Page 31 of Finally Moore

“Fuck off, dude.”

On any given day, I’d appreciate Logan’s goofball attitude. He’s been a refreshing addition to the team. But, today, he’s more obnoxious than my little brother. Which says a lot.

“Still, what are we supposed to say?Do? I need instructions.” He’s practically bouncing on his heels and drooling from his mouth. I love my small town. I really do. There’s something comforting about being part of the community of Tral Lake. Until I remember I’d never have to deal with this shit in the cities.

“What? You think you’re going to be interrogated or some shit?” I cross my arms over my chest and shoot him a glare.

“Duh, I got a glimpse of Momzilla—the woman’s scary. A total man-eater.” Logan shivers at the thought.

“Well, then you better make sure you don’t fuck up her lunch order.” I pat him on the shoulder. “Otherwise, she’ll come back here and gobble you up.” I press my lips together and make a slurping sound for dramatic effect. I can’t help myself. I like fucking with the kid.

“You think?” His eyes widen and he appears to hold his breath as he waits for my answer.

“Oh, for sure.”

“Awesome.” He grins, and now I’m fucking confused.

“Seriously? Is that supposed to be a good thing?”

“Um, yeah, dude. Her mom is scary hot and I’m always down for some cougar action.” Logan makes a cat sound while lifting a hand to mimic the swipe of a paw.

“No wonder Gia won’t give you the time of day,” I taunt, knowing that since the guy was hired and first laid eyes on her, his main goal has been to get into her pants. Luckily, according to Gia at least, she’s got enough common sense to not “shit where she eats.”

“Yeah?” Logan pauses the spoon he’s using to stir the pot of soup. “What’s she said about me?”

“Honestly?”

“I don’t want it any other way.”

“That you’re a pig.” And that’s me softening the blow. If I remember correctly, her exact words werevile swine.

Logan gives me another dopey grin. “She loves me.”

“Whatever floats your boat, man. Now, are we going to discuss the menus for the rest of the week or continue to gossip like a bunch of schoolgirls?”

“Will there be hair braiding?” He looks up at me while batting his lashes, and I let out an exhausted sigh. “Just kidding.” He turns the pot down to a simmer. “Here, let me show you what I’ve got going on.”

“Got going on? I already made a menu.” My temples twitch with the warning of an oncoming headache, one that I can’t afford to have today.

“Can’t I just show you?” he whines.

“Fine.” I’m out of the kitchen for one day, and my employees have already gone rogue. I knew this was a mistake. The kid’s not ready to be unsupervised yet.

Logan smiles and off he goes to retrieve his version ofmyrevised menu. A few seconds later, he jogs back around the corner and comes to a quick stop in front of me. “Okay, look, your version was fine and all. I just wanted to try to elevate a few items and provide more complex alternatives. I didn’t change the proteins, and we already have most of the ingredients on hand. I only had to order a few extra things but I kept it under our budget.”

I look over the suggested changes, lifting a hand to scratch the back of my head. “Wow.”

“Is that a goodwowor a badwow?”

“Good,” I say, both shocked and a little impressed. I shouldn’t be.

Logan has more culinary training than I’ve ever had. He actually attended school abroad and apprenticed under some world famous chefs. Besides the baking skills handed down by my mom, I’m self-taught, which means I go through a ton of trial and error. Not to mention, Logan came highly recommended by my friend Zach, who’s earned two Michelin stars himself. So I knew the kid had talent. I guess he was just never given a chance to shine on his own here.

Maybe that’s my fault? I admit I’ve been known to put some tight reins on my staff.

“Yes…” Logan whispers, clearly relieved by my reaction.

Zach warned me that the guy could be a bit of a hothead and that his smart mouth had gotten him banned from working in most of the reputable restaurants in Chicago—all while ensuring me he was a culinary genius, if he could just learn to shut up. Looks like my friend was right.

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