Menu for Romance (5 page)

She led him up the back staircase from the kitchen. “I know you probably want to get home and relax on your day off.” She pushed open a set of double doors at the end of the hall. “So I’ll keep this as short as possible.”

The study was at least the size of Major’s living room and bedroom combined. Mairee led him to a raised area in a bay window and motioned for him to take one of the wing chairs while she enthroned herself in the other.

“How’s your mother?” she asked, settling back as if ready for a long chat.

“She’s fine. I just came from seeing her, actually.”

Mairee’s eyes flickered to the door. “Oh, good, Lawson—there you are.”

Discomfort settled in Major’s gut. What in the world would they want to talk to him about that they couldn’t do at the office? He blanched.
Please, Lord, don’t let anyone have come down with food poisoning last night!
But Mairee had told him early yesterday evening she wanted him to come by today.

He stood and offered the chair to Lawson, but Meredith’s father waved him off and pulled one of the ottomans beside Mairee’s chair.

Mairee folded her hands in her lap. “I know you’ve got to be wondering why we asked you to meet with us today, outside of business hours.”

Major nodded and swallowed, trying to ease the dryness in his throat.

“We wanted to discuss your future with Boudreaux-Guidry Enterprises. Your annual appraisal is coming up in a couple of weeks, and Lawson and I wanted to take some time to talk to you about your goals and plans for the future.”

Rubbing his tongue hard against the backs of his teeth, Major nodded again, flickering a glance at Lawson then back at Mairee. Meredith looked more like her father than her mother.

“You told us a long time ago that one of your dreams is to open a restaurant here in Bonneterre.” Mairee uncrossed and recrossed her ankles, leaning forward slightly. “We have recently purchased a bundle of properties in the Warehouse District—all of which has been rezoned to commercial and retail space. You may or may not have heard that we have just contracted with another company to develop the area into a village square–style shopping area—boutiques, specialty stores, high fashion, and the like.”

The knot in Major’s stomach stopped twisting.

Lawson took over. “One of the properties in the parcel was a cafeteria. It’s a separate building with a large industrial kitchen. While it would need a complete overhaul, we believe you’re up to the task.”

His heart tripped and fell into his feet, then leaped back up into his throat. “Me? You want me to overhaul the cafeteria?”

Lawson chuckled. “No. Not a cafeteria. A restaurant.
Your
restaurant. Well, technically, we would own most it—but with an investment, you’ll be a co-owner in addition to being executive chef. And over time, we expect you to buy us out of it—even if it’s just 10 or 20 percent at a time—until it truly is your restaurant.”

Investment.
He prayed he had enough money saved. So long as nothing happened with Ma anytime soon, he could be on the road toward becoming the restaurateur he had always dreamed of being.

Mairee laid her hand on her husband’s arm. “We don’t need to get into all of the business details right now—Forbes will take care of that. What we do want is for you to take some time to think about this. You’d still be working for us—drawing a salary—and we would need you to continue to oversee the event catering division. I know that will put quite a strain on your time, but no one ever said opening a restaurant would be easy.”

“No, ma’am, no one ever did.” Major’s heart pounded so hard, he could feel it in the tip of his nose.

Lawson stood and stepped over to the large writing desk nearby, returning with a thick manila folder. “Forbes is handling all of the legalities—the restaurant will be incorporated separately from B-G Enterprises. I believe he’s already called you to set up an appointment.”

Rising from the chair, Major took the folder with trembling hands. “Yes, sir.”

“We don’t expect you to make this decision quickly or without a lot of thought,” Mairee said. “In fact, if you said yes today, I would withdraw the offer because you hadn’t thought through all of the pros and cons. We do ask for an answer by Easter, though. Groundbreaking is scheduled for the first week of May.”

Lawson extended his right hand to Major. “We want you to know that if you feel this isn’t the right time for you to take on something like this, we’ll still consider ourselves fortunate to have the best chef in the Gulf South working for us at B-G.”

Hand so numb he barely felt the pressure from Lawson’s, Major thanked his employers.

“Will you stay a little while?” Mairee asked, standing. “Several people hoped to see you to compliment you on last night’s food.” She raised her brows.

Networking—one of the most important skills he’d learned about the food service industry. Personal relationships with the right people could ensure a restaurant’s success. “Of course I’ll stay awhile.”

Mairee beamed. “Come along, then. I believe I saw Kitty McCord looking at you with adoring eyes just before we came up.”

He followed his employers downstairs. No sooner had he cleared the bottom step than a woman dressed in pink tweed took hold of his arm.

