Chapter 6: One on One

"F*cking finally."

Selene, Rose and Charlie were having lunch at one of the tables, quietly discussing the next party and another lecture that was given by Mr. Peters. They all turned their heads to David, who interrupted their calm noon.

"What's up, David?" Rose leaned in her seat, casually putting her hand on top of Charlie's, casually. Selene could only clap internally, wondering when Charlie would finally get the hint, and also praying she would be quicker than Mr. Peters, who clearly had an allergic reaction to anything romantic.

"Carter!" David dramatically dropped on the chair between Rose and Selene. "He finally approved my sick leave. Fucking Owen was avoiding me like the plague."

Selene laughed quietly, imagining the manager hiding in his dark office like a vampire lair, hoping to avoid all social contact and make his best impression of sulking 'dedushka’. Selene only later learned that the nickname meant 'grandpa' and it only made the moniker even better.

"Chef to the rescue," Rose winked at Selene and saluted to Thomas, who only got to work. Thomas dropped a quiet "hello" before rushing to get changed.

"Someone's late. Again." Charlie rolled her eyes at David, who always complained about Thomas and his 'privileges' — he was late at least once a week, but even the manager didn't seem to mind all that much.

"You just want to sleep in, Davie." Rose chuckled lightly before returning to her previous topic. "But the chef's really been out of it lately. Will got stuck in his office for like three hours."

It was a rare case to see anyone at Carter's office, even if it was the sous chef of the place.

"I heard he's trying to come up with the new menu. Or maybe a special," supplied Charlie, almost subconsciously leaning closer to Rose's hand that was still resting on the back of the chair.

"Hmmm," David quietly hummed, mixing the thief spoon of sugar into his latte. "My favorite time of the year — Carter hating everything and anything to pull out that fucking new menu out of his ass."

"Dave!" Rose reached against the table to punch his shoulder. The punch must have been stronger than David anticipated because he looked as if the air had left his lungs, almost gasping. Perhaps it was more to do with the element of surprise than the actual strength.

"What? We all know it's true. I bet he sleeps in that fucking office."

"I heard him lecturing Owen again," Charlie supplied, enjoying some gossiping before the shift. "Elizabeth made some changes that Owen didn't like, and Carter got in the middle."

Selene, who was stocking up her list with fresh facts, perched up hearing a new name.

"Elizabeth?"

"The PR manager," Rose finally managed to leave Charlie's face, abandoning her close inspection. "She's also extremely friendly with Carter."

"Friendly," David wiggled his eyebrows suggestively, clearly hinting at the type of 'friendship' he thought the chef and the PR manager had.

"Nah," Charlie shook her head, "Carter can't see shit away from that kitchen."

"At least he's attracting a fancy crowd," Selene added, trying to bring a more positive flow to their conversation.

"They fucking like that guy! You're right," David finished his coffee and stood up. "Well, duty calls. Get the shit done before leaving for the trip."

"I thought you said it was 'sick leave'?" Selene smirked at him, smiling widely. Her eyes sparkled naughtily with mirth, betraying her happiness over catching David's little mess-up.

"You know what, missis," David leaned toward her, trying to scold his expression into smelting resembling a glare, but still too amused to actually get an Oscar for his performance. "You are a menace. And here I thought you were all shy and sweet."

Selene copied his glare, adding a small smirk just in the right corner of her lips. "I can be. But what's the fun in that?"

David widened his eyes, obviously surprised at her ability to match his energy.

"Okay, little devil, I'm still out." He looked back at Charlie and Rose, who were hardly paying any attention to them. "Behave. All of you!" And with the final wink, David left.

***

The shift was uncharacteristically quiet for a Sunday night. The place was packed, but the majority of the clients were regulars. So apart from another tantrum thrown by the manager, everything was still.

Selene even made several drinks, huffing and puffing but still managing to do a decent "Wallflower," with Dobel Diamante Tequila, St. Germain, Bianco Vermouth, and Grapefruit Bitter. And she pretended for the rest of the shift that she didn't forget to mix Verjus with the first bitter. Thomas also seemed too occupied in his thoughts to care.

