Page 115 of Culinary Chaos
“Yeah, thanks.” Hope had heard exactly what Mary wanted to tell her.
The back door to the kitchen opened, and Hope came face to face with Conrad. She looked at him, worry in her gaze beforeshe finished up the call and ended it. Conrad stared at her with wide eyes and fear in his gaze.
“What are you doing out here?” Hope asked.
“I uh…” Conrad closed his mouth and then licked his lips. “I…”
“Conrad?” Hope asked, straightening up and pushing off the wall. “Aren’t you supposed to be in a meeting with Angelica?”
“I…”
Jesus, was he ever going to say anything other than that?
“I am,” he finally finished a sentence.
“So why aren’t you?” Hope asked, crossing her arms as she held tightly onto her phone.
Conrad wrinkled his face up like a toddler and then shuffled his feet into the gravel. Oh, now that was hilarious. Hope straightened herself up to her full height, putting on the best mom face. She was going to scold him come tomorrow depending on what he said.
“She….” He mumbled something so quiet that Hope couldn’t even hear him.
“What was that?” she asked, needing him to repeat it.
“She scares me,” he whispered.
Hope laughed. Full-on, body-shaking laughs. She could absolutely see why this scrawny man with no backbone would be scared to death of Angelica Shields, a woman so unapologetic about her behavior, a woman who could probably be accused of acting far more like a male CEO than a woman.
She had to wipe tears from the corners of her eyes before she could even manage to get herself together. “I’m not laughingatyou, I promise. She can be quite formidable.”
“Is she always like that?” Conrad asked, not seeming offended by Hope’s reaction, which was probably a good thing.
Hope shrugged. She’d seen an entirely different side to Angelica Shields, but she was also damn sure that not manypeople saw it. In fact, she would almost bet her small fortune that the number of people who did could be counted on two hands, and maybe just one.
“She’s mostly like that.” It was the only answer Hope could give that wasn’t a lie but also didn’t expose the truth of who Angelica was. “What is it about her that scares you?”
“There’s no bending. Like… it’s her way or the highway.”
“She knows what she’s doing when it comes to this business. And she’s damn good at it.” Hope rolled her shoulders and closed her eyes, letting the sun brush across her skin. She really needed to get back into the kitchen, but it felt so good to be out here and to have a tiny break. Even if her break had been interrupted.
“Yeah, but… she scares me.”
Hope chuckled this time. “So you’re hiding out down here?”
“Yeah, for a little bit anyway.” Conrad frowned.
“It’s a good thing I like you.” Hope reached behind her back to turn her mic pack on. “Let’s go back inside. You can help learn how to do dishes properly.”
“What?” Conrad looked offended now. “Why would I do that?”
“Because as an owner and manager, it’s a decently good practice to know what you’re doing in all areas of your business. And, it’ll give you something to do down here instead of just skulking in a corner.” Hope reached for the back door and held it open, waiting for Conrad to walk inside in front of her. She wasn’t going to let him escape for any longer. They were here to be productive after all.
Conrad walked ahead of her, and she set him up on the dishes station. She made eye contact with Kyle, who looked confused, and she shrugged at him slightly before saying she’d talk to him in a minute. Conrad was lucky that he’d hired a competent chef, because the kitchen wasn’t a total disaster. AllHope had really done was tighten up policies and help them to up the quality of the food to a whole new level. They’d officially be in five-star restaurant range now.
Wiping her hands on the towel hooked in her waist, she walked over to Kyle. “He’s hiding from Ange.”
“Who wouldn’t?” Kyle laughed, and immediately, Hope hated that he did. Why was everyone so damn mean about her? Didn’t they realize that that attitude was what put Angelica on the outs of absolutely everything?
“I’m going to go talk to Rex and see if he can send her down here to fetch her owner.” Hope flashed Kyle a smile and walked out. He could film without her for a bit. It wasn’t like they had much more to discuss anyway.