“Major O’Hara, isn’t it?”

“Yes, Mrs. McCord.” Major eyed her little dog speculatively, but for the moment it appeared calm.

“Just call me Kitty. I’m sorry I didn’t recognize you when we came in. When Gus told me who you were, I just had to find you to tell you how fabulous the food was last night—though really I should be reprimanding you, making me have to start the New Year off with a resolution to lose the ten pounds I know I put on with all of your wonderful dishes.”

“Thank you.”

“Now, come with me. There are a few people I want to introduce you to.”

Feeling very much like the dog clasped in her other arm, Major allowed himself to be led around the Guidrys’ home and introduced like a prized pet to Mrs. McCord’s friends.

“Were you responsible for last night?” the state senator’s wife asked. “That was one of the most wonderful galas I’ve ever attended—and we’ve been to ever so many in Baton Rouge and New Orleans.”

“I wish I could claim full responsibility, ma’am, but that praise rightfully goes to Meredith Guidry, the executive director of events. She planned and organized everything.” He wished Meredith were here, listening to the accolades. She tended to be too hard on herself, taking a few minor complaints to heart and not enjoying the copious amounts of praise for her events.

“Yes ... Meredith. Bless her heart. I met with her the other day to start planning Easter in the Park. I never would have guessed she’d be capable of pulling off an event like last night, though. She must rely greatly on you.” Mrs. McCord’s simpering voice and flirtatious expression were repeated by the retinue of ladies circled around him.

Major stiffened, and the tiny hairs at the back of his neck prickled. “Actually, Mrs. McCord, the truth of the matter is that we all rely on Meredith more than we should. She’s such an organizational genius that all I have to do is show up and follow her plan to make everything go smoothly.”

“Hmm.” Kitty McCord’s smile tightened. Before she could say more, a commotion caught her attention. “Oh, here’s someone you
must
meet.”

Major turned to look the same direction and quickly closed his eyes against a blinding beam of light. He blinked a couple of times and finally was able to open them enough to see the source—a large TV camera.

The mayor’s wife held her hands out toward an exotic young woman with dark hair and features. “Alaine Delacroix, what a surprise to see you here.” The two women exchanged a kiss on the cheek.

“Mrs. McCord, how lovely to see you. Might I impose on you for an interview?”

“Naturally, you know how much I love talking to you.” Mrs. McCord clamped her hand around the reporter’s elbow. “But first, there’s someone I want to introduce to you.”

Major’s skin tingled as the two women drew closer, even with as much as he tried to quell the purely epicurean reaction to the younger one. What man wouldn’t react to such a beautiful creature?

“Alaine, this is Major O’Hara. He’s the chef responsible for the New Year’s Eve Ball.”

The young woman shook hands with him. “Alaine Delacroix, Channel Six News. I would love to get an interview with you, Mr. O’Hara. Would you have time this afternoon?”

Held enthralled by Alaine Delacroix’s chocolate eyes, Major swallowed a couple of times. “I ... yes, I’m ... I have time.”

Alaine’s full lips split into a smile revealing perfect, dazzlingly white teeth.

“Did I hear someone say something about Major being interviewed for Alaine’s show?” Mairee Guidry joined the cluster of women. She gave Major a significant look. “What a wonderful opportunity.”

Major wiped his clammy palms on his khakis, unsure of how he’d gotten himself into this situation. Yes, being featured on a news show would be great publicity for B-G Enterprises—and potentially for the restaurant—but that kind of publicity would only lead to people asking questions, finding out about his background ... about his mother.

He cleared the rising apprehension from his throat. “Yes, it would be a wonderful opportunity.” Collecting himself, he gave a slight bow. “Ladies, it was a delight to meet you. Ms. Delacroix, I just recalled a previous engagement, so I won’t be able to do that interview right now—” Catching sight of Mairee’s raised eyebrow, he fished into his back pocket, slid a business card out of his wallet, and handed it to the reporter. “But do call me sometime, and we’ll reschedule.”

Alaine’s fingers brushed his as she took the card, sending quivers of sensation up his arm. “I will call you tomorrow morning, Major O’Hara.”

Major excused himself, retrieved his coat from the kid at the door, and barely waited for the door to close behind him before he took off toward Kirby at a full-out run. The cold rain in his face helped calm him, and by the time he reached the Jeep, his thoughts had stopped swirling. He hadn’t had a reaction like that to a woman’s mere presence in ... ever. Now that he was away from her, shame over his reaction seeped through him. He’d foresworn dating, realizing that he’d never be able to saddle a woman he loved with his life—between the hours he worked and never knowing when the day might come that his mother would have a complete psychotic break.