"Here you go, sir," Selene smiled widely at the patron. She balanced between a seductive and professional tone, while copying a slightly lower tone from Rose, who was more than popular with the customers. The gentleman certainly seemed to enjoy it as he later left, tipping her another $40 and even leaving his card. She wasn't planning on using it like many did, but the act itself was not entirely unpleasant.

But the bartender didn't want to focus on the shift any longer. The last patrons were clearing out the place, and even the chef seemed to choose the kitchen over his office. From what Selene learned, he still liked to cook himself when he wasn't away managing the other two places or trying to strangle Mr. Peters for the new wine list.

The staff stopped paying attention to the chef once he seemed a bit more relaxed, surrounded by kitchen appliances and almost deadly sharp knives. As if that atmosphere was calming, Selene thought. She always wondered what he found interesting about frying pans and at least ten other cooks swamping the place. He also looked like a completely different person, tension draining from his figures, his shoulders relaxing, and even those little creases between his eyebrows becoming only faintly visible whenever he was in the kitchen.

Still, it never quite disappeared. And that, too, no one seemed to care about. Besides, everyone was excited to finally raid the restaurant's bar, enjoy free drinks, and later spend their tips on the cheap shots in that basement they called their hang-out.

That's how Selene found herself pouring 2020 Cotes de Provence into Rose's glass and laughing at Luke, who was trying to get Thomas to give him the whole bottle of some rare whiskey.

Selene herself was already on the second bottle of Sunday Lager, denying Charlie's attempts to get her to down shots of tequila.

"Hey, Tommy!" Rose was perched on the bar, her leg just barely touching Charlie's upper arm. "Do you still need our new girl?"

Thomas rolled his eyes half-heartedly, looking directly at Selene.

"I suppose she did great today," he replied. Selene squealed out of excitement, just barely stopping herself from forcing Thomas into a hug. "Get out of here, kid."

"Thank you, Thomas!" Selene quickly escaped the narrow space of the bar and turned to look at Rose. "All right, let me get changed real quick, and we can leave."

Selene rushed towards the changing room to get one of the dresses Rose had brought for her today. According to the waitress, her ex-boyfriend worked in some fancy retailing shop, so she had some clothes privileges, even after they broke up.

The dress Selene picked was a bit out of her style but still in the preferred dark palette. It was black with a V-cut and a slightly flared skirt adorned by little crystals. The neck was deep enough to show a sliver of her cleavage, exposing an elegant cut between her breasts. Teasingly, promisingly and oh so deliciously, according to Rose, who praised Selene's look earlier this morning. Simple, yet still sexy, unlike her previous party outfit. One can't really blame Selene for wearing simple jeans when no one cared to give her a heads-up.

The result: looking drastically out of place in a strangely goth-looking bar. At least this time, she wouldn't stick out like a sore thumb in the ocean of dark leather jackets, smokey eyes, and misty hues. She also covered the leather jacket part, quickly getting hers from the rusty hanger.

The bartender tugged the sleeves a bit lower, covering her partial tattoo sleeve to avoid extra attention from Mr. Peters, and exited the dressing room to walk through the kitchen. She was just about to turn off the light when she was struck by recognition flooding her senses.

The chef was alone in the kitchen, hypnotizing a lonely pan simmering on the stove. He looked positively enthralled by whatever process was starting to bloom but still dissatisfied — perfection was close, and yet out of reach.

Selene quietly shuffled to the exit before taking one a bit too loud step and knocking the tip of her boot with the steel table. She peeked up from her eyelashes and slightly messed up hair to check whether her presence was noticed.

The two electric blue orbs were no longer fixed on the delicacy. They abandoned it in favor of scrutinizing the intruder and Selene felt stuck in place, not able to move. She wondered for a second whether the water concoction brooding on the stove was boiling simply under the power of his gaze.

The bartender straightened her shoulders and met his gaze, not saying a word and no longer trying to move away, too focused on those bewitching eyes that never left hers.

He silently looked her up and down, quick enough to be professional but still longingly enough for her to notice. Now words were said, but his eyes spoke volumes - he noticed the change in her outfit.

Selene swallowed, preparing herself for whatever was about to transpire. As for the chef, he was still watching her.

Closely.