop to keep Jenks from making a bed of the keyboard, and set it down on the table.
She propped her elbows on her knees and let her head drop into her hands as she tried to refocus herself on the things she needed to do.
Work was a nice distraction from how much she missed Grey, and she had grown to crave the chaos of the kitchen.
She sucked in a deep breath as she let her hands fall, and looked at Jenks, who was watching her carefully.
“Right, buddy. Time to get ready for work.”
She pocketed her phone as she made her way down the hall to her bedroom, and she smiled at the sound of Jenks trailing behind her.
She dressed quickly, knowing that things were going to be hectic that night because Laine was planning on trying a new recipe.
The special the week before had been one of hers, and it had been so well-received that she knew he was going to be hovering over everybody’s shoulders, barking orders and making sure that everything was perfect, trying to solidify his position as her better.
She finished dressing quickly, and threw a few treats into Jenks’ bowl as she passed through the kitchen to the front door.
She had just pulled on her coat when her phone began ringing with the default tone assigned to the majority of her contacts, and she answered it distractedly as she stepped into her shoes. “Hello?”
“Chef Murphy?”
Lauren frowned. She did not recognize the voice on the other end. She pulled the phone away from her ear to glance at the number, and her frown deepened as she failed to recognize it as well. “Yes.”
“My name is Jason Whitmore. I’m the owner and general manager of Café Belle.”
Café Belle was a French/American fusion restaurant on the Upper West Side that was on the verge of breaking into the elite upper echelon of restaurants in the city.
The rumor mill had been churning for the last year with speculation of Marcus Adrian leaving his position as executive chef at the café to strike out on his own, and Lauren’s pulse jumped as she realized those rumors might actually be true.
“I’m sure you’ve heard the rumors about Chef Adrian leaving Café Belle to open his own restaurant…”
Lauren nodded slowly. “I have…”
“Would you be interested in interviewing for the position?”
“Of executive chef?”
“Yes,” Whitmore replied, his tone amused.
“Of course,” Lauren answered automatically, her pulse racing with excitement.
“Excellent. Would you be available to interview tomorrow morning?”
“I…yes. Of course. What time?”
“How does eleven o’clock sound?”
“That sounds great.”
“Perfect. Then I shall see you tomorrow morning, Chef Murphy.”
Lauren stared at the wall in front of her for a moment as she processed what had just happened.
She had an interview to become the Executive chef at Café Belle.
She danced giddily in place, and then froze as her eyes landed on the wallpaper on her phone.
It was a selfie-shot she and Grey had taken while in Hawksnest, just the two of them cuddled up together on the trampolines at the front of the boat.
Grey’s smile was radiant, and Lauren’s heart sank as she looked at it.
“Shit.” Her legs threatened to give out beneath her, and she leaned against the wall for support. “What am I going to do?”
Her phone beeped again with her ‘you better move your ass or you’re going to be late’ alarm, and she shook her head as she dropped the phone into her purse and finished getting ready to leave.
That same question played on an infinite loop as she made her way to work on auto-pilot, weaving her way through the crowd that filled the sidewalk between her apartment and the restaurant.
What am I going to do?
Cross the street. Dodge a creepy looking guy who was not going to alter his course.
What am I going to do?
Wait at a red light. Slow down, duck around the tourists taking a picture of a building.
What am I going to do?
She had yet to find any kind of an answer by the time she walked into Clarke’s, and she made a beeline through the empty dining room before shouldering her way through the swinging door to the kitchen.
The small locker room area at the back of the kitchen was empty when she walked inside, and she continued to mull over her dilemma as she stored her things.
She had just closed her locker when a gentle hand on her shoulder made her jump, and she swore softly under her breath as she turned to find her best friend standing behind her.
“Sorry,” Jen murmured, smiling apologetically. She leaned back against her locker and gave Lauren an appraising look. “Everything okay? I said hello three times and you never heard me.”
“Yeah. No.” Lauren shook her head. “Everything’s fine. I’m just thinking.”
“About Grey?”
“Yes…and no.” Lauren blew out quiet breath and shook her head as she pulled her hair up into a bun. “Jason Whitmore called me right when I was leaving to come here tonight. I have an interview tomorrow morning for the executive chef position at Café Belle.”
Jen’s eyes went wide and she stood up straighter. “Lo, that’s awesome!”
“Yeah, I know,” Lauren murmured, her brow furrowing as she nodded. “I know it is.”
Jen sighed, understanding without having to be told why Lauren looked so conflicted about it all.
It was clear to her from listening to Lauren talk that things between her and Grey were growing more and more serious.
They existed in a state of flux, neither doing anything that would force the other’s hand, but it could not go on forever. “What are you going to do?”
“I don’t…what do you think I should do?”
“Only you can answer that one, kiddo,” Jen said gently.
“I know the whole Grey thing is a mess right now, but you said that she was at least open to the idea of maybe moving up here this summer. I know the idea of another six months of being thousands of miles away from each other isn’t the most fun, but it’s also do-able. ”
Lauren nodded. “Yeah. I know.”
“I do think that you need to go to the interview and at least hear Whitmore out, though. See the kitchen and the dining room. Understand what it is you would be losing if you didn’t do it. And,” Jen added seriously, “you really need to talk to Grey about this.”
“I know,” Lauren whispered, her stomach twisting at the thought. The noise in the kitchen beyond the locker room door became louder, and she shook her head as she hurriedly rolled her sleeves to her elbows. It was time to go to work. “I’ll talk to her about it tomorrow.”
“You can call her now, if you want. I’ll cover for you.”
Lauren shook her head. “No. Thank you, though. This is…this is not a five-minute conversation, and she’s having dinner with a friend tonight. I’ll just talk to her tomorrow afternoon when she calls. And, besides…”
“You don’t know what you’re going to do yet,” Jen finished for her.
Lauren smiled sadly and nodded. “Yeah.”