Meredith’s image slipped into his mind. Of any woman he knew, she was the only one who would understand his life, the only one who gave him a sense of fulfillment, of companionship. She wouldn’t care about his hours—she worked longer than he did and spent the rest of her time refurbishing that house—but still, the specter of her reaction when she found out about Ma turned his stomach.

Kirby’s engine roared to life. No. He couldn’t do that to Meredith. She deserved better, better than the pittance of a life he could offer her. Major would have to settle for finding fulfillment in work—in opening a restaurant.

After a day of falling in the mud, scraping paint, and hauling in a twenty-pound bag of puppy food, Meredith stood in the shower for several minutes, letting the hot, pulsating water work on her sore muscles. On the other side of the shower curtain, snuffling sounds and nails clicking on tile kept her well aware of the fur ball’s movements around the small bathroom.

“I still can’t believe I let myself think that guy was interested in me.”

The puppy barked in response to her voice. Meredith smiled and worked honeysuckle-scented shampoo into her hair. “Maybe it is a good thing I found you, if you’re going to talk back to me. Now people won’t think I’m quite as crazy when I talk to myself out loud. I just don’t know if I’m ready for a dog.”

Meredith nearly tripped over the puppy when she got out of the shower. She pushed him back with her foot to keep his claws from her bare legs. His wagging tail caused his whole body to wriggle. How could she give up such unadulterated, uninhibited love? “Okay. I’ll put signs up, and if no one has contacted me in a week or so, I’ll take them down and you can stay with me.”

She took extra time styling her shoulder-length hair and applying makeup. Even though she would only be with her parents and siblings, if she showed up the way she preferred—jeans, sweatshirt, and well-worn work boots—Mom wouldn’t speak to her all night. But Meredith would definitely hear about it in undertones and insinuations all day tomorrow.

Her sisters could wear designer jeans and nice tops. But none of them worked for Mom and Dad. Meredith bypassed the closet full of denim and comfortable clothes and went instead to the closet holding her more expensive, work-appropriate attire.

After twenty minutes, she sank onto the side of the bed amid a pile of tops and pants. She hated feeling like she had to be “on” all the time around her family. But it kept at bay the whispers and hints that her choice in casual clothes might have something to do with why she was still single.

“What will I be most comfortable in?” she asked the clothes now strewn across her bed.

She chose her utilitarian black slacks—the size twelves that were somewhat loose in the waist—and a light turquoise cashmere twinset with a little beading around the neck. She stepped into her favorite loafer-style black pumps and turned to admire the look in the antique cheval mirror. Knowing Mom, she’d be dressed similarly.

“No, no, no!” She pushed the puppy away with one foot as he pounced on the hem of her pant leg. “If you’re going to stay with me, you’re going to have to learn better manners than that!”

Unabashed, he sat and hunched over to scratch at his new collar.

“Get used to it, bubba. Come on. We’d better take you out before it’s time to go.”

Pleased with his performance outside, she took him back into the bathroom, where she picked up the rug and draped it over the shower curtain rod. In its place, she put down a triple layer of newspaper and an old towel for him to sleep on.

As soon as she closed the door, he cried and whined his displeasure. She ignored him.

With the lint roller in hand and balancing on one foot so she could get the dog hair off the hem of her pant leg, she buzzed the intercom to Jenn’s apartment.

“What?” Her sister’s voice crackled through the speaker.

“You about ready to go?”

“It’s only—crimenetly. I didn’t realize it was already six. I’ll be down in five minutes.”

“Jenn. You know how I hate—”

“Being late. I know. But everyone will blame me, not you.”

Eight minutes later, Jenn clattered downstairs and entered without knocking. “Wow, Mere, you’re awfully dressed up.” Jenn, of course, looked fabulously stylish in her dark indigo jeans with penny loafers and a bright green turtleneck sweater.

Meredith quirked the corner of her mouth in a grimace. “You know how it is with Mom.”

“Yeah, I know. She gives you a hard time. But that’s only when you show up in the rattiest stuff you own—” Jenn cocked her head. “What in the—Is that a
dog
I hear?”

“A puppy. Come on—I’ll tell you about him in the car.”

“I want to see him.” Jenn barreled through the apartment and opened the bathroom door before Meredith could stop her.

