Page 31 of The Sweet Chef and the Corporate Queen

She gives me a knowing look but takes the plates without further comment.

Once dinner service is winding down and dessert has been served, I step out the back door of the kitchen, needing air that doesn't taste of the farewell dinner I've just prepared.

The night is clear, stars impossibly bright above the mountains. I drop onto the bench outside the kitchen door, head tilted back to take in the vastness of the sky. This view never gets old. It’s one of countless reasons I've never seriously considered leaving Elk Ridge.

Until now.

The door creaks open behind me, and I straighten, expecting Georgia or one of the other kitchen staff. Instead, Liam steps out, two beers in hand.

"Thought you might need this," my brother says, offering me a bottle.

"How'd you know I'd be out here?"

"Because I've known you your entire life." He sits beside me, the bench creaking under his weight. "And because Mom mentioned you've been burning bacon. Sure signs of a Declan Callahan crisis."

I accept the beer but don't respond.

"Mom says you're brooding over the CEO," Liam continues after a moment. "The one with the kid who's been shadowing you in the kitchen."

"Her name is Jules," I say, surprising myself with the defensiveness in my tone. "And her daughter is Mia."

"Jules and Mia," Liam repeats, taking a swig of his beer. "And they leave tomorrow."

"Yep."

"And you're out here staring at stars instead of doing something about it because...?"

"Because there's nothing to do," I snap. "She's made it perfectly clear that her life is in New York. That whatever happened between us was a vacation anomaly, not worth pursuing."

"And you're just accepting that?"

"What choice do I have? I can't force her to see something she doesn't want to see."

Liam shakes his head slowly. "You know, for someone who takes risks with food combinations all the time, you're surprisingly cautious with your heart."

"This isn't about caution. It's about reality. She has an entire life built in New York—a company, a home for Mia. I can't ask her to walk away from that."

"Who said anything about walking away? Last I checked, planes fly in both directions." He claps a hand on my shoulder. "The question isn't what Jules should give up. It's what you're willing to fight for."

We sit in silence for a few minutes, his words working their way through my defenses.

"You know," Liam says eventually, "I've never seen you connect with anyone the way you did with that little girl. And I've definitely never seen you look at a woman the way you look at her mother."

"It doesn't matter how I look at her if she won't look back."

"Are you sure that's the problem? Because from where I'm standing, it seems like she's looking too hard—just in the wrong direction." Liam stands, gathering our empty bottles. "Sleep on it, little brother. You've still got one more breakfast service before they leave."

After he's gone, I remain on the bench, considering his words. The last time I felt this way about someone, I let her walk away without a fight because the timing wasn't right, because our lives were heading in different directions. I told myself it was the mature decision, the rational choice.

I've regretted it ever since.

The kitchen door opens again, and this time it's Mia who pokes her head out.

"There you are!" she exclaims. "Mom said I couldn't come in the kitchen because you were too busy, but I wanted to say goodnight."

My heart constricts at the sight of her. "Hey, Chef Mia. Shouldn't you be at the fancy dinner?"

"It's boring," she confides, plopping down beside me. "All the grown-ups are talking about quarterly projections and market share."

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