Page 17 of In Good Company

I give one curt shake of my head. “You don’t. You just like pretending you do to get on my nerves.”

Her fingers twitch against mine before she pulls her hand free. Our handshake lasted longer than it needed to, but I couldn’t let go. Not until she did. I can’t explain why, but I wanted to feel her skin against mine as long as she’d let me.

“That would be very unprofessional of me,” she whispers, her cheeks getting pinker by the second.

I smirk. It’s adorable how she thinks she wants to play the game, but she can’t fully follow through. “If you insist on calling me Callahan, so be it. But just know, I’d much prefer you call me Cal.”

My words make her smile. “Before we do anything more than shake on it, are you sure you don’t want me to do a test cook for you first? What if you hate everything I make other than what I prepared at Laurent’s party?”

I scoff. “You’re talented, Lucy. I don’t think I could ever hate anything you do.” I cock my head toward the path. “Let’s keep walking, and we’ll talk more details.”

She doesn’t argue. We spend the next hour walking around the grounds at Pembroke and discussing the details of her new position. I think I’m going to enjoy having her around more. She’s different. Who I am doesn’t seem to matter to her, and that’s incredibly refreshing.

NINE

LUCY

“Good morning, Mr. Fred,” I call as I descend the stairs from my upstairs apartment to his souvenir shop.

Mr. Fred stands in front of a shelf full of different Hamptons-themed magnets. He turns to look at me with a wide smile. “Good morning, Lucy. You’re up early.”

“It’s my first day at a new job. I didn’t want to be late.” I take a deep breath, trying to ease my nerves. I feel like I barely slept last night because of how anxious I was to start with Cal today. I don’t regret accepting the job. I’m glad I did. It’s been a long time since I’ve been so excited about something that I couldn’t sleep, but with the excitement comes a lot of nerves.

What if he realizes he hates my cooking? Although it isn’t likely I’ll ever need him as a referral once I’m back home after this summer, it’d be nice to have just in case.

“Need a cup of coffee, dear?”

I jump, focusing back on Mr. Fred. He holds a magnet in his hand as he looks at me over the top of his thick wire glasses. I shake my head. “I’m going to grab some here in a bit. Sorry, didn’t mean to space out on you…what did you say?”

He patiently nods in understanding, not seeming to beannoyed at all by my distractedness. “I asked where the new job was.”

I push my shoulders back, faking confidence, although my stomach twists with anxiety. “Today is my first day as a private chef. I’m riddled with nerves, so instead of lying in bed worrying, I figured I’d get an early head start on my day.”

He gives me an affectionate smile. “Whoever you’re working for is lucky to have you.”

I let out a deep breath. “I hope so.” My conversation with Loretta a few days ago went surprisingly well after I told her I was offered a job with Cal. I thought she’d be upset that I couldn’t work at Pembroke anymore, but she wasn’t. She understood the offer was one I couldn’t deny. I realized Loretta was a little less uptight than I gave her credit for. Or maybe she has a soft spot for Cal. Most of my meeting with her was spent listening to her fawn over him.

“I’m going to try and be the first one at the farm stand this morning. I want to get the best produce for the meals I have planned today.”

Mr. Fred raises his bushy white eyebrows. “Make sure to tell Dolores hi for me.”

I laugh, fixing the strap of my bag on my shoulder. “Oryoucould tell Dolores hi yourself.” Mr. Fred has been a widow for a decade now. I’ve learned that in the last year, he’s developed a bit of a crush on Ms. Dolores, who runs my favorite farm stand and also lost her spouse a few years ago. Mr. Fred has only mustered up the courage to say a few words to her, but I’m trying to get him to ask her on a date. They seem good for each other, but Mr. Fred is being stubborn.

“I think I’ll let you tell her hello for me today.” He gives me a wink before returning to stocking the shelf.

I laugh, shaking my head at him as I walk toward the front door. His store doesn’t open for a few more hours, but once itdoes, he’ll be busy all day. “I snuck some meals in the store fridge last night,” I tell him, stopping at the door. “Make sure to take time to eat, even if today’s busy. Okay?”

Mr. Fred doesn’t look at me, but he rolls his eyes. A few weeks after I started renting the apartment above the shop, I started preparing meals for him. I couldn’t help it. Once I learned he was surviving off frozen meals, I knew I needed to step in. He’s been like a grandfather figure to me since I moved here. Plus, he charges me way less than he should for rent. Cooking for him is my way of showing my appreciation.

“You don’t have to feed me,” he grumbles.

“I know I don’t have to. I want to. Just don’t forget to eat them today!” I press my back to the glass door and slightly push it open before he can argue more about the food.

“You’re too good to me, Lucy!” he calls out as the door shuts behind me.

I laugh as I walk to my car. I’d prefer to ride my bike to the farm stand, but I haven’t gone to Cal’s house yet. I know his house isn’t far from my place or Dolores’s stand, but I don’t want to risk taking longer than needed to get to his house. After today, I plan on riding to work as often as I can. But today, I’m going to drive just to be safe. Besides, after I’m done getting items from the stand, I want to stop by his house and get situated in the kitchen before running back out and getting the rest of the groceries needed. Today, I’m only preparing lunch and dinner for Cal, giving me more time this morning to get ready.

The entire drive to the stand, I go over my recipes for the day in my head. I have a rough idea of what I want to make, but I also want to give myself the flexibility to change my mind if I see something at the farm stand that sparks an idea. Cal didn’t give me much to go off of except explicitly stating he despises capers.

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