“He’s so
cute!
” Jenn’s voice reached the extreme high pitch usually brought on by a baby sighting. She crouched and scooped up the puppy. “Let’s take him over to Mama and Daddy’s.”

“No. Jenn, look—you already have fur all over your sweater. Can you imagine how Mom would react if he had an accident in the house?”

Jenn’s expression shouted incredulity. She stood and tucked the squirming pup under her arm. “Mom loves dogs. She’s the one who kept Daddy from getting rid of Jax, even after Jax completely lost control of his bladder. He’s coming.” Jenn marched past. “Why you’ve gotten it in your head that they’re going to disapprove of everything you do or say...”

Because I’m the only sap who went into the family business.
Well, that wasn’t true. Rafe had worked for their parents for a couple of years, flying one of the corporate jets. But he didn’t have to work with them day in and day out—and he’d left the company late last year to work for a charter airline.

The only reason Meredith had seven siblings was because her parents thought that all of them would run B-G so they could retire early. With a master’s degree in art history, Meredith hadn’t really had any job options other than going to work as an assistant event planner ten years ago.

Sometimes she wished she’d been brave enough to pursue her dream of working in home design, but as that had not been deemed a viable job choice by her parents—

“Hey! We going or what?” Jenn stepped back into the apartment. “Coming.” Meredith grabbed her keys and wallet off the table and followed her sister outside.

“Can we take your car?” Jenn asked, walking around to the passenger side of the SUV. “The ’Stang’s top is still leaking.”

Meredith rounded the tail end of Jenn’s classic Mustang, already expecting to be the one driving. She climbed into the Volvo and started the engine.

“So, how’d you end up with this little guy?” Jen nuzzled the puppy, who joyously licked her chin.

Meredith buckled her seat belt and pulled out of the driveway, relating what had happened. By the time she parked under one of the centuries-old oak trees in front of their parents’ house, she’d gotten to the part about taking the pup to the quick clinic at the pet store.

“Yeah? Well I think I’d be kinda wiggly, too, if someone was trying to stick a thermometer there.” Jenn cooed gibberish at the dog and climbed out of the vehicle, tucking the puppy under her raincoat for the dash to the front porch.

Sighing, Meredith popped open her umbrella and followed her sister up the sidewalk.

With the exception of all the furniture still being shoved up against the walls in the front rooms, little evidence remained of the hundreds of people who’d likely crowded the house for most of the day.

The front door opened behind her, and she turned. Forbes closed his umbrella and stowed it in the rack beside the door. She waited for him; he hooked his arm around her neck and kissed her temple.

“Did you have a good day?” He eased the headlock and settled his arm across her shoulders as they strolled down the hall.

“Yep—well, for the most part. My stupid brother provoked me into an argument this morning.”

He squeezed his arm tightly around her neck again. “I apologized.” She nudged his side with her knuckles; he released her and danced away, squirming. “I know. And you were right—it was better for me to find out ahead of time instead of being blindsided by it. Did you forewarn Jenn, too?”

“Uh ... no. You know she can’t keep a secret to save her life.”

Meredith wrinkled her nose. “She might not take it as well as I did.”

“I know. But we’ll cross that bridge—”

“There you two are.” Mom greeted them as soon as Meredith and Forbes entered the kitchen. She looked Meredith over from head to toe. “Do you have a date after this or something?”

Meredith glanced at Forbes, in his form-fitting black turtleneck and jeans, then back at their mother—also in jeans. She plastered on a smile. “Oh, I thought I’d try to make everyone else feel completely
under
dressed for a change.” Would she ever be able to do
anything
right when it came to her parents?

“Well, come on and get some food.”

As in years past, almost every inch of counter space in the generously sized kitchen was covered with trays and pans of food. Growing up, Meredith and her siblings had always looked forward to dinner on New Year’s Day because they got to eat the leftovers from the open house—including as much dessert as they wanted.

Family members milled about, filling plates, while some had already migrated into the great room beyond the kitchen’s breakfast bar.

Rafe vacated the rocking chair and offered it to Meredith. “Don’t want you getting your fancy duds messed up.” Though his voice lilted with teasing humor, his eyes held sympathy and understanding.

“Thanks.”

At her youngest sisters’ high-pitched voices, she looked across the room and saw them feeding bits of Aunt Maggie’s gourmet food to the puppy. Her brothers were more interested in the football game on the flat-panel TV mounted above the crackling fireplace—even Forbes seemed to be getting involved in the game between two teams from faraway colleges no one in this family had ever cared about before.

