Mari tapped her foot.
Bella stopped and stared. “Sorry. Me and my big mouth.” She strode over and hugged her sister, embarrassed at being caught out voicing her true opinion. Again! She needed to remember to filter her words. “It’s not that disgusting, not really. It’s just old and now it’s unserviceable. Things are different now, streamlined to make chefs work easier. This place is behind the times. Sorry, I hate being picky but you asked.”
Mari patted her on the back. “Joking. I know this place is a nightmare and I wanted to redo it anyway. Part of the long-term plan but I wanted to get a feel for the place before I spend all Rake’s insurance money.” She glanced at the charred stove. “That belongs in the deepest gully I can find but, sadly, Penny wanted to keep it so I went along with her. She was used to the old relic and horrified I wanted to change things. I wasn’t prepared to lose my chef the minute I walked in the door. Figured it was better to tread softly until the locals got to know me and I’d made my mark.”
“You wanted to? You’re not just saying that?” Things looked brighter by the minute.
“Yeah I want to but—and it’s a big but—I may have to get new plans drawn up, get permission if I want to make structural changes and that’s going to be hard to keep the restaurant afloat while I’m doing it. Not that there’s much chance of that now but see my dilemma?”
Bella chewed on her lip. “Yeah.”
“To tell the truth, I don’t even know what I want to do in here. So the question is, do I close down for months on end, completely rip this out and replace it or do I do it in stages so there’s a workable kitchen? I mean, is that even possible? You’d know more about that side of things than I would. The restaurant is a big part of the income for the hotel. Not sure I want to lose that now that I have the customers coming in regularly.”
“You catered for the Christmas gala out of this kitchen, right? Even with that horrid stove.”
“Yeah, we did.”
“So it’s serviceable or at least it will be once you replace the stove and get the place cleaned up.”
“I suppose. It’s just that you’re used to a higher standard than this old place. Planning commission checked it and passed it when I took over so it’s safe if not the prettiest kitchen in the world. I know what you’re used to, Bella. I’ve watched your shows too and I can’t see you working in something like this, no matter how much you insist it will be fine. I should have thought of that before I said you could take over the restaurant. I’m sorry I can’t offer you better.”
“Don’t be silly. I’ve been spoiled, I’ll admit that but that’s okay. I started with far worse.” She walked over to the stove and looked at it, letting her mind drift back. “Don’t you remember that dingy little café I started out in? The cringe-worthy kitchen was way worse than this place. I can’t believe I stayed there so long before I moved along to something better but at least I learned heaps.” She stared at the stove. “You can replace this one without spending a fortune, you know. And since the kitchen will be out of action for a while anyway, maybe it’s time to go ahead and do what you need to do.”
“Maybe. But enough, you didn’t come here to rebuild my kitchen as much as I would appreciate someone else taking over that chore for me. Tell me more about what you want to do apart from rest up?”
“No, honestly, I want to help and you’d be doing me a favor. I can’t sit on my butt and look at the view. It’s not me, Mari. You know that.”
Her sister stood staring at her, silent.
“Oh, come on. Have pity on me for goodness’ sake. I need to work or I’ll go nuts. Besides, I actually have a deadline for my next book. I need to try out my recipes and I was all set to use this kitchen. Now I’ve ruined it. I don’t know what I’m going to do.”
“You haven’t had a vacation for years. Don’t you think it would be a good idea now that you have time? You could go on a world cruise, go take a gondola down the canals in Venice, or climb a mountain if you really wanted to.”
“No!” She stamped her foot, frustration rising as the idea of laying back in a hammock with an iced tea and a book took hold. Not going to happen! Not this century anyway. “If I miss my deadline, Jason, my photographer, will never work for me again. I’ve had to book him months ahead to use him, Mari. Guys that good don’t grow on trees you know. Besides, if I let my publisher down, they’ll never give me another contract. That I know for a fact and I like doing the books.”
“I doubt that. They’d be silly to let you go over a late book.”
“You have no idea how it works. They slot the release day in over a year in advance. Everything comes down to meticulous planning that I can’t afford to screw up. They’ll mark me up as ‘precious’ and decide it’s too hard to work with me.” She tugged at her hair, twisted it around her finger. “I need to keep on track or risk losing everything I’ve worked for, enforced break or not.”
“Seriously, Bella, you have more energy than anyone I know. Come on, come and have a coffee and say hello to your nephew. We can talk more about this once he’s at school.” Mari turned and walked out, leaving Bella to
