Page 32 of Desirous

I grab my black dress pants and stick one leg in while I balance on one foot and hold the phone to my ear. “No, just keep them there for a little while. It’s going to take me a couple minutes to get dressed and drive over there.”

“No problem. They just sat down, so even assuming they got our normal service, they’ll be here for at least an hour. I can tell the kitchen to hold things up, if you want.”

As I slide my other leg into my pants and button them, I have to laugh. “I had no idea you were such a matchmaker, Dad. I thought you left that kind of thing to Mom.”

“I do what I can when I get the chance. I’m looking out into the dining room right now. We’re getting pretty busy, so I might not have to do anything to keep them here. Just get over here as fast as you can.”

Heading to my closet to find a dress shirt, I smile at how funny he can be about things sometimes. “Ok, thanks, Dad. See you in a little while.”

“Good luck, son.”

I toss my phone onto the bed and turn to face the clothes I have to choose from. The gray shirt will work. I should probably wear a tie too since that’s the dress code at CK. The black and red diamond pattern one will work.

Five minutes and the world’s fastest Windsor knot and teeth brushing later, I’m racing downstairs to my car. If there’s little traffic, I can probably get there by the time their entrées arrive at their table. Not exactly my best timing, but I have to take my chances when they come.

My fatherand Kane are waiting just inside the dining room when I arrive. Both smiling, they look me up and down like they’re the style police.

“Looking good. You must really like this one,” Kane says with a chuckle.

I don’t bother answering him before my father reaches out and brushes a piece of lint off my shoulder. “They ordered the steak and prosciutto skewers for an appetizer, so that bought you a little time.”

“Okay, wish me luck.”

Both men give me a pat on the back to send me off, and with a deep breath, I begin to walk toward Kat’s table. I just need to be casual, and hopefully, she won’t try to gouge my eyes out with a skewer.

Her father spies me first and gives me a welcoming smile. That’s a good sign. At least one person at the table doesn’t hate me.

“Kat, I’m so happy to see you here tonight,” I say.

She turns to look up at me, and for a moment, it seems like she isn’t sure how to react. She quickly forces a smile and extends her hand to shake mine, as if we’re some kind of business associates who met a few times at a company meeting or something.

“Hi, Alex. It’s nice to see you.”

Not a bad beginning. It could have been a little better, but I don’t have a skewer jutting out from my eye socket, so I’m thankful for that.

“Mom and Dad, this is Alex March, the head chef here at CK. You met him once before when we dined here,” she says to her parents, and I see a look of recognition on both their faces as they smile politely at me.

“You don’t look like you’re working tonight,” her mother says.

“No, I have some time off because of another project I’m involved in, but since my family runs the restaurant, I’m here a lot anyway.”

Her father looks up at me, twisting his expression into one of disgust exactly like I’ve seen so often from his daughter. “Are you referring to that reality show you and my daughter were on?”

Clearly, he doesn’t think much of Chef on Chef. Then again, it isn’t surprising since his daughter was thrown off the show.

I nod, hoping his mention of the damn reality show hasn’t soured any chances I have to get Kat to talk to me. Eager to change the subject, I look at the appetizer in the middle of the table and say, “I love the steak and prosciutto skewers. I think I ate about a hundred of them before we first introduced them. I felt like I had an obligation to be a taste tester before we offered them to our customers.”

That makes her father’s face light up. “I’ve been known to do that too when my restaurants are introducing a new menu item.” Patting his non-existent belly, he laughs. “More than once my pants didn’t fit after all my taste testing.”

As we talk about eating too much in our attempts to make sure what we offer is the best it can be, Kat stares at me and I notice her eyes aren’t filled with hate or revulsion. Maybe she’ll be open to talking after they’re finished with their meal.

“Well, I just wanted to come over and say hello. It was nice seeing you again, Mr. and Mrs. Truesdale. And Kat, it’s great to see you too. Please let me know if you need anything tonight. I’ll be happy to get you whatever you want.”

As I give them one final smile before leaving, her father motions to the other side of the table next to his daughter and says, “Since you aren’t working, please join us.”

I quickly glance at his wife, who looks thrilled by his suggestion, and then his daughter, and I’m happy to see she looks pleased to have me join them too. I hadn’t planned on crashing their night out, but if this lets me have a chance to show Kat that I want to make up for what I did, then I can’t say no.

“I’d be happy to. Thank you.”

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