Finally, at eight o’clock, Meredith’s father turned off the TV. “Well, here we are, at the start of another year. This time we have a new face with us.” He motioned toward Marci’s boyfriend with an outstretched hand. “Welcome, Shaun. I’m not sure if Marci explained exactly what it is that we do here on New Year’s.”

“Yes, sir, sort of like what most families do at Thanksgiving.”

“Right—except we’re giving our goal for the upcoming year and what we intend to do to reach it. Last year I believe Forbes went first?” Lawson shot a raised-brow glance at his oldest son.

“Yes, sir.”

“Then it’s youngest to oldest this year. Tiffani, take it away.”

As her youngest sister started talking about her upcoming semester at college and grades and school projects, Meredith mentally rehearsed her goal: finishing renovations on the house and getting moved and settled in. No, it wasn’t creative or soul-searching, but really, what else did she have in her life?

An image of Major flickered in her mind’s eye. She wished she had Major in her life—more than as just an infatuation that wouldn’t go away. She forced her mind to replace his image with one of Ward Breaux. Had he been flirting with her before he knew she might need a contractor? Sure, he’d been a little condescending, but he’d seen her as a woman, not as “just one of the guys” as most of the other men she’d ever known did.

Jonathan and Kevin gave their goals—both also talking mostly about college. When Marci’s turn came, Meredith set her own relationship musings aside and paid attention. Marci launched into her goal—changing her major to nursing and, in another two years, finally finishing school.

“That’s an admirable goal, Marci. You know we’ll support you no matter what career path you choose.” Dad’s eyes twinkled, and the corners of his mouth twitched. Like Jenn, he was horrible at keeping secrets. “Shaun, would you like to participate?”

Though almost thirty years old, Shaun squirmed like a schoolboy in the principal’s office. “I’m really happy to have been included in your family’s tradition.” His gaze darted around the room, but he didn’t make eye contact with anyone. Seated on the floor in front of her, he turned to face Marci and raised up onto one knee. “Marci, we’ve been together for four years now. I can’t imagine spending my life without you by my side. Will you marry me?”

Marci shrieked a yes. Meredith swallowed and blinked hard.

Jenn fled the room.

Meredith groaned. Not good. Fortunately, Marci and Shaun were too preoccupied with each other to notice Jenn’s reaction. Meredith dabbed the corners of her eyes with a napkin and stood, waving her mother back down. “Let me.”

She passed through the kitchen and down the main hallway, calling her sister’s name. She followed the sound of sobbing to the powder room under the elaborate staircase. She knocked softly. “Jenn?”

“Go away.”

“Jennifer.” Meredith tapped on the door again.

“Go away! I don’t want to talk about it, okay?”

“Do you want me to go get your stuff and tell the family you’re sick and we’re going home?”

A long pause. “No.”

“Then talk to me. You can’t stay in there all night.”

The doorknob rattled and clicked; Jenn didn’t come out, though. Meredith pulled the door open. “May I come in?”

Jenn perched on the closed commode, elbows on knees, weeping into a wad of toilet paper.

Meredith closed the door behind her and leaned against the edge of the pedestal sink.

“It’s not fair,” Jenn wailed.

“What? That Marci’s engaged? Or that she’s twenty-four and engaged?”

Jenn moaned into her fistful of tissue.

“Look, I understand—”

“How could you possibly understand what I’m feeling?”

Meredith rocked back, the words hitting her like a sucker punch to the gut. “Wait just a minute. You haven’t forgotten that I’m almost three years older than you, have you? And that I’m having to figure out how to accept the fact that my sister who is
ten
years younger than me just got engaged?”

“But you’ve never been in love—you’ve never even dated! How could you understand what this means to me? I’ve been trying for half my life to find what Marci found with her first boyfriend.”

Meredith separated the hurt and anger Jenn’s words caused from the need to counsel her sister through this emotional crisis. She’d deal with her own emotions later. “Just because I’ve never dated doesn’t mean I’ve never been in love.”

Once again the specter of Major flickered in Meredith’s mind, but she shoved the thought aside. “When I was in college, I fell in love with someone who didn’t return my feelings, and I had to stand by and watch him marry a girl who was supposed to be a friend of mine: my roommate, who knew I was in love with him. So how do you think it makes me feel to know my younger sister has found something I’m still searching for? Something I’ve been searching for longer than you? How do you think I feel every time a handsome, interesting man asks you for a date? Or when Rafe doesn’t come to Thursday night dinner because he’s on a date? Or being maid of honor for Anne?”