Page 86 of Holly versus Mr. Ivy
Nico jerked his head up in his typicalhey, brogreeting. “Chef.”
“With the weather, we won’t be as busy tonight,” I uselessly stated. They’d all driven through the same slush I had. I tapped the back of my hand against the schedule I’d taped up on the wall a year ago. “Let’s hold off on our usual load.”
“Yes, Chef,” my staff responded as one.
Leaning my back against the counter, I folded my arms across my chest. “Distract me,” I addressed Skye as she washed vegetables. “What did you do this morning?”
“My cousins, who are still in town, went with me downtown.”
Downtown as in the festival or something else? Had she seen Rhett and me together? I hoped not. “I went to the festival, and it was a zoo.”
“The snow started sticking to the roads right after we got there, so we didn’t stay long. But yeah, it was super crowded.”
Phew. She probably hadn’t seen us, then. “I wasn’t expecting this much snow. I hate driving in it.”
“Same, I—”
“Chef?” Rhett interrupted whatever Skye was about to say.
A smile took over my entire face. I probably looked like the giant Christmas tree lit up in the town square. Just seeing his handsome face made me all gooey inside, like an under-baked chocolate chip cookie. “Yes, Mr. Ivy?”
“Do you have a moment to join me in my office?”
Was this to discuss business or for pleasure? I really wanted it to be the latter. “Yes. I’ll be right in.”
Rhett walked off, and my eyes strayed right to his backside. Too bad his suitcoat hung down a smidge too far so I didn’t get to ogle his perfectly toned butt.
I pushed off the edge of the counter. “I’d better go see what Mr. Ivy needs. I’ll be back in a bit.”
“Sure thing.”
I walked into Rhett’s office and used my foot to close the door. We usually kept it open when other people were here, but it also wasn’t unheard of for us to shut it. I wasn’t sure what Rhett wanted to talk about, but I kept it closed in case my fantasy came to fruition. “Hey. What did you need to see me about?”
“My uncle is coming in tomorrow. He wants to discuss the numbers.”
Oh. So he really did want to talk about work. Bummer.
Last time Anthony came, Rhett had a panic attack. “I’ll stay with you the whole time. I’m not doing much in the kitchen anyway. We can face him together.”
“The numbers…” Rhett winced.
My heart dropped to the floor and shattered. So it didn’t matter if Rhett and I dated or not, because one way or another, we wouldn’t have jobs at the end of the year. “We won’t make it?”
He blew out a breath. “I honestly don’t know. We’ve increased profits, but I just can’t guarantee we’ll get to ten percent. If we do, it will be by a hair.”
I sank into the chair in front of Rhett’s desk. “Oh.”
Rhett looked as disappointed as I felt. We’d tried. Rhett made excellent plans. I trusted him. One way or another, we’d make it. I couldn’t lose my job. We couldn’t give up hope yet.
“I’m sorry, Holly.”
“This isn’t your fault, Rhett. And we still have time. Are there any other ideas you and Aaron have for what we can do?”
Rhett picked up a pen and twirled it between his fingers. “Aaron suggested we offer a free dessert to anyone who buys a gift card.”
“Brilliant. With the holidays, we’ll for sure get more cash flow coming in.”
“I agree.” Rhett nodded. “Aaron knows his stuff.”
