Page 427 of Savage Bosses

"I'll redo it, sir."

"I'm starting to think you may not belong here, Tatianna Dupree," he muttered.

She looked up at him to find his gaze fixated on her, and she knew he wasn't talking about she didn't belong in this cafe. He meant she didn't belong in his life. Tati didn't know if she belonged there or not.

But she wanted to find out. She wanted to find out if her love for him was real, or had it just been a sense of camaraderie, a friendship she hadn’t wanted to lose. She felt guilty for even thinking it wasn’t real.

But if it was real, why had she been so quick to jump ship? Tati tore her gaze from Bryce before he could see the tears in her eyes. She went back to work, determined to get his approval for her desserts.

Tatianna's fingers deftly manipulated the piping bag, creating perfect rosettes atop a new batch of chocolate cupcakes. Despite Bryce's relentless criticism, she remained composed. He would not see her sweat.

"Too much frosting," Bryce sniped from his perch at the kitchen entrance, arms crossed over his chest. "Do you want our customers to go into sugar shock?"

Sugar shock?What the absolute fuck was he talking about? Sighing, Tati recited the lyrics to her favorite cartoon jingle. It always helped lighten her mood.Obtuse, rubber goose, green moose, guava juice. Giant snake, birthday cake, large fries, chocolate shake.

It worked. She held in her chuckle. She couldn't believe her grown ass still watched Fairly Odd Parents. Bryce used to watch it, too, back in the day. She wondered if he remembered.

"Did you hear what I just said, or are you ignoring me?" he growled.

Tati sighed. "Of course not, sir," Tatianna replied with a strained smile. "I'll adjust the amount immediately to keep the customers from going into a sugar shock."

Bastard. She scraped off the excess frosting and swiftly piped smaller rosettes onto each cupcake. Though she had learned to mask her frustration with a facade of politeness, every pointed remark from Bryce stoked the flames of anger burning within her. Once she was done, she presented the dessert to Bryce for his approval.

"Better, but still not customer-ready," Bryce grumbled, still eyeing her with suspicion. "Though this is better, don't think I'll let you get away with any more mistakes. This is a trial period. You can still get fired."

"Understood, sir," Tatianna said, gritting her teeth behind her smile. In her mind, she'd already stabbed him forty-two times. As she returned to her work, she couldn't help but wonder how much longer she could keep up this charade.

Just then, Melinda's irritating voice wafted into the kitchen like a sickening perfume. Standing at the door that separated the kitchen from the cafe, Bryceson turned to peek out the door when he heard Melinda's voice. Tati watched him closely, waiting to see how he reacted to her.

A huge grin spread across his face, causing her heart to clench as jealousy surged through her.Don't go to her. Don't go to her.But even as she wished that, she knew he'd go to her. He faced Tati again.

"Melinda is here. I need to go. Don't send any of those out yet. I want to taste them first. Got it?"

Tati nodded, unable to speak at the moment for fear her voice would shake. He turned to leave the kitchen, but Tatianna couldn't resist one last jab to soothe her wounded pride.

"Enjoy your date," she said sweetly, forcing a smile onto her face. "You two really do look perfect together."

"What?" Bryce grumbled, his jaw tense as he clenched his teeth.

"You two look good together. I'm happy you both realized you were meant to be more than just friends."

He took a step toward her, then stopped. The anger blazing in his eyes shocked her, and kind of scared her too. She swallowed, wondering if she'd pushed him too far. Bryce's face turned a deep shade of red as he glared at Tatianna with his fists clenched.

With a final snarl, he stormed out of the kitchen, slamming the door behind him, leaving Tatianna alone with her anguish. She bit her lower lip, fighting back tears as frustration and longing warred within her.

"Damn," muttered one of the chefs, watching the door swing back and forth in Bryce's wake. "The manager must not be in a good mood."

"Let me taste one of those eclairs," Sybil said, rushing over to Tati's station, gaze drifting back to the door to make sure Bryce wasn't walking in again.

A few of the chefs surrounded her station to taste the desserts Bryce had deemed unworthy.

"Seriously, though, his criticism is uncalled for," a third chef chimed in, grabbing a fork and taking a bite of one of her desserts. "This tiramisu is heavenly. He's just being an ass."

"Shhh," Sybil said. "He may hear you. But this is really good, Tati. What did you do to make him mad? I've never seen him like this. And the way he acted yesterday was strange, too."

Tati sighed. "He and I... we used to date." The entire staff gasped.

"Really?" Sybil said.

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